Hollywood's reopening hits roadblocks as pandemic endures

"The Bold and the Beautiful" had been on the air 33 years without a break until the COVID-19 pandemic forced a shutdown across Hollywood in March. After local health officials and unions permitted filming to restart June 17, the show hit another roadblock.

Producers of the soap opera took multiple precautions: They used dolls and actors' real life partners as "stunt kissers," cut the crew by about 20% and separated directors with Plexiglas at Television City studios in Los Angeles. But conducting 200 coronavirus tests weekly proved daunting. The first round yielded too many inconclusive results, making producers nervous about an outbreak.

So they shut down again while testing moved to a new lab, which was able to deliver more reliable results, and production resumed two days later.

"It's been a financial strain,"