CBS Cancels "As The World Turns"

CBS is taking yet another long-running soap opera off its air.

As the World Turns, after 54 years and more than 13,000 episodes, will come to an end in September. The announcement was made on the day the show's 13,661st episode was aired.

Just three months after the longest-running soap opera ever, Guiding Light, aired its final episode, CBS announced its next cancellation, leaving the network with its last two soaps - The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful.

As the World Turns, launched in 1956, averaged 2.5 million total viewers this year (down from 2.6 million last year), which is less than half of the audience that watches The Young and the Restless, which averages just over 5 million, reports The Los Angeles Times.

Lynn Leahey, editorial director of Soap Opera Digest, said the news did not come as a surprise but it will be hard for fans to let go.

"Still, it's a punch in the gut for fans," she said. "This is a show they've been holding near and dear for decades."

The series followed the lives of families in the fictional town of Oakdale, Ill., and featured Meg Ryan, Marisa Tomei and Julianne Moore among many others.