Today in Soap Opera History (September 15)

Peyton Place premiered on ABC 50 years ago today.

"Prepare for the unknown by studying how others in the past have coped with the unforeseeable and the unpredictable."
George S. Patton

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1964: Primetime soap opera Peyton Place premiered on ABC. Based upon the 1956 novel of the same name by Grace Metalious, the series was preceded by a 1957 film adaptation. Peyton Place ran for 514 total episodes with the series finale airing on June 2, 1969.

In the first episode, Dr. Michael Rossi (Ed Nelson) arrived from New York City to set up practice in town. Newspaper editor Matthew Swain (Warner Anderson) told him people usually tried to get away from towns like Peyton Place, not move to them. Matthew's cousin Allison MacKenzie (Mia Farrow), a close friend of classmate Norman Harrington (Christopher Connelly), fell in love with his older brother, Rodney (Ryan O'Neal) as they shared their first kiss. At the end of the episode, Allison's mother, Constance (Dorothy Malone), made it clear she disapproved of her daughter's relationship with Rodney.





1981: On Another World, Jamie (Richard Bekins) consulted with Brian on getting a quick divorce from Cecile (Nancy Frangione).



1988: On Santa Barbara, Eden (Marcy Walker) was raped.



1994: On As the World Turns, Christopher (Christian Siefert) was on the lake canoeing and nearly drowned when a storm hit. He got washed ashore, where Mac revived him and built a shelter until someone came to rescue them.

1999: Jacob Young finished a 2-year run as Rick Forrester on The Bold and the Beautiful. He returned to the role in September 2011 following an 8-year stint as J.R. Chandler in All My Children.

2008: BBC One aired the final episode of Grange Hill. Created by Phil Redmond, who also developed Brookside and Hollyoaks, Grange Hill ran for 601 episodes over 20 years.



2009: On Guiding Light, Phillip Spaulding (Grant Aleksander) proposed to his true love, Beth Raines (Beth Chamberlin). Later, he found his father, Alan Spaulding, (Ron Raines) sitting on a bench, told him about Beth, and thanked him for saving his life before he realized that Alan was dead.



2010: On As the World Turns, Carly (Maura West) and Jack (Michael Park) were married again, the final wedding for the couple fans dubbed "CarJack".



2010: Corinne Michaels Camacho, who played Joanne Barnes in Days of our Lives and Joan Dade in Capitol, died at age 68. She also guest-starred in Flamingo Road.

Celebrating a birthday today are:
Forrest Compton (ex-Mike, The Edge of Night; ex-Dr. Daly, Loving; ex-Bill, One Life to Live; ex-Alfred, Another World; ex-Vince, Bright Promise; ex-Grayling, The Brighter Day) - 89
Henry Darrow (ex-Carlos, The Bold and the Beautiful; ex-Rafael, Santa Barbara; ex-Danto, One Life to Live; ex-Ambassador Tabris, General Hospital; ex-Ramon, Dynasty) - 81
Ed Scott (Supervising Producer, The Bold and the Beautiful; Days of our Lives; The Young and the Restless) - 70
Tommy Lee Jones (ex-Mark, One Life to Live) - 68
Fran Myers (Writer, Days of our Lives; Another World; One Life to Live; ex-Peggy, Guiding Light) - 64
Scott Thompson Baker (ex-Connor, The Bold and the Beautiful; ex-Brian, Savannah; ex-Craig, All My Children; ex-Colton, General Hospital) - 54
Ross Kettle (ex-Jeffrey, Santa Barbara; ex-Stewart, As the World Turns) - 53
Josh Charles (ex-Will, The Good Wife) - 43
Marisa Ramirez (ex-Carmen, The Young and the Restless; ex-Gia, General Hospital) - 37
Dave Annable (ex-Justin, Brothers & Sisters) - 35
Christian Cooke (ex-Brae, Echo Beach) - 28
Kate Mansi (Abigail, Days of our Lives) - 26

EDITOR'S NOTE: If you have a tip on a bit of soap history on this date or future dates, let us know. Send an email to [email protected]