Today in Soap Opera History (July 18)

On this date in...

1934: Actress Darlene Conley was born. Best known for her many years as Sally Sprectra on THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, she also played evil Rose DeVille on THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS in the late '70s (running a prostitution and baby selling business in a story involving Nikki) and mid-'80s (when she stole Nina's baby, years later revealed to be Ronan). Conley also had roles on DAYS OF OUR LIVES, GENERAL HOSPITAL and CAPITOL. She died January 14, 2007.

1941: CBS Radio aired the final episode of soap opera LIFE BEGINS, which had premiered on January 22, 1940. Bess Flynn was the writer and also starred as Martha Webster, a housekeeper for the Craig family.

1972: Mark Tapscott debuted as Bob Anderson in DAYS OF OUR LIVES.

1973: Suzanne Rogers taped her first episode as Maggie in DAYS OF OUR LIVES. The episode didn't air until August 20 thanks to Watergate pre-emptions.

1974: On ANOTHER WORLD, Liz (Irene Dailey) broke down when she told Vic and Lenore that Alice had been committed.

1986: On AS THE WORLD TURNS, Chris Hughes died in his sleep. Actor Don MacLaughlin, who had played Chris since the show's first episode in 1956 had died on May 28, 1986 at age 78.

1986: On GUIDING LIGHT, Alan (Christopher Bernau) shocked the party crowd when he was unmasked.



1988: ANOTHER WORLD debuted a rock instrumental theme during the end credits.

1988: On GENERAL HOSPITAL, Olivia (Tonja Walker) offered to redecorate for Anna (Finola Hughes), and Anna revealed she was back together with Duke.



1995: On ONE LIFE TO LIVE, Blair (Kassie DePaiva) told Todd (Roger Howarth) he would make a wonderful father.



1997: Josh Taylor returned to DAYS OF OUR LIVES, but in a different role, Roman Brady.

2010: Actor Larry Keith, best known for his role as Nick Davis on ALL MY CHILDREN, died at age 79.

2011: On ALL MY CHILDREN, Erica's look-alike, Jane (also played by Susan Lucci), listened as Erica's recorded memoirs began to play. As flashbacks played, Erica talked about Mona, her marriages, Bianca, her turbulent relationship with Kendall, the impact that Myrtle had on her life, and Erica's long career.



Celebrating a birthday today are:
James Brolin (ex-Robert, THE WEST WING) - 73
Jonelle Allen (ex-Doreen, GENERATIONS) - 69
Audrey Landers (Afton, DALLAS; ex-Joanna, THE SECRET STORM; ex-Connie, SEARCH FOR TOMORROW; ex-Heather, SOMERSET) - 57
Anne-Marie Johnson (ex-Dr. Patel, DAYS OF OUR LIVES) - 53
Elizabeth McGovern (Cora, DOWNTON ABBEY) - 52
Jensen Buchanan (ex-Vicky/Marley, ANOTHER WORLD/AS THE WORLD TURNS; ex-Melissa, GENERAL HOSPITAL; ex-Sarah, ONE LIFE TO LIVE) - 51
Susan Marie Snyder (ex-Julie, AS THE WORLD TURNS; ex-Laken, SANTA BARBARA) - 49
Wendy Williams (ex-Phyllis, ONE LIFE TO LIVE) - 49
Grant Bowler (ex-Mason, GCB; ex-Connor, UGLY BETTY) - 45
Natasha Williams (ex-Nurse Kennedy, EASTENDERS) - 42
Valerie Cruz (ex-Grace, NIP/TUCK; ex-Isabel, TRUE BLOOD) - 37
Eddie Matos (ex-Ricky, PORT CHARLES; ex-Peter, GENERAL HOSPITAL; ex-Charlie, THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL) - 37
Kristen Bell (ex-Gossip Girl, GOSSIP GIRL; ex-Elle, HEROES; ex-Veronica Mars, VERONICA MARS) - 33
Chace Crawford (ex-Nate, GOSSIP GIRL) - 28
Ambyr Childers (ex-Colby, ALL MY CHILDREN) - 25

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]