1979: ATWT's Betsy accused John of not liking her. 1988: GH's Anna lost her baby. 1990: AW's Jake raped Marley then was shot. 2000: AMC's Vanessa and Arlene were busted. |
― J. Frank Dobie
"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...
1937: Radio soap opera STELLA DALLAS made its debut as a local show in New York City. The 15-minute drama, with Anne Elstner in the title role, was picked up by the NBC Radio network beginning June 6, 1938, and aired weekdays afternoons through 1955.
1977: On ANOTHER WORLD, Iris (Beverlee McKinsey) married Brian Bancroft (Paul Stevens).
1977: On ONE LIFE TO LIVE, Pat (Jacqueline Courtney) was unsure how to to end her relationship with Paul (Tom Fuccello).
1979: On AS THE WORLD TURNS, Betsy (Suzanne Davidson) accused John (Larry Bryggman) of telling Kim (Kathryn Hays) about her party because he never liked her late father, Dan Stewart, or her.
1982: Madlyn Rhue debuted as Daphne DiMera in DAYS OF OUR LIVES.
1988: On GENERAL HOSPITAL, Anna (Finola Hughes) lost the baby she was carrying after falling in the elevator Olivia Jerome (Tonja Walker) had tampered with in order to hurt Duke (Ian Buchanan).
1990: On ANOTHER WORLD, Jake (Tom Eplin) raped Marley (Anne Heche) after she gave his ring back. Later, Jake was shown lying on the ground dripping in blood.
1991: On THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS, Jill (Jess Walton) and Leanna continued to battle over John.
1994: Original ONE LIFE TO LIVE cast member Lillian Hayman died at age 72. She played Sadie Gray on the soap for 18 years.
1999: Colombian soap opera BETTY LA FEA premiered. Its original run was so successful the show spawned numerous remakes around the world including ABC's UGLY BETTY in the United States.
2000: On ALL MY CHILDREN, Vanessa (Marj Dusay) and Arlene (Olivia Birkelund) made a fast getaway after Hayley, Mateo, Adam and Liza watched a video tape of them plotting to set Liza up.
2005: On GUIDING LIGHT, Olivia (Crystal Chappell) accused Reva (Kim Zimmer) of ruining her marriage.
Celebrating a birthday today are:
Biff McGuire (ex-Bruce, THE SECRET STORM; ex-Lt. McKay, SEARCH FOR TOMORROW; ex-Harry, ALL MY CHILDREN; ex-Pop, SANTA BARBARA) - 87
Marion Ross (ex-Mary, PARADISE BAY; ex-Trix, GILMORE GIRLS) - 85
Richard Caine (ex-Bill, GENERAL HOSPITAL) - 73
Valorie Armstrong (ex-Marisa, SANTA BARBARA; ex-Minna, ONE LIFE TO LIVE) - 72
Brian Kerwin (ex-Charlie, ONE LIFE TO LIVE; ex-Greg, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS) - 64
Laura Malone (ex-Blaine, ANOTHER WORLD) - 57
Tom Eplin (ex-Jake, ANOTHER WORLD; ex-Jake, AS THE WORLD TURNS; ex-Forman, HACIENDA HEIGHTS) - 53
Darlene Vogel (ex-Melanie, ONE LIFE TO LIVE) - 52
Michael Boatman (ex-Russell, GOSSIP GIRL) - 49
Lisa Trusel (ex-Melissa, DAYS OF OUR LIVES) - 48
Dan Wells (ex-Stan, DAYS OF OUR LIVES) - 41
Michael Weston (ex-Jake, SIX FEET UNDER) - 40
Chris Engen (ex-Adam, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS) - 34
Mariana Klaveno (Peri, DEVIOUS MAIDS; ex-Lorena, TRUE BLOOD) - 34
Mehcad Brooks (ex-Matthew, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES; ex-Eggs, TRUE BLOOD) - 33
Josh Henderson (John Ross, DALLAS; ex-Sean, 90210; ex-Austin, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES) - 32
Katy Perry (Guest Star, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS) - 29
Kelley Missal (Dani, ONE LIFE TO LIVE) - 20
Legendary Y&R actress Jeanne Cooper would have turned 85 today.
EDITOR'S NOTE: If you would like to submit a piece of soap opera history for this daily column, please email it to [email protected].
Michael Boatman was on one of my favorite series growing up, China Beach! Happy B-day to Kelley Missal, irrespective of the fate of OLTL (although I hope it returns), Kelley really should get a Daytime Emmy nomination, she put in WORK that stands up against any possible nominee for Young Actress thus far.
ReplyDeleteHopefully Ms. Jeanne Cooper is resting peacefully in eternity. As the
Grande Dame of Genoa City, Mrs. Chancellor was such a compass for the characters of Y&R and behind the scenes she always sounded like a hoot!