Today in Soap Opera History (November 12)

"History is a relentless master. It has no present, only the past rushing into the future. To try to hold fast is to be swept aside." - John F. Kennedy

"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...

1957: On THE EDGE OF NIGHT, Mike (John Larkin) devised a plan to trick Irene into leading the police to Mary.

1965: On DAYS OF OUR LIVES, Julie Olson paid a visit to her aunt, Marie Horton. Craig Merritt also visited Marie, his future daughter-in-law. Julie's father, Ben, had a fight with her lawyer and uncle, Mickey (John Clarke), over a case concerning a fur Julie allegedly stole. Craig's son, Tony, called Marie from Boston, but chose not to tell her that something was wrong.



1979: On THE EDGE OF NIGHT, the crew prepared to shoot the last two scenes of Mansion of the Damned.



1979: On AS THE WORLD TURNS, Matt and Melinda walked in on the party Betsy had while Kim was away at The Willows.



1981: Jim Poyner aired for the final time as Dennis on TEXAS. He would reprise the role during ANOTHER WORLD's 25th anniversary week (May 22-23, 1989).

1981: On ANOTHER WORLD, Captain Petroni (Kelly Fitzpatrick) told Jerry (Paul Tinder) he was being booked for raping Clarice.



1985: On GENERAL HOSPITAL, Anna (Finola Hughes) and Robert (Tristan Rogers) continued to search for Robin (Kimberly McCullough), who was in the Asian Quarter.



1990: On THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS, Danny's (Michael Damian) cocaine possession trial ended with a "not guilty" verdict.

1992: David Oliver, who played Perry Hutchins on ANOTHER WORLD in the mid-1980s, died at the age of 30.

1993: Jaime Lyn Bauer debuted as Laura Horton on DAYS OF OUR LIVES.

1994: AS THE WORLD TURNS Emmy winner Martha Byrne married Michael McMahon.

2001: On THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, Stephanie's (Susan Flannery) doctor told her Eric could not be Ridge's father.

2003: Actor Jonathan Brandis, who played Kevin on ONE LIFE TO LIVE when he was six years old, died at age 27 after hanging himself in his Los Angeles apartment.

2004: Actor Norman Rose died at age 87.  His soap roles in Marcus Polk in ONE LIFE TO LIVE and Alex Gura in THE EDGE OF NIGHT.

2008: ALL MY CHILDREN celebrated its 10,000th episode with a special appearance by Agnes Nixon and a tribute to Myrtle Fargate (Eileen Herlie).



2008: Actor Keith Pruitt died at age 47.  His soap roles included Frank Wendall in AS THE WORLD TURNS and Flynn Reilly on LOVING.

Celebrating a birthday today are:
Jerry Douglas (John/Alistair, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS) - 81
Mary Louise Wilson (ex-Millicent, ALL MY CHILDREN) - 81
Ann Flood (ex-Nancy, THE EDGE OF NIGHT; ex-Rose, ANOTHER WORLD; ex-Bitsy, ALL MY CHILDREN; ex-Ella, SEARCH FOR TOMORROW; ex-Helen, ONE LIFE TO LIVE; ex-Ruth, AS THE WORLD TURNS; ex-Liz, FROM THESE ROOTS) - 79
Louan Gideon (ex-Liza, SEARCH FOR TOMORROW) - 58
Vincent Irizarry (David, ALL MY CHILDREN; ex-David, ONE LIFE TO LIVE; ex-David, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS; ex-Nick/Lujack, GUIDING LIGHT; ex-Scott, SANTA BARBARA) - 54
Teddy Quinn (ex-Scotty, GENERAL HOSPITAL) - 54
Radha Mitchell (ex-Catherine, NEIGHBOURS) - 40
Ashley Williams (ex-Dani, AS THE WORLD TURNS) - 35
Heather Lauren Olson (ex-Jan, DAYS OF OUR LIVES) - 31
Kelly Kruger (ex-Mackenzie, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS; ex-Mandy, UNDRESSED) - 31

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].