Today in Soap Opera History (August 13)

1980: The Edge of Night's Emily was confronted by April.
1981: Another World's Sandy almost revealed Mac was his father.
1982: Days of our Lives' Jessica married Josh. 1993: Maurice
Benard debuted as Sonny on General Hospital.

"To believe what has not occurred in history will not occur at all, is to argue disbelief in the dignity of man."
- Mahatma Gandhi

"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...

1968: On Dark Shadows, Adam (Robert Rodan) vowed to kill Victoria, the woman Barnabas loved, unless Barnabas (Jonathan Frid) made someone for him to love.

1980: On The Edge of Night, April (Terry Davis) confronted Emily (Margo McKenna) with the fact that "Kirk Michaels" was dead.



1980: On Texas, Iris (Beverlee McKinsey) worried she couldn't live up to the ideal Alex (Bert Kramer) had created in his mind about her.



1981: On Another World, Sandy (Chris Rich) nearly revealed his father-son relationship with Mac to Jamie. Lenny (Ed O'Neill) and Hannah accompanied Sandy and Jamie (Richard Bekins) at gunpoint out of the cabin.



1982: On Days of our Lives, Josh Fallon (Scott Palmer) and Jessica Blakemaur (Jean Bruce Scott) were married.



1984: A Martinez debuted as Cruz Castillo in Santa Barbara. Note: The clip below features the entire episode but is not in English.



1984: On Days of our Lives, Alice (Frances Reid) surprised Bo (Peter Reckell) and Hope (Kristian Alfonso) when she popped up on the backseat of their car in New Orleans.



1993: Maurice Benard debuted as Sonny Corinthos in General Hospital. Benard has been nominated for 7 Daytime Emmy Awards during his 21 year run on GH, winning as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 2003.



2001: On The Bold and the Beautiful, Tony (Paulo Benedeti) revealed to Kristen (Tracy Melchior) he was HIV positive.

2001: On The Young and the Restless, Nate (Bryant Jones) took the stand and admitted to the judge he was mad at Olivia (Tonya Lee Williams) for keeping him from Malcolm (Shemar Moore)  The judge decided Olivia had sole responsibility for raising Nate, but Malcolm would be allowed visitation rights.

Celebrating a birthday today are:
Kevin Tighe (ex-Anthony, Lost) - 70
Kathleen Gati (Liesl, General Hospital; ex-Anya, 24; ex-Taffy, All My Children) - 57
Hank Cheyne (ex-Ricardo, Sunset Beach; ex-Scott, Another World; ex-Anton, SAINTS & SINNERS) - 56
Alex Donnelley (ex-Diane, The Young and the Restless) - 55
Dawnn Lewis (ex-Dr. Knapp, Days of our Lives; ex-Denise, One Tree Hill) - 53
John Slattery (Roger, Mad Men; ex-Victor, Desperate Housewives; ex-Peter, Jack & Bobby) - 52
Debi Mazar (ex-Loah, Ugly Betty) - 50
J.D. Walters (ex-Ryan, Another World) - 46
David Monahan (ex-Tobey, Dawson's Creek) - 43
Sebastian Stan (ex-Carter, Gossip Girl) - 31

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]