Today in Soap Opera History (November 7)

1980: J.R. Ewing was rushed to the hospital after being shot.
1986: Robert S. Woods debuted on DAYS. 1986: "Hello, Barbara"
on ATWT. 1995: AMC's Julia found a surprise in her closet.

"History never looks like history when you are living through it."
― John W. Gardner

"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, Roger (Allen Nourse) worried about Mary.

1972: On Somerset, Andrea Moore (Harriet Hall) was terrified when she was woken up in her bedroom by Jingles the Clown. When Carter Matson (Jay Gregory) ran into the room after hearing her screams, he didn't see anything and told Andrea that Jingles was not real.



1977: CBS aired the first 60-minute episode of Guiding Light. The show ran for 15 minutes from 1937 to 1968 on radio and then television before expanding to 30 minutes a day.

In the episode, Dr. Ed Bauer (Mart Hulswit) told Eve Stapleton (Janet Grey) that she had Blake-Kearney Syndrome and an 80% chance of going blind. Eve's sister, Rita (Lenore Kasdorf), was also present. Eve said that she would be in the 20% and eventually ran from the room. An emotional Rita watched as her sister fled Cedars and set off after her. Location shooting followed Eve crying through the streets of "Springfield", stopping at the sight of a blind woman knocked down by skateboarders. Rita searched the streets until she found her sister, embracing her and bringing her home.

Thanks to Scott for sending in the item above.

1980: Season 4 of Dallas premiered on CBS. J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) was rushed to the hospital after being shot. A writers' strike delayed the start of the season to November.

1984: On Santa Barbara, at the wildlife refuge Peter Flint (Stephen Meadows) aimed a gun at Joe Perkins (Mark Arnold) and prepared to pull the trigger.



1985: On Knots Landing, Valene (Joan Van Ark) told Ben (Doug Sheehan) she loved him and was ready to get married.



A few weeks later, People magazine published a story on Doug Sheehan where he talked about his unhappiness Knots Landing:

He wants to act and he's not getting much of a chance playing a stolid second fiddle to Van Ark's traumas, Lisa Hartman's singing, Michele Lee's bravura and Donna Mills' eyelashes. "It's like a nest of baby birds," he says, "each of them with their mouths open, and the aggressive one gets the worm. I've never been aggressive and I'm being smothered." Sheehan wants to get more humor into his character. "I think it adds humanity," he says. But the producers "stifle that," Sheehan insists. "My character has turned into one of the girls. He spends all his time in the kitchen baking brownies."

1986: On As the World Turns, Barbara Ryan (Colleen Zenk) was shocked when the ex-husband she thought was dead, James Stenbeck (Anthony Herrera), suddenly appeared and said one simple but unforgettable line: "Hello, Barbara." It was one of the best Friday cliffhangers in soap opera history.

Friday, November 7, 1986:


The Friday cliffhanger recreated the following Monday:


1986: Robert S. Woods debuted as Paul Stewart in Days of our Lives, replacing Gregory Mortensen in the role.



1990: On The Young and the Restless, John (John Castellanos) crossed examined the head of security, Calvin Daniels, at Danny's trial for cocaine possession.

1995: On All My Children, Julia (Sydney Penny) was frightened to discover Louie hiding in her closet.



2004: Actor Howard Keel died at age 85. He played Clayton Farlow in Dallas for 10 years.

2004: CBS reunited the cast of Dallas for Dallas Reunion: The Return of Southfork.

2005: On Passions, Gwen realized the "cleaning lady" at the hospital was actually Theresa (Lindsay Hartley).



2008: On One Life to Live, Blair (Kassie DePaiva) tried to assure Starr (Kristen Alderson) her baby would be alright.



Celebrating a birthday today are:
James Houghton (ex-Greg, The Young and the Restless; ex-Kenny, Knots Landing; ex-Cash, The Colbys; Writer, The Bold and the Beautiful; The Young and the Restless; Knots Landing) - 66
Lawrence O'Donnell (ex-Dr. Bartlet, The West Wing) - 63
Christopher Knight (ex-Leigh, Another World) - 57
Lisa Canning (ex-Meg, General Hospital; ex-Adrienne, The Young and the Restless; ex-Chanel, The Bold and the Beautiful) - 48
Julie Pinson (ex-Kimberly, River Ridge; ex-Janet, As the World Turns; ex-Billie, Days of our Lives; ex-Eve, Port Charles; ex-Shiloh, The Young and the Restless) - 47
Michelle Clunie (ex-Marcella, In Between Men; ex-Melanie, Queer as Folk) - 45
Bronson Picket (ex-Diego, As the World Turns) - 43
Christopher Daniel Barnes (ex-Paul, As the World Turns; ex-Lenny, Beverly Hills, 90210) - 42
Jeremy London (ex-Chandler, 7th Heaven; ex-Griffin, Party of Five; ex-Nathan, I'll Fly Away) - 42
Yunjin Kim (Karen, Mistresses; ex-Sun, Lost) - 41

EDITOR'S NOTE: If you would like to submit a soap history entry for this date or a future date, email [email protected].