Today in Soap Opera History (December 14)

1967: Dark Shadows' Barnabas faced off with Jeremiah.
1979: ATWT's Bob and Lisa made Christmas Eve plans.
1979: EON's Deborah was kidnapped. 2000: Vicky McKinnon
appeared as a ghost during a séance on ATWT.

"History speaks to artists. It changes the artist's thinking and is constantly reshaping it into different and unexpected images."
― Anselm Kiefer

"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...

1949: On radio soap opera The Guiding Light, Mama Bauer (Adelaide Klein) died.

1967: On Dark Shadows, in a duel, Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid) shot his uncle, Jeremiah (Anthony George).

1979: On As the World Turns, Dr. Bob Hughes (Don Hastings) made a Christmas Eve date with his ex-wife, Lisa Shea Colman (Eileen Fulton).

Today in Soap Opera History (December 14)

1967: Dark Shadows' Barnabas faced off with Jeremiah.
1979: ATWT's Bob and Lisa made Christmas Eve plans.
1979: EON's Deborah was kidnapped. 2000: Vicky McKinnon
appeared as a ghost during a séance on ATWT.

"History is a vast early warning system."
― Norman Cousins

"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...

1949: On radio soap opera The Guiding Light, Mama Bauer (Adelaide Klein) died.

1967: On Dark Shadows, in a duel, Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid) shot his uncle, Jeremiah (Anthony George).

1979: On As the World Turns, Dr. Bob Hughes (Don Hastings) made a Christmas Eve date with his ex-wife, Lisa Shea Colman (Eileen Fulton).

Today in Soap Opera History (December 14)

1967: Dark Shadows' Barnabas faced off with Jeremiah.
1979: ATWT's Bob and Lisa made Christmas Eve plans.
1979: EON's Deborah was kidnapped. 2000: Vicky McKinnon
appeared as a ghost during a séance on ATWT.

"More and more, I tend to read history. I often find it more up to date than the daily newspapers."
― Joe Murray

"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...

1949: On radio soap opera The Guiding Light, Mama Bauer (Adelaide Klein) died.

1967: On Dark Shadows, in a duel, Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid) shot his uncle, Jeremiah (Anthony George).

Patty Duke Dead at 69

Patty Duke

Patty Duke, the teen who won an Oscar for The Miracle Worker and later played "identical cousins" in her own TV sitcom, died on Tuesday, March 29. She was 69.

Duke's family released a statement through her publicist.

"This morning, our beloved wife, mother and matriarch and the exquisite artist, humanitarian and champion for mental health, Anna Patty Duke Pearce, closed her eyes, quieted her pain and ascended into a beautiful place. We celebrate the infinite love and compassion she shared through her work and throughout her life."

Born Anna Marie Pearce, some of Duke's earliest acting roles were in daytime soap operas. In the late 1950s, she played Ellen Williams Dennis in CBS' The Brighter Day, and appeared as Molly Scharf in NBC's Kitty Foyle.

Today in Soap Opera History (December 14)

1967: Dark Shadows' Barnabas faced off with Jeremiah.
1979: ATWT's Bob and Lisa made Christmas Eve plans.
1979: EON's Deborah was kidnapped. 2000: Vicky McKinnon
appeared as a ghost during a séance on ATWT.

"The present contains nothing more than the past, and what is found in the effect is already in the cause."
― Henri Louis Bergson

"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...

1949: On radio soap opera The Guiding Light, Mama Bauer (Adelaide Klein) died.

1967: On Dark Shadows, in a duel, Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid) shot his uncle, Jeremiah (Anthony George).

Today in Soap Opera History (December 14)

1967: Dark Shadows' Barnabas faced off with Jeremiah.
1979: ATWT's Bob and Lisa made Christmas Eve plans.
1979: EON's Deborah was kidnapped. 2000: Vicky McKinnon
appeared as a ghost during a séance on ATWT.

"Most of us spend too much time on the last twenty-four hours and too little on the last six thousand years."
― Will Durant

"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...

1949: On radio soap opera The Guiding Light, Mama Bauer (Adelaide Klein) died.

1967: On Dark Shadows, in a duel, Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid) shot his uncle, Jeremiah (Anthony George).

Today in Soap Opera History (December 14)

1966: A mystery woman arrived on DARK SHADOWS.
1979: ATWT's Bob and Lisa made Christmas Eve plans.
1979: EON's Deborah was kidnapped. 2000: Vicky McKinnon
appeared  as a ghost during a séance on ATWT.

"The farther backward you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see."
- Winston Churchill

"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...

1949: On THE GUIDING LIGHT, Mama Bauer (Adelaide Klein) died.

1966: On DARK SHADOWS, a mysterious woman (Diana Millay) visited the diner and asked Maggie (Kathryn Leigh Scott) many questions about the Collins Family.

1979: On AS THE WORLD TURNS, Lisa (Eileen Fulton) and Bob (Don Hastings) made a Christmas Eve date.

Patty Duke & Meredith Baxter Join GLEE [SPOILER ALERT]

Oscar winner Patty Duke and FAMILY TIES star Meredith Baxter are joining GLEE as a longtime firmly committed lesbian couple who have been together for 25 years, according to E! News. We'll first see them in the season finale, shooting next week, and both Duke and Baxter will stay on as part of the GLEE family, returning next season as recurring characters.

[SPOILERS AHEAD]