Today in Soap Opera History (September 13)

1977: ABC's serialized comedy series Soap premiered.
1979: The Edge of Night's Raven clashed with Elliot.
1985: Days of our Lives' Marlena & Richard made love.
1985: GH's Anna told Robert that Robin was his daughter.

"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...

1969: Susan Lucci and Helmet Huber were married. Lucci joined All My Children for its debut a few months later playing ambitious teenager Erica Kane. The Hubers are celebrating their 46th anniversary today.

1971: On The Doctors, Dr. Althea Davis (Elizabeth Hubbard) visited her mother, who was recovering from a stroke.

Katherine Helmond Dead at 89

Katherine Helmond, best-known as Mona Robinson on 1980s sitcom Who's the Boss? and the socialite sister Jessica Tate on TV comedy Soap, died at home on February 23 following complications from Alzheimer's disease. She was 89.

Helmond was a seven-time Emmy nominee whose TV credits included Everybody Loves Raymond as Lois Whelan, Coach as the widowed owner of an NFL team, and most recently on vampire drama True Blood as Caroline Bellefleur.

She took home two Golden Globes, both for Best Supporting Actress. She won for Soap in 1981 and for Who's the Boss in 1989.

Helmond appeared in numerous movies as well, including three Terry Gilliam films — Time Bandits (1981), Brazil (1985) and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998).

She also ventured into the world of theater, earning her a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in 1973 play "The Great God Brown." The Hollywood Reporter quotes Helmond as saying theater was “her first love.”

"My beautiful, kind, funny, gracious, compassionate, rock," tweeted Alyssa Milano, who played Helmond's granddaughter in Who's the Boss?. "You were an instrumental part of my life. You taught me to hold my head above the marsh! You taught me to do anything for a laugh! What an example you were!"

Today in Soap Opera History (September 13)

1977: ABC's serialized comedy series Soap premiered.
1979: The Edge of Night's Raven clashed with Elliot.
1985: Days of our Lives' Marlena & Richard made love.
1985: GH's Anna told Robert that Robin was his daughter.

"The best prophet of the future is the past."
― Lord Byron

"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...

1969: Susan Lucci and Helmet Huber were married. Lucci joined All My Children for its debut a few months later playing ambitious teenager Erica Kane. The Hubers are celebrating their 46th anniversary today.

1971: On The Doctors, Dr. Althea Davis (Elizabeth Hubbard) visited her mother, who was recovering from a stroke.

'Soap' Emmy Winner Robert Guillaume Dead at Age 89

Robert Guillaume, the beloved actor who received two Emmy Awards for portraying the acidic butler Benson on ABC sitcoms Soap and Benson, died Tuesday. He was 89.

Guillaume died at his home in Los Angeles, his wife, Donna Brown Guillaume, told the Associated Press. He had been battling prostate cancer.

Guillaume's polished portrayal of the imperious family retainer Benson DuBois endured for nine years, first in three seasons on serialized primetime comedy Soap (1977-80) and then on the spinoff Benson, which ran until April 1986. Both shows were created by Susan Harris.

Benson's personal arc went from butler/cook to state budget director and finally to lieutenant governor. He even ran for governor against his former boss, Eugene X. Gatling (John Noble), but that race — a season-ending cliff-hanger — went undecided because the show went off the air.

"When I got the role of Benson, I was not the happiest camper," Guillaume said on an installment of Oprah: Where Are They Now? that aired in January 2016. "I had reservations, because you're serving food, you're serving the family and all that sort of thing. … It's like nothing has changed since the 1800s.

Today in Soap Opera History (September 13)

1977: ABC's serialized comedy series Soap premiered.
1979: The Edge of Night's Raven clashed with Elliot.
1985: Days of our Lives' Marlena & Richard made love.
1985: GH's Anna told Robert that Robin was his daughter.

"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...

1969: Susan Lucci and Helmet Huber were married. Lucci joined All My Children for its debut a few months later playing ambitious teenager Erica Kane. The Hubers are celebrating their 46th anniversary today.

1971: On The Doctors, Dr. Althea Davis (Elizabeth Hubbard) visited her mother, who was recovering from a stroke.

Today in Soap Opera History (September 13)

1977: ABC's serialized comedy series Soap premiered.
1979: The Edge of Night's Raven clashed with Elliot.
1985: Days of our Lives' Marlena & Richard made love.
1985: GH's Anna told Robert that Robin was his daughter.

"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...

1969: Susan Lucci and Helmet Huber were married. Lucci joined All My Children for its debut a few months later playing ambitious teenager Erica Kane. The Hubers are celebrating their 46th anniversary today.

1971: On The Doctors, Dr. Althea Davis (Elizabeth Hubbard) visited her mother, who was recovering from a stroke.

Doris Roberts Dead at 90

Doris Roberts

Doris Roberts, best known for playing Marie Barone on CBS' long-running sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, died Sunday, April 17, at age 90. TMZ was first to report the news, and a family spokesperson later confirmed her passing to the Associated Press.

The actress earned four Emmys for the role of the caring matriarch to sons Ray (Ray Romano) and Robert (Brad Garrett). She played the part throughout the series' nine seasons, starting with the September 1996 pilot. Peter Boyle — who played her husband, the cantankerous Frank Barone — died in December 2006.

Raymond costar Patricia Heaton tweeted her condolences on Monday, calling Roberts' death "truly the end of an era."

Roberts won an additional Emmy for her 1982 guest appearance on St. Elsewhere and is also known for roles on such TV series as Remington Steele, Cagney & Lacey, The Middle and Melissa & Joey. Her primetime serial credits included Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, Soap, Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives.

She appeared in films including The Heartbreak Kid, Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star and Grandma's Boy.

Today in Soap Opera History (September 13)

1977: ABC's serialized comedy series Soap premiered.
1979: The Edge of Night's Raven clashed with Elliot.
1985: Days of our Lives' Marlena & Richard made love.
1985: GH's Anna told Robert that Robin was his daughter.

"History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again."
― Maya Angelou

"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...

1969: Susan Lucci and Helmet Huber were married. Lucci joined All My Children for its debut a few months later playing ambitious teenager Erica Kane. The Hubers are celebrating their 46th anniversary today.

1977: Primetime comedic serial Soap premiered on ABC. The show told the story of two families, the affluent Tates and their working-class relatives, the Campbells. In the first episode, Burt fought with his stepson, Danny, over Danny's mob connections; and Jessica committed her first act of infidelity with her daughter's lover, tennis-pro Peter Campbell.

'Soap' Cast Reunites in Special Tribute to Robert Guillaume (Video)

Soap cast reunion.  Photo Credit: Copyright 2015 Crown Media
Family Networks/Photographer: Jeremy Lee

Home & Family featured a special tribute to Robert Guillaume (Soap, Benson) on Tuesday, June 30th.  The beloved actor received a Golden Mask Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hollywood Appreciate Society, surrounded by former Soap castmates Katherine Helmond, Robert Mandan, Robert Guillaume, Jay Johnson (with puppet Bob) and Missy Gold.

Guillaume also received a congratulations video message from Billy Crystal (Soap's Jodie Dallas), and was visibly moved by the heartfelt love surrounding him that day.

Watch the presentation and Soap reunion below:

Today in Soap Opera History (September 13)

1977: Soap premiered. 1979: Raven clashed with Elliott on The 
Edge of Night. 1985: Days of our Lives' Marlena & Richard
made love.  1985: General Hospital's Anna
told Robert that Robin was his daughter.

"Prepare for the unknown by studying how others in the past have coped with the unforeseeable and the unpredictable."
George S. Patton

"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...

1969: Susan Lucci and Helmet Huber were married. Lucci joined All My Children for its debut a few months later playing ambitious teenager Erica Kane. The Hubers are celebrating their 45th anniversary today.

1977: Primetime comedic serial Soap premiered on ABC. The show told the story of two families, the affluent Tates and their working-class relatives, the Campbells. In the first episode, Burt fought with his stepson, Danny, over Danny's mob connections; and Jessica committed her first act of infidelity with her daughter's lover, tennis-pro Peter Campbell.

Today in Soap Opera History (September 13)

1977: SOAP premiered. 1979: EON's Raven clashed with Elliott.
1985: Marlena & Richard made love on DAYS. 1985: GH's Anna
told Robert that Robin was his daughter.

"History cannot give us a program for the future, but it can give us a fuller understanding of ourselves, and of our common humanity, so that we can better face the future."
― Robert Penn Warren

"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...

1969: Susan Lucci and Helmet Huber were married. Lucci joined ALL MY CHILDREN for its debut a few months later playing Erica Kane. The happy couple is celebrating their 44th anniversary today.

1977: Primetime comedic serial SOAP premiered. The show told the story of two families, the affluent Tates and their working-class relatives, the Campbells. In the first episode, Burt fought with his stepson, Danny, over Danny's mob connections; and Jessica committed her first act of infidelity with her daughter's lover, tennis-pro Peter Campbell.