Today in Soap Opera History (March 30)

1970: A World Apart and The Best of Everything premiered on ABC.
Another World spinoff Somerset premiered on NBC.
Dark Shadows' Maggie found a mysterious note.

"History speaks to artists. It changes the artist's thinking and is constantly reshaping it into d ifferent 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...

1970: Daytime soap opera A World Apart premiered on ABC. The show was created by Katherine L. Phillips, Irna Phillips' daughter, and combined Irna's own life story with examples of the generation gap. Susan Sarandon and Matthew Cowles were siblings Patrice and Chris Kahlman, adopted children of soap opera writer Better Kahlman (played by Elizabeth Lawrence and later Augusta Dabney) who had never married. A well-written family drama in the World Turns vein, it also featured Susan Sullivan, James Noble, Kathleen Maguire, Stephen Elliott, Tom Ligon and William Price. Set in Chicago, and taped in New York, its directors included Tom Donovan and Walter Gorman. Donovan also produced. It was cancelled June 25, 1971.

1970: Daytime soap opera The Best of Everything premiered on ABC. James Lipton adapted it from the Rona Jaffe novel about the woes of working girls in New York, set mainly at Key Publishing Company. The main characters were Linda Warren (Patty McCormack), April Morrison (Julie Mannix), Kim Jordan (Katherine Glass) and Barbara Lamont (Rochelle Oliver). They were tormented by their ruthless editor, Amanda Key (Gale Sondergaard), and counseled by the warm and loving Violet Jordan (Geraldine Fitzgerald). The series lasted less than six months, with the finale airing on September 25, 1970.

1970: On Another World, Russ Matthews was upset when the expensive crib his wife, Rachel (Robin Strasser), ordered arrived. She tried to gain sympathy with tears but it didn't work.

Today in Soap Opera History (February 1)

1954: CBS daytime soap opera The Secret Storm premiered.
1980: CBS aired the final episode of Love of Life.
1980: The Edge of Night's Nola admitted she was Mrs. Corey.
1994: As the World Turns' Holden and Lily reunited in the bell tower.

"History speaks to artists. It changes the artist's thinking and is constantly reshaping it into d ifferent 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...

1954: The Secret Storm premiered on CBS. The daytime soap opera was created by Roy Winsor. Read "Remembering Woodbridge: A History of the Late, Great 'Secret Storm'" here.

After 20 years, CBS canceled the show with the final episode airing February 8, 1974. Listen to Joan Crawford's appearance on the show here.

The premiere episode from 1954 was not archived, sadly, but you can watch an episode from 1955 below.

Today in Soap Opera History (December 31)

Four NBC daytime soap operas aired for the final time on December 31st: 
Somerset (1976), Texas (1982), The Doctors (1982) and Sunset Beach (1999).

"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...

1965: On Scarlett Hill, Kate (Beth Lockerbie) and Pearl discussed their fears that Ruth was only marrying Mr. Quill for his money. Sheila became extremely rude to Pearl when Pearl tried to show her pictures of the five-year-old she was about to adopt. Sheila revealed a bit of her tragic life to Stan. Ruth openly admitted to Kate that she was only getting married for the money, knowing there was nothing Kate could do to stop her, and Ruth discovered the recording device Pearl planted in the hopes of catching the avaricious woman's plans on tape.

Note: Scarlett Hill, a daytime serial about the residents of a hotel in Scarlett Hill, New York, originally ran in Canada from 1962-1964. This episode is from the show's first syndicated run in the United States.

1972: On The Edge of Night, Adam Drake (Don May) ran through the streets of Manhattan in an attempt to find and propose marriage to Nicole Travis (Maeve McGuire) by midnight.

1976: NBC aired the final episode of the Another World spin-off Somerset after a six year run. The show was canceled to make room for another P&G soap, Lovers & Friends.

1980: On Another World, as the party guests counted down to the New Year, an intoxicated Pat Randolph (Beverly Penberthy) collapsed just as Philip Lyons (Robert Gentry) proposed. The Brady Bunch star Christopher Knight made his first appearance as Leigh Hobson.



Thanks to Scott for sending in the item above.

Today in Soap Opera History (December 25)

Family and friends gather to celebrate Christmas on The Doctors (1967), Guiding Light (1979), General Hospital (1981), EastEnders (1986), Search for Tomorrow (1986), All My Children (1986) As the World Turns (1995), Another World (1996) and Days of our Lives (2001).

"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...

1939: On Bachelor's Children, Sam (Olan Soule) was relieved to learn that Janet had safely given birth to a healthy child after a grueling, perilous labor. Sam's relief was so great that he appeared to be in shock and could only respond to questions with grunts and murmurs. Janet was exhausted but ecstatically happy, and moved by the fact that her baby daughter's Christmas morning birth was accompanied by caroling from a nearby church.

1967: On The Doctors, Matt Powers  (James Pritchett) talked the Hope Memorial janitor, Sam Kringle (Paul Price), into playing Santa Claus instead of him.

1973: On Search for Tomorrow, Joanne (Mary Stuart) sang "The Bells of Christmas."



1973: On Days of our Lives, "Marty Hanson" aka Mickey Horton (John Clarke) and Maggie Simmons (Suzanne Rogers) shared their first Christmas together.

1973: On As the World Turns, Jennifer Hughes (Gillian Spencer) gave birth to a baby girl, Frannie.

1974: On The Edge of Night, the citizens of Monticello celebrated Christmas, and Danny Micelli (Lou Criscuolo) continued to mourn his beloved wife Babs.

Today in Soap Opera History (November 6)

1981: Thaao Penghlis debuted as Tony on Days of our Lives.
1981: The Edge of Night's Raven enjoyed being rich.
1989: Guiding Light's Reva realized Dylan was her son.
2008: One Life to Live's Starr gave birth to a baby girl.

"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...

1950: On The Guiding Light radio soap opera, Meta (Jone Allison) shot and killed her husband, Ted, after their son, Chuckie, died.  Bill and Papa Bauer were shocked to hear the news and Bill vowed to get his sister, Meta, out of jail.

1957: On "the continuing story of" The Edge of Night, Mike (John Larkin) became suspicious when Roger commented that he needed the car to meet with the new owners of the Retreat Nursing Home, the place where Billy was born.

1967: On Peyton Place, Eddie (Dan Duryea) and Lee (Steve Oliver) chatted at the bar about the benefits of working for a wealthy guy like "Old Man Peyton."

Today in Soap Opera History (October 8)

1969: Dark Shadows' Petofi traveled to 1969 in Quentin's body.
1973: Another World's Steve and Alice finally talked about the past.
1985: Santa Barbara's Julia met Dylan.
2010: One Life to Live's Viki wanted Echo to leave Llanview.

"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...

1968: On The Doctors, Congressman Jason Randall (M. Emmet Walsh) arrived at Hope Memorial for a hospital tour with a posse of reporters, flustering Nurse Simpson (Carolee Campbell).

1969: On Dark Shadows, Count Andreas Petofi (David Selby), in Quentin's body, informed Angelique she had to follow his orders in the future. Julia (Grayson Hall) realized that Petofi (Thayer David) was really Quentin but then disappeared back to 1969.

Georgann Johnson Dead at 91

Georgann Johnson, best known for her roles on TV and Broadway, died on June 4. She was 91.

The actress died in Los Angeles, daughter Carol Prager announced in the obituary section of the Los Angeles Times.

Johnson was born on August 15, 1926, in Decorah, Iowa, and worked as a character actress in more than 115 films and TV series including Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, Too Close For Comfort and Archie Bunker’s Place.

It was in the 1953 Broadway revival of "Room Service" that Johnson met actor and future husband, Stanley Prager. After Prager's death in 1972, she was married to Honorable Jack Tenner, a Superior Court Judge and civil rights activist, until his death in 2008.

Other notable credits included Life Sentence (1953) opposite James Dean, Bang the Drum Slowly (1956) opposite Paul Newman and Midnight Cowboy (1969), which won the Oscar for Best Picture.

Johnson also appeared in Three's Company as John Ritter's mother in 1983.

On daytime soap operas, she found a career resurgence with roles on Another World/Somerset (1970-76) as Ellen Grant, As the World Turns as Jane Spencer, and All My Children as Eugenia Robards. She had previously played Edith Cobb on The Doctors. In primetime soaps, she played doctors on both Dallas, Knots Landing and The Colbys (Dr. Waverly). She also starred in Our Family Honor and The Trials of Rosie O'Neill.

Johnson is survived by her four daughters — Carol Prager, Annie Prager, Sally Seymour and Molly Boyll — and three grandchildren, Hannah Seymour, Gabriel Seymour, and Caroline Boyll.

Today in Soap Opera History (March 30)

1970: A World Apart and The Best of Everything premiered on ABC.
Another World spinoff Somerset premiered on NBC.
Dark Shadows' Maggie found a mysterious note.

"All true histories contain instruction; though, in some, the treasure may be hard to find, and when found, so trivial in quantity that the dry, shrivelled kernel scarcely compensates for the trouble of cracking the nut."
― Anne Brontë in "Agnes Grey"

"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...

1970: Daytime soap opera A World Apart premiered on ABC. The show was created by Katherine L. Phillips, Irna Phillips' daughter, and combined Irna's own life story with examples of the generation gap. Susan Sarandon and Matthew Cowles were siblings Patrice and Chris Kahlman, adopted children of soap opera writer Better Kahlman (played by Elizabeth Lawrence and later Augusta Dabney) who had never married. A well-written family drama in the World Turns vein, it also featured Susan Sullivan, James Noble, Kathleen Maguire, Stephen Elliott, Tom Ligon and William Price. Set in Chicago, and taped in New York, its directors included Tom Donovan and Walter Gorman. Donovan also produced. It was cancelled June 25, 1971.

1970: Daytime soap opera The Best of Everything premiered on ABC. James Lipton adapted it from the Rona Jaffe novel about the woes of working girls in New York, set mainly at Key Publishing Company. The main characters were Linda Warren (Patty McCormack), April Morrison (Julie Mannix), Kim Jordan (Katherine Glass) and Barbara Lamont (Rochelle Oliver). They were tormented by their ruthless editor, Amanda Key (Gale Sondergaard), and counseled by the warm and loving Violet Jordan (Geraldine Fitzgerald). The series lasted less than six months, with the finale airing on September 25, 1970.

1970: On Another World, Russ Matthews was upset when the expensive crib his wife, Rachel (Robin Strasser), ordered arrived. She tried to gain sympathy with tears but it didn't work.

Today in Soap Opera History (February 1)

1954: CBS daytime soap opera The Secret Storm premiered.
1980: CBS aired the final episode of Love of Life.
1980: The Edge of Night's Nola admitted she was Mrs. Corey.
1994: As the World Turns' Holden and Lily reunited.

"Whoever wishes to foresee the future must consult the past; for human events ever resemble those of preceding times. This arises from the fact that they are produced by men who ever have been, and ever shall be, animated by the same passions, and thus they necessarily have the same results."
― Machiavelli

"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...

1954: The Secret Storm premiered on CBS. The daytime soap opera was created by Roy Winsor. Read "Remembering Woodbridge: A History of the Late, Great 'Secret Storm'" here.

After 20 years, CBS canceled the show with the final episode airing February 8, 1974. Listen to Joan Crawford's appearance on the show here.

The premiere episode from 1954 was not archived, sadly, but you can watch an episode from 1955 below.

Today in Soap Opera History (December 31)

Four NBC daytime soap operas aired for the final time on
December 31st: Somerset (1976), Texas (1982),
The Doctors (1982) and Sunset Beach (1999).

"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...

1965: On Scarlett Hill, Kate (Beth Lockerbie) and Pearl discussed their fears that Ruth was only marrying Mr. Quill for his money. Sheila became extremely rude to Pearl when Pearl tried to show her pictures of the five-year-old she was about to adopt. Sheila revealed a bit of her tragic life to Stan. Ruth openly admitted to Kate that she was only getting married for the money, knowing there was nothing Kate could do to stop her, and Ruth discovered the recording device Pearl planted in the hopes of catching the avaricious woman's plans on tape.

Today in Soap Opera History (December 25)

Family and friends gather to celebrate Christmas on The Doctors
(1967), Guiding Light (1979), General Hospital (1981),
EastEnders (1986), Search for Tomorrow (1986),
All My Children (1986) As the World Turns (1995),
Another World (1996) and Days of our Lives (2001).

"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...

1939: On Bachelor's Children, Sam (Olan Soule) was relieved to learn that Janet had safely given birth to a healthy child after a grueling, perilous labor. Sam's relief was so great that he appeared to be in shock and could only respond to questions with grunts and murmurs. Janet was exhausted but ecstatically happy, and moved by the fact that her baby daughter's Christmas morning birth was accompanied by caroling from a nearby church.

1967: On The Doctors, Matt Powers  (James Pritchett) talked the Hope Memorial janitor, Sam Kringle (Paul Price), into playing Santa Claus instead of him.

1973: On Search for Tomorrow, Joanne (Mary Stuart) sang "The Bells of Christmas."



1973: On Days of our Lives, "Marty Hanson" aka Mickey Horton (John Clarke) and Maggie Simmons (Suzanne Rogers) shared their first Christmas together.

1973: On As the World Turns, Jennifer Hughes (Gillian Spencer) gave birth to a baby girl, Frannie.

1974: On The Edge of Night, the citizens of Monticello celebrated Christmas, and Danny Micelli (Lou Criscuolo) continued to mourn his beloved wife Babs.

Ann Wedgeworth Dead at 83

Tony Award winning actress and former soap opera star Ann Wedgeworth passed away on Thursday. She was 83.

Wedgeworth's daughter Dianna Martin said the actress died close to her home in New York City after a long illness in a nursing home.

After playing Marie Warren and, later, Angie Talbot on CBS soap The Edge of Night, Wedgeworth moved to NBC's Another World in 1967 to create the role of Lahoma Vane. In March 1970, Lahoma and her husband, Sam Lucas, left Bay City for the spin-off series Somerset. Wedgeworth left Somerset in September 1973.

In a 1980 People magazine interview, Wedgeworth described her six years in the soaps as "dreary and horrible".

She went on to win a Tony Award in 1978 for her work in "Chapter Two," and later memorably played Lana Shields on ABC's hit sitcom Three's Company.

Today in Soap Opera History (November 6)

1981: Thaao Penghlis debuted as Tony on Days of our Lives.
1981: The Edge of Night's Raven enjoyed being rich.
1989: Guiding Light's Reva realized Dylan was her son.
2008: One Life to Live's Starr gave birth to a baby girl.

"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...

1950: On The Guiding Light radio soap opera, Meta (Jone Allison) shot and killed her husband, Ted, after their son, Chuckie, died.  Bill and Papa Bauer were shocked to hear the news and Bill vowed to get his sister, Meta, out of jail.

1957: On "the continuing story of" The Edge of Night, Mike (John Larkin) became suspicious when Roger commented that he needed the car to meet with the new owners of the Retreat Nursing Home, the place where Billy was born.

1967: On Peyton Place, Eddie (Dan Duryea) and Lee (Steve Oliver) chatted at the bar about the benefits of working for a wealthy guy like "Old Man Peyton."

Today in Soap Opera History (October 8)

1969: Dark Shadows' Petofi traveled to 1969 in Quentin's body.
1973: Another World's Steve and Alice finally talked about the past.
1985: Santa Barbara's Julia met Dylan.
2010: One Life to Live's Viki wanted Echo to leave Llanview.

"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...

1968: On The Doctors, Congressman Jason Randall (M. Emmet Walsh) arrived at Hope Memorial for a hospital tour with a posse of reporters, flustering Nurse Simpson (Carolee Campbell).

1969: On Dark Shadows, Count Andreas Petofi (David Selby), in Quentin's body, informed Angelique she had to follow his orders in the future. Julia (Grayson Hall) realized that Petofi (Thayer David) was really Quentin but then disappeared back to 1969.

Today in Soap Opera History (March 30)

1970: A World Apart and The Best of Everything premiered on ABC.
Another World spinoff Somerset premiered on NBC.
Dark Shadows' Maggie found a mysterious note.

"All true histories contain instruction; though, in some, the treasure may be hard to find, and when found, so trivial in quantity that the dry, shrivelled kernel scarcely compensates for the trouble of cracking the nut."
― Anne Brontë in "Agnes Grey"

"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...

1970: Daytime soap opera A World Apart premiered on ABC. The show was created by Katherine L. Phillips, Irna Phillips' daughter, and combined Irna's own life story with examples of the generation gap. Susan Sarandon and Matthew Cowles were siblings Patrice and Chris Kahlman, adopted children of soap opera writer Better Kahlman (played by Elizabeth Lawrence and later Augusta Dabney) who had never married. A well-written family drama in the World Turns vein, it also featured Susan Sullivan, James Noble, Kathleen Maguire, Stephen Elliott, Tom Ligon and William Price. Set in Chicago, and taped in New York, its directors included Tom Donovan and Walter Gorman. Donovan also produced. It was cancelled June 25, 1971.

1970: Daytime soap opera The Best of Everything premiered on ABC. James Lipton adapted it from the Rona Jaffe novel about the woes of working girls in New York, set mainly at Key Publishing Company. The main characters were Linda Warren (Patty McCormack), April Morrison (Julie Mannix), Kim Jordan (Katherine Glass) and Barbara Lamont (Rochelle Oliver). They were tormented by their ruthless editor, Amanda Key (Gale Sondergaard), and counseled by the warm and loving Violet Jordan (Geraldine Fitzgerald). The series lasted less than six months, with the finale airing on September 25, 1970.

1970: On Another World, Russ Matthews was upset when the expensive crib his wife, Rachel (Robin Strasser), ordered arrived. She tried to gain sympathy with tears but it didn't work.

Today in Soap Opera History (February 1)

1954: CBS daytime soap opera The Secret Storm premiered.
1980: CBS aired the final episode of Love of Life.
1980: The Edge of Night's Nola admitted she was Mrs. Corey.
1994: As the World Turns' Holden and Lily reunited.

"All true histories contain instruction; though, in some, the treasure may be hard to find, and when found, so trivial in quantity that the dry, shrivelled kernel scarcely compensates for the trouble of cracking the nut."
― Anne Brontë in "Agnes Grey"

"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...

1954: The Secret Storm premiered on CBS. The daytime soap opera was created by Roy Winsor. Read "Remembering Woodbridge: A History of the Late, Great 'Secret Storm'" here.

After 20 years, CBS canceled the show with the final episode airing February 8, 1974. Listen to Joan Crawford's appearance on the show here.

The premiere episode from 1954 was not archived, sadly, but you can watch an episode from 1955 below.

Today in Soap Opera History (December 31)

Four NBC daytime soap operas aired for the final time on
December 31st: Somerset (1976), Texas (1982), The
Doctors (1982) and Sunset Beach (1999).

"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...

1965: On Scarlett Hill, Kate (Beth Lockerbie) and Pearl discussed their fears that Ruth was only marrying Mr. Quill for his money. Sheila became extremely rude to Pearl when Pearl tried to show her pictures of the five-year-old she was about to adopt. Sheila revealed a bit of her tragic life to Stan. Ruth openly admitted to Kate that she was only getting married for the money, knowing there was nothing Kate could do to stop her, and Ruth discovered the recording device Pearl planted in the hopes of catching the avaricious woman's plans on tape.

Today in Soap Opera History (December 25)

Family and friends gather to celebrate Christmas on The Doctors
(1967), Guiding Light (1979), General Hospital (1981),
EastEnders (1986), Search for Tomorrow (1986),
All My Children (1986) As the World Turns (1995),
Another World (1996) and Days of our Lives (2001).

"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...

1939: On Bachelor's Children, Sam (Olan Soule) was relieved to learn that Janet had safely given birth to a healthy child after a grueling, perilous labor. Sam's relief was so great that he appeared to be in shock and could only respond to questions with grunts and murmurs. Janet was exhausted but ecstatically happy, and moved by the fact that her baby daughter's Christmas morning birth was accompanied by caroling from a nearby church.

1967: On The Doctors, Matt Powers  (James Pritchett) talked the Hope Memorial janitor, Sam Kringle (Paul Price), into playing Santa Claus instead of him.

1973: On Days of our Lives, "Marty Hanson" aka Mickey Horton (John Clarke) and Maggie Simmons (Suzanne Rogers) shared their first Christmas together.

1973: On As the World Turns, Jennifer Hughes (Gillian Spencer) gave birth to a baby girl, Frannie.

1974: On The Edge of Night, the citizens of Monticello celebrated Christmas, and Danny Micelli (Lou Criscuolo) continued to mourn his beloved wife Babs.

Today in Soap Opera History (November 6)

1981: Thaao Penghlis debuted as Tony on Days of our Lives.
1981: The Edge of Night's Raven enjoyed being rich.
1989: Guiding Light's Reva realized Dylan was her son.
2008: One Life to Live's Starr gave birth to a baby girl.

"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...

1950: On The Guiding Light radio soap opera, Meta (Jone Allison) shot and killed her husband, Ted, after their son, Chuckie, died.  Bill and Papa Bauer were shocked to hear the news and Bill vowed to get his sister, Meta, out of jail.

1957: On "the continuing story of" The Edge of Night, Mike (John Larkin) became suspicious when Roger commented that he needed the car to meet with the new owners of the Retreat Nursing Home, the place where Billy was born.

1967: On Peyton Place, Eddie (Dan Duryea) and Lee (Steve Oliver) chatted at the bar about the benefits of working for a wealthy guy like "Old Man Peyton."

Today in Soap Opera History (October 8)

1969: Dark Shadows' Petofi traveled to 1969 in Quentin's body.
1973: Another World's Steve and Alice finally talked about the past.
1985: Santa Barbara's Julia met Dylan.
2010: One Life to Live's Viki wanted Echo to leave Llanview.

"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...

1968: On The Doctors, Congressman Jason Randall (M. Emmet Walsh) arrived at Hope Memorial for a hospital tour with a posse of reporters, flustering Nurse Simpson (Carolee Campbell).

1969: On Dark Shadows, Count Andreas Petofi (David Selby), in Quentin's body, informed Angelique she had to follow his orders in the future. Julia (Grayson Hall) realized that Petofi (Thayer David) was really Quentin but then disappeared back to 1969.