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| 1984: OLTL's Estelle was full of herself. 1985: Cruz found Eden unconscious and tried to save her on SANTA BARBARA. 1986: DAYS' Mike met Robin Jacobs. 1989: Delia and Roger were married on RYAN'S HOPE. |
- 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...
1958: On THE EDGE OF NIGHT, Virginia (Cathleen Cordell) bumped into John H. Phillips (House Jameson) and identified him as "Mr. X". Phillips told Virginia he wanted to keep his identity confidential to avoid making enemies with any of his clients. He wanted to remain politically neutral in their eyes.
1968: On ANOTHER WORLD, Rachel (Robin Strasser) told Walter (Val Dufour) she no longer had plans for Hollywood.
1980: On AS THE WORLD TURNS, Joyce (Barbara Rodell) told Don (Conard Fowkes) she came back to make amends.
1984: UK daytime soap opera MIRACLES TAKE LONGER premiered on ITV. The series depicted the life and cases dealt with by a branch of the Citizens Advice Bureau. It only lasted four months.
1984: On ONE LIFE TO LIVE, Estelle (Elizabeth Hubbard) bragged to Dorian (Robin Strasser) she might win the Community Service Award thanks to her many efforts. "These things are just thrust on me," Estelle said, as only she could.
1985: On SANTA BARBARA, Cruz (A Martinez) tried to revive Eden (Marcy Walker).
1986: Derya Ruggles debuted as Dr. Robin Jacobs in DAYS OF OUR LIVES.
1989: On the first episode of RYAN'S HOPE's final week, Roger (Ron Hale) and Delia (Ilene Kristen) were married.
1991: Michael Easton made his first appearance as Tanner Scofield in DAYS OF OUR LIVES.
1997: ON SUNSET BEACH, Olivia (Lesley-Anne Down) found herself in an awkward position.
2006: Actor Don Stewart died at age 70. He was best known to soap fans for his 15 year run as Mike Bauer in GUIDING LIGHT. Click here to watch Stewart sing on the 1979 Christmas episode.
2012: On the first episode of ONE LIFE TO LIVE's final week on ABC, multiple residents of Llanview visited Heaven and Hell.
Celebrating a birthday today are:
Pierre Jalbert (ex-Gustave, SANTA BARBARA) - 89
Kathryn Walker (ex-Eileen, ALL MY CHILDREN; ex-Barbara, ANOTHER WORLD; ex-Emily, SEARCH FOR TOMORROW) - 71
Crystal Gayle (Herself, ANOTHER WORLD) - 63
Margaret Klenck (ex-Edwina, ONE LIFE TO LIVE; ex-Marion/Kitty, AS THE WORLD TURNS) - 61
Kimberly Beck (ex-Julie, CAPITOL; ex-Claire, DYNASTY; ex-Samantha, GENERAL HOSPITAL; ex-Kim, PEYTON PLACE) - 58
Melissa Morgan (ex-Brittany, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS) - 50
Joely Richardson (ex-Julia, NIP/TUCK) - 49
Philip Tanzini (ex-Jeremy, GENERAL HOSPITAL) - 47
Nina Dobrev (Elena, THE VAMPIRE DIARIES; ex-Mia, DEGRASSI: THE NEXT GENERATION) - 25
In honor of Crystal Gayle's birthday, and nearing the 27th anniversary of her surviving the Sin Stalker on ANOTHER WORLD, here's her duet with Gary Morris from the end of her week of guest appearances. "(You Take Me Away To) Another World" became the show's new theme song.
EDITOR'S NOTE: If you would like to submit a piece of soap opera history for this daily column, please email it to editor@welovesoaps.com.
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