50 Greatest Soap Couples: The Complete List

COUPLE: Luke Spencer & Laura Webber
SHOW: GENERAL HOSPITAL
RANK: 1
PLAYED BY:
Luke: Anthony Geary
Laura: Genie Francis
YEARS: 1978-1982, 1983, 1984, 1993–2002, 2006, 2008

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #1 Luke & Laura From GENERAL HOSPITAL

COUPLE: Luke Spencer & Laura Webber
SHOW: GENERAL HOSPITAL
RANK: 1
PLAYED BY:
Luke: Anthony Geary
Laura: Genie Francis
YEARS: 1978-1982, 1983, 1984, 1993–2002, 2006, 2008

STORY:
Nurse Bobbie Spencer (Jacklyn Zeman) was determined to split up Laura and Scotty Baldwin (Kin Shriner).  Since everyone knew Bobbie hated Laura, she enlisted the help of her brother, Luke.  Luke and Laura had instant chemistry, and Bobbie continued her manipulations, but eventually Laura and Scotty were married anyway.  When Laura needed money to help pay for Scotty's law books, she borrowed it from Luke.  To pay the money back, she began working at the Campus Disco he managed.   The two had an attraction and grew closer, but one night Luke forced himself on Laura, raping her.   The aftermath was messy and complicated (obviously) but eventually the feelings shared between Luke and Laura turned into love.  As Laura moved away from Scotty, Luke and Laura's lives turned into a series of love on the run adventures.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #2 Doug & Julie From DAYS OF OUR LIVES

COUPLE: Doug Williams & Julie Olson
SHOW: DAYS OF OUR LIVES
RANK: 2
PLAYED BY:
Doug: Bill Hayes
Julie: Susan Seaforth Hayes
YEARS: 1970-present (with some years off starting in 1984)

STORY:
Doug was a con artist who met Bill Horton in prison in 1970.  When Doug was released, he came to Salem to find Susan Martin (Denise Alexander), a widow with money Bill had spoken about.  Susan ended up hiring Doug to come between Scott Banning and his girlfriend, Julie.  Doug and Julie had an instant rapport.  Doug took a job as a singer at Sergio's and fell for Julie.  Doug's real identity was orphan Brent Douglas and this helped him for a bond with Julie's mother, Addie Horton Olson (Patricia Barry).   After a fight with Julie over her son, David, Doug went to Addie's and she proposed to him.  He accepted and the two of them were married.   In 1974 they had a daughter together, Hope.   After surviving leukemia, Addie died after being struck by a car pushing Hope's carriage out of the way just in time to save her daughter.   Eventually Julie, who had married and divorced Bob Anderson, reunited and the two of them married in a beautiful ceremony in 1976.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #3 Victor & Nikki From THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS

COUPLE: Victor Newman & Nikki Reed Foster
SHOW: THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS
RANK: 3
PLAYED BY:
Victor: Eric Braeden
Nikki: Melody Thomas Scott
YEARS: 1981–present

STORY:
Victor first saw Nikki when he went to a show at the Bayou club with his best friend, Colonel Douglas Austin (Michael Evans).   Victor became enamored with Nikki, wanting to instruct her on the "finer things in life," but the two of them eventually slept together.  Victor turned his attention to romancing Lorie Brooks (Jaime Lyn Bauer) while Nikki had a relationship with Kevin Bancroft.  When Nikki became pregnant, she was not sure who the father was, but married Kevin believing him to be the bio dad.  Then Lorie dumped Victor, revealing she was only using him to get her true love's (Lance Prentiss) company back.  Eventually the truth came out--baby Victoria was indeed Victor's child.  Nikki and Kevin divorced and Nikke ultimately married Victor (the first of many times the two would wed over the years).

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #4 Jesse & Angie From ALL MY CHILDREN

COUPLE: Jesse Hubbard & Angela Baxter
SHOW: ALL MY CHILDREN
RANK: 4
PLAYED BY:
Jesse: Darnell Williams
Angie: Debbi Morgan
YEARS: 1982–1988, 2008–2011

STORY:
Jesse was a street kid from the "wrong side of the tracks" and Angie was part of Pine Valley high society so when they met and fell in love, Angie's father, Leo, instantly disapproved.  When Angie's friend, Liza Colby, accused Jesse of rape, he fled town with his best pal, Jenny Gardner, spending the summer of 1982 in New York.  Angie thought his leaving was a sign of his guilt but eventually Liza admitted she lied about the rape.   Angie and Jesse reunited and eloped.  Angie soon found out she was pregnant but thinking Jesse didn't want to be a father, divorced him and decided to give the baby away.  When Angie finally revealed the truth to Jesse, they got back together and kidnapped their baby.  They eventually convinced a judge to give them custody of the baby, Frankie, and started a new life together.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #5 Steve & Alice From ANOTHER WORLD

COUPLE: Steve Frame & Alice Matthews
SHOW: ANOTHER WORLD
RANK: 5
PLAYED BY:
Steve: George Reinholt, David Canary
Alice: Jacqueline Courtney, Linda Borgeson
YEARS: 1968-1975; 1981-1982; 1989

STORY:
Alice was a young nurse when she met construction businessman Steve at Walter and Lenore Curtin's wedding reception on July 2, 1968.  Alice's sister-in-law, Rachel (Robin Strasser), was just as impressed as Alice with the handsome young Mr. Frame, who had bought into the Bay City Bengals football team and seemed to be going places.  Alice and Steve began spending time together and it wasn't long before they became engaged.    When the couple had a minor argument and called off their engagement, Rachel made her move.  She seduced the brooding Steve and became pregnant.  She tried to pass the baby (Jamie) off as Russ's child but when the truth came out, Alice fled to Paris and Russ dumped Rachel.  Rachel tried to convince Steve to get married but he was still in love with Alice eventually marrying her on September 24, 1971.  Rachel then married Ted Clark but he was sent to prison and she began to lean on Steve for assistance.   Alice felt insecure about Steve's growing bond with Jamie and those feelings only escalated when she miscarried their own child.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #6 Roger & Holly From GUIDING LIGHT

COUPLE: Roger Thorpe & Holly Norris
SHOW: GUIDING LIGHT
RANK: 6
PLAYED BY:
Roger: Michael Zaslow, Joel Fabiani, Dennis Parlato
Holly: Lynn Deerfield, Maureen Garrett
YEARS: 1971-1980; 1989-1998

STORY:
Much to her mother's chagrin, Holly went to work for her father, Stanley Norris.  Stanley wanted to keep Holly busy and out of his hair and asked his employee, Roger, to date her.  Roger saw this as an opportunity to move up the corporate ladder.   Holly began dating Peter Wexler, but couldn't fight her intense attraction to Roger and eventually lost her virginity to him.  Roger was smitten with Janet Mason and Holly was jealous.  Seeing Roger leaving Janet's apartment one night, Holly ran off and was hit by a car and became paralyzed.  At Cedar's Hospital, she met Dr. Ed Bauer who treated her and the two of them began a relationship.  During a trip to Las Vegas, Ed got drunk and married Holly.  Roger Thorpe returned to town and Holly was still fascinated by him.  The two began a torrid affair and Holly became pregnant.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #7 Cruz & Eden From SANTA BARBARA

COUPLE: Cruz Castillo & Eden Capwell
SHOW: SANTA BARBARA
RANK: 7
PLAYED BY:
Cruz: A Martinez
Eden: Marcy Walker
YEARS: 1984-1991

STORY:
Eden returned to Santa Barbara in 1984 after a trip to Europe.  She had a flirtation with Lionel Lockridge (Nicolas Coster) but it was revealed she had a passionate affair while away with Cruz.  Cruz and Eden soon became involved again, much to her father's (C.C. Capwell) chagrin.  The couple planned to marry but a fire interrupted their wedding.  As a member of the Santa Barbara Police Department, Cruz investigated the death of Eden's brother, Channing, which happened years earlier.  When Cruz arrested Eden's mother, Sophia, for the accidental murder, Eden broke off their engagement.  When C.C. went into a coma, Eden took over as head of Capwell Enterprises.  She worked closely with Kirk Cranston and eventually married him.  When Kirk realized how much Eden still loved Cruz he tried several times to murder her, including dumping her in a shark tank.  Cruz rescued his true love but by that time he was married to Santana Andrade.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #8 Josh & Reva From GUIDING LIGHT

COUPLE: Joshua Lewis & Reva Shayne
SHOW: GUIDING LIGHT
RANK: 8
PLAYED BY:
Josh: Robert Newman
Reva: Kim Zimmer
YEARS: 1983-1984; 1986-1990; 1995-2009

STORY:
When Alan Spaulding wanted to cause trouble between Vanessa Chamberlain and Billy Lewis he tracked down Reva, Billy's ex-wife, and offered her money to come to Springfield to split them up.  Reva happily accepted the offer and came to town claiming her divorce from Billy wasn't valid.  Though she had married Billy years ago, his younger brother, Josh, was her true love.  Reva began having second thoughts and called off her deal with Alan. It wasn't long before Reva and Josh rekindled their relationship, but he found out she had been working for Alan and dumped her.  Josh and Billy's father, H.B., stepped in and married Reva.  When Josh found out, he was disgusted and recklessly crashed his car resulting in him becoming paralyzed.  Reva and H.B. took Josh in as he tried to recover.  One night at a country club party, Josh and Reva let their feelings boil over in a confrontation which ended with Reva declaring herself "The Slut of Springfield."

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #9 Mac & Rachel From ANOTHER WORLD

COUPLE: Mackenzie 'Mac' Cory & Rachel Davis Matthews Clark Frame
SHOW: ANOTHER WORLD
RANK: 9
PLAYED BY:
Mac: Douglass Watson
Rachel: Victoria Wyndham
YEARS: 1974-1989 (Mac and Rachel actually met off-screen in 1973 when Robert Emhardt was playing Mac.)

STORY:
In 1974 Rachel was a single mother who had been divorced three times, always trying to better her life and position in society.  Mac was the wealthy owner of Cory Publishing new to Bay City where his daughter, Iris, now lived.  Iris threw a party in honor of her "Daddy" and Rachel crashed.  Iris was having her thrown out when Mac came to Rachel's rescue.   Mac sent her flowers the next day and their romance began.   Mac formed a close bond with Rachel's son, Jamie, while Iris fumed over the relationship.  Rachel began to find new depths in herself now that she had unconditional love and support.  On Valentine's Day in 1975 Rachel and Mac were married.   As a wedding present Mac bought Rachel the mansion she used to walk by as a child and dream about living in.  They were never happy for long though especially with Iris interfering every chance she could.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #10 Bo & Hope From DAYS OF OUR LIVES

COUPLE: Bo Brady & Hope Williams
SHOW: DAYS OF OUR LIVES
RANK: 10
PLAYED BY:
Bo: Peter Reckell, Robert Kelker-Kelly
Hope: Kristian Alfonso
YEARS: 1983-1987; 1990; 1994-present

STORY:
Motorcycle-riding rebel Bo Brady spotted high school student Hope Williams at Shenanigans bar and was immediately smitten.  He took her for a ride on his bike and it wasn't until later the two of them realized they knew each other as children.   Bo and Hope fell in love over the next several months and just as they were about to make love on Hope's 18th birthday, her father, Doug, burst in and had a heart attack.  Bo then had to go undercover to help clear his brother, Roman's, name.  Because of the danger involved, he convinced Hope he didn't care about her.  This led Hope to fall into a bad relationship with Larry Welch and the two of them became engaged.  On their wedding day, Bo kidnapped Hope from the church leaving Howie Hoffstetter to walk down the aisle as Hope.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #11 Jack & Mary From RYAN'S HOPE

COUPLE: Jack Fenelli & Mary Ryan
SHOW: RYAN'S HOPE
RANK: 11
PLAYED BY:
Jack: Michael Levin
Mary: Kate Mulgrew, Mary Carney, Kathleen Tolan, Nicolette Goulet
YEARS: 1975-1979; As a ghost/spirt in 1983, 1989

STORY:
While working on her brother's (Frank) political campaign Mary met Jack, a young reporter assigned to cover the campaign for the Village Banner.   They clashed for many reasons from their backgrouns (he was Italian and she was Irish) to him being a devout bachelor versus her stubborn career-minded and family-oriented lifestyle.  Her family was the center of much of their conflict.  An opposites attraction kept them coming back to each other.  When they finally made plans to marry, Jack went on an all-night drinking binge the night before and didn't show up at the church.  Mary's father, Johnny, finally found Jack and sobered him up by throwing him into a cold shower.  Their beautiful wedding was filmed on location at St. Benedict the Moor Church on Manhattan’s West Side.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #12 Tom & Margo From AS THE WORLD TURNS

COUPLE: Tom Hughes & Margo Montgomery
SHOW: AS THE WORLD TURNS
RANK: 12
PLAYED BY:
Tom: Justin Deas, Jason Kincaid, Gregg, Marx, Scott Holmes
Margo: Margaret Colin, Hillary B. Smith, Ellen Dolan, Glynnis O'Connor
YEARS: 1980-2010

STORY:
Margo was a nurse when she arrived in Oakdale.  She quickly became involved with the newly married James Stenbeck.  Tom had moved to Sweden to investigate Stenbeck (Anthony Herrera) after Barbara Ryan (Colleen Zenk) dumped him at the altar to be with James.  When Tom returned he became entangled in Margo's life in many ways, including forcing her mother, Lyla, to reveal that John Dixon was Margo's biological father.  Tom began dating Margo's aunt, Maggie, but his attraction to Margo would soon become strong.  Margo eventually freed herself from the clutches of James and got to know Tom better while working at his family's law firm.   It wasn't long before they began a series of adventures around the world while investigating the notorious Mr. Big (Brent Collins) and his connection to James.  On June 1, 1983, Tom and Margo called their friends and family to the park for an impromptu, come-as-you-are wedding which was both funny and poignant.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #13 Quint & Nola From GUIDING LIGHT

COUPLE: Quinton "Quint" McCord Chamberlain & Nola Reardon
SHOW: GUIDING LIGHT
RANK: 13
PLAYED BY:
Quint: Michael Tylo
Nola: Lisa Brown
YEARS: 1981-1985, 1996-1997

STORY:
Nola spent a year manipulating Kelly and Morgan (John Wesley Shipp and Kristen Vigard) in an effort to keep them apart even pretending to be pregnant with Kelly's baby.  When the truth came out--the baby was Floyd's--Kelly told her off and the entire town of Springfield learned of her deception. Shortly after, Quinton, an archaeologist looking for a new start, came to town and moved into a mansion on Thornway Road.  Quint met Nola when he interviewed Nola for a job as a live-in assistant,  but it was not love at first sight.  She thought he was dark and spooky and he thought she was odd.  But Quint fascinated Nola and he became the subject of her vivid fantasy life.  Despite their growing attraction something always seemed to stand in their way.  But on a trip to St. Croix to search for an artifact known as The Temple of Gold, Quint rescued Nola and they shared their first kiss on the beach.  But their happiness was short-lived with the arrival of Qunt's ex, Helen Manzini, followed by Nola being kidnapped by the evil Silas Crocker (Benjamin Hendrickson).

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #14 John & Marlena From DAYS OF OUR LIVES

COUPLE: John Black & Marlena Evans
SHOW: DAYS OF OUR LIVES
RANK: 14
PLAYED BY:
John: Drake Hogestyn
Marlena: Deidre Hall
YEARS: 1986-1987, 1991-2009, 2011-present (including the years John was thought to be Roman Brady)

STORY:
Marlena's husband, Roman Brady, died tragically in late 1984.  The next year a mysterious man arrived in Salem with no memory of who he was.  He was known as "The Pawn" but came up with name John Black and worked with Marlena to regain his memory.  John had a Phoenix tattoo which led some to speculate he was Stefano DiMera.  But it was soon revealed that John was actually Roman, not so dead after all, whose appearance had been altered with plastic surgery.  Roman and Marlena reunited and renewed their wedding vows but it wasn't long until Marlena was presumed dead leaving Roman heartbroken.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #15 Sonny & Brenda From GENERAL HOSPITAL

COUPLE: Sonny Corinthos & Brenda Barrett
SHOW: GENERAL HOSPITAL
RANK: 15
PLAYED BY:
Sonny: Maurice Benard
Brenda: Vanessa Marcil
YEARS: 1993–1998, 2002–2003, 2010–2011

STORY:
Brenda was instantly drawn to Sonny and was determined to make up her own mind about him despite rumors around Port Charles that he was a bad guy.  When Sonny was shot while breaking Frank Smith out of prison, he crashed his car into Brenda's, and she brought him home to nurse his wounds.  They grew even closer but when Sonny caught Brenda wearing a wire (she was trying to prove people were wrong about him and his mob connections), he dumped her and married Lily Rivera (Lilly Melgar).  Brenda got Sonny to admit he really love her, but Lily became pregnant and Sonny stayed with his wife.  Brenda married Jasper "Jax" Jacks (Ingo Rademacher) and just as they toasted their wedding, Lily blew up in a car explosion (Clink-Boom!).

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #16 Jack & Carly From AS THE WORLD TURNS

COUPLE: Jack Snyder & Carly Tenney
SHOW: AS THE WORLD TURNS
RANK: 16
PLAYED BY:
Jack: Michael Park
Carly: Maura West
YEARS: 1997-2010

STORY:
Jack came to Oakdale working for the FBI trying to bring down James Stenbeck.  He soon joined the Oakdale PD and met Carly, an up and coming fashion designer.  The two clashed but had an instant attraction to each other.  Months later they were trapped in (rogue cop) Teague's cabin in the woods and Carly's startling revelations created an even stronger bond between them.  Despite falling in love, life was not going to be easy for Jack and Carly.  Carly wanted a better life and didn't mind breaking a few rules to reach her goal.  Jack was a "by the book" kind of guy and this difference tore them apart many times over the years.  But Jack and Carly could never stay away from each other very long.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #17 Sky & Raven From THE EDGE OF NIGHT

COUPLE: Schuyler Whitney & Raven Swift
SHOW: THE EDGE OF NIGHT
RANK: 17
PLAYED BY:
Sky: Larkin Malloy
Raven: Sharon Gabet
YEARS: 1980-1984 (including Jefferson Brown)

STORY:
Sky and Raven were an explosive duo that met in 1980 after Sky had survived a plane crash and moved to Monticello.  Sky was Geraldine Whitney's nephew who won Raven's heart, ultimately leading to their wedding.  But it wasn't happily ever after for the couple as Raven realized Sky had been a patient of plastic surgeon, Dr. Kenneth Bryson, and was actually an impostor named Jefferson Brown!

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #18 Joe & Viki From ONE LIFE TO LIVE

COUPLE: Joe Riley & Victoria Lord
SHOW: ONE LIFE TO LIVE
RANK: 18
PLAYED BY:
Joe: Lee Patterson
Victoria: Gillian Spencer, Joanne Dorian, Erika Slezak
YEARS: 1968-1970, 1972-1979, 1987 (in heaven)

STORY:
Victoria (Spencer) was pouring all her energies into her work at her father's newspaper, The Banner, when she met his ace reporter, Joe.  Joe was from the wrong side of the tracks but did a good job and the two of them began working together.  Viki began to fall in love but Victor Lord would never approve.  She was torn between pleasing her father and her growing feelings.  She began to receive threatening notes telling her to break things off with Joe.  Soon a woman named Niki Smith, bearning a striking resemblance to Viki, started showing up at waterfront dive, Ernie's.  Vince Wolek saw her and immediately fell in love.  Vince discovered and revealed that Niki was actually Viki's other personality.  Eventually Joe and Viki were married and seemed destined for a happy live until he died in a car crash in 1970.

50 Greatest Soap Couples: #19 Steve & Kayla From DAYS OF OUR LIVES

COUPLE: Steve 'Patch' Johnson & Kayla Brady
SHOW: DAYS OF OUR LIVES
RANK: 19
PLAYED BY:
Steve: Stephen Nichols
Kayla: Mary Beth Evans
YEARS: 1986-1990; 2006-2009; 2011-2012 (Kayla only)

8 STORY:
Steve had been in the merchant marines with Bo Brady (Peter Reckell) and came to town with a vendetta against Bo over a girl they both loved, Britta.  A year later Kayla returned to Salem, met Steve (aka Patch) and they fell in love.  Steve kept himself at a distance though due to troubled memories from his past while Kayla became friends with his brother, Jack Deveraux (aka Billy Johnson, played by Matt Ashford ).   Jack was suffering from Hodgkins disease and Steve pushed Kayla to marry him thinking Jack was dying.   After Kayla's wedding to Jack, she began having an affair with Steve.  Outraged after finding out, a bitter Jack raped Kayla.  Kayla left Jack and had him charged with the crime, but he managed to use his connections to avoid going to jail.