Days of our Lives
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| Days of our Lives | |
 | |
| Network | NBC, SOAPnet |
|---|---|
| Creator(s) | Ted Corday, Betty Corday, Irna Phillips |
| Executive Producer(s) | Ken Corday, Stephen Wyman |
| Head Writer | Hogan Sheffer, Meg Kelly |
| Senior cast member(s) | Frances Reid |
| Distributor | Sony Pictures Television |
| Running time | 60 minutes (30 minutes from 1965 to 1975) |
| Premiere date | November 8, 1965 |
Days of our Lives is a long-running American soap opera. It debuted on November 8, 1965, and can still be viewed weekdays on NBC. Originally, the show revolved solely around the Horton family, and has since expanded to tell the stories of other families, such as the Alamain, Brady, DiMera, Kiriakis, Black, Deveraux, Chandler, Johnson, and Lockhart clans. The serial is set in the fictional city of Salem.
Contents |
[edit] Storylines
| U.S. daytime soap operas currently on the air: |
| All My Children |
| As the World Turns |
| The Bold and the Beautiful |
| Days of our Lives |
| General Hospital |
| Guiding Light |
| One Life to Live |
| Passions |
| The Young and the Restless |
| Edit this box |
[edit] 1960s through the 2000s
For detailed information on historical storylines, see List of Days of our Lives storylines
[edit] Recent history
In recent months, the show's producers have begun to focus more on the past, as they've shifted focus back onto Jack and Jennifer as well as restocking the Horton family tree by way of SORAS. Abby was rapidly aged to a teenager. Abby (Ashley Benson)'s best friend Chelsea Benson (Mandy Musgrave, then Rachel Melvin), lost her parents in a car accident and was taken in by Patrick and Billie. She was later revealed to be Bo and Billie's presumed-dead daughter, Georgia Brady.
[edit] Death of Zack Brady
Chelsea was a key figure in a major plot line that opened 2006, as she accidentally killed Bo and Hope's little boy Zack while playing with her cell phone behind the wheel of Bo's SUV. Matters grew even worse when Hope found out that Bo had not only lied to cover up what Chelsea did (when Billie insisted on taking the fall, Bo let her), he also had just that night signed a new temporary driver's license to Chelsea, then handed her the keys to his truck. He believed that he was actually responsible for Zack's death, and Hope agreed, throwing him out of their house.
In an attempt to protect herself, Chelsea did everything she could to drive a wedge between Bo and Hope and push her father closer to Billie, all in the hopes that Bo would defend Chelsea at her impending trial. Her scheming drove Hope into the arms of Patrick Lockhart and Bo temporarily back to Billie. The trial hinged on a critical piece of damning evidence: video footage from a convenience story of Chelsea behind the wheel of the SUV. When this footage went missing, Chelsea was let off with a paltry sentence of community service. Hope was furious and filed for divorce from Bo, whom she believed stole the evidence to protect his daughter.
[edit] Shawn, Belle, Phillip, and Mimi
In the meantime, Kate Roberts and Victor Kiriakis discovered baby Claire's true paternity: Shawn-Douglas Brady was her father. Neither Belle nor Shawn remembered having sex during a traumatic barn fire. This was revealed soon after an organ transplant which saved Claire's life. Phillip was, mysteriously, not a match, but her godfather Shawn was, as was the late Zack Brady. Bo and Hope tearfully allowed Zack's organs to be donated, and it saved Claire's life. Soon, the truth of Claire's paternity spread to Mimi's mother Bonnie, and then to Mimi. About to be married to Shawn, Mimi swore she would tell her husband-to-be the truth but never mustered the courage, too afraid of losing him to his first love, Belle.
For months, the truth was hidden until Belle and Mimi agreed at the same time to undergo IVF to conceive babies. A mysterious figure wearing a black leather glove ensured that Belle's egg would be fertilized with Shawn's sperm, and Mimi's with Phillip's. Later, another switch in the lab tipped off a nurse, and soon the truth of the switched sperm was out to everyone, but not before Belle was impregnated with her egg and a surrogate carried Mimi's.
With this new connection between them, Belle and Shawn wrestled with their true feelings for each other, and Belle hoped she could somehow reconcile with Shawn. Both marriages would fall apart when the truth of Claire's paternity was revealed (thanks to Chelsea anonymously giving them the paternity results) and then confirmed when Mimi admitted the truth. Shawn immediately left Mimi for keeping the truth from him and filed for custody of Claire; Phillip vowed to hold his family and marriage together. Rocked from this new stress between them all, Belle would lose her (and Shawn's) baby. Ultimately, she blamed Phillip; he had reluctantly agreed to a procedure that saved her life by aborting the baby, but he went against her wishes. Belle moved out of their apartment, and a crushed Phillip left town, realizing she would certainly try to get back together with Shawn. However, Shawn had agreed with Phillip that Belle's life had to be saved, and after seeing how well he cared for Claire, he gave up his pursuit of custody. Belle was crushed by this news, thinking Shawn no longer wanted her or Claire.
Currently, Shawn is dating a former hooker named Willow, and Belle is trying to figure out if Shawn is truly fit to be a father for Claire. Meanwhile, Mimi has had to find work at Chez Rouge. She and Phillip gave up their rights to the baby their surrogate was carrying, but Mimi's mother Bonnie is trying to broker a deal so she can keep the baby. Because the baby is technically a Kiriakis heir, the opportunistic Bonnie sees dollar signs in the future.
[edit] Sami, Carrie, Lucas, and Austin (and E.J.)
In 2005, Carrie Brady and Austin Reed both returned to Salem with their own companies in the hopes of finding financial success, and quickly rediscovered their feelings for each other. Jealous of her sister, Sami hid the fact that Carrie was CEO of High Style, the company Austin was preparing to acquire via a hostile takeover. Carrie discovered it was Austin who stole her company and was furious, ending up in the arms of Lucas. Sami took the opportunity to move in on Austin and they became a couple.
Neither coupling seemed entirely stable as Austin tried to win Carrie back and she seemed torn between the two Reed brothers. Sami was paranoid she would lose Austin, so she blackmailed Lexie Carver, ordering her to ensure Carrie would not choose Austin; otherwise, Sami would reveal the truth of Lexie's infidelity with Tek Kramer to her husband Abe. Lexie complied. Carrie was one of her patients, so Lexie made up a story, telling her that she and Austin could never concieve a baby without a high chance it would have serious birth defects. This revelation crushed Carrie's hopes that she and Austin could have a family together. She shunned Austin, never telling him why. When she soon found out she was pregnant with Lucas' baby, she married him as quickly as possible.
A new character, British race car driver E.J. Wells (played by ex-All My Children star James Scott), arrived in Salem and moved into the same building as the two couples. The handsome and charming E.J. immediately sparked up a friendship with Sami and found himself involved with both couples' lives. It was then that the aforementioned "gloved one" would begin to play a part in the lives of Sami, Carrie, Lucas, Austin, and Lexie (though it is not known yet whether it is the same person from the Shawn/Belle/Phillip/Mimi storyline).
Sami began to receive crytic notes from the "gloved one", stating that she would lose everyone she cared about if she didn't cooperate. The notes continued through to her wedding day, when another note stated that if she married Austin, her lies would be told. She stood up Austin at the altar, later telling him she knew he really loved Carrie and that he should be with her instead. It was then that E.J. decided to make a romantic play for Sami.
Things only became more complicated when Carrie discovered she was never actually pregnant, the result of a false positive test. Carrie only married Lucas because she thought she was pregnant with him baby, but without this real tie to him, she found herself back in the arms of Austin. Lucas walked in on Carrie and Austin making love and he left her in disgust. Carrie and Austin began making plans to leave Salem together just as another note arrived at Sami's apartment: this one revealed all and was read by Lucas, Carrie, and Austin. They were shocked by how low Sami could go. Sami's son Will, already disappointed with her for leaving Austin at the altar, moved out with Lucas. Carrie and Austin quickly got married by a Justice of the Peace and left for Switzerland.
This has all left Sami was nobody to turn to... except for E.J. Wells. As fate would have it, he has been revealed to the viewer as the "gloved one", but nobody in Salem - except for his accomplice Patrick Lockhart - knows the truth, or his "true identity."
[edit] Patch and Kayla, Jack and Jennifer reunited
At some nearby hospice, the terminally ill Jack Deveraux discovered his long-dead brother Steve "Patch" Johnson was, in fact, alive. Jack urged his amnesiac brother to return to Salem to reunite with his wife Kayla and daughter Stephanie. Steve agreed to go meet these people that he didn't know under the stipulation that Jack would go with him.
Dr. Kayla Brady Johnson returned to Salem, still grieving her late husband after all these years, just in time for Jennifer's wedding to Frankie Brady. Jack interrupted the ceremony, shocking everyone in attendence including his wife Jennifer and daughter Abby. Outside the church, Kayla fainted at the sight of her long-lost husband Steve, and she soon hoped to discover their love together. Unfortunately, he admitted not knowing her, but she vowed to help him remember. Steve found himself pressured by the new responsibilities of being a husband and father and went back to Cincinnati. He would return to Salem to try again with Kayla, but ended up starting a relationship with Billie Reed. It is currently unknown if Kayla and Steve will get back together.
Meanwhile, thanks to help from the selfless Frankie, Jack was cured of his illness thanks to an experimental drug treatment. He felt very awkward stepping in between Frankie and Jennifer, but Abby was very hopeful her parents would get back together. Soon, Jack and Jennifer became embroiled in the mystery of the murder of Officer Eve Michaels, a crooked cop at the Salem PD. And just as abruptly as they got back together, both Jack and Jennifer were soon gone to London.
[edit] Current storylines
- E.J. Wells has been revealed to the audience as the "gloved one" and his paid accomplice is Patrick Lockhart. Meanwhile, Celeste has some knowledge of what is happening. Recently, E.J. made mention of "our family" to her, most likely meaning that he is a DiMera. This would explain why he has been plotting against the Brady family.
- John, Roman, and Bo used phone records to find a link between Patrick and E.J. They have been trying to find solid evidence against E.J., including breaking into his apartment. E.J. ended up suing them and the Salem Police Department for their illegal tactics; Roman and Abe would deliver a public televised apology.
- Patrick paid off Hope's doctor to tell Hope that her baby is his, not Bo Brady's.
- Belle is living at the penthouse with Marlena and John, who are planning on getting remarried.
- Shawn is living with Willow, a former hooker. Belle was bringing Claire over to visit him, but every time she showed up, Shawn would have Willow hide.
- Victor has patched things up with Belle in order to spend time with Claire. However, his real reason for this was so Claire could spend time with Philip, who secretly returned to Salem. But it appears as though Philip has undergone surgery and/or is recovering from serious injuries. Meanwhile, Kate saw a newspaper photo of Marines leaving for the Middle East and is convinced one of the soliders is Philip. If so, who is the person in the wheelchair at Victor's mansion?
- Steve and Kayla were poisoned with a nerve toxin at Salem Hospital. Steve pretended to regain his memory to try and help Kayla recover. It worked, and now Stephanie is convinced they will all be a happy family again. However, Steve is interested in possibly pursuing things with Billie.
- Nick Fallon, a Horton relative and nerdy college student, helped save Kayla at the hospital. He has taken quite an interest in Chelsea.
- Mimi got a job working at Max's garage, and the two have become friends.
- Marlena was kidnapped in New Jersey, and abruptly found. What really happened?
- Bonnie Lockhart is trying to get back the Lockhart/Kiriakis baby being carried by the surrogate that Mimi and Phillip gave up their rights to.
[edit] Ratings/Scheduling History
Not long after its introduction in 1965, Days of our Lives became a successful part of NBC's attempt to dethrone powerhouse CBS Daytime. By 1973 the show, pitted against "Guiding Light", had matched the first place ratings of As The World Turns and Another World. NBC capitilized on this success with the decision to expand to one hour on April 21, 1975. This expansion had followed the lead of Another World, which became TV's first-ever hourlong soap on January 6, three and a half months earlier. However, this first golden period for NBC daytime proved to be short-lived as ratings began to decline in 1977. Much of the decline was due to ABC's expansion of the popular soap "All My Children". On January 1979, the network decided to jump headlong against "AMC" and moved the show ahead to the same 1 p.m./12 Noon time slot.
By the early 1980s "Days" had displaced Another World as NBC's highest-rated soap. However, the entire NBC soap lineup was in ratings trouble. In fact, by 1982, all of its shows were rated above only one ABC soap (The Edge of Night) and below all four CBS soaps. The supercouple era of the 1980s, however, helped bring about a ratings revival, and the 1983-1984 season saw "Days" experience a surge in ratings. It held onto its strong numbers for most of the 80s, only to go into decline again by 1990, eventually falling back into eighth place. In the mid 1990s however, the show experienced a resurgence in popularity and the show reached number 2 in the ratings, where it remained for several years before experiencing another ratings decline beginning in 1999. (See: Daytime TV ratings)
Week Of December 26-30, 2005 (Millions Of Viewers)
- The last week of the year was typically the highest rated week for all serials
- Y&R 5,718,000 (A loss of about 800,000 vs late Dec. 2004)
- B&B 4,656,000
- ATWT 3,771,000
- GH 3,696,000
- DOOL 3,686,000 (A loss of about 400,000)
- OLTL 3,417,000
- AMC 3,362,000 (A loss of about 1.1 million)
- GL 3,137,000
- PSN 2,553,000 (A loss of about 700,000)
[edit] Theme song and opening title sequences
Almost completely unchanged since the show's debut in 1965, the titles show an hourglass, as sand slowly trickles to the bottom. In 1966, the focus moved from the entire hourglass to the bottom, with the sand trickling away as the theme played. In 1972, the current title lettering was introduced, a condensed version of the Times New Roman typeface in yellow coloring (before then, the show's title was in generic caps). The theme that regularly accompanies each sequence composed by Charles Albertine, Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart. The current version of this theme is under 20 seconds in length, however the full version lasts around 1½ minutes.
In 1993, a computerized version of the visual was made, with completely redone sound effects and rearranged music. In this version the hourglass, now slowly spinning clockwise, starts focus at the bottom-half, overlooking the dawn. As the sun rises, the focus is zoomed out, and the audience sees the entire hourglass and the show's title "flourishes" on to the screen as the music flourishes. While the entire hourglass is revealed, the clouds in the sky change formations.
A portion of this open is also used as a mid-show break bumper, starting after the hourglass has zoomed out and title has appeared with Macdonald Carey announcing "We will return with the second half of Days of our Lives in just a moment."
A shortened version of this open exists, which was used in the summer of 2004 as the show's time period was shortened due to coverage of the Martha Stewart trial. It is still used from time to time when episodes run over the allotted time, most recently on the August 10, 2006 episode, in which John and Marlena returned after a summer's absence.
From its debut in 1965 until March of 1966, announcer Ed Prentiss spoke the words now made famous by MacDonald Carey. Since April 1966, the late Macdonald Carey has intoned the legendary epigram "Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives." From 1966 to 1994, he would also say, "This is Macdonald Carey, and these are the days of our lives." After Carey's passing, the decision was made to remove the second part of the opening, out of respect for Carey and his family.
In the summer of 2004, the show's theme song was changed to give the tune a more majestic feel. As this coincided with the height (or depth) of the Salem Serial Killer storyline, many viewers speculated that the change in theme was signaling a profound change in the nature of the show (and perhaps a clue to the outcome of the plot itself). Both versions (the 1993 theme and the new theme) were alternated by every other day, but was scrapped after only being used in eight episodes with the 1993 theme the only one used since; the 1993 theme tune was reinstated with no comment from Days publicists.
Days of our Lives 's 1993 open is currently the longest used current open among the current soaps, most of which have changed their opening sequences more frequently than Days. What's unusual about Days and NBC's other soap Passions (whose opening has been used since it premiered in 1999) is that they are the only soaps whose current sequences were created in the 1990s. They are also the only American soaps not to feature their main cast members in the opening sequence.
[edit] Cast
[edit] Current cast members
[edit] Recurring cast members
| Actor | Character |
|---|---|
| John Aniston | Victor Kiriakis |
| Tanya Boyd | Celeste Perrault |
| Kale Browne | Dr. Berman |
| Kavi Faquir | Theo Carver |
| Christopher Gerse | Will Roberts |
| Bill Hayes | Doug Williams |
| Susan Seaforth Hayes | Julie Williams |
| Kahlil Joseph | Dr. Myers |
| James Lancaster | Father Timothy Jansen |
| Jim Lunsford | Benjy Hawk |
| Ava & Olivia White | Claire Brady |
| Lisa Williams | Lisa |
[edit] Comings and Goings
| Actor | Character | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Clay Aiken | Himself | Guest; December 26th |
| Andrew Samonsky | Philip Kiriakis | Debuts January 2007 |
| Shayna Rose | Stephanie Johnson | Exits January 2007 |
| Farah Fath | Mimi Lockhart | Exits Late February 2007 |
| Brody Hutzler | Patrick Lockhart | Exits Late February 2007 |
| Renee Jones | Dr. Lexie Carver | Exits March 2007 |
[edit] Deceased cast members
| Actor | Character | Date of Death |
|---|---|---|
| Brenda Benet | Lee DuMonde | April 7, 1982 |
| Charla Doherty | Julie Olson (Original cast member) | May 29, 1988 |
| Ed Prentiss | John Martin / Dr. Ralph Dunbar / Alex Marshal | March 19, 1992 |
| Joy Garrett | Jo Johnson | February 15, 1993 |
| Macdonald Carey | Dr. Tom Horton, MD (Original cast member) | March 21, 1994 |
| Christopher Stone | Bill Horton | October 20, 1995 |
| Madlyn Rhue | Daphne DiMera | December 16, 2003 |
| Richard Biggs | Dr. Marcus Hunter, MD | May 22, 2004 |
| Paul Carr | Bill Horton (Original cast member) | February 17, 2006 |
| Terry O'Sullivan | Richard Hunter | September 14, 2006 |
[edit] Executive Producing & Head Writing Team
Executive Producers
- November 8, 1965 - July 1966: Ted Corday
- July 1966-1977: Betty Corday
- 1977-1979: Betty Corday & H. Wesley Kenney
- 1979-1985: Betty Corday & Al Rabin
- 1985 - Mid November 1987: Betty Corday, Ken Corday & Al Rabin
- Mid November 1987 - Mid June 1992: Ken Corday & Al Rabin (Co-EP)
- June 15, 1992 - Late 2000: Ken Corday
- 2001 - March 28, 2002: Ken Corday & Tom Langan (Co-EP)
- March 29, 2002 - Present: Ken Corday & Stephen Wyman (Co-EP)
Head Writers
- December 21, 1992 - May 7, 1993: Sheri Anderson & James E. Reilly
- May 10, 1993 - November 28, 1997: James E. Reilly
- December 1, 1997 - October 14, 1999: Sally Sussman Morina
- October 15, 1999 - November 10, 1999: Lorraine Broderick (Quit)
- November 11, 1999 - March 28, 2002: Tom Langan (Fired)
- March 29, 2002 - March 6, 2003: Peter Brash & Paula Cwikly
- March 7, 2003 - August 8, 2003: Dena Higley (Fired)
- August 11, 2003 - August 18, 2003: James E. Reilly & Dena Higley
- August 19, 2003 - October 4, 2006: James E. Reilly (Quit)
- October 5, 2006 - Present: Hogan Sheffer & Meg Kelly
[edit] Days in other media
The series was satirized on the hit sitcom Friends when one of the principals, Joey Tribbiani (played by Matt LeBlanc), got a job as Dr. Drake Ramoray on the show. All storylines shown on Friends (with guest shots by actual Days of our Lives stars) were fictional and did not represent what was really going on in the soap opera itself. Joey's fictional stint on the show ended when he angered its writers and his character was killed after falling down an elevator shaft. Later, his character was brought back to life in a further spoof on the show (no fewer than thirty-six characters have been "brought back" from the dead on Days). Joey was brought back as a man with a brain transplant. His new brain was from the character Jessica Lockhart, played by Susan Sarandon. Lockhart died from a horseback riding injury. The Lockharts are also the last names of Bonnie, Mimi and Patrick on Days, but the Jessica character is not a relation to any of the three. In the spinoff sitcom Joey, Joey was nominated for "best death scene" in which he was stabbed while performing surgery.
The connection between Days of our Lives and Friends is attributed to the fact that John Aniston (Victor Kiriakis) is the real-life father of Jennifer Aniston (Rachel Green).
In the movie "Nine to Five", when the evil Mr. Hart (Dabney Coleman) is being held prisoner in his house, there is a quick shot of him holding the TV remote and watching the opening Credits of "Days of Our Lives".
In the movie "Drop Dead Gorgeous", Iris Clark (Mindy Sterling) taped over Gladys Leeman's (Kirstie Alley) beauty pageant tape with the opening credits of "Days of Our Lives".
[edit] External Links
- NBC.com Site
- Days of our Lives at the Internet Movie Database
- Days Cafe
- Days Of Our Lives on Soaps.com
- Days Of Our Lives - Soap Opera Fan
- Search in our Lives A search engine indexing only Days Of Our Lives websites
- Prevuze satire and day ahead recapsde:Zeit der Sehnsucht
fr:Des jours et des vies nl:Days of our Lives no:I gode og onde dager simple:Days of Our Lives fi:Päivien viemää sv:Våra bästa år
