In Loving Memory of the Days of Our Lives Leading Lady Whose Life Ended in Unspeakable Tragedy: ‘I Often Felt We Could Have Done Something’
Friday, April 7th, 2023
Reeling from the death of her son, Brenda Benet fatally shot herself on April 7, 1982.
We sometimes think of our soaps, “Oh, that’s too dark. That’s just too sad.” But daytime storylines, even at their most heart-wrenching, pale by comparison to the pain that Brenda Benet endured.
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In 1982, the actress’ career was going strong. She was playing supervixen Lee Dumonde on Days of Our Lives. And though viewers loved to hate her — her conniving character was, after all, coming between megapopular Doug and Julie Williams — she was as integral a part of the show as the hourglass.
Behind the scenes, though, Benet was coping with unspeakable grief. A year after her 1981 divorce from Bill Bixby — aka David Banner on The Incredible Hulk — their 6-year-old son went into cardiac arrest on a skiing trip and died shortly thereafter of what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said was a throat infection.
Bixby and Benet appeared together on The Adonis File in 1972.
Credit: Courtesy of the Everett Collection
More: Tribute to Days vet who succumbed to bipolar disorder
It was just over a year later that Benet died by suicide at just 36 years old. “I often felt,” Bill Hayes (Doug) admitted to We Love Soaps in 2010, “that we could have done something or said something that would have prevented it.“
But, he and wife Susan Seaforth Hayes (Julie) told the site, their co-star was an extremely private person. Only “the [show’s] costumer knew she had lost 20 pounds just prior in the past month,” Susan shared. “He knew she was drinking, and she was going downhill physically.
“He would see her naked,” she added, so “he could see the big changes she was going through. It felt awful.”
To this day, Benet’s death remains a shock. She had a vivacity that made — that still makes — it impossible to imagine her being gone. Sigh. If on this sad occasion you need a pick-me-up — we wouldn’t blame you — perhaps you can find it in the below photo gallery that takes you from Days of Our Lives’ earliest years all the way through today.
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Image: NBC/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>… and for decades, these were the two that it took: the late Frances Reid and MacDonald Carey as Alice and Tom Horton.</p>
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<p>Never mind how it ended <em>and</em> ended <em>and</em> ended again between these two; this is the way we like to remember Hope Williams (Kristian Alfonso) and Bo Brady (Peter Reckell) — as happy as they were on the day of their first wedding.</p>
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<p>… or was it just the early days in the romance of Carrie Brady (Christie Clark) and Austin Reed (Patrick Muldoon)? Nothing, it seemed, could come between them. Nothing <em>except</em>…</p>
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<p>New Austin — Austin Peck — same old chemistry. Whew.</p>
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<p>In 1966, Diane Hunter (Coleen Gray) did her best to assure daughter Susan (Denise Alexander) that bows were <em>sure</em> to come back in fashion. One day. Maybe.</p>
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<p>All Lucas Roberts (Bryan R. Dattilo) is missing in this late-1990s portrait is the other members of his dreamy boy band.</p>
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<p>Nothing could stand in the way of Joshua Fallon (Scott Palmer) marrying Jessica Fallon (Jean Bruce Scott). Well, unless you count her relationship with the Salem Strangler and her alternate personality.</p>
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<p>In 1992, Robert Kelker-Kelly wasn’t just a new beau for Dr. Carly Manning (Crystal Chappell), he was a new Bo Brady for us all.</p>
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<p>Eh, it was really more of a crowd for a jealous Ben Weston (Robert Scott Wilson), girlfriend Abigail Deveraux (then Kate Mansi) and her true love, Chad DiMera (Billy Flynn), in 2015.</p>
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<p>Looking back, gamblin’ man Neil Curtis (Joe Gallison) and sad songstress Liz Chandler (Gloria Loring) probably would’ve been better off as strangers.</p>
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<p>If only the late, great Joseph Mascolo’s Stefano DiMera could rise yet again…</p>
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<p>In the mid-1970s, David Banning (Richard Guthrie) and Valerie Grant (then Tina Andrews) — aka Eli Grant’s parents — became <em>Days of Our Lives</em>’ first interracial couple.</p>
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<p>In 2004, Mickey Horton (the late John Ingle) was torn between naughty Bonnie Lockhart (Judi Evans) and nice wife Maggie (Suzanne Rogers).</p>
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<p>Billie Reed (Lisa Rinna) and Bo (Kelker-Kelly here) were as fond of one another as <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/gallery/real-life-soap-scandals-photos/" target="_blank">their portrayers infamously weren’t</a>.</p>
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<p>Sister Mary Moira was but <em>one</em> of the secondary characters that former headwriter James E. Reilly created for <em>Days of Our Lives</em>’ original Kristen DiMera, Eileen Davidson.</p>
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<p>Nothin’ to see here. Just Hope and Bo (Reckell again) sharing a warm moment while chilling in 1996.</p>
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<p>In 2003, somebody just needed to tell Belle Black (Kirsten Storms; now Maxie, <em>General Hospital</em>), Cassie Brady (Alexis Thorpe), Rex Brady (Eric Winter) and Mimi Lockhart (Farah Faith) that the camera was over here. Over <em>here</em>, kids.</p>
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<p>There’s really no other way to describe the tortured relationship between Carly and Lawrence Alamain (Michael Sabatino, who married his leading lady in 1997).</p>
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<p>Well, at least Sami Brady (Alison Sweeney) was happy anytime she and Austin (Peck here) were together. He, on the other hand, was generally ambivalent. At <em>best</em>. Maybe it shows?</p>
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<p>Despite his checkered past and despite how brightly her halo glowed, Jack Deveraux (Matthew Ashford) and Jennifer Horton (Melissa Reeves) discovered that they were perfect for one another.</p>
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<p>They say that when couples have been together for a while, they start to look alike. Or is it <em>dress</em> alike? Julie Williams (Susan Seaforth Hayes) and husband Doug (real-life spouse Bill Hayes) might be able to shed some light on this subject.</p>
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<p>For some reason, EJ DiMera (James Scott) and sometime missus Sami looked as if we were interrupting them during this 2006 bedroom shoot. We’ll just let ourselves out…</p>
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<p>John Black (Drake Hogestyn) turns his bedroom eyes up to “seduce.”</p>
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<p>In 1986, sometime stripper Pete Jannings (Michael Leon) married Melissa Horton (Lisa Trusel) in a double-wedding ceremony with her adoptive parents, Mickey (then the late John Clarke) and Maggie.</p>
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<p>Shawn Brady (then Jason Cook) and Belle (then Storms) were just whippersnappers when they fell in love.</p>
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<p>Hey, how come when Shawn and Belle grew up — and began being played by Brandon Beemer and Martha Madison — they remained just as pretty as they always were? That hardly seems fair.</p>
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<p>Lucas would stop at nothing to prove to people that there was nothing up his sleeve. Including eschewing sleeves altogether.</p>
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<p>Sure, they were troublemakers to the core, but Vivian Alamain (Louise Sorel) and Victor Kiriakis (John Aniston) certainly showed us a devil of a good time.</p>
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<p>In an early publicity shot, Reid strikes such a pensive pose, you’d swear she was auditioning for <em>Dark Shadows</em>.</p>
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<p>In 2015, Chad, Stefano and Tony — or was that André (Thaao Penghlis, either way)? — managed to fit three generatuons of DiMeras into one frame.</p>
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<p>We get why the Bradys — Shawn (the late Frank Parker) and Caroline (the late Peggy McCay) — would be together in this 1996 promotional photo. But sweet Maggie and the dastardly Stefano? Mystifying.</p>
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<p>Tom tried to reach Susan, but her troubles were usually so great, even his wise words couldn’t help. She was probably daydreaming about her old bows. “They’re coming back in style,” she told herself.</p>
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<p>Abe Carver (James Reynolds) made the last days of lost love Lexie (Renée Jones) ones that she — and “oui” — would always remember.</p>
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<p>Unless you know Mark Valley, who spelled usual portrayer Ashford in the role from 1994-97. Then OK, you <em>might</em> know Jack. (Don’t get us started on Steve Wilder, though.)</p>
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<p>Doug gave only the subtlest of signs to gold digger Lee DuMonde (the late Brenda Benet) that was he was <em>slightly</em> more into Julie. Do ya think she noticed?</p>
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<p>There would be no pulling focus from Lucas in 1999. Not at <em>this</em> photo shoot, anyhow.</p>
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<p><em>Days of Our Lives</em> vet Alfonso may have left the building, but we’ll always have our memories of her iconic character. And also amazing images like this one. What <em>was</em> up there? Cobweb? Good lighting? We can’t help but wonder.</p>
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<p>Given the history between Sami, Austin (Peck here, as if you didn’t know), Lucas and Carrie, this <em>had</em> to be one of the more fraught double dates in history.</p>
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<p>When John married Isabella Toscano (Staci Greason) in 1992, he thought that it was for keeps. If only, pal. If only.</p>
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<p>If this wasn’t Jack and Jennifer’s engagement photo, it should’ve been. For real, yo.</p>
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<p>As this 2013 scene shot suggests, mercurial Kristen (original flavor Davidson) had a tendency to go off half-cocked.</p>
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<p>So frosty a presence is Vivian that she gives herself the chills even in a sweater. Now <em>that’s</em> cold.</p>
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<p>Austin (Peck again) and half-sibling rival Lucas never failed to make a splash when they tried dipping into the same dating pool a, um, <em>toe</em>.</p>
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<p>After solving the Salem Stalker case, Roman Brady (then Wayne Northrop) made a missus of Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall) in 1983.</p>
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<p>In the early 1990s, Kelker-Kelly’s do-gooder had it bad for both Hope and Billie. Can ya blame him?</p>
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<p>By 2018, Ben had totally sold <em>Days of Our Lives</em>’ audience on his feelings for Ciara Brady (Victoria Konefal).</p>
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<p>Unbeknownst to them, back in 2001, Philip Kiriakis (Jay Kenneth Johnson), Chloe Lane (Nadia Bjorlin), Shawn Brady (Cook) and Belle (Storms) were <em>actually</em> looking at seaweed; they’d been in the sun for a long time.</p>
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<p>In 1995, Marlena ran afoul of a demon that was even more troublesome than Kristen. Maybe you heard a little something about it?</p>
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<p>Foolishly, the first doctor who treated Marlena for possession had just prescribed Visine.</p>
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<p>In the grip of an otherworldly fiend, Marlena seemed seriously opposed to letting John — or <em>anyone</em> — borrow her office supplies.</p>
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<p>We’d love to say that we didn’t know what possessed her. But c’mon, we knew. We <em>all</em> knew.</p>
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<p>In the end, Kristen (still Davidson) didn’t have a prayer of holding onto John.</p>
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<p>“Her!” cried Kristen. “There are too many pictures of her and her damn possession in this photo album!” Fine. We’ll move on.</p>
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<p>Nope. This is just about normal for Doug and Julie. They dance cheek to cheek even when standing still.</p>
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<p>Dr. Mike Horton (Roark Critchlow) did the near-impossible: He made us forget that we always thought that Austin was endgame for Carrie.</p>
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<p>But then Austin (pec again… er <em>Peck</em>) would show up looking like this, and all bets would be off.</p>
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<p>Ultimately, Austin (you know which one) just kept taking clothes off until Carrie said, “Fine, you can have your favorite pillow back.”</p>
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<p>When Doug and Julie tied the knot for the first time… well, in looking back, they really should’ve <em>double</em>-tied it. Salem ain’t an easy town in which to maintain a marriage.</p>
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<p>As evil twins are wont to do, Samantha Evans (Andrea Hall-Gengler) — aka the sibling rival with which sister Marlena was saddled — stole the shrink’s life out from under her. Briefly.</p>
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<p>In 2012, Nicole Walker (Arianne Zucker) felt that Eric Brady (Greg Vaughan) really, <em>really</em> needed to know how often she’d watched <em>The Thorn Birds.</em></p>
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<p>Abe’s relationship with Paulina Price (the inimitable Jackée Harry) was not the endless party that this photo makes it look like. There weren’t even balloons most of the time.</p>
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<p>Alice could see it written all over the face of her son, Mickey (Clarke here). And she’d told him not to write on his face <em>so</em> many times already.</p>
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<p>Oh, who are we kidding? You’d never have to <em>frame</em> Kate Roberts (Lauren Koslow) <em>or</em> Sami — they commit plenty enough crimes on their own.</p>
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<p>Given the state of the chompers on a zombified Charlie Dale (Mike C. Manning) in 2021, we’re gonna risk eternal damnation by guessing that the devil doesn’t offer its minions much in the way of a dental plan.</p>
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<p>… was always on tap whenever daytime’s kookiest supercouple — Calliope Jones (Arleen Sorkin) and Eugene Bradford (John de Lancie) — was on screen.</p>
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<p>In a 1970 promotional photo, Tom was surrounded by daughter-in-law Laura Horton (Susan Flannery), daughter Marie (Maree Cheatham), Susan (sans bow), granddaughter Sandy (Heather North), wife Alice and granddaughter Julie.</p>
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<p>Scheming Sloan Petersen (Jessica Serafy) thought that she’d gotten her man when she married Eric in 2023. But tying the knot and <em>keeping</em> it tied are two very different things.</p>
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<p>We meant that sarcastically, of course. The love triangle between Steve Johnson (Stephen Nichols), Kayla Brady (Mary Beth Evans) and Steve’s brother, Jack Deveraux (originally Joseph Adams), led to her rape and years of therapy.</p>
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<p>Next time you want to complain about your split ends, remember poor Kimberly Donovan (Patsy Pease), who suffered from a split <em>personality</em>.</p>
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<p>John didn’t want for company in the hospital before the age of social-distancing.</p>
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<p>Kate and Vivian fought tooth and nail over Victor — to the point that the latter had her rival’s embryo implanted in her. Like, “Damn, girl! <em>That’s</em> commitment.”</p>
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<p>Bo (Reckell here) gave Carly an enviable pick-me-up in 1991.</p>
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<p><em>Somehow</em> Kelker-Kelly got viewers to accept him in Reckell’s old role. Pictured: <em>somehow</em>.</p>
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<p>Eh, as Chanel Dupree (Raven Bowens) would be quick to tell ya, that isn’t <em>necessarily</em> true when one’s mother is the irrepressible Paulina.</p>
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<p>Down-to-earth Caroline could glam it up with the best of ’em. Was she on her way to a <em>Dynasty</em> viewing party?</p>
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<p>Also <em>outstanding</em> in her field. That’s Emmy winner Davidson milking the role of Susan Banks for all it was worth in 1998.</p>
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<p>And they said it wouldn’t last. Oh. Right. It didn’t. But <em>Days of Our Lives</em> nonetheless flirted with the idea of pairing Shane Donovan (Charles Shaughnessy) and sister-in-law Kayla.</p>
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<p>Odd enough that in this 1986 wedding portrait, Marlena thinks that her groom is Roman (when he’s actually John). But among the groomsmen is Chris Kositchek, played by Josh Taylor… who’d eventually end up <em>playing</em> Roman. Wild, right?</p>
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<p>Once Gabi Hernandez (Camila Banus) and Stefan DiMera (Brandon Barash) crossed it, there was no turning back.</p>
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<p>After Ben and Ciara were given the rare happy ending, his portrayer was given a new character to play. Thankfully, Alex Kiriakis was also a clothing-optional kinda guy.</p>
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<p>Peter Blake (Jason Brooks) not only entangled Jennifer (then Stephanie Cameron) in his arms but in his web of lies.</p>
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<p>If Stefano was smiling, you just <em>knew</em> he was up to no good. Also: if he wasn’t smiling. He was pretty much always up to no good.</p>
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<p>OK, technically, we don’t know if Abe ever picked up brother Jonah (Thyme Lewis) to know how much he weighed.</p>
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<p>We’re no experts, Hope — OK, maybe we are — but it looks to us like you’re in serious danger based on the daggers romantic rival Megan Hathaway (Cheryl-Ann Wilson) is shooting your way. And Nurse Kate Honeycutt (Elinor Donahue) looks like she’s living for it, <em>whatever</em> “it” turns out to be.</p>
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<p>In 2019, Brady Black (Eric Martsolf) and Nicole were shocked — <em>shocked</em>, we tell ya — to discover that a mask had convinced him that Kristen (by then Stacy Haiduk) wasn’t Kristen at all. Yeah, it was a heckuva mask!</p>
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<p>Tony was the last to realize that Kristen (Davidson again) just wasn’t that into him.</p>
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<p>On the flip side, Tony and <em>Anna</em> (Leann Hunley) made the ultimate scheme team.</p>
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<p>It was during soap legend Flannery’s 1960s-70s run as <em>Days of Our Lives</em>’ Laura that she met the late William J. Bell, the headwriter who’d eventually cast her as Stephanie Forrester, the queen bee of <em>The Bold and the Beautiful</em>.</p>
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<p>Nah, as she attempted to remarry Bo, the bride was more likely just concerned that Salem weddings rarely go off without a hitch.</p>
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<p>Clearly, Rafe Hernandez (Galen Gering) and Hope were just on their way to the grocery. Out of Pop Tarts again.</p>
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<p>Steve and Kayla brought out the best in each other.</p>
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<p>Sigh. Back in 2011, Sonny Kiriakis (Freddie Smith) and dad Justin (Wally Kurth) hadn’t the faintest idea of how cruelly the former’s mom and latter’s wife, Adrienne (Judi Evans), would be taken from them.</p>
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<p>When Doug and Julie remarried in 1981, on hand were her son, David Banning (Gregg Marx), Tom, Alice and Maggie to… well, not to put too fine a point on it, make the couple look very, very short.</p>
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<p>Want passion? Just add water to Hope and Bo.</p>
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<p>Damn, they even dry sexily.</p>
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<p>That’s Cameron Davis (Schuyler Yancey), Abigail (Mansi here), Melanie Jonas (Molly Burnett), Chad DiMera (Casey Deidrick), Gabi, Will Horton (Chandler Massey) and Sonny… um, posing for a Benetton ad? Starring in their class’ production of <em>90210: The Musical</em>?</p>
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<p>When it comes to reformed scoundrel Xander Kiriakis (Paul Telfer), that’s a rhetorical question. Besides, what better way for him to reassure folks that he doesn’t have any tricks up his sleeve?</p>
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<p>In 1983, <em>Days of Our Lives</em> viewers thrilled to every new chapter in the love story of Marlena and Roman (then Northrop).</p>
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<p>Will and Sonny gave <em>Days of Our Lives</em> its first gay supercouple. May they not be its last.</p>
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<p>Adrienne and Justin had the world on a string in 2011. They should have tried affixing it to, say, a <em>cord</em>; string is not known for its strength.</p>
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<p>Years after <em>Days of Our Lives</em> saddled John with the saddest backstory ever, history was rewritten to give the beleaguered hero a new and improved dad in special guest star Dick Van Dyke’s Timothy Robicheaux.</p>
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<p>It was anything-goes during <em>Days of Our Lives</em>’ 2016 babes-behind-bars-storyline.</p>
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<p>… of bringing the glamour in the ’80s was Anna. Side note: Is that the <em>Titanic</em> jewel?</p>
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<p>In 2020, Lani Price (Sal Stowers) and Eli Grant (Lamon Archey) became the first — yes, unbelievably, the first — Black couple ever to tie the knot on screen on <em>Days of Our Lives.</em></p>
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<p>In the early 1990s, heads were turned — fine, mostly ours — by the Scofield siblings, sensible Brian (Robert Mailhouse) and rebellious Tanner (Michael Easton, who’s now Finn on <em>General Hospital</em>).</p>
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<p>Jones brought to life Abe’s true love, Lexie, for just shy of two decades. We’ll still give her credit for 20 years, though.</p>
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<p>In 2015, Claire Brady (Olivia Rose Keegan), perhaps guessing that she was on Santa’s naughty list, seemed to watch her chances of receiving gifts float away while Gabi, daughter Arianna (then Harper Udell) and JJ Deveraux (Casey Moss) took altogether different approaches to their holiday portrait.</p>
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<p>Ah, yes — the one thing that’s better than a photo of “Jarlena” getting their romance on: three photos of “Jarlena” having a love-in.</p>
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<p>Lovers Chanel and Allie Horton (Lindsay Arnold) had to learn that one the hard way, after they and Alex participated in daytime’s first-ever mé·nage à trois.</p>
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<p>As far as Bo (Kelker-Kelly again) was concerned, son Shawn (then Scott Groff) was head and shoulders above the rest. Literally.</p>
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<p>In 2004, the incorrigible Jan Spears (Heather Lindell) went to extremes to, um, “captivate” Shawn (then Cook).</p>
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<p>Forecast be damned, in 1979, a head-over-heels-in-love Marlena tied the knot with Don Craig (Jed Allan) armed with a parasol.</p>
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<p>In 2017, Stefan (then Tyler Christopher) liked sister-in-law Abigail (Marci Miller here), but he <em>really</em> liked her alter ego, “Gabby.”</p>
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<p>The honeymoon was over for Gwen Rizczech (Emily O’Brien) before it even began in 2023. Groom Dimitri Von Leuschner (Peter Porte) agreed that Leo Stark (Greg Rikaart) was the best man — in particular, the best man for <em>him</em>!</p>
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