TV Guide's 60 best soap moments

Poirot

Poirot

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This year is TV Guide's 60th anniversary....and they have listed the 60 best soap opera moments of all time.

So here they are....just the first 10

1. Luke & Laura's wedding - GH, 1981
Something over 30 million people tuned in to watch, skipping work, school, etc.
2. BJ's Heart - GH - 1994
A school van accident causes little BJ Jones's heart to be transplanted into her dying cousin, Maxie
3. Marlena's Possession - Days of Our Lives - 1995
Satan raises holy hell in Salem, desecrating the church, and wanting the body & soul of Marlena
4. Bert's diagnosis - Guiding Light - 1962
Matriarch Bert Baur has a pap smear and is diagnosed with uterine cancer. Huge public response to this
5. Karen's testimony - One Life to Live - 1973
Karen Wolek, seemingly ordinary housewife is forced to reveal her secret life as a prostitute
6. Katherine's face lift - Young & Restless - 1984
On camera, Jeanne Cooper's real life face lift was done to Katherine Chancellor as well
7. Erica's abortion - All My Children - 1973
When she learned she was pregnant, Eric has an abortion without telling husband. (and in 2005, a miracle as that now grown child showed up)
8. Jeff's death in a car crash - As the World Turns - 1962
Newlywed Jeff abruptly loses his life, and CBS switchboards lit up like a Christmas tree
9. Vicki's out of body experience - One Life to Live - 1987
During brain surgery, Vicki dies and goes to heaven, but manages to return.
10. Reva's Dip in the Fountain - GL -1985
Reva's stepson, Josh, accuses her of infidelity. She doesn't deny, just strips down to her undies in the country club fountain, and baptizes herself the "*bleep* of Springfield"

************************************
There are 50 more. I will note the Days ones in the next post.
 
16. The Salem Strangler "kills" Marlena - 1982
20. Marlena is a serial killer - 2004
21. Kristen/Susan craziness - 1997
33. Doug elopes with Addie - 1972
44. Bo & Hope go on the run - 1984
 
I remember Reva's "dip in the fountain". Josh was actually the man she had loved since she was 15...but Reva the spitfire...well, soaps are soaps. At this point in time, she was married to his father, and Josh was in a wheel chair. Absolutely GREAT scene.
 
I wasn't watching GH back then during the BJ death story, but I did know Maxie had received a heart transplant when she was younger. Rascalmom's post had me so curious I went and found the youtube clip from May 18, 1994 and I cried instantly. Even though you never want to see children die on soaps, they really did know how to do scenes like this justice in the good old days. The most heart wrenching child death story I remember is the Cassie Newman story from Y&R.
 
Oh, my gosh, talk about recycled. And on different soaps! Baby Grace anyone? And she had menigitis, too.

Sheila(Nicole) miscarried, but kept it a secret. She bought a baby boy (girl) on the black-market. When Lauren (Sami)had her baby, Sheila (Nicole) pretended to give birth and then smuggled the black-market baby into the hospital and switched it with Lauren's (Sami) real baby. Sheila(Nicole) named Lauren's (Sami) baby, Scotty, Jr.(Sydney)

Something very close also happened with Kristen miscarrying, faking a pregnancy, getting Susan Banks to have a baby, and then pretending to deliver the same day. Welcome Elvis. LOL
 
Here is one mind boggling one that really made me LAUGH OUT LOUD.......

55. Vincent gets pregnant by his own father - Passions - 2007
 
I tried to watch Passions several times, but I just couldn't do it.

Reva Shayne (GH) is probably my all time favorite female soap character. That fountain scene is a classic. I just watched it this week!
 
Wow, Passions, yikes. I watched one episode and just couldn't continue to watch it. But wow, that's an interesting one Poirot.

Yay for Marlena's Possession, one of my all time faves! That was sure a fun romp and great writing too!
Those are good ones for DAYS. But wouldn't you think that the "Marriage of John and Marlena" would be on that list? :confused:
 
I was surprised that Bo and Hope's first wedding wasn't on there. I wasn't watching at the time, but I remember lots of people talking about it. I think it's funny that Marlena's possession is so high on the list. Honestly, that's what got me started on Days, though I know many of you don't like it very much. I'm not sure I would call it a "best soap moment" but it sure got me watching. :)

Passions... I actually watched Passions most of the time. I remember watching the first episode - Sheridan Crane was in a car driving through the streets of Paris, and while I can't remember if there was a car accident, there wasn't much question that it was supposed to remind you of Princess Diana. I even think Sheridan said something like "oh, I almost died just like my best friend Diana!" It was a strange show, but I think I liked it because it was out there. Kind of like the Marlena possession - it was out there, but that's what made it enjoyable for some reason. I also liked Passions because it seemed to be a spoof on soaps, almost. But boy, they had some totally whacked out stories, for sure. I had forgotten about the Vincent one!
 
I think, when covering so many different soaps, and picking just 60 from them had to be difficult. I am guessing that the different scenes were memorable in some way, and the mag wanted to pay pay homage to as many as they could. There are mentions from Santa Barbara, Bold & Beautiful, Secret Storm, Search for Tomorrow, Another World, Capitol, Ryan's Hope, Edge of Night, Port Charles, and even Dark Shadows. LOL
 
cryin4days said:
I wasn't watching GH back then during the BJ death story, but I did know Maxie had received a heart transplant when she was younger. Rascalmom's post had me so curious I went and found the youtube clip from May 18, 1994 and I cried instantly. Even though you never want to see children die on soaps, they really did know how to do scenes like this justice in the good old days. The most heart wrenching child death story I remember is the Cassie Newman story from Y&R.
Click to expand...

The entire storyline was gut wrenching...another scene I remember vividly was when Felicia found out it was Barbara Jean's heart...OMG...talk about an amazing piece of acting by Kristina Wagner...screaming "not Barbara Jean...not Barbara Jean...I have goose bumps just typing it....I think I cried for a week watching that whole storyline unfold. I remember Cassie Dying too...that was heart breaking...cried at that one too.
 
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