A list of notable characters from the
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
soap opera ''
Days of Our Lives
''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance.
DJ Craig
Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" and "Donnie", is the firstborn child of
Marlena Evans
Marlena Evans is a fictional character on the NBC/Peacock soap
opera '' Days of Our Lives'', a long-running serial about working life in the fictional town of Salem. She has been played by actress Deidre Hall since 1976, but the character was ab ...
, whom she has with her first onscreen husband,
Don Craig
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1970, and the end of 1979, in order of first appearance.
Linda Patterson
Linda Patterson was a cha ...
. Marlena and Don meet and fall in love in 1976, and they marry on March 5, 1979. DJ's birth is portrayed onscreen in the episode of February 26, 1980. Donnie is premature, and dies three months later from
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), sometimes known as cot death or crib death, is the sudden unexplained death of a child of less than one year of age. Diagnosis requires that the death remain unexplained even after a thorough autopsy and ...
. The couple separate when they cannot come to terms with their baby's death.
Journalist Dorathy Gass called the storyline "shocking". She noted the value of soaps relaying issues and situations that occur in real-life and helping spreading awareness to audiences, but also said the storyline "may have been far too sensitive to bring up in the first place – leaving many fans devastated and heartbroken over the baby and entire situation".
Jessica Blake Fallon
Jessica Blake Fallon was portrayed by
Jean Bruce Scott
Jean Bruce Scott (born February 25, 1956) is a retired American actress, best known for her role as former Texas Highway Patrol helicopter pilot Caitlin O'Shannessy in the 1984-1987 CBS action thriller television series ''Airwolf''. She had ...
from April 30, 1980. Scott departed from the series on November 9, 1982. In August 2012, it was announced that Scott would return to the show after nearly a thirty-year absence, airing on August 31 until September 6, 2012.
The character of Jessica is the daughter of
Marie Horton
Marie Horton is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera, ''Days of Our Lives''. Created and introduced by serial creator Ted Corday, actress Maree Cheatham is most-recognized in the role, originating it on the debut episode that first aired N ...
and
Alex Marshall, granddaughter of
Tom
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name.
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Tom'' (1973 film), or ''The Bad Bunch'', a blaxploitation film
* ''Tom'' (2002 film) ...
and
Alice Horton
Alice Horton is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', portrayed by Frances Reid from the show's debut on November 8, 1965, until December 26, 2007.
In her role as matriarch of the Horton family, Alice's storylines fo ...
and mother of recent character,
Nick Fallon
''Days of Our Lives'' is an American soap opera broadcast on the NBC network. Created by Ted and Betty Corday, the series focuses on the residents of the fictional midwestern town of Salem, USA. It premiered on November 8, 1965. This is a list o ...
. As a result of abuse at the hands of her adoptive parents Jessica suffers from
dissociative identity disorder; one of her alters, Angelique, terrorized her mother while the other one, Angel, became involved with Jake Kositchek, who would later be known as the Salem Strangler, a
serial killer
A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone:
*
*
*
*
* (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...
. Angel and Jake ran off to
Las Vegas
Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
to elope, but Jessica came to and called Alex. Marie and Alex rushed to Vegas and stopped the wedding just in the nick of time. Jessica fell apart and was hospitalized.
In 1982, after recovering from her mental health problems, Jessica broke off her relationship with Jake and became engaged to Joshua Fallon. Joshua and Jessica married and eventually left Salem. Offscreen, they had a son named Nick who came to Salem without his parents in 2006.
In 2012, Jessica came to Salem to see Nick, who was in prison for murder and was getting paroled. Nick was put on probation and chose to serve out his probation in Salem, so Jessica left Salem alone. In 2014, Jessica received horrible news that Nick had been murdered, and Julie Olson Williams delivered Nick's body to her and Joshua, so they could bury him. Nick's murderer,
Gabi Hernandez, accepted a plea deal and Jessica agreed to it, not wanting the heartache of a trial.
Renée DuMonde
Renée DuMonde (also DiMera) was portrayed by
Philece Sampler
Debra Philece Sampler (July 16, 1953 – July 1, 2021) was an American actress. She began her career on the soap operas '' Days of Our Lives'' as Renée DuMonde and '' Another World'' as Donna Love Hudson.
In addition to her acting career, Sa ...
from 1981 to 1983, with guest appearances in 1984; and a character semi-return in 2022. She is the daughter of
Stefano DiMera
Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
and
Lee DuMonde. Renée is notable for being the first member of the DiMera family to appear on the soap opera.
She first appeared in Salem, as the feisty younger sister of Lee DuMonde, the evil home wrecker of Doug & Julie Williams. While looked down upon by the Hortons for this reason, she was taken under the wings by Chris Kostichek and
Marlena Evans
Marlena Evans is a fictional character on the NBC/Peacock soap
opera '' Days of Our Lives'', a long-running serial about working life in the fictional town of Salem. She has been played by actress Deidre Hall since 1976, but the character was ab ...
. She eventually warmed to the Hortons through her friendship with
Jessica Blake Fallon
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance.
DJ Craig
Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" a ...
. Renée tried very hard to be liked, which often rubbed people the wrong way, including the Salem Strangler, who attempted to murder her twice. Renee survived to inform the police that she remembered his cologne - a cologne worn by Jake Kostichek. This helped, along with other clues, link the police to Jake. However, while the "Salem Strangler" was still on the loose, Renée was invited to stay at the DiMera Mansion for protection. It was during this time that Renée and
Tony DiMera
Tony DiMera is a fictional character from the Peacock (streaming service), Peacock American soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by actor Thaao Penghlis on and off from November 6, 1981, until October 24, 1985, and from July 19, 2007, until Ap ...
developed deep feelings for one another.
Renée and Tony began dating, and her sister Lee DuMonde warned her to stay away from him, as she knew they were half-siblings. However, she was afraid to tell Renée the truth, as she didn't want Renée in Stefano's care. In 1982, Tony proposed to Renée, who accepted. When Renée read Lee's diary she found out that Lee wasn't her sister but her mother, and that her father was
Stefano DiMera
Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
. Thus, she became Renée DiMera. Renee quickly broke things off with Tony, not telling him the real reason in order to spare his feelings. Marlena offered counseling to Renée over the course of months helping the young girl cope. Especially after Lee just disappeared (in real life, actress Brenda Benet had taken her own life). Renée resented Lee for lying to her, and Lee couldn't bear that and left town, or so it was assumed.
Tony refused to let Renee go, and when she told him the truth he refused to believe they were siblings. Tony blamed Stefano for breaking them up. When Tony tried to leave town Stefano faked a heart attack. Tony later learned that he and Renee were in fact not related due to a confession by his mother
Daphne DiMera that Stefano was not his true father, and had the blood tests to prove it. Renee had moved on and was married with
David Banning when Tony learned the truth. Despite the evidence that they were not related, Renée refused to leave David.
However, the attraction between Renée & Tony couldn't be denied.
Anna DiMera, who was now dating Tony, was very insecure, as she could sense Tony's true feelings were for Renee. David was suspicious and his accusations grew stronger and stronger. Julie was not happy with her daughter-in-law playing games with her son's heart. Renée was becoming more and more like her mother, Lee. She was beginning to show her DiMera colors - especially after going horseback riding and losing David's baby. This led to their divorce, and left David very broken and bitter to the point he wanted to kill her; Julie felt the same.
Renee continued to grow darker, as her DiMera blood took over. Now free of David, she set her sights once more on Tony, but he was still married to Anna - and she was now pregnant with Tony's child. Renee knew the only way to rid Anna from Tony, was to get rid of Anna, or her baby. Renee learned that Tony & Anna would be boating one afternoon, so she created a hole in the boat just above the water line. When Tony & Anna, and their servants got on the boat, the hole was under the water line and the boat sank. Tony saved Anna, but Anna miscarried. Anna told Tony of her suspicions that Renée was responsible once she learned of the hole in the boat, but Tony didn't want to believe it. In a scene famous for its turn of events, Anna summons Renee to her hospital room. Anna threatens to expose Renee, and gloats at having the upper hand. However, Renee has some juicy dirt on Anna - that Anna lied all about her past as in the "white slavery" ring. Anna claimed she was kidnapped because she couldn't swim after having fallen off the boat she had with Roman (her first husband). But Renee wisely pointed out that Anna had no troubles swimming that day the boat sank. She threatened Anna to keep her mouth shut or else she would expose her. It was just one of their many cat fights.
While he refused to believe Renée's involvement, Tony shunned Renée. Feeling lonely and rejected by most of Salem, Alex Marshall swooped in and romanced her. It was a whirlwind relationship and Renee & Alex were soon husband & wife. It was so fast, that no one knew. Alex wanted it that way - because he knew of a second will. One that left everything to Renee - all of Stefano's money, cars and the DiMera Mansion. When Renee discovered the second will, she wanted to throw a lavish party at the mansion to gloat about her newfound position, to which everyone in town was invited.
The party officially began when Renee entered wearing a gorgeous black gown and she addressed the very curious room. They were all promised the "announcement of the year". Well, she delivered on all accounts. First, she announced that she and Alex were married. Tony was visibly upset - he was shunning her, but he still loved her. And
Marie Horton
Marie Horton is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera, ''Days of Our Lives''. Created and introduced by serial creator Ted Corday, actress Maree Cheatham is most-recognized in the role, originating it on the debut episode that first aired N ...
, Alex's former love, was upset too. But in a nice surprise to Alex, always one step ahead, Renee out smarted him and called him "scum" and that she would be annulling their marriage, as she had discovered his true reason for marrying her, infuriating Alex. Then Renee told off everyone in the room - all the "itty bitty Hortons", making Julie livid. Renee reserved judgement on the only two people who ever showed they cared - Chris and Marlena. Renee relished going off on Anna, who wanted her out of the mansion. And finally, she admitted her one true love was always and would always be...Tony. She then ran upstairs in a fit of tears and rage, as she finished her diatribe on all of Salem.
A short while later, Tony went to check on Renee and they immediately fell into one another's arms. They talked and admitted their love after years of longing, and to the delight of their legion of fans, they made love. Tony was jubilant and Renee was finally her happiest. Tony excused himself to grab some champagne to celebrate. Meanwhile, Alex confronted Renee and threatened her. From outside in the hallway, Anna eavesdropped. Alex exited and it was unclear if Anna was going to enter Renee's bedroom to confront her. Later, the maid Deliah screamed - there had been a murder. Roman investigated, and discovered Renee lying face down with a knife in her back.
David, Julie, Anna, Alex and
Eugene Bradford
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance.
DJ Craig
Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" a ...
, among others, were all suspects. It took months to reveal the truth, as Renee was killed over Labor Day weekend 1983. A series of similar murders took place over the months, and the "Salem Slasher" was on the loose. In April, viewers finally got their answer:
André DiMera
André DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC Daytime soap opera, ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was originated in 1983 by Thaao Penghlis when André was introduced as the nephew of Stefano DiMera (Joseph Mascolo). Having undergone plastic ...
kidnapped Tony, who had gone to the wine cellar to grab champagne, and impersonated him, as he had gotten plastic surgery to look identical to him. When André returned to Renee, she very quickly realized something was off: his cologne was different, as were his hands, and while his voice was the same, his manner of phrasing was off. She announced she was going to get Roman, and André hastily pulled out a knife - laced with poison, and stabbed Renee, who died from the poison - not the knife wound. He then placed a Raven's feather in her hand, which linked the murder to Eugene once the connection was made. This was all filmed and viewers got to see Renee's actual murder. Clearly, this was not in Stefano's plans, as he loved his daughter Renee. He vowed André would die once he delivered all of Stefano's plans. André was known as the "Salem Slasher".
In her honor, Stefano renamed his boat from "the Phoenix" to "Renée".
In the spring of 2022, Maggie's daughter Sarah becomes possessed by the feisty spirit of Renee DuMonde. During this brief period, Sarah as Renee tries to come between Tony & Anna and break them up in a bid to be with Tony once more. The Renee possession comes to a quick end and Sarah is in fine shape, as is the love between Tony & Anna. The storyline was created to pay homage to the character of Renee - one of the only DiMera's to never return from the dead (sadly) and to honor the passing of Renee's portrayer,
Philece Sampler
Debra Philece Sampler (July 16, 1953 – July 1, 2021) was an American actress. She began her career on the soap operas '' Days of Our Lives'' as Renée DuMonde and '' Another World'' as Donna Love Hudson.
In addition to her acting career, Sa ...
who passed away in July 2021. On screen, following the resolve of the Renee possession, Tony & Anna pay their last respects to Renee at the foot of her crypt in the DiMera Mausoleum. Then, the credits rolled...In Loving Memory of Philece Sampler.
Jake Kositchek
Jake Kositchek was played by
Jack Coleman from June 10, 1981, until June 1, 1982.
Jake was the younger brother of Chris Kositchek (
Josh Taylor Josh or Joshua Taylor may refer to:
* Josh Taylor (actor) (born 1943), American comedy and dramatic television actor
* Josh Taylor (baseball) (born 1993), American professional baseball pitcher
* Josh Taylor (boxer) (born 1991), Scottish professi ...
), shortly after coming to town he fell in love with Angel, the
alternate personality of
Jessica Blake Fallon
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance.
DJ Craig
Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" a ...
(
Jean Bruce Scott
Jean Bruce Scott (born February 25, 1956) is a retired American actress, best known for her role as former Texas Highway Patrol helicopter pilot Caitlin O'Shannessy in the 1984-1987 CBS action thriller television series ''Airwolf''. She had ...
). Jake was also briefly involved with Jessica's cousin,
Hope Williams (Tammy Taylor). When Jake and "Angel" got engaged and planned to elope in Las Vegas, Jessica's parents
Marie Horton
Marie Horton is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera, ''Days of Our Lives''. Created and introduced by serial creator Ted Corday, actress Maree Cheatham is most-recognized in the role, originating it on the debut episode that first aired N ...
(
Lanna Saunders) and
Alex Marshall (
Quinn Redeker
Quinn Redeker (May 2, 1936 – December 20, 2022) was an American actor and screenwriter, best known for his work on daytime dramas.
Life and career
Redeker and Lou Garfinkle co-authored the story for the 1978 film '' The Deer Hunter''. Throu ...
) learned of the elopement after Hope discovered Jessica's illness. Marie and Alex arrived in the nick of time to see Jessica reemerge and the wedding be interrupted. Jake was heartbroken after being rejected by Jessica who was going through psychiatric treatment under
Marlena Evans
Marlena Evans is a fictional character on the NBC/Peacock soap
opera '' Days of Our Lives'', a long-running serial about working life in the fictional town of Salem. She has been played by actress Deidre Hall since 1976, but the character was ab ...
(
Deidre Hall
Deidre Hall (born October 31, 1947) is an American actress and model. She is best known for her portrayal of Marlena Evans on the NBC/Peacock (streaming service), Peacock daytime drama ''Days of Our Lives'', whom she has played for over 45 year ...
). Jessica's rejection became the catalyst for Jake's mental breakdown, leading him to become the Salem Strangler, a
serial killer
A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone:
*
*
*
*
* (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...
who strangled many women to death including
Mary Anderson (
Melinda O. Fee), and Marlena's twin
Samantha Evans (
Andrea Hall), who was killed in a case of mistaken identity.
The Salem Strangler storyline was the very first serial killer storyline in the soap's history, and the supposed murder of Marlena at the hands of the killer resulted in one of the first fan campaigns ever.
Eugene Bradford
Eugene Bradford was played by
John de Lancie
John Sherwood de Lancie, Jr. (born March 20, 1948) is an American actor, best known for his role as Q in various ''Star Trek'' series, beginning with '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' in 1987 and leading up to the third season of '' Star Tre ...
from 1982 to 1986 and again in 1989 to 1990. Also known as Gene and Euge, he went by the pseudonym ''Bettina Lovecraft'' while working as a ''Salem Today'' columnist.
Eugene was a distant relative of the
DiMera family
''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed ne ...
through a prior marriage, and referred to
Tony DiMera
Tony DiMera is a fictional character from the Peacock (streaming service), Peacock American soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by actor Thaao Penghlis on and off from November 6, 1981, until October 24, 1985, and from July 19, 2007, until Ap ...
as a cousin. Prior to marrying
Calliope Jones on December 31, 1985, Eugene had been married four other times. Eugene's first two wives were murdered, while his third marriage to
Marlena Evans
Marlena Evans is a fictional character on the NBC/Peacock soap
opera '' Days of Our Lives'', a long-running serial about working life in the fictional town of Salem. She has been played by actress Deidre Hall since 1976, but the character was ab ...
was actually a cover-up (Eugene pretended to be married to Marlena when she was pregnant with
Roman Brady
Roman Brady is a fictional character from the NBC/Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was originated in 1981 by Wayne Northrop, who played the role until 1984 and from 1991 to 1994, and is currently bein ...
's twins; at this time Roman was believed to be dead) and not legal. He later served as the namesake for Roman and Marlena's daughter
Samantha Gene Brady.
Throughout the show, Eugene was portrayed as having
psychic premonitions, and on a number of occasions they were useful in helping Salem Police and the ISA. In the last episode in which he appeared, he created a
time machine
A time machine is a fictional or hypothetical device that allows time travel.
Concept
A time machine is a device that makes time travel possible.
The ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' distinguishes between two different types of time ma ...
and used the device. Upon activation, there was a big explosion and Eugene disappeared. He has not been seen on ''Days'' since. In 2006, Calliope returned as the fashion designer hired to make
Mimi Lockhart's wedding dress, and she stated that she and Eugene remain happily married.
Daphne DiMera
Daphne DiMera is a fictional character on the
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
soap opera
A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
''
Days of Our Lives
''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
''. She was played by
Madlyn Rhue
Madlyn Soloman Rhue (née Madeline Roche), (October 3, 1935 – December 16, 2003) was an American film and television actress.
Early life and education
Rhue was born in Washington, D.C., graduated from Los Angeles High School, and studied dr ...
from 1982 to 1984.
Daphne was the common law wife of
Stefano DiMera
Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
, who fled from him while pregnant with her son,
Antony. She raised Tony in Australia.
When Daphne learned that Tony was in love with
Renée DuMonde, whom he believed to be his half-sister, she told him that he was not Stefano's son after all, but belonged to a man named Enrico. This led to a brief romantic reunion between Tony and Renée, but Renée was soon murdered. Years later, it would be discovered that Tony was actually Stefano's biological son (it was never revealed if Daphne believed he was Enrico's or if she lied). After numerous retcons (which included revealing John Black was Tony's half-brother via Daphne and that Tony had been replaced by his surgically altered identical cousin Andre for almost two decades), it was revealed that John was not Daphne's son after all but rather the son of Stefano's father
Santo DiMera
Santo DiMera is a fictional character on the soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. He was portrayed by James Scott from July 9, 2007 to September 28, 2007. Scott reprised the role on August 20, 2008, as a figment of John's imagination. The titular ...
and
Colleen Brady
''Days of Our Lives'' is a long-running American television soap opera that streams on the streaming service Peacock. Created by Ted and Betty Corday, the series premiered on November 8, 1965. The longest-running cast member is Suzanne Rogers ...
, the sister of Shawn Brady. The real Tony has since commented that Enrico the gardener is his actual father.
Daphne died in 1984 when a plane carrying a number of Salemites crashed in Haiti.
Daphne's real surname is unknown. She was always referred to as a DiMera, because her marriage was a common law marriage to Stefano. She is the aunt of
Lawrence Alamain
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between 1990 and 1999.
Stephanie Johnson
Stephanie Johnson was created by head writer Richard J. Allen, and was origi ...
via her sister, Philomena.
Ilya Petrov
Ilya Petrov was portrayed by
Kai Wulff from 1983 to 1986 and for a few episodes in 1991. With the exception of Bart and Rolf, Petrov is the most well known henchman of
Stefano
Stefano is the Italian form of the masculine given name Στέφανος (Stefanos, Stephen). The name is of Greek origin, Στέφανος, meaning a person who made a significant achievement and has been crowned. In Orthodox Christianity the ach ...
. In comparison to Bart, he mostly succeeded and completed his assignments. Petrov assisted Stefano in a few of his many schemes. When Stefano kidnapped
Marlena Evans
Marlena Evans is a fictional character on the NBC/Peacock soap
opera '' Days of Our Lives'', a long-running serial about working life in the fictional town of Salem. She has been played by actress Deidre Hall since 1976, but the character was ab ...
& Liz Chandler in early 1983, Petrov was the one who kept an eye of them so they wouldn't escape. He then had small assignments in Stefano's devilish Salem Slasher plot. When Stefano had to escape after some failures of both himself and André DiMera, Petrov was already in the car. But Roman and Abe were ready as well and chased them. After struggling to shake off the police, and a drunk
Alex Marshall caused some problem, the car drove off a bridge and fell down into a river. Alex was found but neither Petrov or Stefano.
A few months later, Stefano was seen very much alive looking for the three prisms, and soon Petrov was seen taking orders from Stefano. He kidnapped
Hope Williams for Stefano in an attempt to faster lure Roman into Stefano's trap. He also got instructions from Stefano on how to activate the volcano. After locking up a noisy
Shane Donovan
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance.
DJ Craig
Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" a ...
, he fulfilled his orders and activated the volcano successfully.
In late 1985-early 1986, Petrov was seen in Miami, representing Stefano in a three-way wager with
Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis is a fictional character on NBC's ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was portrayed by John Aniston from 1985 until his death in 2022, with a storyline driven absence in 2004 when his character was "killed off" but found alive on th ...
and corrupt
ISA chief George Nickerson, with the stakes being "the Purse (provided by Victor, which turned out to be clues to the locations of (1) a set of stolen U.S. Treasury engravings which were hidden in 1979 in Stockholm, and (2) a priceless Mayan treasure that could only be located during a specific astronomical event in 1991), The Power (provided by the ISA, a codebook with information that ostensibly gave the holder total immunity from every intelligence and law enforcement network in the world), and the Pawn (a "most formidable and dangerous man" controlled by Stefano, at the time believed to be the missing-and-presumed-dead
Roman Brady
Roman Brady is a fictional character from the NBC/Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was originated in 1981 by Wayne Northrop, who played the role until 1984 and from 1991 to 1994, and is currently bein ...
, but later
retconned
Retroactive continuity, or retcon for short, is a literary device in fictional story telling whereby facts and events established through the narrative itself are adjusted, ignored, supplemented, or contradicted by a subsequently published work ...
into the separate character of
John Black)."
In 2015, John Black embarked on an ISA-assisted quest to unravel the mysteries of his heretofore unknown past, including his parentage, once and for all. This coincided with the show's 50th anniversary. An important scene showed John viewing an ISA computer file on Petrov, which expanded his story to reveal that he was a
Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
-era
Soviet agent who defected to the West, and became at one point a teacher at a private school in Vermont called Winterthorne around the time he became one of Stefano's henchmen. Winterthorne was later revealed to be a "front" for a secret training facility for assassins, run by a Far Eastern organization called the Phantom Alliance, which turned out to have been founded in the 1950s by John's real father, Timothy Robecheaux aka "Yo Ling". Petrov was revealed to have been Yo Ling's accomplice, and temporarily "defected" to Stefano's organization. In this storyline, it was suggested that Petrov eventually returned to the Phantom Alliance's fold.
Trista Evans Bradford
Trista Evans Bradford was played by
Barbara Crampton
Barbara Crampton (born December 27, 1958) is an American actress and producer. She began her career in the 1980s in television soap opera
A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Seria ...
beginning March 4, 1983. Trista came to Salem as the cousin of Dr. Marlena Evans and took up employment at the hospital as a candy striper. Trista was heavily featured in a mystery surrounding her mother's death, an old clock, a gun hidden inside and Alex Marshall. Trista was very beautiful and charming and quickly caught on with viewers.
Once that mystery was resolved, Trista found herself being courted by the very eccentric yet extremely lovable Eugene Bradford, whom her cousin Marlena just adored. After an adorable & short courtship, Eugene proposed to Trista and the two were married before honeymooning in Haiti, where Eugene's family had ties and where he felt he could get clues to the series of murders happening in Salem (starting with Renee DiMera's). Originally, the
Salem Slasher mystery was briefly called The Bradford Curse, as Eugene felt those he had interactions with ended up a victim and dying (Renee bumped into him at her party, and was later found murdered, his Aunt Leticia was murdered on-camera by Eugene, but it was Andre DiMera disguised as Eugene)...and Trista fell to the same fate. They had only just found one another and gotten married when Eugene returned home to find his beloved slain on the floor with a knife in her back and a raven feather in her hand (same M.O. as the other victim's). Crampton exited DAYS after seven months on October 24, 1983.
Crampton later returned as Trista in flashbacks from February 14 to March 9, 1984. During this return, in flashbacks of Trista working at the hospital, it was revealed that Trista had discovered fallacies in the death reports of Stefano DiMera. Once it got back to him, he ordered her death via Andre aka the Salem Slasher.
Pete Jannings
Pete Jannings is a fictional character on the NBC daytime television soap opera
Days of Our Lives
''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
. The character was played by Michael Leon from July 5, 1983, to December 23, 1986.
Pete was a Vipers
gang
A gang is a social group, group or secret society, society of associates, friends, or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over Wiktionary:territory#Noun, territory in a ...
member who came to Salem and was connected to the attempted rapes of Gwen Davies and Sandy Horton. Later that same night after
Melissa Horton
Melissa Horton is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera, ''Days of Our Lives''.
Casting
She was played by child actors Joseph Trent Everett from October 18 to November 29, 1971, Matthew Bowman from December 16 to 29, 1971, and Kim Durso ...
(
Lisa Trusel) caught Pete stealing food from Shenanigans, he kidnapped her with the intent to leave Salem, but a snow storm stranded them at the old Horton farm. Pete confided many things to Melissa and she sympathized with her kidnapper. When the police arrived, Pete was arrested. Melissa did not press charges and Pete was soon released. Eventually, Pete and Melissa started secretly dating, During a gang rumble, Pete accidentally shot Melissa's adoptive father,
Mickey Horton
Mickey Horton is a fictional character from the soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played from the show's debut episode in 1965 until January 2004 by John Clarke, spanning 3,500 episodes. The role was briefly played in 2004 by Richard Voigts, the ...
, (
John Clarke) causing Pete to run from the law and abruptly flee Salem. Pete found Melissa at a summer camp outside of Salem and they began dating again. They returned to Salem and their relationship became public knowledge, Eventually, On February 14,
Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring a Christian martyrs, martyr named Saint Valentine, Valentine, and ...
, in a double ceremony with Melissa's adoptive patents, Mickey and
Maggie Horton
Maggie Horton Kiriakis is a fictional character from the American Peacock/NBC network soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' played by Suzanne Rogers since 1973, the longest running role on the show, and one of the longest running in American soap o ...
(
John Clarke and
Suzanne Rogers
Suzanne Rogers (born Suzanne Crumpler, July 9, 1943) is an American actress with film and television credits. Her stage name was inspired by Ginger Rogers, whom she cites as a personal inspiration for joining the entertainment industry. Rogers ...
), Pete and Melissa were married. Unfortunately, Melissa's affair with Lars Englund brought an end to their marriage and Pete left Salem,
Larry Welch
Larry Welch, played by Andrew Hyatt Masset from July 11 to October 21, 1983, on a recurring status and November 1, 1983, to December 9, 1985, and again from October 15, 2002, to March 11, 2003, on contract status, then back to recurring from June 10 to July 23, 2003, and finally a guest appearance on June 8, 2016, as well as a guest appearance in the second season of ''
Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem'' on July 13, 2022.
Larry Welch was a constant obstacle in
Bo and
Hope
Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's own life, or the world at large.
As a verb, Merriam-Webster defines ''hope'' as "to expect with confid ...
's supercouple love story. Larry blackmailed Hope into marrying him but on the day of the wedding Bo rode in on his motorcycle and kidnapped Hope from the wedding. In 1985, Larry killed
Stefano's daughter,
Megan
Megan is a Welsh feminine given name, originally a diminutive form of Margaret. Margaret is from the Greek μαργαρίτης (''margarítēs''), Latin ''margarīta'', "pearl". Megan is one of the most popular Welsh-language names for women in ...
, and dumped her body in a hot tub; Hope was the prime suspect.
Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis is a fictional character on NBC's ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was portrayed by John Aniston from 1985 until his death in 2022, with a storyline driven absence in 2004 when his character was "killed off" but found alive on th ...
learned the truth and forced Larry to take the fall for the crime syndicate that he was running.
Larry returned in 2002 when he again kidnapped
Hope
Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's own life, or the world at large.
As a verb, Merriam-Webster defines ''hope'' as "to expect with confid ...
in an attempt to get his revenge on her, Bo and Victor. He was presumed dead after a prison break, but in reality, was helping Nicole in her plans to murder Victor. Larry was hit and killed by a car in early 2003.
He returns in ''
Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem'' as a judge. When Bo wants permission to go to Earth to save Hope, it is up to Larry to decide whether or not permission is granted.
Tess Jannings
Tess Jannings is a fictional character on the NBC daytime soap opera
Days of Our Lives
''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
. The character was played by Melonie Mazman from February 1, 1984, to November 20, 1984.
Megan Hathaway DiMera
Megan Hathaway DiMera is a fictional character from the
soap opera
A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
, ''
Days of Our Lives
''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
''. She is played by Cheryl-Ann Wilson (now known as Miranda Wilson) from 1984 to 1985, and since 2023. Wilson also played the role in 2022 in ''
Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem''.
Megan comes to Salem in 1984 with her adopted father Maxwell Hathaway, though she is secretly the daughter of
Stefano DiMera
Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
. Megan had been the high school love of
Bo Brady
Bo Brady is a fictional character from the NBC daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role has been most notably portrayed by Peter Reckell, who originated the role on May 3, 1983.
Creation and casting
Created under head-writer Margare ...
who so deeply broke his heart that he was unable to allow himself to fully commit to
Hope Brady
Hope Williams Brady is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera on the NBC network. Created by writer William J. Bell, she was portrayed by Kristian Alfonso on and off from April 1983 to the present day, most recent ...
. Megan thought Bo had left her, never answered her letters and broke her heart, as completely as he thought she had broken his. Bo thought Megan no longer loved him because she never answered any letter or spoke to her when he called. When they discover it was her mother who interfered to keep them apart, she became obsessed with winning him back and would stop at nothing in order to have him. Megan tells Bo that she discovered she was pregnant with his child, after he left town. She tells him that she gave the child up for adoption after her letters and pleas went unanswered, and because her mother convinced her it was the best thing to do in the circumstances. Bo initially softens towards her when he realizes what she must've gone through. However, he begins to doubt her when it's revealed that
Roman Brady
Roman Brady is a fictional character from the NBC/Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was originated in 1981 by Wayne Northrop, who played the role until 1984 and from 1991 to 1994, and is currently bein ...
, his brother, had seen Megan in an abortion clinic.
Throughout 1984, Megan becomes more and more involved with collecting 3 Prisms for her father
Stefano DiMera
Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
. It's revealed that Stefano is suffering from an inoperable brain tumor and the Prisms are the only way to restore his health. Meanwhile, Bo is keen to help Megan & recover their adopted child, and the search leads them to New Orleans, where it turns out, Megan has conspired to have Diane killed, steal her child, and set up dummy adoptive parents who then allow Megan and Bo to have 'their' child back. Bo saves Diane from the attempted murder and goes along with Megan's deception, in order to stay close to her and get to Stefano.
Andre DiMera shows up in town and kills Max Hathaway. When he calls Megan in to see him, she's initially dismissive, knowing that Stefano always preferred her when they were kids. She was Stefano's Golden Girl, and Andre was always jealous. However, once he reveals that Max is dead it puts a bit of fear into Megan's cocky attitude. Many cat fights occur between Megan and Hope while Megan has Bo close by her side because of 'their child,' Zachary. After the plane crash on the deserted island, which brings Bo and Hope closer than ever to each other, Hope exposes, on a live news report, that her marriage to Larry was a sham, ruining Larry's career and destroying a valuable lackie for the Cartel that Megan was running for Stefano.
In 1985, Megan plots to kill Hope by electrocuting her in a hot tub at Chris' health club, The Body Connection. Megan's plan backfires when she overhears Larry Welch talking to a Russian contact about the 3 prisms Larry's father had invented. When Megan comes out and confronts Larry, they fight. Megan threatens to expose the plot that Larry is entangled with: a plot to blow up all of Salem, killing Stefano in the process. Larry explodes at Megan's tirade and ends up killing her unintentionally. Larry then discovers the electronic drawing and works out the fact they are for rewiring the hot tub to electrocute. Larry, in a panic, picks up Megan's lifeless body and dumps her body in the hot tub, then returns to the closet and, following the diagram, 'electrocutes' her. Megan is then found by Hope, who becomes the prime suspect in her murder.
In ''
Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem'', Megan is revealed to be alive and living in
Caracas, Venezuela
Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...
, in the second season of ''Beyond Salem''. Stefano had her cryogenically frozen until treatment for her injuries could be healed. She spent all her time in Caracas planning to retrieve the prisms once more. With help from Harris Michaels, Thomas Banks (
Susan Banks
Susan Banks is a fictional character on NBC's daytime drama ''Days of Our Lives''. She was played by Eileen Davidson from November 4, 1996, to April 8, 1998, and again in 2014 and 2017. Susan is the eccentric mother of Elvis "EJ" DiMera, and on ...
' brother), and both John and Steve through brainwashing, Megan retrieved all three which she used to bring Bo Brady back to life and cure his brain tumor.
However, she made him a prisoner when he asked about Hope and had Dr. Rolf brainwash him into wanting nothing to do with Hope. She had him then go to the DiMera mansion to steal the orchid that made Kayla, Marlena and Kate Roberts sick. She believed that Rolf could make a serum from the plant to restore hers and Bo's youth so that she could recapture the spark they had as teenagers and start over. When the three women died, she had their bodies replaced with duplicates and ashes of a goat in Kate's urn. While the three were in cryo-suspension, she had them cured of their sickness, but only to use them as test subjects for Rolf's new serum. She is later captured after Bo goes rogue and abandons her along with John and Steve finding her compound after Harris Michaels remembers where it is. She manages to make a deal that has her transferred to Stateville Prison in Salem and remain there when she confirms that Bo is alive and was under her control.
When Dimitri, her son, manages to get her immunity, she returns to the DiMera mansion where she asserts herself as a member of family as well as confirming to Kristen that she has big plans beyond Salem and running the family business. During her scheming, she holds EJ and Kristen and decides to brainwash Harris again, with help from Li Shin and Rolf. However, during the assassination attempt, Megan is shot instead. While at the hospital, she escapes once again with Rolf's help.
Calliope Jones Bradford
Calliope Jones Bradford was played by
Arleen Sorkin
Arleen Frances Sorkin (October 14, 1955 – August 24, 2023) was an American actress, screenwriter, television presenter and comedian. Sorkin is known for portraying Calliope Jones on the NBC daytime serial ''Days of Our Lives'' and for serving ...
from 1984 to 1990, 1992, 2001, 2006, and 2010.
Calliope came to Salem in 1984.
She was employed in Liz Curtis's clothing business and her first scenes featured her making a dress for
Anna DiMera. One of her trademarks was her endless collections of hats, which were very creative and sometimes very outlandish. However, Calliope soon came to possess a diamond necklace which was originally owned by Daphne DiMera. She claimed it as her own, but didn't realize that Stefano DiMera was after it, for it contained one of three prisms he was after. Her white lie unknowingly thrust her into a major storyline.
Calliope went on to co-host a daytime talk show with Jennifer Horton-Deveraux. The show was a success, but Calliope would eventually turn over the show to Jennifer and leave town. However, since her departure in 1990, Calliope has visited Salem several times.
In 2006, Calliope returned to town as a successful wedding planner. Although hired to plan her good friend Marlena's wedding to Alex North, she was also able to help Shawn-Douglas Brady and Mimi Lockhart with theirs, despite normally being booked two years in advance. Still eccentric, Calliope butted heads with Mimi's mother Bonnie Lockhart, a fellow eccentric, but with a different wild taste. During her trip, Calliope also commented Eugene was doing just fine and she was now living in New York City.
Calliope briefly returned in 2010, when she was hired by Rafe Hernandez to collect evidence to prove that Anna DiMera was hired by EJ to kidnap Sami and EJ's daughter Sydney DiMera.
Shane Donovan
Shane Donovan is an agent of the ISA and husband to Kimberly Brady Donovan. Donovan and Brady were a
supercouple
A supercouple or super couple (also known as a power couple) is a popular and/or wealthy pairing that intrigues and fascinates the public in an intense or obsessive fashion. The term originated in the United States, and it was coined in the earl ...
.
In 1984, Shane came to Salem to keep an eye on Stefano DiMera's illegal dealings. He posed as Larry Welch's butler, and eventually learned of Stefano's acquisitions of two of three rare prisms designed by Larry's father. Shane teamed up with Bo, and the two intended on taking Stefano down. Later that year Shane learned that Stefano was about to acquire the third and final prism through a Russian ice skating troupe that came to town. Hope and Bo got the prism from the troupe, but after a long chase with Stefano's men the prism ended up embedded in the ice rink.
Shane returns to Salem briefly in the winter of 2002 when Hope was kidnapped by Larry Welch. Shane later returns in 2010 and was revealed to have been held prisoner in a South American prison while on assignment with the ISA (International Security Alliance). Shane escaped with the help of Rafe and both returned to Salem in time for Alice Horton's funeral. Shane reconnected with Kimberly, who was in town for Alice's memorial service, and admitted that he wanted his future with her and the family and not with the ISA. Shane and Kimberly reunited and moved to LA to be together as a family.
In July 2013, Jeannie appeared in Salem, having dropped the name and instead uses her middle name, Theresa. She works at the hospital as
Jennifer Horton
Jennifer Horton is a fictional character from the Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by actress Melissa Reeves. Jennifer was created by scriptwriter Pat Falken Smith, and executive producer Betty Corday ...
's assistant and later in Human Resources as the assistant to
Anne Milbauer. In late 2016, Shane, apparently back in the ISA, returned to warn Theresa that her ex-boyfriend, a Mexican drug cartel boss, was back in town and wanting to reunite with her. The man was apparently so powerful that even
Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis is a fictional character on NBC's ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was portrayed by John Aniston from 1985 until his death in 2022, with a storyline driven absence in 2004 when his character was "killed off" but found alive on th ...
is afraid to cross him. Theresa relented and staged her disappearance to return to Mexico with him to protect her friends and family, who the man had threatened. In January 2017, agent Shane was back in town to inform the Salem gang that
Stefano DiMera
Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
, for whose murder
Hope Brady
Hope Williams Brady is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera on the NBC network. Created by writer William J. Bell, she was portrayed by Kristian Alfonso on and off from April 1983 to the present day, most recent ...
was serving a life sentence, was actually seen alive and well in
Prague
Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
orchestrating a series of arms deals. Shane's mysterious demeanor during these appearances suggest more to the story than he was letting on. This proved to be true when it was revealed that Shane and brother-in-law
Steve Johnson engineered the whole affair, and that Shane himself was impersonating Stefano, to "prove" that Stefano was alive and thereby secure Hope's freedom.
Shane appeared in the first season of ''
Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem'' where he tasked John Black to find gemstones belonging to an artifact called the Alamainian Peacock, an item that Hope Brady stole when she was brainwashed by Stefano DiMera to be Princess Gina. During the mission, Shane is knocked unconscious by his brother Drew who impersonates him to retrieve the stones for his plans to destroy Salem and other cities. Ben Weston and Ciara Brady find him and untie him. Before he leaves, Shane makes it clear to Ben he doesn't think of him as innocent due to him killing his granddaughter Paige and other women. After Drew and his partner, Dimitri von Leuschner, are arrested, Shane returns to the ISA, where he ultimately becomes the agency's director. He has since made sporadic appearance on the show such as handling an investigation into Victor's plane crash and discovering the briefcase containing his will, and later helps locate John when he goes missing on an ISA mission and attended his funeral in June 2025.
Ivy Jannings
Ivy Selejko Jannings is a fictional character on the American daytime television soap opera ''
Days of Our Lives
''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
''. The character was played by
Holly Gagnier from January 17, 1985, until January 9, 1987.
Savannah Wilder
Savannah Wilder is a fictional character on the NBC daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by
Shannon Tweed
Shannon Lee Tweed Simmons (born March 10, 1957) is a Canadian model and actress. One of the most successful actresses of mainstream erotica, she is identified with the genre of the erotic thriller cinema. Tweed has appeared in more than 60 film ...
from April 26, 1985, to December 4, 1986.
Savannah was a crime boss who used a pornography business as a cover for a heroin smuggling operation that was supported by Victor Kiriakis. It was foiled by Bo Brady and Abe's brother Theo.
Savannah became romantically involved with Chris Kositchek, and continued her heroin business. He found out and helped send her to prison. After being released from prison, Savannah attempted to reform to be with Chris, but after discovered she hired a man to attack Marlena so she could look like a hero he dumped her again. Some time later, she left Salem.
In ''
Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem'', she is briefly mentioned. She and Chris ended up eventually reconnecting, getting married, and running a health club.
Theo Carver
Theo Carver, played by
Rusty Cundieff
George Arthur "Rusty" Cundieff (born December 13, 1960) is an American film and television director, actor, and writer known for his work on '' Fear of a Black Hat'' (1993), '' Tales from the Hood'' (1995), and '' Chappelle's Show'' (2003–2006). ...
, is introduced in 1985 as the younger brother of established character,
Abe Carver (
James Reynolds). Cundieff first appeared on May 10, 1985. Cundieff vacated the role when Theo was killed off on October 16, 1985.
Theo visits Abe as he is being accused of stealing
Savannah Wilder's (
Shannon Tweed
Shannon Lee Tweed Simmons (born March 10, 1957) is a Canadian model and actress. One of the most successful actresses of mainstream erotica, she is identified with the genre of the erotic thriller cinema. Tweed has appeared in more than 60 film ...
) purse in 1985. Theo insist that it's just a misunderstanding, even though he and Savannah clearly have history. Theo wants money so he can travel to England to see his friend
Bo Brady
Bo Brady is a fictional character from the NBC daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role has been most notably portrayed by Peter Reckell, who originated the role on May 3, 1983.
Creation and casting
Created under head-writer Margare ...
(
Peter Reckell
Peter Paul Reckell (born May 7, 1955) is an American actor and musician. He is best known for playing the role of Bo Brady on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' (1983 to 1987, 1990 to 1992, 1995 to 2012, recurring appearances from 2015 to 2 ...
) get married. However, Abe refuses to give him any money until Theo admits what he really needs it for. Theo finds his way to London and breaks Bo and his new wife
Hope
Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's own life, or the world at large.
As a verb, Merriam-Webster defines ''hope'' as "to expect with confid ...
(
Kristian Alfonso
Kristian-Joy Alfonso (born September 5, 1963) is an American actress, former figure skater, and fashion model. She is best known for playing the role of Hope Williams Brady on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' (1983 to 1987, 1990, 1994 ...
) out of jail. On the flight back home, Theo ask for Bo helps to find who was responsible for his best friend's murder, which was connected to record industry. Due to Bo's "rockstar" image, Theo believes he would the perfect cover. Bo isn't interested, as he wants to focus on Hope. However, Theo has already planted story's in the press about Bo's budding music career and the newly weds are mobbed by paparazzi as they return. Theo finally tells Bo that it was their old friend Danny Grant (
Roger Aaron Brown
Roger Aaron Brown (born June 12, 1949) is an American character actor known for his role as Deputy Chief Joe Noland on the hit CBS drama television series ''The District'' from 2000 to 2004, and for his minor role in the 1988 science fiction fil ...
) that was murdered. According to Theo, Danny had been hiding something and was carrying a large amount of cash when he was killed. Bo agrees to help, but only if they do it his way, which means they abandon the "rock star" story. Next, they set out to obtain break into Shannon's video studio during the juvenile diabetes benefit concert. However, they get caught and Theo talks his way out of is by convincing Savannah to use Bo in one of her videos. They later stage a fight for Savannah and several executives and Bo insist they use Danny Grant as the technician instead. Savannah claims she doesn't know who Danny is. While she is obviously alarmed, she keeps her cool in front of Bo and Theo.
Robin Jacobs
Robin Jacobs is a fictional character from
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
's daytime drama, ''
Days of Our Lives
''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
''. She was portrayed by Derya Ruggles from 1986 to 1987 and briefly in 1989.
Robin was a surgeon at University Hospital in Salem. She fell in love with
Mike Horton, but they couldn't be together because she was Jewish. She married Mitch Kaufman, a Jew, but after finding out she was carrying Mike's child, she ended the marriage. In 1987, she left town when she thought Mike would never convert to
Judaism
Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...
. In 1989, she returned for a few days to introduce Mike to his son,
Jeremy.
Andrew Donovan
Andrew Donovan was portrayed by several child actors including
Bradley Pierce
Bradley Michael Pierce (born October 23, 1982) is an American actor, producer and cinematographer. Along with other roles and bit parts in television, films, direct-to-video animation, advertising, and video games, he played Peter Shepherd in ''J ...
, later known for his role in movies such as ''
Jumanji
''Jumanji'' is a 1995 American fantasy adventure film directed by Joe Johnston from a screenplay by Jonathan Hensleigh, Greg Taylor, and Jim Strain, based on the 1981 children's picture book by Chris Van Allsburg. The film is the first ins ...
'' and ''
Beauty and the Beast
"Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales'').
Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...
'', until the character left the series in 1992, with further guest appearances in both 1996 and 1997. Andrew is the eldest son of
supercouple
A supercouple or super couple (also known as a power couple) is a popular and/or wealthy pairing that intrigues and fascinates the public in an intense or obsessive fashion. The term originated in the United States, and it was coined in the earl ...
Shane Donovan and Kimberly Brady (
Charles Shaughnessy
Charles George Patrick Shaughnessy, 5th Baron Shaughnessy (born 9 February 1955) is a British actor. His roles on American television include Shane Donovan on the soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', Maxwell Sheffield on the sitcom ''The Nanny ...
and, most prominently,
Patsy Pease
Patsy Pease is an American actress. She is most known for her role as Kimberly Brady on the soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''.
Career
Pease's first soap opera role was as waitress Cissie Mitchell Sentell on the soap opera ''Search for Tomorrow'' ...
).
When he was born, they believed he was Victor's child because Kimberly had slept with Victor to secure Shane's freedom, and it wasn't until long after the baby was born that they learned the truth. Later, he was kidnapped by Emma Marshall, and adopted by Paul and Barbara Stewart. Andrew was eventually reunited with his real mother.
Now an openly gay adult, Andrew Donovan appeared in the second season of ''
Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem''. He is revealed to be an ISA Agent and was tasked with finding Steve Johnson and John Black after they were kidnapped. John's son
Paul Narita
Paul Narita is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera.
Paul was created under head writers Gary Tomlin and Christopher Whitesell and portrayed by actor Christopher Sean. Paul was introduced in November 2014 as a ...
assists him and the two begin to connect. After learning
Megan Hathaway kidnapped and brainwashed them to do her bidding, Steve is subdued and the two find John and rescue him from Megan's clutches. Once the case is solved, Andrew returns to Washington D.C. and kisses Paul goodbye.
Eventually, Andrew and Paul reconnect during his investigation on Megan and during the assignment, he is captured by henchmen of
Dimitri Von Leuschner, Megan's son, and is used as a bargaining chip for his, Megan's and later Kristen DiMera's immunity for their crimes. He is freed and he and Paul embrace.
Tamara Price
Tamara Price, portrayed by
The 5th Dimension
The 5th Dimension is an American vocal group. Their music encompasses sunshine pop, pop soul, and psychedelic soul. They were an important crossover music act of the 1960s and 1970s, although both praised and derided for their particular music ...
singer
Marilyn McCoo
Marilyn McCoo (born September 30, 1943) is an American singer, actress, and television presenter, who is best known for being the lead female vocalist in the group the 5th Dimension as well as hosting the 1980s music television show '' Solid Gol ...
, was introduced in August 1986 as the college roommate of
Marlena Evans
Marlena Evans is a fictional character on the NBC/Peacock soap
opera '' Days of Our Lives'', a long-running serial about working life in the fictional town of Salem. She has been played by actress Deidre Hall since 1976, but the character was ab ...
(
Deidre Hall
Deidre Hall (born October 31, 1947) is an American actress and model. She is best known for her portrayal of Marlena Evans on the NBC/Peacock (streaming service), Peacock daytime drama ''Days of Our Lives'', whom she has played for over 45 year ...
).
Tamara surprises Marlena as she is set to remarry
Roman Brady
Roman Brady is a fictional character from the NBC/Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was originated in 1981 by Wayne Northrop, who played the role until 1984 and from 1991 to 1994, and is currently bein ...
(
Drake Hogestyn). Tamara initially clashes with Roman's best friend
Abe Carver (
James Reynolds) as she cut him off in traffic rushing to the ceremony.
Tamara is running from Coleman, a mysterious man from her past. Tamara gets a gig singing at Blondie's which upsets
Liz Chandler
Liz Chandler is a fictional character on the soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by actress Gloria Loring from 1980 to 1986. In April 2024, Deidre Hall announced Loring would reprise the role.
Storylines
Liz came to Salem in 1980. She is t ...
's (
Gloria Loring
Gloria Loring-Lagler (born Gloria Jean Goff, December 10, 1946) is an American singer and actress. She is known for playing Liz Chandler on '' Days of Our Lives'' for six years (1980–1986, 2024). She and singer-actor Carl Anderson performed ...
) as she is out of a job. Despite their rocky start, Abe and Tamara begin dating. However, it becomes obvious Tamara is keeping something from him. She is horrified when Coleman confronts her and promises to go "legit" if she returns to him. However, Coleman does not want to leave his wife. Abe looks into Coleman's background when Tamara suddenly announces that they have reunited. She leaves town in May 1987.
McCoo's casting was first announced in the summer of 1986.
McCoo revealed to ''
Jet'' that she would also be singing on the show. A year and a half before debut, McCoo's publicist arranged a meeting with the casting director. "She asked if I'd consider performing in a soap opera I said absolutely." McCoo hoped her role as Tamara would "make people take me more serious as an actress."
McCoo said of her experience, "Working on a soap is on-the-job training. It's some of the toughest work you do. Because the demands are greater, I feel if I can cut it on a soap, everything else is easy."
[ However, she admitted that scheduling typically was not a problem because the role was recurring. "Once it got a little crazy, but you deal with it" she said. According to ''Days'' the show's publicist Bud Tenarani, Tamara, described as an "entertainer", comes to Salem to "restructure her life and basically to settle down." Tamara initially has an "adversarial relationship" with Abe, they soften toward each other as time passes.][
In 2015, ]Sal Stowers
Saleisha Lashawn Stowers (born January 20, 1986) is an American actress and model. She was cycle 9’s winner of ''America's Next Top Model''. She portrayed the role of Lani Price on NBC's soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''.
Early life
Stowers w ...
joined the cast as Abe and Tamara's daughter, Lani. It is revealed that Tamara gave birth to Lani after she left town in 1987 and raised the girl in Miami. Tamara gets married and raises Lani with her husband. In the summer of 2018, ''Soap Opera Digest'' reported that Tamara was deceased. However, in 2019 Lani reveals that Tamara is alive and living in Miami.
On October 19, 2019, it was announced that McCoo would reprise beginning November 1, 2019. The series also cast McCoo's real life husband, Billy Davis Jr.
Billy Davis Jr. (born June 26, 1938) is an American singer and musician, best known as a member of the 5th Dimension. Along with his wife Marilyn McCoo, he had hit records during 1976 and 1977 with "I Hope We Get to Love in Time", " Your Love", ...
in a guest role. Tamara returns to witness Lani's marriage to Eli Grant
Eli Grant is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera on the NBC network, portrayed by Lamon Archey. The character made his first appearance on February 23, 2017, and was introduced as the son of established chara ...
( Lamon Archey). Head writer Ron Carlivati
Ronald David Carlivati (born November 25, 1968) is an American screenwriter. He is best known for his tenures as head writer on the ABC Daytime soap operas ''One Life to Live'' and ''General Hospital''. He served as head writer for the Peacock soa ...
said of the return: "Anytime we do a wedding, you want it to be as big and festive as possible. Obviously, your mind goes to the family and friends, and given our lovely limitations of daytime, we do what we can. And so one person that we really did want was Tamara Price." While some sources had reported the character's death, Carlivati turned to the writing team to research if Tamara's death had ever been acknowledged onscreen. Once they confirmed Tamara was alive, "We reached out," and despite her busy touring schedule, "it worked out." Not only would Tamara be in attendance, Carlivati revealed that Tamara was set to sing at the wedding. The actress returned again when Lani finally marries Eli in the summer of 2020. In 2021, actress Jackée Harry
Jacqueline Yvonne "Jackée" Harry (born August 14, 1956) is an American actress, comedian, and television personality. She starred as Sandra Clark, the nemesis of Mary Jenkins (played by Marla Gibbs), on the NBC sitcom '' 227'' (1985–1990), and ...
joined the cast as Tamara's sister, Paulina. On July 22, 2021, Marla Gibbs
Marla Gibbs (born Margaret Theresa Bradley; June 14, 1931) is an American actress, singer, comedian, writer, and television producer whose career spans seven decades. She is known for her role as George Jefferson's maid, Florence Johnston, on th ...
was cast in the role of Olivia Price, Paulina and Tamara's mother.
Orpheus
Orpheus is the name of a former ISA agent who became a criminal mastermind that rivaled closely to Stefano DiMera and is considered one of the show's most dangerous villains.
In 1979, he and his partner Roman Brady were out on a mission against the KGB when things went wrong. Orpheus's wife, Rebecca, was caught in the crossfires of an ambush. Roman had accidentally shot and killed Rebecca. Orpheus then resigned from the ISA and started planning his revenge on Roman for what he felt was the deliberate, cold-blooded killing by Roman of his wife and leaving his children motherless.
In 1986, he began his revenge on Roman, who in reality was John Black believing himself to be Roman. Orpheus kidnaps Marlena Evans to force "Roman" into following their orders, and held her hostage in order for "Roman" to suffer the way he did when he lost his own wife. Marlena is rescued but not without injury. Later, Orpheus arrives in Salem and kidnapped Kayla Brady and held her hostage until she was saved by Steve Johnson and his associates, and he blew up "Roman's house with Marlena in it to make it look like Marlena was dead, when in fact, Orpheus had kidnapped again and taken her to his secret hideaway in Europe. Orpheus made Marlena play mother to his children and in exchange he promised her that he would not harm "Roman", Carrie or the twins; Eric and Sami. Every move, every step, played out in great detail without any mistake. He foiled "Roman" time and time again. Eventually, "Roman" found the island hideaway, shot and killed Orpheus but was too late to save Marlena who apparently died in a plane crash on the island right in front of his eyes.
Orpheus, revealed to be alive and in prison, resurfaced in 2016 and learned Marlena was alive and that "Roman" was John. Together with Clyde Weston and Xander Cook, Orpheus escaped from prison and wreaked havoc on Salem. First, he showed up at the Kiriakis mansion to announce his return before fleeing. Using the Salem Pier as a base of operations, he and he associates gathered weapons and disguises to continue their revenge against Salem. They went after Steve Johnson's family and held his wife, Kayla, and son, Joey, hostage. Steve and Orpheus got into a scuffle but he managed to escape with Joey. Later, Claire Brady was also taken hostage and Orpheus, on live television, interrupted Mayor Carver's speech to Salem and demanded that twenty million dollars be wired to an offshore account, after which, Clyde accidentally shot Abe Carver instead of his own target Aiden Jennings. The ransom fails and the teens are rescued.
Despite the heavy loss of assets and his accomplices, Orpheus remained confident that he still was still in control, so he arranged to have bombs set up all over Salem. The bombs went off, injuring several people, and when Orpheus threatened to blow up the Brady Pub, John surrendered himself to him. Orpheus took John to the penthouse where John transferred twenty million dollars in his untraceable account. He revealed to John that he blamed him and the rest of Salem and the ISA for alienating him from his children because they made him out to be a monster. Steve rescues John and Orpheus is arrested. Later, he kidnaps Marlena and Kayla and placed them coffins, intending to burn them alive. However Steve and John found his location and arrived just in time to save their wives. During a struggle, Orpheus is shot believed to be dead once again. Unknown to everyone, Orpheus went into hiding after he divulged his secrets to the then ISA boss Pamela Van Damme.
Years later, Orpheus became involved with the death of Adrienne Johnson and miscarriage of Sarah Horton's baby in a car accident after kidnaping Maggie Horton to ransom Victor out of money. He and his son Christian, going by Evan Frears, framed Maggie and Will Horton for the accident. Over the next year he tried to help his son avoid prison time for killing Jordan Ridgeway, the mother of his grandson David. His daughter Zoey Burge was brought to help but Christian is arrested and sentenced to prison and Zoey is granted custody of David before leaving Salem. Orpheus is sent back to prison for his involvement in Adrienne's death.
Even from prison, Orpheus still is able to pull off schemes such as kidnapping Marlena again to release his son from a mental hospital and arranging Christian to take over Ciara's imprisonment to ransom Victor out of money again so he and Christian could leave Salem. However, Clyde intervened and Ciara was rescued and Christian was sent back to prison. Later he learned Jan Spears became pregnant with Christian's child and helped her ensure Shawn Brady believed the baby was his in exchange for her help later on.
Orpheus returned once more in March 2025, this time in Estonia as Marlena, Steve, Paul Narita
Paul Narita is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera.
Paul was created under head writers Gary Tomlin and Christopher Whitesell and portrayed by actor Christopher Sean. Paul was introduced in November 2014 as a ...
, and Andrew Donovan
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance.
DJ Craig
Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" a ...
were searching for the missing John Black, who was on an ISA mission to infiltrate a facility where some sort of "nuclear device" was being built and Orpheus intended to sell it to the highest bidder. He was arrested again and Paul and Andrew eventually find John.
Paul Stewart
Paul Stewart was played by Robert S. Woods
Robert Sosebee Woods (born March 13, 1948) is an American actor best known for playing Bo Buchanan on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC soap ''One Life to Live'', a role for which he won the 1983 Daytime Emmy Award for Daytime Emmy Award fo ...
from November 7, 1986, to May 4, 1987.
Anjelica Deveraux
Anjelica Deveraux was originated by Jane Elliot
Jane Elliot (born January 17, 1947) is an American actress, best known for her role as Tracy Quartermaine in the ABC daytime soap opera ''General Hospital''.
Career
Elliot appeared in a number of episodic prime time television series, such as ' ...
on March 18, 1987. Elliot was best known for her portrayal of Tracy Quartermaine
Tracy Quartermaine is a fictional character on the ABC soap opera ''General Hospital''. She is played by actress Jane Elliot, who originated the role in 1978 and has played her intermittently since that time, primarily on ''GH'' and briefly on ' ...
on ''General Hospital
''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...
''. Elliot vacated the role on February 15, 1989. Shelley Taylor Morgan briefly played Anjelica for one month from February 21 to March 24, 1989. Judith Chapman
Judith Chapman (born Judith Shepard on November 15, 1951) is an American actress, best known for soap opera roles, particularly as Natalie Bannon Hughes in ''As the World Turns'' (1975–1978), Charlotte Greer on ''Ryan's Hope'' (1983), Ginny Bla ...
later took over on April 7, 1989, until March 19, 1990, when the character was believed to have been killed off in a plane accident with her son Alexander. Chapman returned for two episodes, airing on January 22 and 23, 1991. Anjelica is known for being the second wife of Harper Deveraux, the Riverfront Knifer, and the mistress of Justin Kiriakis
Justin Kiriakis is a fictional character on the NBC daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. Created by head writer Leah Laiman, he is portrayed by actor Wally Kurth from February 3, 1987, to February 5, 1991. From 2007 to 2008, Justin was me ...
(Wally Kurth
Wallace "Wally" Kurth (born July 31, 1958) is an American actor and musician. He is best known for playing the roles of Justin Kiriakis on Days of Our Lives (1987 to 1991, 2009 to present) and Ned Quartermaine on ''General Hospital'' (1991 to 20 ...
).
On May 11, 2017, it was announced that veteran actress Morgan Fairchild
Morgan Fairchild (born Patsy Ann McClenny; February 3, 1950) is an American actress. She began acting in the early 1970s and has had roles in several television series since then.
Fairchild began her career on the CBS daytime soap opera '' Searc ...
had been cast to portray Anjelica. Fairchild departed the show on August 29, 2017, when Anjelica suffers a sudden heart attack and dies. Chapman reprised the role as an apparition during the 2018 Halloween episode. In a January 2019 interview, Chapman revealed she had been asked to reprise the role of Anjelica prior to Fairchild's casting.
Diana Colville
Diana Colville was initially portrayed by Genie Francis
Genie Francis (born May 26, 1962) is an American actress. She is best known for playing the role of Laura Spencer (General Hospital), Laura Spencer on the television soap opera ''General Hospital'' from 1977 to present, for which she won a Daytim ...
from 1987 to 1989.
Francis joined ''Days of Our Lives'' in the regular role of Diana Colville on April 13, 1987. In June 1989, Francis announced her decision to depart the series. She last appeared during the June 21, 1989, episode. In January 2019, it was announced that Judith Chapman
Judith Chapman (born Judith Shepard on November 15, 1951) is an American actress, best known for soap opera roles, particularly as Natalie Bannon Hughes in ''As the World Turns'' (1975–1978), Charlotte Greer on ''Ryan's Hope'' (1983), Ginny Bla ...
, who previously portrayed the role of Anjelica Deveraux, had been cast in the role of Diana, now going by the surname of Cooper.
Diana came to Salem in 1987 and was Mike Horton's college friend. Diana was competing against both her mother, Serena, and Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis is a fictional character on NBC's ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was portrayed by John Aniston from 1985 until his death in 2022, with a storyline driven absence in 2004 when his character was "killed off" but found alive on th ...
to find a computer disk containing the location of a valuable mineral.
Diana meets John Black, who at the time believed himself to be Roman Brady
Roman Brady is a fictional character from the NBC/Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was originated in 1981 by Wayne Northrop, who played the role until 1984 and from 1991 to 1994, and is currently bein ...
, when she saved Roman's daughter Carrie Brady
Carrie Brady (also Reed) is a fictional character from the soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. Created by head writer Margaret DePriest, the role of Carrie has been most notably portrayed by Christie Clark, who took over the role in 1986 as a t ...
from drowning in a river. Diana bonds with both Carrie and "Roman", but maintains her pursuit of the disk by feigning a romantic interest in Victor. When Serena obtains the disk, Victor vows revenge. While in Greece with Victor for his nephew's wedding, Diana sleeps with "Roman" and they begin to pursue a relationship. Serena shoots "Roman", who arrests her and finds out she is Diana's mother.
After returning to Salem, Diana inherits the Colville fortune when her father is murdered. Victor and Serena plot to steal the fortune from her. Victor tries to trick Diana into marrying him to protect Serena, who is supposedly in danger. "Roman" rescues Diana from one planned wedding. At a second ceremony, Serena's kidnapping is staged and Diana is told to pay her fortune as ransom. However, Diana's assets are frozen and she is taken hostage by terrorists. Diana is eventually freed and "Roman" reveals Serena and Victor's plot. Diana moves into "Roman's" house for protection. Diana wants revenge against Victor for losing her inheritance, so she steals a statue from a museum and plans to frame Victor for it. The plan backfires when "Roman" learns of it. Victor was never charged with the crime, and "Roman" breaks up with her over the deception.
Diana and "Roman" resume their relationship after his investigation of the Torres family puts her in danger and she moves back in with him. They hide from the Torreses in the Bahamas and get engaged. Thinking they are safe, they return to Salem. "Roman" is almost killed by a bomb the Torreses plant. "Roman" then begins having memory flashes of John's life. When "Roman" also begins to suspect that his presumed-dead wife, Marlena Evans
Marlena Evans is a fictional character on the NBC/Peacock soap
opera '' Days of Our Lives'', a long-running serial about working life in the fictional town of Salem. She has been played by actress Deidre Hall since 1976, but the character was ab ...
, is actually alive, it strains his relationship with Diana. Soon after, Diana's supposed first husband arrives, shocking Diana, who thought he was dead. Diana reveals that they were never actually married, but Cal refuses to let go of her. Diana later accidentally shoots "Roman" when he fights with Cal. Filled with guilt, she abruptly leaves Salem.
In 2019, Diana returned to Salem. John, by now a private detective
A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI; also known as a private detective, an inquiry agent or informally a private eye) is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigat ...
and no longer living as Roman, searches for the mother of Matthew Cooper, who, under the alias of Leo Stark, is blackmailing John's grandson Will Horton
Will Horton is a fictional character from the American daytime TV soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', known for a highly praised coming out story, award-winning performances by actor Chandler Massey, and as one half of US daytime drama's first mal ...
. Leo's mother, Diana Cooper, turns out to be Diana Colville, having married Richard Cooper shortly after leaving Salem. Diana had become an embittered schemer, due in part to Richard's abuse. She keeps blackmail material against her own son, who killed Richard. Diana tells John that he is Leo's real father, claiming that she was pregnant when she left Salem, and Richard agreed to raise her child as his own. Hoping to seduce John, Diana poisons Marlena with penicillin
Penicillins (P, PCN or PEN) are a group of beta-lactam antibiotic, β-lactam antibiotics originally obtained from ''Penicillium'' Mold (fungus), moulds, principally ''Penicillium chrysogenum, P. chrysogenum'' and ''Penicillium rubens, P. ru ...
, to which Marlena is allergic. Marlena survives and Diana is arrested and admits that John is not Leo's father. In 2024, following an argument with Leo during a visit, she instructs him to never visit again.
Harper Deveraux
Harper Deveraux was played by Joseph Campanella
Joseph Anthony Campanella (November 21, 1924 – May 16, 2018) was an American character actor. He appeared in more than 200 television and film roles from the early 1950s to 2009. Campanella was widely known for his roles as Joe Turino on ''Gu ...
on a recurring status May 8, 1987. On May 10, 1988, Campanella was upgraded to contract status when Harper was revealed to be the Riverfront Knifer, a serial killer
A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone:
*
*
*
*
* (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...
who murdered women in Salem including Janice Barnes ( Elizabeth Storm) and Grace Forrester ( Camilla More). Among his other victims, Eve Donovan (Charlotte Ross
Charlotte Ross (born January 21, 1968) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Eve Donovan on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' from 1987 to 1991, and as Detective Connie McDowell on the ABC police procedural drama ...
), Kayla Brady
Kayla Brady Johnson is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', a soap opera on the NBC network. She made her first appearance in 1982. Kayla was created by Pat Falken Smith as one of the original members of the Brady family. She is kno ...
(Mary Beth Evans
Mary Beth Evans (born March 7, 1961) is an American television actress, known for her role as Kayla Brady on the NBC daytime soap ''Days of Our Lives'', and her role as Sierra Estaban on the CBS daytime soap ''As the World Turns''.
Career
Evan ...
), Kimberly Brady
Kimberly Brady is a fictional character on the television soap opera, ''Days of Our Lives''. Originated by Patsy Pease in July 1984, she is most recognizable for the role. Her initial run lasted until March 1990, but she returned twice from 199 ...
(Patsy Pease
Patsy Pease is an American actress. She is most known for her role as Kimberly Brady on the soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''.
Career
Pease's first soap opera role was as waitress Cissie Mitchell Sentell on the soap opera ''Search for Tomorrow'' ...
) and several others managed to survive. Campanella briefly departed the role on July 5, 1988, when he was downgraded back to recurring from August 9, 1988, until October 21, 1988. Campanella later returned as Harper one last time to thwart the second wedding of Steve Johnson and Kayla Brady and later in visions had by his adopted son Jack
Jack may refer to:
Places
* Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas
People and fictional characters
* Jack (given name), a male given name, incl ...
from March 9, 1990, to April 22, 1992.
Trent Robbins
Trent Robbins was initially played by Charles Van Eman in 1987 and then by Roscoe Born
Roscoe Conklin Born (November 24, 1950 – March 3, 2020) was an American actor and songwriter. He is best known for his roles on various television soap operas, most notably as archenemy, archvillain Mitch Laurence on ''One Life to Live'' in six ...
when the character was reintroduced in 2008. He was the biological father of Max Brady
Max Brady is a fictional character on the soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', and was portrayed by Darin Brooks from June 21, 2005, to July 7, 2009, and March 15 and 16, 2010. In November 2012, Brooks hinted on social media that he was possibly con ...
and the adoptive father of Melanie Layton.
He abused Max as a child, causing Max to become socially isolated and mute for several years. He showed up at the Brady Pub, wanting to reclaim his son. Trent soon realized Max was happy with the Brady family, and left town.
Trent returned in 2008 as the Dean of the Physics department at Salem University. It was revealed that he was still married to Nicole Walker
Nicole Walker is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', a long-running series about working-class life in the fictional town of Salem. She was introduced in 1998 by head writer Sally Sussman Morina, and executive pr ...
. He re-entered Max's life by awarding Nick Fallon
''Days of Our Lives'' is an American soap opera broadcast on the NBC network. Created by Ted and Betty Corday, the series focuses on the residents of the fictional midwestern town of Salem, USA. It premiered on November 8, 1965. This is a list o ...
a grant for his "work" on a fuel cell. Unbeknownst to Trent, Max was responsible for the majority of Nick's design. Max became short-tempered upon seeing Trent and confronted him. After Max insisted that Trent take responsibility for his abusive actions, Trent offered to pay him off in order to keep his past a secret.
Trent was murdered via a stab in the back. Among the suspects were Caroline Brady, Trent's children Max and Melanie, and his wife Nicole. It was revealed that Nick was responsible for the murder. Nick maintained that he killed Trent in Melanie's defense, and that his addiction to alcohol and painkillers played a role in his bad decision.
Henderson
Henderson is Victor's butler. Ron Leath is the actor who has portrayed Henderson off and on since July 6, 1987. He is routinely seen answering the door and serving meals in the Kiriakis mansion. He is extremely loyal to Victor Kiriakis.
Eve Donovan
Eve Donovan was introduced in 1987 and portrayed by actress Charlotte Ross
Charlotte Ross (born January 21, 1968) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Eve Donovan on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' from 1987 to 1991, and as Detective Connie McDowell on the ABC police procedural drama ...
until 1991. In June 2014, the character returned, this time portrayed by actress Kassie DePaiva
Katherine Virginia "Kassie" DePaiva (née Wesley; born March 21, 1961) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for playing the roles of Chelsea Reardon on the CBS soap opera ''Guiding Light'' (1986 to 1991), Blair Cramer on the A ...
. Introduced in the series as a prostitute, Eve is the daughter of Shane Donovan
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance.
DJ Craig
Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" a ...
(Charles Shaughnessy
Charles George Patrick Shaughnessy, 5th Baron Shaughnessy (born 9 February 1955) is a British actor. His roles on American television include Shane Donovan on the soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', Maxwell Sheffield on the sitcom ''The Nanny ...
) and Gabrielle Pascal. She is also the half-sister of Andrew Donovan
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance.
DJ Craig
Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" a ...
and Theresa Donovan
Theresa Donovan (introduced as Jeannie Donovan) is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera on the NBC network. Introduced in September 1990, she was portrayed by several child actors until the character left the s ...
(Jen Lilley
Jennifer Lilley (born August 4, 1984) is an American actress and singer. Lilley played a supporting role in the 2011 film '' The Artist'', temporarily portrayed Maxie Jones on the ABC soap opera ''General Hospital'' from September 2011 to Augus ...
). Upon her return on June 18, 2014, she made an immediate connection with Daniel Jonas (Shawn Christian
Shawn Patrick Christian (born December 18, 1965) is an American television and film actor.
Life and career
After graduating from Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan, in 1989 with a degree in marketing, he moved to Chicago to pur ...
) and reunited with her daughter Paige Larson
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 2010, to December 31, 2019.
Madeline Peterson Woods
Madeline Peterson Woods, portrayed by Jessica ...
( True O'Brien). DePaiva last appeared as Eve on February 2, 2016. In May 2016, it was announced that DePaiva would briefly reprise her role as Eve, and she aired from September 8 to October 4, 2016. The character returned from December 9 to 12, 2016 following a two-month hiatus. In May 2017, it was revealed the character would yet again return on October 27, 2017, and departed the role again on December 24, 2019 - following her character's release from prison. DePaiva announced in May 2020 that she would returning to the series and she appeared from July 30 to September 25, 2020.
In 2014, after 22 years, Eve returned to Salem and is shown meeting with Dr Daniel Jonas to discuss a throat surgery which she hopes will help relaunch her singing career. She soon reunites with her daughter Paige Larson who she does not know is dating JJ Deveraux
Jack "J.J." Deveraux Jr. is a fictional character from the original NBC soap opera, ''Days of Our Lives''. Born onscreen in 2004, the character was portrayed by several child actors between 2004 and 2006. In 2013, Casey Moss joined the cast as a S ...
, the son of Eve's ex-husband Jack Deveraux
Jack Deveraux is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera on the NBC network, most famously played by Matthew Ashford since 1987. He is a member of the Johnson family and first appeared onscreen in 1987. Ashford ...
and her old high school rival, Jennifer Horton
Jennifer Horton is a fictional character from the Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by actress Melissa Reeves. Jennifer was created by scriptwriter Pat Falken Smith, and executive producer Betty Corday ...
. Eve hopes to gain financial support by obtaining half the profits made by Jack's book about his life in the army, which he apparently owed her as part of their annulment agreement. Jennifer, who is the executive of Jack's estate, refuses to give her any share of the money as it being donated to a charity which supports war veterans, when Eve threatens to sue her, Jennifer can not risk the toll this will have on her family and agrees to give Eve her share.
When Eve learns about JJ's history of drug dealing from her half-sister Theresa, she becomes wary of his and Paige's relationship and does everything she can to split them up. When Eve learns that she will never be able to sing again she is devastated, JJ comes by her apartment hoping to have it out with her after having just broken up with Paige but once he sees how fragile she is he comforts her, they end up having sex and are distraught afterwards when they realize what they have just done to Paige. JJ and Paige soon get back together but are forced to break up when JJ once again sleeps with Eve.
Eve and JJ continue their affair until they are caught in bed together by Jennifer who furiously attacks Eve. Jennifer decides not to tell Paige the truth about JJ and Eve but blackmails Eve into encouraging Paige to get back together with JJ. Eve tries to get JJ arrested by having drugs planted in his backpack, when JJ confronts her about it to get a recorded confession, they do not realize that Paige is in the next room and hears them confessing to their affair. An enraged Paige slaps Eve and disowns her as her mother before going to JJ's house and revealing the truth to all his friends and family who were attending a surprise birthday party JJ was throwing for Paige.
Eve's life is shattered when Paige is murdered by a serial killer known as the Neck-tie killer, who is later revealed to be Ben Weston. This prompts Paige's estranged father and Eve's ex-husband Eduardo Larson to come to Salem in the hope of consoling Eve through her grief, but Eve is still resentful towards him for abandoning her and Paige years previously. She is even more angered to learn that Eduardo is the father of Rafe
In Hebrew orthography the rafe or raphe (, , meaning "weak, limp") is a diacritic (), a subtle horizontal overbar placed above certain letters to indicate that they are to be pronounced as fricatives.
It originated with the Tiberian Masoret ...
and Gabi Hernandez, who are part of another family Eduardo left before he met Eve.
Eve begins a relationship with Justin Kiriakis
Justin Kiriakis is a fictional character on the NBC daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. Created by head writer Leah Laiman, he is portrayed by actor Wally Kurth from February 3, 1987, to February 5, 1991. From 2007 to 2008, Justin was me ...
who helped console Eve after Paige's death, when Eduardo wants to set up a music program in Paige's name at the community center, he asks Eve to run it and she accepts. Eve takes a particular interest in Claire Brady, one of her students and believes she possesses great talent as a singer. Eve starts indulging much of her time with Claire much to the annoyance of her mother Belle Brady, who believes Eve is using Claire as a surrogate daughter to replace Paige. When Eve gets Claire an audition for a place at Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...
for the performing arts in New York City, she and Claire sneak off to New York without Belle's permission.
Claire returns soon after and reveals that she did not get a place in Juilliard but Eve does not return with her and her Whereabouts remain unknown until her sister Theresa reveals that she is no longer living in Salem when talking about her upcoming wedding to her fiancée Brady Black
Brady Black is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera on the Peacock streaming service. Formerly portrayed by Kyle Lowder, the role of Brady has been portrayed by Eric Martsolf since 2008. Martsolf won a Daytime ...
.
Eve returns several months later for Theresa's bachelorette party and wedding. However, before the wedding starts the party is invaded by former Salem criminal Orpheus who grabs Eve and holds her at gunpoint. She and several other guests are released when Paul Narita
Paul Narita is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera.
Paul was created under head writers Gary Tomlin and Christopher Whitesell and portrayed by actor Christopher Sean. Paul was introduced in November 2014 as a ...
takes her place as a hostage. Afterwards at the police station, Eve forms a bond with Nicole Walker
Nicole Walker is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', a long-running series about working-class life in the fictional town of Salem. She was introduced in 1998 by head writer Sally Sussman Morina, and executive pr ...
over their shared grief of lost loved one's. Eve goes back to New York soon after but not before helping her ex-boyfriend Justin realize he still has feelings for his ex-wife Adrienne
Adrienne is the French feminine form of the male name Adrien. Its meaning is literally "from the city of Hadria."
* Adrienne Ames (1907–1947), American actress
* Adrienne Armstrong (born 1969), wife of Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstron ...
.
After a failed attempt to brainwash Ben into killing Ciara as revenge for Paige's death, she is arrested and in 2023 is revealed to be at Bayview Sanitarium. She meets up with Harris Michaels again where they catch up and make amends. Claiming to be on the verge of release, Eve says she plans to go to California to be near her family and maybe relaunch her music career as a way to start over.
In 2020, Charlie Mason from ''Soaps She Knows
There are multiple media outlets which focus primarily on television soap operas and telenovela
A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") ...
'' placed Eve 26th on his list of the 35 most memorable characters from ''Days of Our Lives'', commenting "Whether she was being played by Charlotte Ross or Kassie DePaiva, the hurricane in heels let us know at a glance that if she was in the room, there wasn't gonna be anyone in it more entertaining to watch."
Marcus Hunter
Marcus Hunter, played by Richard Briggs
Richard Briggs (born 1952) is a Republican member of the Tennessee Senate representing the 7th district, which encompasses part of Knox County.
Early life
Richard Briggs was born on December 7, 1952. He attended the University of Kentucky M ...
, was introduced as the childhood friend and foster brother of Steve "Patch" Johnson (Stephen Nichols
Stephen Earl Nichols (born February 19, 1951) is an American television actor who is recognized for his roles on various daytime soap operas. He has portrayed Steve Johnson (Days of Our Lives), Steve "Patch" Johnson on NBC's ''Days of Our Lives' ...
). Briggs originated the role on November 30, 1987.
In 1987, Marcus is introduced as the new plastic surgeon at ''Salem University Hospital'' when he breaks up a fight between his foster brother Steve and Jack Deveraux
Jack Deveraux is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera on the NBC network, most famously played by Matthew Ashford since 1987. He is a member of the Johnson family and first appeared onscreen in 1987. Ashford ...
(Matthew Ashford
Matthew Nile Ashford (born January 29, 1960) is an American actor and producer. He is known for playing the role of Jack Deveraux on the NBC Daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' (1987 to present). In 2012, he was nominated for a Daytime Emm ...
) – Steve's biological brother. Steve introduces Marcus to Jack's ailing wife, Kayla Brady
Kayla Brady Johnson is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', a soap opera on the NBC network. She made her first appearance in 1982. Kayla was created by Pat Falken Smith as one of the original members of the Brady family. She is kno ...
(Mary Beth Evans
Mary Beth Evans (born March 7, 1961) is an American television actress, known for her role as Kayla Brady on the NBC daytime soap ''Days of Our Lives'', and her role as Sierra Estaban on the CBS daytime soap ''As the World Turns''.
Career
Evan ...
) and admits he's in love with her. Marcus gives Steve an antidote for Kayla who has been poisoned.
In early 1988, after Jack has Patch beaten up, Kayla confides in Marcus that Jack raped her, but swears him to secrecy. Jack falls off a roof during a fight with Patch and who donates his kidney to save Jack's life. However, Jack's rejects the kidney and doctors conclude it's psychological, so Marcus encourages Patch and Kayla to reconcile with Jack.
In spring of 1988, Marcus becomes smitten with Police officer Lexie Brooks (Cyndi James Gossett) as she works to apprehend a local serial killer. However, fellow police officer Abe Carver ( James Reynolds) also has a thing for Lexie. Marcus accidentally blows Lexie's cover as she investigates a local serial killer. Later, Marcus clashes with social worker Vanessa Walker (Joyce Little) over how to deal with local gangs. Throughout the summer of 1988, Marcus and Vanessa grow closer as they work together at the community center. After they deliver a baby together, Marcus confides in her about growing up in an orphanage with Patch. Marcus recognizes Vanessa's uncle, Desmond ( Randy Brooks) but does not know from where. Marcus rescues the daughter of Charlene, (Vanessa Bell Calloway
Vanessa Bell Calloway ( Bell; born March 20, 1957) is an American actress. Beginning her career as a dancer, Bell Calloway became known for her film roles as Princess Imani Izzi in the 1988 comedy ''Coming to America'' and its sequel. Since the ...
), a woman who frequents the community center. She later takes his advice and gets a job to support herself and her two children. However, Charlene gets fired and Marcus agrees to finance her catering business, as long as she doesn't tell Vanessa. In late 1988, Marcus helps Shane Donovan
A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance.
DJ Craig
Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" a ...
rescue Patch when he is nearly killed by Stefano DiMera
Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
(Joseph Mascolo
Joseph Peter Mascolo (March 13, 1929 – December 8, 2016) was an American musician and dramatic actor. During his long career, he acted in numerous motion pictures and television series. He played villain Stefano DiMera on NBC's soap opera ''D ...
).
Marcus had always wanted to know about his past, and, in 1989, got help from Gail Carson, an anesthesiologist at the hospital. Marcus, Steve, and Gail went to Charleston, South Carolina to talk to Marcus' aunt, Lizzie Putnam. Lizzie didn't tell them much, and forced him to stop looking into his past. Later, he becomes entangled with Steve's investigation with Saul Taylor's revival camp, briefly dating Saul's daughter Faith. Eventually, Marcus remembered that his parents had been killed by Saul and his partner, Jericho, when they had blown up the church that they were in. Marcus eventually learned Gail was really an ISA agent, and that ended their friendship.
After Steve was believed to have been killed, he developed feelings for Kayla but she did not return those feelings. In 1992, Marcus left Salem. In time, he eventually had two daughters Jada and Talia. It is unknown who their mother is and Marcus has since passed away in between his departure and Jada's arrival in Salem.
Harris Michaels
Harris Michaels was played by Steve Burton in 1988, July 2022 for the second chapter of ''Beyond Salem'', and since March 2023. In January 2024, Burton announced he had wrapped filming the month prior; he exited during the June 24 episode.
Harris went to school with Eve Donovan where he made a bet with his friends to see who could score with her first. After many dates, he began to care about her, but she learned about his true intentions and she attempted to kill herself on sleeping pills. He tried to apologize and make up for it, but Eve never forgave him.
Harris reappeared decades later, formerly of the Navy, now working for Megan Hathaway. He was tasked with dating Hope Brady, so he could later kill her. Harris also kidnapped John Black and Steve Johnson on Megan's orders. Harris proposed to Hope, which made Megan wonder if Harris was falling for Hope. At the wedding, his true allegiance is revealed after he is shot by a stray bullet from Thomas Banks, another associate of Megan's. He still gets the prism to Megan, however, he hesitates to kill Hope which leads to his arrest. Later, Hope visited Harris and asked if he ever really cared about her. Harris claimed he did care about Hope and though maybe he too was brainwashed by Megan just as John and Steve were, but she left him to face the consequences of his actions.
After being rehabilitated, Harris became instrumental in helping save Bo from Megan. However, he was brainwashed again by Megan to kill Stefan, but he fought long in enough to shoot her instead. Despite Megan escaping, Harris decided to check into Bayview, thinking he was safer there from Megan and himself. There, he meets Eve again and the two make peace and he later befriends Ava Vitali and helps her remember more about her ordeal the night Susan Banks and her drove off a cliff. She learns Susan is alive and the two escape from EJ's assassin to find his mother. After rescuing Susan from London, Harris becomes a detective and begins a romantic relationship with Ava. They both get entangled by Clyde Weston's drug ring and work together to take him down. After Clyde escapes prison, the two, along with Lucas Horton, track Clyde in Montana where he is arrested again.
Upon his return to Salem, Hope contacts Harris about a possible lead on Megan's whereabouts and he decides to follow-up on it, saying goodbye to Ava and leaving Salem.
Vern Scofield
Vern Scofield, played by Wayne Heffley from 1988 to 1993 and again in 2002, 2003, and 2006, raised three children (Brian, Tanner, and Cassie) after the death of his wife. Vern's primary role was to be Jack
Jack may refer to:
Places
* Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas
People and fictional characters
* Jack (given name), a male given name, incl ...
's right-hand man at the Spectator and supported Jack's relationship with Jennifer
Jennifer or Jenifer may refer to:
People
*Jennifer (given name)
* Jenifer (singer), French pop singer
*Jennifer Warnes, American singer who formerly used the stage name Jennifer
* Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer
* Daniel Jenifer
Film and televisi ...
. Vern began dating Jo Johnson, Jack's mother, in 1993 when both characters left. In 2002, it was revealed that Vern and Jo had married and were still living in Salem. They returned for Jack's "funeral" in 2003 and later for Jack and Jennifer's wedding and farewell in 2006. Although Heffley died in 2008, Vern was mentioned as alive in December 2016.
Benjy Hawk
Benjy Hawk, is the previously unknown son of Stefano DiMera
Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
(Joseph Mascolo
Joseph Peter Mascolo (March 13, 1929 – December 8, 2016) was an American musician and dramatic actor. During his long career, he acted in numerous motion pictures and television series. He played villain Stefano DiMera on NBC's soap opera ''D ...
). The role was originated by child actor Darrell Thomas Utley from 1988 to 1990. The character was reintroduced in 2006 before he was killed off in 2007.
Kristina Andropolous
Kristina Andropolous was a character portrayed by Chelsea Noble
Chelsea Cameron (née Noble; born Nancy Mueller; December 4, 1964) is an American actress known for her role as Kate McDonnell on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television sitcom ''Growing Pains'' (1989–1992).
Noble is married to her ...
from August to October 1988 and then by Susan Saldivar until November of that year.
Kristina is the sole daughter of Teodor Andropolous. The Andropolous were wealthy neighbors, business partners, and friends of the Kiriakis. Thus, She grew up in the Greek island of Naphleon along with Justin Kiriakis, and she even attended the same Swiss boarding school as he. Kristina and Justin had always been fierce rivals in everything they did, but at the same time kept a very close relationship that turned into a high school romance. After they graduated, they went their separate ways. Kristina eventually became a savvy business woman, as her father prepped her to take over the helm of the Andropolous business.
Alex Kiriakis
Alex Kiriakis is the son of Justin Kiriakis
Justin Kiriakis is a fictional character on the NBC daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. Created by head writer Leah Laiman, he is portrayed by actor Wally Kurth from February 3, 1987, to February 5, 1991. From 2007 to 2008, Justin was me ...
(Wally Kurth
Wallace "Wally" Kurth (born July 31, 1958) is an American actor and musician. He is best known for playing the roles of Justin Kiriakis on Days of Our Lives (1987 to 1991, 2009 to present) and Ned Quartermaine on ''General Hospital'' (1991 to 20 ...
) and Anjelica Deveraux (Judith Chapman
Judith Chapman (born Judith Shepard on November 15, 1951) is an American actress, best known for soap opera roles, particularly as Natalie Bannon Hughes in ''As the World Turns'' (1975–1978), Charlotte Greer on ''Ryan's Hope'' (1983), Ginny Bla ...
). The role was originated by child actor Jonathan Thornton from February 24, 1989, until March 19, 1990. Thornton briefly reprised the role from January 23 to February 5, 1991. On July 19, 2022, ''Soap Opera Digest
''Soap Opera Digest'' was a weekly magazine covering American daytime soap operas. It featured onscreen and offscreen news about the series, interviews with and articles about performers, storyline summaries and analysis, and related promotional ...
'' announced Robert Scott Wilson would take over the role of Alex Kiriakis; he made his debut in the role on July 26.
In February 1989, Anjelica gives birth to her son with her former lover Justin by her side. Anjelica's husband Neil Curtis (Joseph Gallison
Joseph Gallison is an American actor who worked on television soap operas for twenty-seven years. He is probably best known for his role as Dr. Neil Curtis on ''Days of Our Lives'' (1974-1991).
Early years
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Galli ...
) misses the birth and Justin steps in, not knowing he is the boy's father. Justin's uncle Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis is a fictional character on NBC's ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was portrayed by John Aniston from 1985 until his death in 2022, with a storyline driven absence in 2004 when his character was "killed off" but found alive on th ...
(John Aniston
John Anthony Aniston (born Yannis Anastassakis, , July 24, 1933 – November 11, 2022) was an American actor who played Victor Kiriakis on the NBC daytime drama series ''Days of Our Lives'', which he originated in July 1985 and played on and of ...
) names the baby Alexander, after Justin's father, behind Anjelica's back. Anjelica warns him that Neil will fight him in court. Meanwhile, Justin and his estranged wife Adrienne are named the boy's godparents. While Neil is distracted due to his gambling addiction, Victor steals a tape of Anjelica confessing Alexander's paternity and plots to raise Alexander as his own. When Victor and Justin have a falling out, Anjelica convinces Neil to adopt Alexander to keep Victor at bay. Victor suddenly pressures Neil to repay his debts and a desperate Anjelica gives Adrienne a copy of her confession tape. Adrienne confronts Justin and while he admits to the affair, he insist on a DNA test to prove Anjelica's claims. The DNA test proves that Alexander is Justin's son leaving Adrienne devastated and Neil furious over being kept in the dark. Justin promises to provide for Alexander but he refuses to give up on Adrienne. In May 1989, Anjelica takes Alexander and leaves Neil. She tries to rent the apartment next door to Justin, but Adrienne won't allow it. Anjelica later crashes a surprise party for Adrienne's mother Jo ( Joy Garrett) begging Justin to take her to the hospital as Alexander is sick. Justin calls Anjelica out for her schemes as Alexander proves to be healthy. When Justin refuses to let her move in with him, she threatens to move in with Victor. Justin calls her bluff and forces Anjelica's hand, so she turns to Victor. Justin legally establishes himself as Alexander's father leaving Adrienne in fear that she'll lose her husband to Alexander and Anjelica. Meanwhile, Anjelica rethinks her decision to raise Alexander around Victor due to his womanizing. Victor offers to marry Anjelica but she rejects him for Justin. Fearing Victor will ultimately turn Alexander against him, Justin schemes to get Alexander, and Anjelica, away from his uncle. A desperate Anjelica accepts Victor's proposal only for Justin to interrupt the wedding and announce that Alexander and Anjelica are moving in with him. Unable to cope with Anjelica and Alexander's presence, Adrienne moves out leaving Justin in turmoil as he cannot choose between his wife and his son. After failing to seduce Justin, Anjelica plans to take Alexander and move out only for Victor to have him abducted from Justin's penthouse. Fortunately, Roman Brady
Roman Brady is a fictional character from the NBC/Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was originated in 1981 by Wayne Northrop, who played the role until 1984 and from 1991 to 1994, and is currently bein ...
( Drake Hogestyn) rescues Alexander from Victor's henchwoman, Yvette
Yvette (, ) is a feminine given name, the French feminine form of Yves (given name), Yves, which means Taxus, yew or archery, archer in some cases.
Variations
* Catalan language, Catalan: Ivet
* Czech language, Czech: Yveta
* Dutch language, ...
(Lori Hallier
Lori Hallier (born July 8, 1959) is a Canadian film, stage, and television actress. She made her film debut in 1981, starring as Sarah Mercer in George Mihalka's slasher film '' My Bloody Valentine'' (1981). She subsequently starred in ''Warning ...
). Anjelica starts to spiral as she prepares to move out and Justin ask her and Alexander to stay. In October 1989, Justin moves back to the Kiriakis mansion alongside Alexander and Anjelica just as he and Adrienne are legally separated. In November 1989, Anjelica is worried that Alexander will lose out on his piece of the Kiriakis empire when Victor announces his engagement to Yvette.
When Anjelica's plans to ruin Adrienne's construction business are uncovered, she destroys evidence of her planting a bomb at one of the sights and plans to skip town with Alexander in March 1990. Anjelica and Alexander are believed to have died when their plane reportedly crashes leaving Justin devastated and Victor blaming his nephew. However, Anjelica and Alexander are alive as they were on another flight.
In early 1991, Johnny Corelli (Antony Alda
Antony Alda (born Antonio Joseph D'Abruzzo; December 9, 1956 – July 3, 2009), sometimes called Tony, was an American actor who grew up in a popular acting family. The son of Robert Alda and younger half brother of Alan Alda, his early studies ...
) steals $1 million from Victor to buy information on Alexander and Anjelica. However, he learns mother and son are alive, and tracks them to a private island. Knowing her son needs a better life, Anjelica lets Johnny take Alexander back to Salem. Before he is arrested, Johnny hands the boy over his former sister-in-law April Ramirez ( Lisa Howard). Posing as Victor's son Bo Brady
Bo Brady is a fictional character from the NBC daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role has been most notably portrayed by Peter Reckell, who originated the role on May 3, 1983.
Creation and casting
Created under head-writer Margare ...
(Peter Reckell
Peter Paul Reckell (born May 7, 1955) is an American actor and musician. He is best known for playing the role of Bo Brady on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' (1983 to 1987, 1990 to 1992, 1995 to 2012, recurring appearances from 2015 to 2 ...
), Johnny lures Justin back to Salem from Texas by claiming Victor is sick again. Johnny successfully reunites Alexander with Justin. Justin and Adrienne take Alexander to their home in Dallas.
Soon after they arrived in Texas, Adrienne gave birth to his younger half-brother, Jackson "Sonny" Kiriakis ( Freddie Smith). Although never shown on-screen, Alexander returned to Salem in 2007 with his parents and brothers, where he attended Salem High School. His time in town was short lived, however, and by January 2008 the entire family moved again – this time to Dubai
Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
. In 2011, Sonny revealed that Alexander had a difficult time at first accepting when he first came out
Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity.
This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...
as gay. In 2015, Alexander was revealed to be living in Arizona
Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
when Sonny was going through troubles with his husband Will Horton
Will Horton is a fictional character from the American daytime TV soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', known for a highly praised coming out story, award-winning performances by actor Chandler Massey, and as one half of US daytime drama's first mal ...
( Chandler Massey) and he went to visit him.
In late July 2022, Alex returns to Salem, where he reunits with his father and his brother Sonny, also meeting his stepmother Bonnie Lockhart
''Days of Our Lives'' is an American soap opera broadcast on the NBC network. Created by Ted and Betty Corday, the series focuses on the residents of the fictional midwestern town of Salem, USA. It premiered on November 8, 1965. This is a list o ...
(Judi Evans
Judi Evans (also credited as Judi Evans Luciano, born July 12, 1964) is an American actress.
Evans began her career in daytime in 1983 when she was cast as Becki on ''Days of Our Lives.'' She shot to fame shortly after when she was cast as Bet ...
). After he broke up with Sloan Peterson (Jessica Michel), after he found out that she is Leo Stark's (Greg Rikaart
Gregory Andrew Rikaart (born February 26, 1977) is an American television actor. He is best known for playing Kevin Fisher (The Young and the Restless), Kevin Fisher on the television soap opera ''The Young and the Restless'' since 2003, and also ...
) lawyer, while he was on his way to work, he bumped into Stephanie Johnson (Abigail Klein), the daughter of Steve Johnson (Stephen Nichols
Stephen Earl Nichols (born February 19, 1951) is an American television actor who is recognized for his roles on various daytime soap operas. He has portrayed Steve Johnson (Days of Our Lives), Steve "Patch" Johnson on NBC's ''Days of Our Lives' ...
) and Kayla Brady
Kayla Brady Johnson is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', a soap opera on the NBC network. She made her first appearance in 1982. Kayla was created by Pat Falken Smith as one of the original members of the Brady family. She is kno ...
(Mary Beth Evans
Mary Beth Evans (born March 7, 1961) is an American television actress, known for her role as Kayla Brady on the NBC daytime soap ''Days of Our Lives'', and her role as Sierra Estaban on the CBS daytime soap ''As the World Turns''.
Career
Evan ...
), who just arrived back in town and after listening his brother Sonny's words on love, he developed a connection to Stephanie.
Ernesto Toscano
Ernesto Toscano was a character from ''Days of Our Lives'' portrayed by Terrance Beasor from November to December 1989, Charles Cioffi and Ernesto Macias from January 26 to July 13 of 1990.
He was introduced as a voice-over in flashback in Isabella's mind before being introduced formally in 1990 as Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis is a fictional character on NBC's ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was portrayed by John Aniston from 1985 until his death in 2022, with a storyline driven absence in 2004 when his character was "killed off" but found alive on th ...
' former friend turned enemy. After he found out his wife Loretta had an affair with Victor, which resulted in Isabella, he poisoned her. He kidnapped Bo Brady
Bo Brady is a fictional character from the NBC daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role has been most notably portrayed by Peter Reckell, who originated the role on May 3, 1983.
Creation and casting
Created under head-writer Margare ...
and Johnny Corelli as part of a plan to destroy Victor, however, the two men escaped and Ernesto lost his leverage. He later learned that Isabella had killed his only biological daughter Marina, albeit in self-defense, which only incensed his hatred for her even more.
He arranged the Cruise of Deception, during which he planned to recover Loretta's diary, and get revenge on all his enemies. He invited Roman Brady
Roman Brady is a fictional character from the NBC/Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role was originated in 1981 by Wayne Northrop, who played the role until 1984 and from 1991 to 1994, and is currently bein ...
(John Black), Victor Kiriakis, Jack Deveraux
Jack Deveraux is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera on the NBC network, most famously played by Matthew Ashford since 1987. He is a member of the Johnson family and first appeared onscreen in 1987. Ashford ...
, Jennifer Horton
Jennifer Horton is a fictional character from the Peacock (streaming service), Peacock soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by actress Melissa Reeves. Jennifer was created by scriptwriter Pat Falken Smith, and executive producer Betty Corday ...
, Bo, Hope Williams Brady
Hope Williams Brady is a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'', an American soap opera on the NBC network. Created by writer William J. Bell, she was portrayed by Kristian Alfonso on and off from April 1983 to the present day, most recent ...
, Julie Olson Williams
Julie Olson Williams is a fictional character and member of the Horton family on the NBC daytime drama, ''Days of Our Lives''. Julie has been played by daytime legend, Susan Seaforth Hayes, off and on since 1968, making her one of the longest te ...
, and Isabella to come along. He had set a bomb to explode on board the cruise ship while taking Isabella to an island to kill her the same way he killed Loretta. Everyone on board, however, escaped to the island and save Isabella. But Ernesto still had the upper hand. He held Hope suspended over a vat of acid. Ernesto gave Bo a chance to plead for his wife's life, but he wasn't moved by what Bo had to say. Suddenly there was an explosion, and the cage was sent crashing down into the vat of acid and Ernesto has been presumed dead since. It was learned years later that another young woman, Greta Von Amberg, took Hope's place and ended up horribly scarred while Hope had ended up with Stefano DiMera
Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
, believing she was Princess Gina Von Amberg.
See also
* List of ''Days of Our Lives'' characters
* List of ''Days of Our Lives'' characters (1960s)
* List of ''Days of Our Lives'' characters (1970s)
* List of ''Days of Our Lives'' characters (1990s)
* List of ''Days of Our Lives'' characters (2000s)
* List of ''Days of Our Lives'' characters (2010s)
* List of ''Days of Our Lives'' characters (2020s)
* List of ''Days of Our Lives'' cast members
* List of previous ''Days of Our Lives'' cast members
Notes and references
{{Days of Our Lives
1980s
File:1980s replacement montage02.PNG, 335px, From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, ''Space Shuttle Columbia, Columbia'', lifts off in 1981; US president Ronald Reagan and Soviet Union, Soviet General Secretary of the Communist Party of ...