The Wolek family are fictional characters from the American soap opera ''
One Life to Live
''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as ...
'' present at its debut in
1968
Events January–February
* January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously.
* January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...
. The Woleks were created as a working-class reflection of the affluent
Lord family
The Lord family are fictional characters from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. They were introduced in the show's July 15, 1968 debut episode on ABC, and featured for the entirety of its run until the series ended on August 19, 2013 ...
, and storylines focused on the shared relations of the two families.
The
Polish American
Polish Americans () are Americans who either have total or partial Polish ancestry, or are citizens of the Republic of Poland. There are an estimated 8.81 million self-identified Polish Americans, representing about 2.67% of the U.S. population, ...
protagonist
A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a ...
character that appears from the debut episode July 15, 1968 through May 28, 2004.
Generations
First generation
*
Anna Wolek
Anna Wolek is a fictional character on the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. Actress Doris Belack played the character from the show's first episode in 1968 until 1977. After Belack left the show, Kathleen Maguire played the character from ...
(
Doris Belack
Doris Belack (February 26, 1926 – October 4, 2011) was an American character actress of stage, film and television.
Early years
Born on February 26, 1926, Belack was the younger child of Russian Jewish immigrant parents, Isaac and Bertha ...
,
Kathleen Maguire
Kathleen Maguire (September 27, 1925 – August 9, 1989) was an American actress who won an Obie Award in 1958 for her performance in the stage play, '' The Time of the Cuckoo''.
Early years
Born in New York City, Maguire was an acting stude ...
, Phyllis Behar) Original character. Born off-screen early 1940s as of 1968. Sister of Vince and Larry, distant cousin of Karen and Jenny.
* Vincent "Vinny" Wolek (
Antony Ponzini
Antony Ponzini (June 1, 1933 – December 30, 2002) was an American actor. Some of Ponzini's credits include roles on soap operas ''The Edge of Night'', '' Another World'', and being a member of the original cast of ''One Life to Live'' as Vinc ...
,
Jordan Charney
Jordan Charney (born April 1, 1937) is an American character actor known for ''Ghostbusters'' (1984), ''Network'' (1976) and ''Hill Street Blues'' (1981).
Early life and career
Charney was born in Brooklyn, New York,Lawrence "Larry" Wolek (Paul Tulley, Jim Storm,
Michael Storm
Michael Storm (born August 9, 1939) is an American musician and actor.
Music career
After playing in a folk music trio called the Other Singers, Storm founded the Good Time Singers, a band formed to replace the New Christy Minstrels on ''The ...
) Original character. Born off-screen late 1940s. Brother of Anna and Vince, distant cousin of Jenny and Karen.
* Karen Wolek (Kathryn Breech,
Julia Duffy
Julia Margaret Duffy (née Hinds; June 27, 1951) is an American actress.
From 1983 to 1990, she played Stephanie Vanderkellen in the TV series ''Newhart''. The role garnered her critical acclaim, including seven Primetime Emmy Award nominations ...
,
Judith Light
Judith Ellen Light (born February 9, 1949) is an American actress. She made her professional stage debut in 1970, before making her Broadway debut in the 1975 revival of ''A Doll's House''. Her breakthrough role was in the ABC daytime soap oper ...
) Born off-screen early 1950s. Sister of Jenny, distant cousin of Anna, Vince and Larry.
* Jennifer "Jenny" Wolek (
Katherine Glass
Katherine Glass (born January 11, 1947) is an American actress best remembered for her television work in the 1970s.
Early life
Glass was raised as a Roman Catholic in New Haven, Connecticut."Kathy takes a day at a time" by Jon-Michael Reed, '' ...
,
Brynn Thayer
Brynn Thayer is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for playing Jenny Wolek on the television soap opera ''One Life to Live'' from 1978 to 1986, which earned her a Daytime Emmy Award nomination.
Career
Thayer is well known for her w ...
) Born off-screen mid-to-late 1950s; dies off-screen 1997. Sister of Karen, distant cousin of Anna, Vince and Larry.
Second generation
*
Cathy Craig
Cathy Craig is a fictional character on the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. Introduced onscreen in January 1969, the character role is the first ongoing antagonist to lead heroine Victoria Lord and last appears in November 1978.
Castin ...
(
Catherine Burns
Catherine Burns (September 25, 1945 – February 2, 2019) was an American actress of stage, film, radio and television. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in ''Last Summer (1969 film), Last ...
, Amy Levitt, Jane Alice Brandon, Dorrie Kavanaugh, Jennifer Harmon) Born off-screen 1951 to Jim Craig and unnamed mother, adopted by Anna Wolek Craig.
*
Daniel Wolek
Daniel Wolek is a fictional character on the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. He is the only son of original characters Larry Wolek and Meredith Lord.
Background and storyline
Daniel, nicknamed "Dr. Dan" or "Danny" was born onscreen Novem ...
(Timothy Waldrip,
Steven Culp
Steven Bradford Culp (born December 3, 1955) is an American actor. Culp appeared in films '' Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday'' (1993), '' James and the Giant Peach'' (1996), ''The Emperor's Club'' (2002), and most notably in the 2000 politic ...
, Ted Demers, Joshua Cox,
Michael Palance
Michael David Palance (born March 27, 1970) is an American actor, producer, and talent showcase company operator.
He started acting as a teenager, and his early work included daytime soap operas, such as playing the characters Daniel Wolek on ...
, and child actors) Born onscreen November 17, 1971, to Larry Wolek and Meredith Lord Wolek; birth year changed to 1966 as of 1983.
Third generation
*
Megan Craig Riley
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 ...
(child actors) Born onscreen December 2, 1974, to Cathy Craig and Joe Riley; dies onscreen October 3, 1975.
Introduction
When the Wolek family is first introduced at the inception of ''One Life to Live'', Dr.
Larry Wolek
Larry Wolek is a fictional character from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live'', played for 35 years by actor Michael Storm. Storm is the second longest running cast member of the ABC Daytime production after actress Erika Slezak ( Victor ...
is presented as the youngest of an
upwardly mobile
Social mobility is the movement of individuals, families, households or other categories of people within or between social strata in a society. It is a change in social status relative to one's current social location within a given socie ...
clan of siblings who live in a rough-and-tumble west Llanview apartment building directly opposite Llanfair housekeeper
Sadie Gray
Sadie Gray is a fictional character from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live'', played by Broadway actress and singer Lillian Hayman from 1968 to 1986. Sadie regularly sings at special functions and occasions during her appearance on the se ...
(
Lillian Hayman
Lillian Irene Hayman (July 17, 1922 – October 25, 1994) was an American actress and singer. A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Hayman was known for her role as Sadie Gray in the ABC television soap opera ''One Life to Live'' (1968–1986). Sh ...
). Larry's siblings are shown to be elders
Anna Wolek
Anna Wolek is a fictional character on the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. Actress Doris Belack played the character from the show's first episode in 1968 until 1977. After Belack left the show, Kathleen Maguire played the character from ...
, sibling matriarch and Llanview Hospital volunteer, and
Vince Wolek
Vince Wolek is a fictional character from the American soap opera, ''One Life to Live''. Actor Antony Ponzini originated the role from the debut episode in 1968 through 1975, and briefly reappeared in 1987.
Casting
Vincent was created by series c ...
, an auto mechanic. The mother and father of the three original Woleks are deceased at the show's inception, and the two older siblings personally and financially sacrifice to enable Larry to pursue his expensive dream of being a doctor. Anna sacrifices for her brother's medical career selflessly, but their brother Vince is shown as being particularly resentful of the prestige and opportunity a medical career affords
resident physician
Residency or postgraduate training is a stage of graduate medical education. It refers to a qualified physician (one who holds the degree of MD, DO, MBBS/MBChB), veterinarian ( DVM/VMD, BVSc/BVMS), dentist ( DDS or DMD), podiatrist ( DPM), o ...
Larry and the studying doctor's romantic relationship with
Meredith Lord
Meredith Lord is a fictional character from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''.
Actress Trish Van Devere originated the role of Meredith from the series pilot aired July 15, 1968 through December 1968. Meredith was then recast by series ...
, the daughter of
Llanview
Llanview, Pennsylvania is the fictional setting for the long-running American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. The city exists in the same fictional universe as cities from other existing or defunct ABC daytime dramas, including Pine Valley, Pen ...
media mogul
Victor Lord
Victor Dalby Lord is a fictional character and patriarch of the Lord family from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''.
An original protagonist on the series, Victor is introduced in the first episode as the preeminent mass media magnate ...
.
After Meredith's death, Wolek distant cousins and siblings
Jenny
Jenny may refer to:
* Jenny (given name), a popular feminine name and list of real and fictional people
* Jenny (surname), a family name
Animals
* Jenny (donkey), a female donkey
* Jenny (elephant), a female elephant in the German Army in Worl ...
and Karen Wolek arrive in fictional Llanview the mid-1970s. Larry and Karen marry after a whirlwind courtship and romance, but she later
cuckold
A cuckold is the husband of an adulterous wife (or partner for unmarried companions); the wife of an adulterous husband is a cuckquean. In biology, a cuckold is a male who unwittingly invests parental effort in juveniles who are not geneti ...
s him when she becomes a prostitute and the two divorce. Jenny engages in a series of romances from the late 1970s through the 1980s.
Anna Wolek
Anna Wolek is a fictional character on the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. Actress Doris Belack played the character from the show's first episode in 1968 until 1977. After Belack left the show, Kathleen Maguire played the character from ...
Cathy Craig
Cathy Craig is a fictional character on the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. Introduced onscreen in January 1969, the character role is the first ongoing antagonist to lead heroine Victoria Lord and last appears in November 1978.
Castin ...
(biological child of Jim and his deceased first wife)
c.
Vince Wolek
Vince Wolek is a fictional character from the American soap opera, ''One Life to Live''. Actor Antony Ponzini originated the role from the debut episode in 1968 through 1975, and briefly reappeared in 1987.
Casting
Vincent was created by series c ...
Wanda Webb
Wanda is a female given name of Polish origin. It probably derives from the tribal name of the Wends.Campbell, Mike"Meaning, Origin, and History of the Name Wanda" ''Behind the Name.'' Retrieved August 12, 2010. The name has long been popular in P ...
Larry Wolek
Larry Wolek is a fictional character from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live'', played for 35 years by actor Michael Storm. Storm is the second longest running cast member of the ABC Daytime production after actress Erika Slezak ( Victor ...
Meredith Lord
Meredith Lord is a fictional character from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''.
Actress Trish Van Devere originated the role of Meredith from the series pilot aired July 15, 1968 through December 1968. Meredith was then recast by series ...
Daniel Wolek
Daniel Wolek is a fictional character on the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. He is the only son of original characters Larry Wolek and Meredith Lord.
Background and storyline
Daniel, nicknamed "Dr. Dan" or "Danny" was born onscreen Novem ...
Jenny Wolek
Jenny Wolek is a fictional character from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. The distant cousin of original characters Larry, Anna, and Vince Wolek, Jenny debuted June 1975, appearing continually until May 1986.
Casting and character hi ...
David Renaldi
This is a list of characters from the ABC Daytime soap opera ''One Life to Live'' that began their run between the beginning of 1980 and the end of 1989.
Austin Buchanan
Austin Buchanan is a fictional character on the ABC Daytime soap opera '' ...
Larry Wolek
Larry Wolek is a fictional character from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live'', played for 35 years by actor Michael Storm. Storm is the second longest running cast member of the ABC Daytime production after actress Erika Slezak ( Victor ...