Another World

Another World Information

Another World isJake McKinnon (Tom Eplin) came back to town for good in 1988, with his wife Marley Hudson. Their marriage broke down and the two were forced to get a divorce. After a reconciliation two years later, Jake asked Marley to marry him again. However, she had found out that he was in the midst of an affair with Paulina Cory (Cali Timmins, but by 1991, the role had gone to Judi Evans Luciano). Marley turned down his proposal, and Jake raped her. Then, Jake was shot and near death, and Marley was forced to go on trial for his attempted murder. In the end, it was proven that Paulina shot him. Jake and Marley were officially over, but it was just beginning for Jake and Paulina. Over the next five years, Jake and Paulina were married and divorced twice. While they still had a good partnership, Paulina was fed up with Jake's cons, swindles, and lies, and tied the knot with Joe Carlino (Joseph Barbara).

Amanda (Christine Tucci) saw two marriages crash and burn. The first, to Sam, didn't work out due to Amanda's affair with Evan Frame (son of villainous Janice Frame); the second, to Grant Harrison (Mark Pinter) due to Grant's infidelity with Lorna Devon (Robin Christopher). Matthew had developed a May"December romance with Donna Love, who had been very grateful that Matt helped get her savings back. Matt and Donna became a very popular couple and were broken up due to then-executive producer Jill Farren Phelps's insistence that Matt be paired up with someone his own age, and Donna likewise.

Rachel's mother, Ada Hobson, died in summer 1993 (veteran actress Constance Ford had died earlier that year), and she needed support more than ever; she found it in the unlikeliest source; a new love (and a new marriage) with Mac's former enemy, reformed villain Carl Hutchins (Charles Keating). Mac's daughter Iris didn't like this news one bit, and was prepared to startle the wedding crowd by firing blanks at Carl. Evan Frame (who had returned to town after a four-year absence) placed real bullets into Iris's gun, causing Iris to gravely wound Carl. She was convicted of the crime and sentenced to prison time, and she was never heard from again.

Liz Matthews (Irene Dailey) returned periodically, and also for one last run, Russ (once again played by David Bailey), as they united to shelter Russ's daughter Olivia (Allison Hossack), who had a child with Dennis (Carrington) Wheeler (now played by Chris Bruno). This marked the last appearances by the members of the Matthews family prior to the demise of the series.

The final years: 1993-1999

The show was renewed in 1993 (Santa Barbara was given the axe instead). But the ratings still weren't good. The odds weren't in the show's favor that it would be renewed again in 1999. Early in 1995, news at the top signaled a change in executive producer. Jill Farren Phelps, who had won Emmy awards for her work on Santa Barbara, was given the job. Veteran cast members were fired; both cast members over the age of 55 (Barbara Berjer and David Hedison) had their contracts terminated, in an attempt to move the show in a more youthful direction. Show matriarch Rachel Cory Hutchins was placed in a storyline involving an evil lookalike countess, Justine Duvalier, who was the ex-wife of Hedison's recently axed character, Spencer Harrison. The Justine storyline was panned by the press as being worthy of a Mystery Science Theater 3000 level of ridicule. While in a scuffle, Grant Harrison killed his brother Ryan (played by fan favorite Paul Michael Valley), causing Justine to be shoved in front of a train. Justine did not die, and she caused more terror before finally being finished by Carl Hutchins and his letter opener. Actress Victoria Wyndham was quoted as liking the storyline at first, but after it was played out, she stated that she wished she had never appeared in it.

Budget cuts caused Phelps to institute a serial killer storyline, culminating in the death of Dr Courtney Evans, as well as the gruesome murder of Frankie (Alice Barrett). The story had actually called for Donna to be offed, but massive fan protest caused Phelps to rewrite the episodes. Phelps decided to then kill off either Frankie or Paulina, and when a focus group responded lukewarm to Frankie but warmer to Paulina, Phelps gave the greenlight to axe Frankie. However, this caused another massive rampage of upset protest from loyal viewers of the show and fans of Frankie, and Phelps quickly asked then-head writer Margaret DePriest to re-write Frankie's exit so that the character would at least still live. DePriest, eager to satisfy her wish to see Cass return to his former rogue ways, vehemently refused and left Frankie's death as written.

Rachel gave birth to twins, even though she was well into her fifties. Although the believability of this story was debated by fans, it was a nod back to when her mother, Ada, gave birth to Rachel's sister Nancy late in life. Robert Kelker-Kelly was lured back to the show in a different role from Sam Fowler, in which Vicky falls for the man (Bobby Reno) who was given Ryan's corneas in a transplant. The storyline became convoluted as the man's mystery identity was rewritten and his former wife came to town to reclaim him. Lila Roberts (Lisa Peluso) ended up bedding Matthew Cory and having his baby (Jasmine) before falling in love with Cass. Cass and Lila became engaged.

In 1999, NBC decided not to renew Another World and canceled it. Many reasons abounded for Another World cancellation, one of the more notable events occurring in the summer of 1998: San Francisco's then-NBC affiliate KRON, one of the highest-rated in the nation, dropped the show off its schedule altogether, knocking it out of two million homes (it was later picked up by smaller independent station KICU). Another reason was that a new soap opera owned by NBC, Passions, was in production and slated to begin its airing on the network within a few months. As no timeslot was available for Passions, NBC necessarily had to make room for it at the expense of an existing program. Rumors abounded that Days of our Lives might be the serial dropped, as renewal talks between NBC and Columbia Pictures Television were going poorly at the time. There were also rumors that Sunset Beach would be cancelled due to its low ratings (being the lowest-rated of NBC's three daytime serials at the time). At the eleventh hour, given its higher ratings, Days of our Lives was renewed, and it was the fate of Another World that was sealed. Sunset Beach was picked up for another six months due to its slightly better ratings in the younger demographics; that series was ultimately cancelled in December 1999.

The final episode of Another Word aired June 25, 1999. Cass and Lila and got married in the final episode of the show; they were the last couple to wed in Bay City. After a series of 35th anniversary episodes, Rachel reminisced with Carl, remarked, "All's well that ends well," and the show ended with a still frame shot of Mac Cory.

After the final episode

On January 3, 2000, the show's former NBC studio in Brooklyn became the home to As the World Turns, which had moved from CBS Broadcast Center.

Irna Phillips's original plan of crossovers with As the World Turns was finally realized"?after Another World was canceled. Another World characters Lila (Lisa Peluso), Cass (Stephen Schnetzer), Vicky (Jensen Buchanan), Marley (Ellen Wheeler), Donna (Anna Stuart), and Jake (Tom Eplin) all moved into ATWT storylines. By 2002, Vicky and Jake had been killed off violently in separate incidents, and the crossover experiment had, for the most part, ended. Schnetzer continued to make occasional appearances, as his character of Cass was used as a "visiting lawyer" in As the World Turns trials. The character of Cass also appeared in a few episodes of Guiding Light in 2002.

The show was commemorated in print twice in 1999. Another World, the 35th Anniversary Celebration, by Julie Poll, was a coffee-table style book chronicling the show's history on- and off-screen. Another World was the last of all the long-running soap opera programs of the time to be preserved in this way. The other book was decidedly different; The Ultimate Another World Trivia Book, by Gerard J. Waggett, listed several juicy tidbits about the show's stars and what happened behind-the-scenes. Many fans have treated Poll's book as they would a high school yearbook, getting Another World performers to sign their autographs in the book along with messages of appreciation or thanks for the fans' continued support in watching the program.

From July 2003 to April 2007, SOAPnet, an ABC channel, started rerunning old Another World episodes that originally aired from July 1, 1987 to May 10, 1991. The contract was not renewed to continue airing Another World, so that SOAPnet could begin airing episodes of both One Tree Hill and The O.C.. A lackluster The Another World Reunion aired on the channel on October 24, 2003. Hosted by Linda Dano, the special program reunited fan favorites such as Stephen Schnetzer, Sandra Ferguson, John Aprea, Alicia Coppola, Kale Browne, and Ellen Wheeler. On the special, Dano interviewed the members of the assembled cast, one by one, interspersed with classic Another World clips. Before and after commercial breaks, Another World quiz questions were posed to the audience at home, and audience members told the viewers at home their favorite Another World moments, supplemented with clips from the actual episodes (for example, one viewer said her favorite Another World moment was from 1980, in which Rachel, on the stand for Mitch's murder, was forced to tell Mac that Matthew was not his child. Another viewer cited Ryan marrying Vicky while in Heaven). This special was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Special Class Special in 2004. The Another World Reunion was rerun in May 2004 to commemorate AW's 40th anniversary.

In 2006, Procter & Gamble began making several of its soap operas available, a few episodes at a time, through America Online's AOL Video service, downloadable free of charge. Reruns of older Another World episodes began from August 1, 1980. As of January 2009, Procter & Gamble announced that Another World and three other of its cancelled soap operas would no longer be streamed on AOL Video. The notice referred to exploring other options to make the shows available for viewing.

On July 29, 2008, episodes also became available on the video streaming website Hulu. The episodes begin with the May 10, 1991 episode - the last one that ran on SOAPnet. There were 24 episodes made available initially, with the promise of 3 more each week. As of December 2009, the same episodes seen through Hulu were also available through YouTube. Hulu stopped airing episodes of the soap on October 21, 2010. The last AW episode to air on the site was October 5, 1992.

TeleNext Media also introduced a new website in April 2009. Anotherworldtoday.com essentially picks up 10 years after AW's last episode left off, in a blog/fan fiction format. Readers can submit story ideas to help form the story angles and pacing of the so-called 'sequel'. Each webisode comes out weekly, and the website also show classic clips of the original TV scenes of Another World. As of July 2011, the site is no longer affiliated with TeleNext Media and is now independently run.

List of firsts

Another World was the first soap opera:

To discuss abortion. In 1964, the subject was a taboo and it was nine years before the Roe v. Wade decision made abortion legal for women.
To extend to the one hour format. At one point, AW extended to 90 minutes, but eventually returned to the one hour format where it remained until the show went off the air.
To spin off new shows.AW's Missy Matthews, Ricky Matthews, Sam Lucas, and Lahoma Lucas, relocated to Somerset from 1970 until 1976. In the early 1980s, Iris Cory, Dennis Carrington, and Vivien moved to Houston and launched Texas, although the show only lasted two years, the storylines would impact Iris on the mother show AW for the next two decades.

Broadcast history

For most of a 15-year period between 1965 and 1980, Another World was NBC's highest-rated soap opera. During that time, NBC ran a 90-minute drama block consisting of Days of our Lives, The Doctors and Another World, all of which enjoyed great ratings and critical success before declining at the end of the 1970s.

The 1960s

Another World did not take long to establish itself as NBC's highest-rated daytime drama, although it was still behind the then-dominant CBS lineup which would usually occupy the first six places on the ratings chart. Making its debut at 3 p.m. Eastern/2 Central, Another World slowly chipped away at ABC's General Hospital and CBS' daytime version of To Tell the Truth. Its efforts resulted in a swift rise to second place in 1967-1968; the show would remain in the upper end of the ratings chart until 1978. CBS later tried The Secret Storm, a soap opera that reputedly served as the model for Another World, against it, but to no avail.

The 1970s

On March 30, 1970, AW became the first daytime soap to produce a spinoff series, Somerset, which ran until 1976. For Somerset's first year, the two shows shared the same branding, with the mother show titled Another World in Bay City and the daughter show Another World in Somerset. NBC and Procter and Gamble discontinued this after a year, and Another World dropped the reference to its location.

With the arrival of Harding Lemay, Another World would consolidate its place as not only the most popular and critically acclaimed soap opera on NBC, but one of the highest-rated soap opera of the decade. Between 1973 and 1978, it consistently attained second place in the ratings chart and tied with As the World Turns (its Procter and Gamble sister) for first place twice"?in the 1973-1974 and 1977-1978 television seasons. The earlier triumph was no mean feat when one considers that CBS put up its star game The Price is Right against it for two years.

When the one-hour 10th Anniversary special in spring 1974 proved a massive ratings success, NBC and Procter and Gamble made the decision to expand to 60 minutes permanently on January 6, 1975, replacing the original version of the game show Jeopardy, in a scheduling shuffle with the in-house-produced How to Survive a Marriage. Another World became the first serial to broadcast one hour daily, only some six years after the last two 15-minute soaps (CBS' Search for Tomorrow and Guiding Light, also Procter and Gamble shows) finally doubled their daily lengths.

The show took over the entire 3-4 pm/2-3 Central period, the latter part of which witnessed it beating back, to some degree, CBS' huge Match Game, then daytime's most popular program. However, starting in 1978, Another World began to experience an erosion in ratings caused mainly by the surge in popularity of General Hospital. Another World fell from a first-place tie in 1978 to eighth in 1979 (a drop from 8.6 to 7.5), but remained NBC's highest-rated daytime drama. Despite the fall in ratings, Another World became the first, and thus far only, soap opera to expand to 90 minutes, a move that proved unsuccessful"?it remained in eighth place in the 1979-1980 television season.

Expansion to 90 minutes and its impact on ratings

Although it is widely thought that Another World expansion to 90 minutes was a cause of ratings erosion, the decision to expand the show was made at a time when its ratings (and that of NBC's other serials) were already in steady decline. During the period when Another World ran daily for 90 minutes it remained NBC's highest-rated soap opera, as it had been for a decade. In the second half of 1980, after the show returned to 60 minutes, Another World and fellow NBC serials Days of our Lives and, most dramatically, The Doctors, experienced a collapse in ratings from which NBC's daytime lineup never fully recovered. It would not be until 1984 that both Days of Our Lives and Another World would recover some of their lost ground.

The 1980s

It is possible that the 90-minute format was intended to be temporary, with the added time used to prepare a storyline for a spinoff, Texas in 1980. For upon its debut, the mother show contracted to 60 minutes again, this time moving to 2/1 Central, where it settled for the remaining 19 years of its run. Texas, starring the hugely popular Beverlee McKinsey and attempting to cash in on the Dallas craze, while itself not a success, may have caused further erosion of Another World viewership, to the point that it was no longer NBC's highest-rated serial, losing that position to Days of our Lives (which itself, along with the rest of NBC's daytime lineup, was in serious ratings trouble). Another World fell from eighth to as low as 11th in the ratings chart, and by the 1981-1982 television season it sunk so low in the Nielsens to 4.7 (a drop of 3.9 points in four seasons). Much like General Hospital winning the 3/2 slot for ABC, One Life to Live came in strong at 2/1, with CBS attempting to get its new Capitol off the ground during that period.

After five years of sharply declining ratings, Another World experienced something of a mini-revival, and for the 1983-1984 television season, the show jumped to ninth place and 5.6 (compared with 10th place and 4.8 in 1983). The ratings increase was attributed to the emergence of couple Sally Frame (Mary Page Keller) and Catlin Ewing (Thomas Ian Griffith), and the return of actress Jacqueline Courtney as Dr. Alice Matthews Frame, who had been fired from the show nine years earlier despite being immensely popular with viewers. The show remained in ninth place through the decade (occasionally moving up to eighth), pulling in generally stable numbers against One Life to Live (which was a big ratings hit at the time) and its Procter and Gamble sister soap As the World Turns. The show received some of its strongest critical acclaim during the 1980s as well. Many soap critics praised the show for keeping its focus on relationships and family crisis.

The 1990s

In common with other daytime soaps, Another World experienced a gradual erosion of viewership but, amazingly enough given its turbulent history, held on to ninth place on the ratings chart until the end of its run. While it never showed signs of moving up through this period, it was for the most part never in danger of falling to last place.

Between 1974 and 1999, Another World won the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series only once (in 1976), a stark contrast to five wins for The Young and the Restless and six for General Hospital within that time frame.

Spin-offs

The show spawned two spin-offs: Somerset (1970"1976) and Texas (1980"1982). (In 1970, the two shows were known as Another World: Bay City and Another World: Somerset before reverting to their unique names.) One primetime special aired in 1992: Another World: Summer Desire.

A "viewer-directed," text-based continuation of the series called Another World Today exists online, sanctioned by TeleNext Media, the production arm of Procter & Gamble.

Airtimes

While individual NBC affiliates had the right to air any show whenever they wished, most of the affiliates (almost all of them, in the earlier days of television) aired the show when it would be transmitted to the network's direct affiliates.

In the mid-to-late '90s, when AW was in its final ratings slump, many affiliates swapped AW's time slot with Days of our Lives, which usually aired an hour earlier. Others affiliates transferred AW to their morning schedule.

The network aired the show at the following times throughout its history:

May 4, 1964 to January 3, 1975: 3:00-3:30 PM
January 6, 1975 to March 2, 1979: 3:00-4:00 PM
March 5, 1979 to August 1, 1980: 2:30-4:00 PM
August 4, 1980 to June 25, 1999: 2:00-3:00 PM

Notable alumni

Before they were stars

Many well-known film and television actors and celebrities launched their careers on the show:

Christine Baranski (Beverly Tucker)
Laurie Bartram (Karen Campbell)
Theodore Bikel (Henry Davenport)
Charles Durning (Gil McGowan)
Faith Ford (Julia Shearer)
Morgan Freeman (Roy Bingham)
Joanna Going (Lisa Grady)
Kelsey Grammer (Dr. Canard)
Thomas Ian Griffith (Catlin Ewing)
Jackee Harry (Lily Mason)
Amy Carlson (Josie Watts)
Anne Heche (Marley Hudson / Vicky Hudson)
Mary Page Keller (Sally Frame)
Audra Lindley (Liz Matthews)
Linda Dano (Felicia Gallant)
Ray Liotta (Joey Perrini)
Lindsay Lohan (Alexandra "Alli" Fowler)
Nancy Marchand (Irene Kimbalt / Therrese Lamonte)
Rue McClanahan (Caroline Johnson)
Alicia Coppola (Lorna Devon)
Julian McMahon (Ian Rain)
Chris Noth
Ed O'Neill (Kidnapper)
Mark Valley (Father Pete)
Luke Perry (Kenny)
Jane Krakowski (Tonya)
Marcus Giamatti (Jeff)
Chris Bruno (Dennis Wheeler)
Brad Pitt (Chris)
Ving Rhames (Czaja Carnek)
Christopher Rich (Sandy Cory)
Kim Rhodes (Cynthia 'Cindy' Brooke Harrison)
Eric Roberts (Ted Bancroft)
Howard E. Rollins, Jr. (Ed Harding)
Jodi Lyn O'Keefe (Maggie Cory)
Kyra Sedgwick (Julia Shearer)
Ted Shackelford (Ray Gordon)
Jean Smart (Passenger on Bus)
Susan Sullivan (Lenore Moore Curtin Delaney)
Dolph Sweet (Gil McGowan)
Henry Simmons (Tyrone Montgomery)
Janine Turner (Patricia Kirkland)
Justin Chambers (Nick Hudson)

Guest stars

Many well-known celebrities made cameo appearances on the series, including:

Dick Cavett (Oliver Twist (a magician))
Jose Ferrer (attorney Reuben Marino)
Crystal Gayle (herself)
Virginia Graham (herself)
Donna Hanover (a judge during one of Vicky's trials)
Liberace (himself)
Gary Morris (himself)
Joan Rivers (Meredith Dunston)
Al Roker (himself)
Ann Sheridan (Kathryn Corning)
Betty White (Brenda Barlowe)
Paul Perri (Joey Perrini)

Awards

Daytime Emmy Award wins

Drama series and performer categories

Category	Recipient	Role(s)	Year(s)
Outstanding Drama Series			1976
Lead Actor	Douglass Watson Charles Keating	Mackenzie Cory Carl Hutchins	1980, 1981 1996
Lead Actress	Laurie Heineman Irene Dailey Linda Dano	Sharlene Frame Liz Matthews Felicia Gallant	1978 1979 1993
Supporting Actress	Anna Kathryn Holbrook	Sharlene Frame	1996
Younger Actress	Ellen Wheeler Anne Heche	Marley Hudson/Vicky Hudson Marley Hudson/Vicky Hudson	1986 1991

Other categories

1995 "Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series"
1995 "Outstanding Original Song"
1994 "Outstanding Achievement in Hairstyling for a Drama Series"
1994 "Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama Series"
1993 "Outstanding Achievement in Hairstyling for a Drama Series"
1992 "Outstanding Drama Series Directing Team"
1992 "Outstanding Achievement in Hairstyling for a Drama Series"
1990 "Outstanding Achievement in Hairstyling for a Drama Series"
1990 "Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama Series" (tied with All My Children)
1989 "Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama Series"
1975 "Outstanding Drama Series Writing"
1974 "Outstanding Art Direction or Scenic Design" (tied with The Young and the Restless)

Other awards

Directors Guild of America Award (1992)

Head Writers/Executive Producers

Head writer(s)	Years	Executive Producer(s)
Irna Phillips with William J. Bell	May 1964 – March 1965	Allen M. Potter
James Lipton	March – October 1965	Doris Quinlan
Agnes Nixon	November 1965 – January 1969	Allen M. Potter; Charles Fisher; Paul Robert; Mary Harris
Robert Cenedella	February 1969 – August 1971	Mary Harris; Lyle B. Hill
Harding Lemay	August 1971 – May 11, 1979	Paul Rauch
Tom King	May 14, – November 1979	Paul Rauch
Tom King and Robert Soderberg	November 1979 – December 1980	Paul Rauch
L. Virginia Browne	December 1980 – November 1982	Paul Rauch
Robert Soderberg	November 1982	Paul Rauch
Robert Soderberg and Dorothy Ann Purser	November 1982 – December 1983	Paul Rauch
Dorothy Ann Purser	December 1983 – February 1984	Rauch; Allen M. Potter
Richard Culliton	March – June 1984	Stephen Schenkel
Richard Culliton and Gary Tomlin	July 1984 – January 1985	Stephen Schenkel
Gary Tomlin	January – July 1985	Stephen Schenkel
Sam Hall and Gillian Spencer	August 1985 – March 1986	Stephen Schenkel and John Whitesell
Margaret DePriest	March 1986 – January 1988	John Whitesell
Sheri Anderson	February – April 1988	John Whitesell; Michael Laibson
Harding Lemay	September 12, 1988 – November 10, 1988	Michael Laibson
Donna Swajeski	November 1988 – November 1992	Michael Laibson
Peggy Sloane, Samuel D. Ratcliffe	November 1992 – November 1994	Laibson; Terri Guarnieri; John Valente
Carolyn Culliton	November 1994 – August 1995	John Valente; Jill Farren Phelps
Tom King and Craig Carlson	August 1995 – May 1996	Jill Farren Phelps
Margaret DePriest	May 1996 – January 1997	Phelps; Charlotte Savitz
Elizabeth Page Tom King Craig Carlson	January – March 1997	Charlotte Savitz
Tom King and Craig Carlson	March – April 1997	Charlotte Savitz
Michael Malone	April – December 1997	Charlotte Savitz
Richard Culliton	December 1997 – May 1998	Charlotte Savitz
Richard Culliton Jean Passanante	May – July 1998	Charlotte Savitz
Jean Passanante	July 1998	Charlotte Savitz
Leah Laiman and Jean Passanante	July 1998 – June 1999	Charlotte Savitz; Christopher Goutman