Days of Our Lives
The series is set in Illinois, in the fictional city of Salem, and primarily focuses on two groups – the Brady and the Horton families. Other families, however, are also frequently represented including the DiMera and Kiriakis families. The actress Frances Reid (who played the matriarch of the Horton family, Alice Horton), remained with the show from its inception until her death in 2010; her last, formal appearance had occurred in December 2007. Suzanne Rogers is the longest-serving member of the program's current cast, and the longest-serving current cast member of an ongoing American soap opera, having appeared on the show since August 1973 (Rogers celebrated 50 years on ''Days of Our Lives'' in 2023). Susan Seaforth Hayes – the second longest-serving actor currently on the program – is the only cast member to appear on ''Days of Our Lives'' in all seven decades it has been on the air, having made her first appearance in December 1968 as a recast of original character Julie Olson.
Due to the series' success, daily episodes were expanded from 30 minutes to 60 minutes on April 21, 1975. ''Days of Our Lives'' has been syndicated in many countries, internationally, in the years since its debut. The soap was given the title of "most daring drama" in the seventies, due to the episodes venturing into topics that other soaps of the era would not dare to cover. The show's executive producer is Ken Corday, who has held that role since his mother, Betty, relinquished showrunning duties upon her semi-retirement from the program in 1986, with Janet Spellman-Drucker serving as co-executive producer. As of March 2023, ''Days of Our Lives'' has been renewed through September 2025. The soap celebrated its 14,000th episode on December 17, 2020.
The show has been parodied by the sketch comedy series ''SCTV'' (as "The Days of the Week") and the sitcom ''Friends'', with some cast members making crossover appearances on the show, including Kristian Alfonso, Roark Critchlow, Matthew Ashford, Kyle Lowder and Alison Sweeney. The show has had high-profile fans such as actress Julia Roberts and Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. Provided by Wikipedia