Not many shows can say that they’ve been on the air for 60 years, and have produced 15,245 episodes to date, but “Days of our Lives” has reached that historic milestone. The cast and the crew of the Emmy winning show got together at the “Days of our Lives” 60th Anniversary Red Carpet Event to celebrate. For Deidre Hall who has played Dr. Marlena Evans Black for almost 50 of those years, it’s an incredible feat.
“Impossible, unheard of night. I mean, there’s no show that’s gone 60 years in the history of television,” Hall said on the Red Carpet. “So right away, they can’t get us now. But I think [the longevity of the show] is a lot of people doing a lot of things just right. And we’re a family-owned and run company, Ken Corday and the Corday family, have always been at the helm. They believe in family, they believe in working hard and taking care of each other and they take very good care of us.”
One of her most enjoyable highlights of the show was her playing a duel role of Hattie Adams on the show, a role that was originated by her twin sister Andrea.
“My twin sister played Hattie Adams,” Hall recalls. “First she played my twin sister [Samantha Evans], then they killed that character, then she played Hattie Adams. [Andrea] is a special education teacher. And she is so zany and unafraid of doing anything she would have to do to get those kids to learn. And she brought that to the show. There was a point where they brought her back briefly…she was tied up, she was across the country.” Hall was able to fill in for her sister who couldn’t make it and became a recast character, playing Hattie. “Well, I play her. Oh my gosh. That was the most fun. You know, Marlena is gentle, sophisticated, kind, thoughtful. She is not zany. And I got to be zany for a while, and that was the most fun.”
Though Hall counts her co-stars and the great storylines as the secret to the show’s longevity, she fondly recalls when she first started on the show in 1976.
“I came in when [co-creator] Betty [Corday] was in charge,” Hall said. When we lost [co-creator] Ted [Corday] and the network wanted to step in and Betty said ‘No I can run the show.’ And they said ‘you don’t know anything about running a show’ And she said ‘well I run a household and they said well there’s nothing like that. She said ‘no wait.. I get a budget. I have to make certain things happen. And if I get everything paid for I get to keep what’s left over… I’m in…that’s Betty Corday and she ran it beautifully for many many many years.”
“Days of our Lives” is the multi-award-winning daytime drama that has weathered and reflected political and societal shifts without pause since 1965. Featuring drama, romance, mystery, and suspense, “Days” follows the lives, loves, and conflicts of the Horton, Brady, DiMera, Kiriakis, and Hernandez families and their many friends and colleagues. As one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, it is enjoyed in many foreign territories including Canada, Sweden, New Zealand, Israel, South Africa, and Australia. Peacock is the exclusive home of Days of our Lives. Audiences can access the past season and new episodes every weekday. Days of our Lives is produced by Corday Productions Inc. in association with Sony Pictures Television.
“Days of our Lives” streams new episodes weekdays on Peacock.
