Passions
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| Network | NBC |
| Executive Producer | Lisa de Cazotte |
| Head Writer | James E. Reilly |
| Senior Cast Members | Galen Gering, McKenzie Westmore, et al |
| Distributor | NBC Universal |
| Premiere Date | July 5, 1999 |
| Runtime | 60 minutes |
| IMDb Page (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0192917/) | |
Passions is an American television soap opera. Veteran soap opera writer James E. Reilly created the program, which debuted on NBC July 5, 1999. Passions follows the various romantic and supernatural adventures of the residents of Harmony, a fictional New England hamlet.
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Storylines
Major storylines throughout the soap's run have included Eve's (played by Tracey Ross) affair with Crane heir Julian (Ben Masters), Whitney's (Brook Kerr) romantic relationship with her half-brother Chad (Donn Swaby, then Charles Divins), Theresa's (Lindsay Hartley) interference in Ethan (Travis Schuldt, then Eric Martsolf) and Gwen's (Liza Huber) marriage, Kay's (Taylor Anne Mountz, Deanna Wright, then Heidi Mueller) continued desire to be with her cousin's boyfriend Miguel (Jesse Metcalfe), Sheridan (McKenzie Westmore) and Luis's (Galen Gering) continued separation from each other, and Tabitha's (Juliet Mills) destruction of the citizens of Harmony.
History
Passions debuted with major fanfare (Reilly had been credited for a large surge in the ratings for Days of Our Lives) but also some controversy (lead heroine Sheridan's best friend was the late Princess Diana, and in flashbacks, Sheridan spoke to Diana on the phone right before she was killed). Originally, the viewers of Another World (which Passions replaced) largely held a vendetta against the new show as the stories told were markedly different from the ones they were used to. Many viewers did decide to stay with the new soap, however.
The show was known for supernatural hijinks and protracted storylines. Much of the criticism derived from the show's delusional view of women, such as Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald (Lindsay Hartley), who was presented as a heroine despite the questionable things she's done in her lifelong pursuit of Ethan Winthrop. Her latest scheme involved becoming Ethan and his wife Gwen's surrogate in order to trade their baby for her son, Little Ethan, whom they adopted. When she thought she had lost Gwen's baby, she drugged Ethan and slept with him to ensure that she would still have a baby to trade. Unfortunately, she hadn't miscarried and was unable to carry both Gwen's and her baby to term. Gwen and Ethan begged her to have a procedure that would ensure only one child would survive and Gwen's baby was aborted.
For much of the first 3-4 years of the series, supernatural elements such as witches, warlocks, and closet doors leading to Hell were major plot points. One central character was Charity (Molly Stanton), a saccharine young woman who would regularly become possessed by the "forces of evil" and turn into "Evil Charity", "Zombie Charity", etc. NBC even made a deal with the owners of Bewitched to allow "Dr. Bombay" to appear in scenes with witch Tabitha Lenox (not to be confused with Bewitched's Tabitha Stevens). "Dr. Bombay" appeared on three occasions, but Bewitched nixed any future visits; however, when Tabitha had a child in 2003, she named the baby Endora.
Over time, Passions moved away from supernatural elements and began to concentrate on the usual array of love triangles and returns from the dead. One of their most popular storylines was the interracial romance between filthy rich letch Julian Crane (Ben Masters) and icy doctor Eve Russell (Tracey Ross). Their '70s love affair produced a child, but Julian's father Alistair demanded they break up so Julian could marry a more "suitable" woman. Eve married former tennis star TC (Rodney Van Johnson) and had two daughters, Whitney (Brook Kerr) and Simone (Lena Cardwell, Chrystee Pharris-Larkins, then Cathy Jenéen Doe). Years later, the revelations of Julian and Eve's love as well as the news that Eve had caused the car accident which ended TC's tennis career led TC to dump Eve and take up with her half-sister, Liz. Julian, who had never stopped loving Eve, reunited with her after giving up his boozing and adulterous ways.
One unfortunate trademark for Passions has been eerie deaths. In 2002, Josh Ryan Evans, who played Tabitha's extremely popular doll sidekick Timmy, died while on medical leave, just as scenes were airing where Timmy died in the hospital and went to Heaven. Passions had planned to revive the character in a few months once Evans returned from his own surgery, but instead had to write Timmy out. After five years of evil Crane patriarch Alistair only being heard by phone (voiced by Alan Oppenheimer), Passions finally cast the role with longtime soap vet David Bailey. Bailey was a hit with the cast as well as the fans, but on Thanksgiving Day 2004, he drowned in his pool, just as scenes were airing where various characters tried to kill Alastair. Again, the viewers and the producers were stunned, but the show had no choice but to recast the pivotal role (with John Reilly).
As of the end of 2004, Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald finally had a dream fulfilled; she became the mother of Ethan Winthrop Sr.'s first living biological child, a daughter named Jane, thanks to drugging him as part of an elaborate scheme to get her firstborn son Little Ethan back from he and Gwen, who had adopted him. (Ethan also has two deceased children, a daughter baptised Sarah and a son who he and Gwen planned to name Nathan.) This storyline kept viewers on the edge of their seats, becoming the first major 'Who's the Mommy?' storyline in daytime, as Theresa was pregnant with Jane at the same time that she was Ethan and Gwen's surrogate. When Jane turned out to be Theresa's, Gwen lost her mind and kidnapped the baby, fleeing the country with Alistair Crane's estranged wife Katherine. Ethan, Theresa, and Fox rescued them from Alistair's island, thus reunited Theresa and Jane. However, now that Gwen is back in Harmony, she and her mother Rebecca are putting pressure on Ethan to sue for custody of Jane, enabling Gwen to raise her as she desires.
Theme song
The theme song for Passions, "Breathe," was written by John Henry and Jane French, and performed by Ms. French.
Cast
Current Cast Members
- Silvana Arias (Paloma Lopez-Fitzgerald)
- Charles Divins (Chad Harris)
- Cathy Jeneen Doe (Simone Russell)
- Dylan Fergus (Noah Bennett)
- Galen Gering (Luis Lopez-Fitzgerald)
- Emily Harper (Fancy Crane)
- Justin Hartley (Nicholas Foxworth "Fox" Crane)
- Lindsay Hartley (Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald)
- Liza Huber (Gwen Hotchkiss Winthrop)
- James Hyde (Sam Bennett)
- Brook Kerr (Whitney Russell)
- Amelia Marshall (Liz Sanbourne)
- Eric Martsolf (Ethan Winthrop, Sr.)
- Ben Masters (Julian Crane)
- Juliet Mills (Tabitha Lenox)
- Heidi Mueller (Kay Bennett)
- John Reilly (Alistair Crane)
- Tracey Ross (Dr. Eve Johnson Russell)
- Daphnee Duplaix Samuel (Valerie Davis)
- Richard Steinmetz (Martin Fitzgerald)
- Danica Stewart (Jessica Bennett)
- Eva Tamargo (Pilar Lopez-Fitzgerald)
- Kim Johnston Ulrich (Ivy Winthrop)
- Rodney Van Johnson (T.C. Russell)
- McKenzie Westmore (Sheridan Crane Lopez-Fitzgerald)
- Leigh Taylor-Young (Katherine Barrett Crane)
Recurring Cast Members
- Andrea Evans (Rebecca Hotchkiss Crane)
- Bruce French (Father Lonigan)
- Kathleen Noone (Edna Wallace)
Child Cast Members
- Mitchell and Shane Albin (Marty Lopez-Fitzgerald)
- Nicole Cox (Endora Lenox)
- Caleb and Jonah Gilpin (Jane Winthrop)
- Colton Shires (Ethan Winthrop, Jr.)
Coming and Going Cast Members
- Kelli McCarty (Beth Wallace) (until July 18)
Deceased Cast Members
- David Bailey (Alistair Crane), 2004
- Josh Ryan Evans (Timmy Lenox) Original Cast Member, 2002
See also
External link
- Passions on NBC (http://www.nbc.com/passions/)