Five Things That Happened On May 12 In Soap History

In 1987, One Life to Live's Tina (Andrea Evans) infamously interrupted her "widower" Cord Roberts's wedding to Kate Sanders. After pregnant Tina was thought lost to the Iguazu Falls of Argentina, Cord turned to archeologist Kate and married her in an interfaith ceremony (conducted by a priest for him and a rabbi for her). Just then, Tina (who'd been nursed back to health by a tribe in the jungle) rushed into the church carrying a baby and blurted, "Stop! Am I too late? Cord, I've come so far. This is your son." After placing the infant in his arms, she fainted. The baby wasn't actually hers (or Cord's) — it was Gabrielle Medina and Max Holden's son, Al — but that didn't come out until after this ill-fated wedding day.

In 2005, Phoebe Wallingford's (Ruth Warrick, pictured in the portrait) loved ones gathered for her memorial service on All My Children. Vasili Bogazianos (l.) returned to the show as Benny Sago for the occasion, and helped to support Brooke English (Julia Barr) as she mourned the loss of her beloved aunt.

In 2006, Finola Hughes (r., pictured with Kimberly McCullough as Robin Scorpio, Anna's daughter) returned to General Hospital for a limited run as Anna Devane after a 14-year absence. Hughes had last played the role for which she won a 1991 Daytime Emmy as Outstanding Lead Actress in 2003 on All My Children, where she had not only reprised Anna in 2001 but also created the role of Anna's twin sister, Alexandra Devane, who would later also appear on GH.

In 2009, Don Diamont made his Bold and Beautiful debut as Bill Spencer. The actor had recently wrapped his long-running role as Brad Carlton on Young and Restless. In a 2020 interview with Soap Opera Digest, Diamont praised his boss at B&B, Brad Bell, for bringing him aboard. "Brad was my champion," he declared. "Truly. He created Bill Spencer for me, and he told me he had a lot tied up in it. He really wanted this character to be successful, so I came out with guns blazing to have Bill be everything he wanted and more. It was exhilarating.

In 2021, Young and Restless aired a special episode centered around Adam Newman (Mark Grossman, r., with Eric Braeden as Victor Newman) after Adam donated his kidney to save the life of an ailing Faith Newman. Executive Producer/Head Writer Josh Griffith explained to Soap Opera Digest, "Adam is at an emotional crossroads. He’s now at a place that’s forced him to re-evaluate his life after everything he’s learned about himself in the last year, which means really looking at the kind of man he’s been and why he’s like that. And it all ties back to his relationship with Victor."