Five Things That Happened On May 30 In Soap History

In 1995, Marlena Evans’s (Deidre Hall) exorcism got underway on Days of Our Lives. The exorcism (a daytime first) was performed by John Black, Marlena's true love. Reflecting on the legacy of the landmark storyline in a 2015 interview with Soap Opera Digest, Deidre Hall marveled that she never could have imagined that the story would become such a pop culture phenomenon "because we're doing a job and we don't get much feedback. I did not know ‘Deidre Hall/Marlena possession storyline’ would be a full sentence. It was so well-received and the audience was ready for it and Jim [Reilly, then-head writer] and the producers and the directors and the special effects people handled it so brilliantly that I felt in very good hands."

In 2006, James Scott made his Days of Our Lives debut as EJ DiMera, son of Stefano DiMera and Susan Banks. The actor had previously starred on All My Children as Ethan Cambias. "After the way [AMC] killed Ethan, it was fairly clear they really weren’t going to be able to bring him back in a hurry, but I stayed in New York," the actor explained to Soap Opera Weekly. "At the end of pilot season, I got a phone call from the casting office at Days of Our Lives. They told me they had this role they felt I would be right for. One thing led to another, but it’s always a slow process. For one thing, I was still under contact with ABC, so I had to ask them if they would release me. Very graciously and very kindly they did, and I’m very grateful for that." The actor remained in Salem until 2014.

In 2018 on Young and Restless, Hilary Curtis (Mishael Morgan, l.) took a life-changing call to her ob/gyn's office: She learned she was pregnant! The dad-to-be was her ex-husband, Devon Winters, who had agreed to serve as a surrogate father for Hilary, who had her heart set on becoming a mother. The first person Hilary shared the news with was Mariah Copeland (Camryn Grimes), who was a bit confused, as Hilary had already announced her pregnancy. Hilary admitted that when she'd said she was pregnant before, she had gotten a false positive on her test. But this time, she really was expecting!

In 2024 on General Hospital, Maxie Jones (Kirsten Storms) invited Damian Spinelli (Bradford Anderson) to move back in with her and the kids. Once the pair was alone, Maxie addressed the matter with Spinelli. "I didn’t want to say this in front of the kids, and I don’t want to put you on the spot, but… I miss having you here, too, and I would love it if you would move back in," she told him. Replied Spinelli, "I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I must respectfully and regretfully decline." He explained, "I love you. I don’t want to be roommates. I want us to be partners. I want to be a couple." "Well, I do, too," she assured him. Their compromise so as not to confuse the kids: He would sleep in the guest room.

In 2024 on Bold and Beautiful, Hope Logan (Annika Noelle, r.) reeled when she realized that Forrester co-CEO Steffy Forrester (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood) was going to cancel her beloved line, Hope For The Future. Hope had it out with Steffy, accusing her of wanting to destroy Hope's line just because it bore her name. Steffy denied this. Still, as a seething Hope updated her mom, Brooke, on what had transpired, she declared regarding her relationship with Steffy, "This is war."