Five Things That Happened On October 30 In Soap History

In 1987, Matthew Ashford (pictured with Joseph Campanella, r., as Harper Deveraux) debuted on Days of Our Lives as Jack. The actor, who was the third actor to take on the role, recalled to Soap Opera Digest in 2015, "I had a very positive meeting with Casting Director Doris Sabbagh. I had already been on two shows [One Life To Live and Search for Tomorrow] and knew DAYS was looking to get into some heavy material with Jack. They wanted somebody who could stand up against Mary Beth Evans [Kayla] and Stephen Nichols [Steve]. I felt it was the next step in my learning curve to come into something where there were expectations, yet, don’t do what’s been done already.”

In 2008, Robin Scorpio (Kimberly McCullough) and Patrick Drake's (Jason Thompson) would-be wedding was thrown into chaos on General Hospital when the bride went into labor. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when the groom showed up; he frantically explained that he had been delayed by needing to perform an emergency surgery. Mac walked Robin down the aisle, and when she took her place next to Patrick, Father Coates began the ceremony. Then Robin's eyes widened — she turned to Patrick and told him that her water had broken!

In 2012, Peter Reckell (pictured with Peggy McCay as Caroline Brady) exited Days of Our Lives as Bo Brady, ending a 17-year run. (He originally played Bo from 1983-92, and had returned in 1995.) The actor explained to Soap Opera Digest, "I took off a couple of times before, thinking I was going to go be star or something and that didn’t quite work out, I was able to come back to this place — been my home for almost 30 years. So, has been adventurous and life-changing. The first couple of rides were pretty astounding and I probably shouldn’t have left the second time because that’s when I was in the so-called soap prime as far as my age and stuff." The actor has returned several times since this exit.

In 2014, Alison Sweeney exited DAYS as Sami Brady, ending a nearly 22-year run. The actress opened up to Soap Opera Digest about her decision to step away from the role, explaining, "I guess it has been probably a year [since I started thinking about leaving]. The last time I re-signed my contract with DAYS, I thought to myself that this might be the last one that I do. I mean, I can't say that I was certain about it for a while, but in the last year, I've gotten more serious about it... My head and heart have been telling me different things. Having finally made the decision, I felt at peace. It felt right." The actress has subsequently returned for visits.

In 2017, General Hospital's back-from-the-dead Jason Morgan (Steve Burton) saved Sam McCall (Kelly Monaco) from drowning after she was tossed into the water by evil Dr. Klein. Jason, carrying Sam in his arms, then came face-to-face with “the other Jason” (later revealed to be his twin brother, Drew Cain, who had been programmed to take over his life).