Longest-serving soap opera stars.
by yrnej | created - 29 Oct 2014 | updated - 29 Oct 2014 | PublicWhich of these US daytime soap opera stars who have played the same role for 32 or more years do you love to watch most?
Discuss the list here
1. Helen Wagner
Actress | As the World Turns
Helen Wagner was born on September 3, 1918 in Lubbock, Texas, USA. She was an actress, known for As the World Turns (1956), The World of Mr. Sweeney (1954) and Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951). She was married to Robert Willey. She died on May 1, 2010 in Mount Kisco, New York, USA.
54 years as Hancy Hughes on As the World Turns
2. Don Hastings
Actor | As the World Turns
Actor and writer, best known as "The Video Ranger", "Jack Lane", and "Dr. Bob Hughes" on television. The youngest son of Hazel and Charles Hastings, he lived in Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant area until he was six, attending Our Lady of Victory parochial school for one year. The family then moved to...
50 years as Bob Hughes on As the World Turns
3. Eileen Fulton
Actress | As the World Turns
Eileen Fulton was born on September 13, 1933 in Asheville, North Carolina, USA. She is an actress, known for As the World Turns (1956), Our Private World (1965) and Girl of the Night (1960).
50 years as Lisa Grimaldi on As the World Turns
4. Rachel Ames
Actress | General Hospital
Rachel Ames has the distinction of being the longest-running performer on ABC Daytime's longest-running daytime drama, General Hospital (1963), which she joined on February 23, 1964, less than a year after the program's first air date. She has been nominated three times for an Emmy Award as Best ...
43 years as Audrey Hardy on General Hospital
5. Frances Reid
Actress | Days of Our Lives
Born in Wichita Falls, Texas, and was raised in Berkeley, California, she attended/graduated at The Pasadena Community Playhouse where her major was acting, and she pursued her career immediately. The Emmy Award nominee who has played Alice Horton for the entire 37 years that Days of Our Lives has ...
42 years as Alice Horton on Days of Our Lives
6. Susan Lucci
Actress | All My Children
Susan Lucci was born on December 23, 1946, in Scarsdale, New York, to Jeanette (Granquist) and Victor Lucci, a building contractor. She is of Italian (father) and Swedish, German, and French (mother) descent. Susan grew up in Garden City. Since she can remember, she wanted to be a performer, and ...
41 years as Erica Kane on All My Children
7. Erika Slezak
Actress | One Life to Live
Erika Slezak was born on August 5, 1946 in Hollywood, California, USA. She is an actress, known for One Life to Live (1968), One Life to Live (2013) and Next Stop, Christmas (2021). She has been married to Brian Davies since August 4, 1978. They have two children. She was previously married to R. ...
41 years as Victoria Lord on One Life to Live
8. Jeanne Cooper
Actress | The Young and the Restless
Jeanne Cooper was born on October 25, 1928 in Taft, California, USA. She was an actress, known for The Young and the Restless (1973), Ben Casey (1961) and Kansas City Bomber (1972). She was married to Harry Bernsen. She died on May 8, 2013 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
40 years as Katherine Chancellor on The Young and the Restless
9. Ray MacDonnell
Actor | All My Children
Ray MacDonnell was born on March 5, 1928 in Lawrence, Massachusetts, USA. He was an actor, known for All My Children (1970), Dick Tracy (1967) and All My Children (2013). He was married to Patricia Anne Broderick. He died on June 10, 2021 in New York, USA.
40 years as Joe Martin on All My Children
10. Suzanne Rogers
Actress | Days of Our Lives
Suzanne Rogers was born on July 9, 1943 in Colonial Heights, Virginia, USA. She is an actress, known for Days of Our Lives (1965), Knight Rider (1982) and Quincy M.E. (1976). She was previously married to Sam Groom.
40 years and counting as Maggie Horton on Days of Our Lives
11. John Clarke
Actor | Days of Our Lives
John Clarke was born on April 14, 1931 in South Bend, Indiana, USA. He was an actor, known for Days of Our Lives (1965), The Satan Bug (1965) and Death Valley Days (1952). He was married to Patricia Clarke. He died on October 16, 2019 in Laguna Beach, California, USA.
39 years as Mickey Horton on Days of Our Lives
12. Kathryn Hays
Actress | As the World Turns
American actress Kathryn Hays became best known for her 38-year long stint as the fiery matriarch Kim Sullivan Hughes, one of the most prominent characters on the daytime soap As the World Turns (1956). She was born Kay Piper in Princeton and grew up Joliet, Illinois. After junior college, she ...
38 years as Kim Hughes on As the World Turns
13. Leslie Charleson
Actress | General Hospital
Leslie Charleson was born on February 22, 1945 in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. She is an actress, known for General Hospital (1963), Cannon (1971) and Kung Fu (1972). She was previously married to G. William Demms.
37 years and counting as Monica Quartermaine on General Hospital
14. Doug Davidson
Actor | The Young and the Restless
Doug Davidson was born on October 24, 1954 in Glendale, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Young and the Restless (1973), I'll Take Manhattan (1987) and Season of Rage. He has been married to Cindy Fisher since May 27, 1984. They have two children.
36 years and counting as Paul Williams on The Young and the Restless
15. Susan Seaforth Hayes
Actress | Days of Our Lives
Susan Seaforth Hayes, the American actress best known for her six-decade-long stint on the Days of Our Lives (1965), was born Susan Seabold on July 11, 1943 in Oakland, California. She was the daughter of the actress and writer, Elizabeth Harrower. She made her debut on the Cavalcade of America (...
36 years and counting as Julie Williams on Days of Our Lives
16. Melody Thomas Scott
Actress | The Young and the Restless
Scott was born Melody Ann Thomas in Los Angeles, California. Her first film credit was as a child actress in the 1964 Alfred Hitchcock movie, Marnie (1964). After bit parts in movies in the mid-'70s (most notably in John Wayne's final film, The Shootist (1976)), she was offered bit parts on ...
35 years and counting as Nikki Newman on The Young and the Restless
17. Patricia Bruder
Actress | As the World Turns
Patricia Bruder was born on April 14, 1940 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. She is an actress, known for As the World Turns (1956), Lights Out (1946) and Hands of Mystery (1949). She has been married to Dr. Charles Debrovner since June 6, 1959. They have two children.
35 years as Ellen Lowell on As the World Turns
18. Mary Stuart
Actress | Search for Tomorrow
She reigned on Search for Tomorrow (1951) for nearly four decades and became one of TV's most popular daytime ladies. As the ever-noble Joanne Gardner Barron Tate Vincente Tourneur, Mary Stuart remained on board for its entire run, and when that four-times-married role was in the can, she was ready...
35 years as Joanne Gardner on Search for Tomorrow
19. Larry Haines
Actor | The Odd Couple
Appeared in scores of programs from radio's "Golden Age", such as "Suspense", the "Shadow", "Inner Sanctum Mysteries", and "X Minus One". Mr. Haines also starred in a short-lived series of 1953, "That Hammer Guy", in which he played the character created by Mickey Spillane, "Mike Hammer". He was on...
35 years as Stu Bergman on Search for Tomorrow
20. Larry Bryggman
Actor | Die Hard with a Vengeance
Larry Bryggman was born on December 21, 1938 in Concord, California, USA. He is an actor, known for Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995), Spy Game (2001) and As the World Turns (1956). He has been married to Tracey Hanley Bryggman since 1999. They have two children. He was previously married to ...
35 years as John Dixon on As the World Turns
21. Michael Storm
Actor | One Life to Live
Michael Storm was born on August 9, 1939 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is an actor, known for One Life to Live (1968), Deep Cover (1997) and The Practice (1997). He has been married to Sally Beall since February 21, 1969. They have two children.
35 years as Larry Wolek on One Life to Live
22. Ruth Warrick
Actress | Citizen Kane
Reedy and regal actress Ruth Warrick will be remembered for two names and two names alone. In films, she will indelibly be referred to as the castoff first "Mrs. Citizen Kane," and on TV she will forever be synonymous with her character of Phoebe Tyler Wallingford, the obnoxiously wealthy, ...
35 years as Phoebe Tyler Wallingford on All My Children
23. Marie Masters
Actress | As the World Turns
Marie Masters was born on February 4, 1941 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for As the World Turns (1956), Scream for Help (1984) and Slayground (1983).
35 years as Susan Stewart on As the World Turns
24. Eric Braeden
Actor | The Young and the Restless
Eric Braeden is a German actor in America who began his career playing Nazis and eventually became a star of daytime soap operas. Born Hans Gudegast in Kiel, Germany, during the Second World War, he was a superb athlete who excelled in track-and-field events. As a teenager, he immigrated to the ...
34 years and counting as Victor Newman on The Young and the Restless
25. Charita Bauer
Actress | The Guiding Light
Charita Bauer was born on December 20, 1922 in Newark, New Jersey, USA. She was an actress, known for Guiding Light (1952), The Aldrich Family (1949) and The Cradle Will Fall (1983). She was married to Robert Stanley Crawford. She died on February 28, 1985 in New York City, New York, USA.
34 years as Bert Bauer on Guiding Light
26. Jacklyn Zeman
Actress | General Hospital
Jackie began training for the classic ballet at age 5. She was accepted into the New Jersey Dance Company at age 15, and accepted a scholarship from New York University at age 15 to pursue a major in dance. The dark-haired beauty decided to try acting, and has become a staple of daytime drama (aka ...
34 years and counting as Bobbie Spencer on General Hospital
27. Bill Hayes
Actor | Days of Our Lives
Throughout the 1970s and a good part of the 1980s, Bill Hayes and his second wife, Emmy-winning Susan Seaforth Hayes, reigned as the Lunt and Fontanne of daytime soaps. Prior to this he had become a noted singer/actor on the Broadway stage and in night clubs. Born William Foster Hayes III in Harvey...
33 years and counting as Doug Williams on Days of Our Lives
28. John Beradino
Actor | General Hospital
John Beradino was born on May 1, 1917 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for General Hospital (1963), Adventures of Superman (1952) and Young Doctors in Love (1982). He was married to Marjorie Ann Binder, Charissa Hughes and Jeanette Nadine Barritt. He died on May 19...
33 years as Steve Hardy on General Hospital
29. Peter Hansen
Actor | General Hospital
Peter Hansen was born on December 5, 1921 in Oakland, California, USA. He was an actor, known for General Hospital (1963), The War of the Roses (1989) and When Worlds Collide (1951). He was married to Florence Elizabeth (Betty) Moe. He died on April 9, 2017 in Santa Clarita, California, USA.
33 years as Lee Baldwin on General Hospital
30. Deidre Hall
Actress | Days of Our Lives
Deidre Hall has emerged as one of America's most beloved actresses, who delighted her fans in August 1991, when she returned to NBC-TV's number one daytime program, Days of Our Lives (1965). Hall created the role of "Dr. Marlena Evans" in 1976, a character whose popularity has created a furor and a...
32 years and counting as Marlena Evans on Days of Our Lives
31. Kate Linder
Actress | Mother's Day
Kate Linder has portrayed Esther Valentine on CBS' The Young and the Restless since April, 1982. The popular daytime drama has been the #1 rated soap opera every week for over 30 years. In 2008, Linder received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Linder has a busy feature film career as well, she...
32 years and counting as Esther Valentine on The Young and the Restless
32. Eileen Herlie
Actress | All My Children
This vibrant Scottish character actress managed in her seven-decade career trek to not only brighten up the Broadway stage during the 1950s and 1960s in roles ranging from the man-searching milliner Irene Malloy to Hamlet's mother Queen Gertrude, but conquered the TV market too, delighting daytime ...
32 years as Myrtle Fargate on All My Children
33. Colleen Zenk
Actress | As the World Turns
Colleen Zenk was born on January 20, 1953 in Barrington, Illinois, USA. She is an actress, known for As the World Turns (1956), Annie (1982) and The Comedian (2016). She was previously married to Mark Pinter and Michael Crouch.
32 years as Barbara Ryan on As the World Turns
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