Erica Kane
Encyclopedia
Erica Kane is a fictional character
from the American
daytime drama All My Children
.
The character has been portrayed by actress Susan Lucci
since the show first aired in January 1970, until the last broadcast television episode aired in September 2011. Erica is considered to be the most popular character in soap opera history. TV Guide
calls her "unequivocally the most famous soap opera character in the history of daytime TV".
created Erica Kane in the 1960s as a part of the story bible for All My Children, a light-hearted soap opera that focused on social issues and young love. Nixon unsuccessfully attempted to sell the series to NBC
, then to CBS
, and once again to NBC through Procter & Gamble
. With Procter & Gamble unable to make room for the new series in its line up, she put All My Children on hold. Nixon became head writer of Another World
where she used the model of the Erica character to create a brand new character named Rachel Davis (originated by Robin Strasser
, who later plays Dorian on Nixon's One Life to Live). Nixon said Rachel was Erica's "precursor to the public" but Rachel was a lower-class version. She detailed Rachel's goals as less "stratospheric" in nature since her primary motivation involved marrying Russ Mathews or a man with money while Erica wanted love, independence, and fame. "What Erica and Rachel have in common is they thought if they could get their dream, they'd be satisfied", Nixon said. "But that dream has been elusive."
After the success of One Life to Live
, a series Nixon created in 1968, ABC
asked her to create another soap opera for them. She used the story bible for All My Children to create the new program. The Erica character officially debuted in 1970 once All My Children made it onto the air.
), Phillip Brent (Richard Hatch
), Chuck Tyler (Jack Stauffer
), and Erica Kane (Susan Lucci). For those parts, the show wanted to cast unknown actors.
In 1969, Susan Lucci responded to a casting call for All My Children. She initially auditioned for the role of Tara Martin. The "character that we were all interested in was not Erica, but Tara," said Doris Quinlan, the show's former executive producer. "She was the sweet young ingenue - the one with all the problems that everyone was supposed to care about...I certainly couldn't cast [Lucci] as a young, innocent, sweet little Irish girl. That's not what comes out. She's much more sophisticated- at least she gives that appearance. She was perfect to play Erica." After a meeting with a casting director, they promised to call her back in six months. One of hundreds of people they called back in, Lucci progressed on from each reading of the part until she received the role. "I saw the audition tapes, and she just stood out," said Agnes Nixon. "There was never a question, ever."
Before being cast as Erica Kane, Lucci did not have much success in her acting career. A casting director discouraged her from pursuing roles on television because her hair, skin, and eyes were too dark. Though Lucci's olive complexion held her back from other acting opportunities, it worked in her favor while up for the role of Erica. "Agnes Nixon, the show's creator, really wanted somebody dark to play this part. She has always been ahead of her time," Lucci said. Lucci debuted in episode 10 of the series. In portraying Erica, the actress drew on the "self-centered" and "haughty" traits she recognized in herself while in college. Lucci said, "I love playing her. I enjoyed playing her when she was a 15-year-old high school girl, the naughty girl in town, and I enjoy playing her now, when she's still the naughty girl, but she's broadened her area of operation to include the entire world."
By the late 1970s, a different set of character types was established, including the chic
suburbanite, the subtle single, the traditional family person, the successful professional, and the elegant socialite
. Erica was in the chic suburbanite category which comprised "flashy", achievement-oriented characters with little interest in family and friends. Like others in this category, Erica was written as "flamboyant", "frivolous and carefree, with little commitment other than [her] own selfish enjoyment of life."
Overall, Erica is the embodiment of "the bitch goddess", a soap opera archetype that "transformed and defined" the soap opera genre. Irna Phillips
, Nixon, and William J. Bell
created the archetype in the 1960s and it became one of their defining legacies. The archetype is an assertive Cinderella
who goes after material things. This was a change from the heroines of the radio soap operas who waited to be rescued by men. As the bitch goddess, Erica started out as "a conniving teenage vixen
" and transformed into "the femme fatale
incarnate." The characters in this category are outrageous, exaggerated, financially disadvantaged and determined to change that. Other characters in this archetype are Lisa Grimaldi
(As the World Turns
) and Rachel Davis
(Another World
). General Hospital
's Luke Spencer
later became daytime television's first bitch god.
said, "The Erica that [Lucci] started with, was a kid who was one-dimensional, who was the rotten seed, and she turned her into a very fascinating character- the character that everybody loves to hate." Characterized as the "naughty girl in town", from the start, her motivations stem from her relationship with her father. Her abandonment by him led her to be written as sexually aggressive with men. She needs to receive love from men to prove she is not unlovable.
One of Erica's defining features is her extreme self-centered point of view. Erica is described as "imaginative, adventurous, and brilliant", yet writers detailed her as appearing "scarcely rational enough to cope with adulthood." Despite this, the character represents independence and power. "I think of Erica as a go-getter," Lucci said, "someone who's impatient to have a terrific life and have it yesterday. I think a lot of people can identify with that." She always controls her business whether involved with a man or not. Some of the jobs she has been given during her storylines include a high fashion model, a cosmetics tycoon, and a magazine publisher.
When Charles Pratt, Jr.
took over as head writer of All My Children in 2008, one of his goals for improving the series involved making Erica the focus of the show again. "[A]bove all, the show is, and should always revolve around, Erica," he said in an interview with Soap Opera Digest
. "I can see the temptation to split her off and put her in jail and put her on the run. We did it on Ugly Betty
! But to me, she is the Scarlett O'Hara
of this show and she must always be that, be the center and the heart of the show. Challenging that character that way, making her the powerful woman she should be, is important."
), and her absent father, the film director Eric Kane (Albert Stratton). Mona spoils Erica to fill the void Eric left behind. Despite this, the writers scripted the relationship between Mona and Erica as tumultuous with Mona disapproving of Erica's antics and Erica blaming Mona for her father's desertion. The relationship is later developed into a strong bond. The writers layered their interactions with "raw edges" and humor. "Erica idealized her father - who was a son of a bitch - and she refused to see that," Heflin said. Whenever Eric disappoints Erica, she blames her mother. "Then, of course, would come the moment of breakdown when she would cry on [Mona's] shoulder," Helfin said. "So it's more or less human. Really, more human and less saccharine than most of the mother/children relationships on soaps. It has an awful lot of bit in it." After Mona's death in 1994, the character continues on as a God-like figure Erica looks to for guidance repeatedly throughout the series.
From the start of the series, the lack of a relationship with her father serves as motivation for Erica's actions. She is an example of the Nixon staple of the "lost daddy's girl". Eric abandons her and her mother before the start of the show, when Erica is nine years old. As a result, she develops a severe abandonment complex. Since Eric leaves his family for a successful career in Hollywood, Erica also longs for a life of fame and a successful man. This motivation is maintained in the character decades into the series. "Susan added a lot of Erica's background," Behr said. "Rather than playing it as if Erica's just a rotten character, she added the pathos
of this child who was deserted by her father. Every time she did a scene about how 'My father loves me. I know that he loves me and nobody is going to tell me differently,' she colored it with the knowledge that she had really been deserted. It worked so well that the writers reached the point where they said we have to play this out." In 1989, the Eric Kane character makes his first onscreen appearance as Erica goes in search of him and finds him working as a clown at a circus. She attempts to help him out of his current circumstances, but he ends up betraying her and leaving Pine Valley
.
The 1993 arrival of Kendall Hart
(Sarah Michelle Gellar
) prompted the reveal that prior to the series' debut, Erica had been raped at age 14 by Eric's friend, film star Richard Fields. Eric had allowed Richard, who had a crush on Erica, to be alone with her and had done nothing to prevent the rape from occurring. A revisitation of the event during Erica's 2004 alcohol intervention
storyline introduced the fact that Eric had actually offered up Erica for sex with Richard to convince the actor to star in one of Eric's films. Erica represses all memory of the rape until 16-year-old Kendall, a child conceived by it and put up for adoption, appears in 1993. Viewer reaction to the discrepancy created by Erica's having a 16-year-old daughter as the product of a 24-year-old rape prompted the series to immediately adjust Kendall's age to 23. The mother-daughter relationship between Erica and Kendall was designed as antagonistic, with Kendall, unaware of the rape, seeking revenge against Erica for "abandoning" her as an infant. Kendall's attempted seduction of Erica's love interest, Dimitri Marick
, creates conflict between him and Erica, and Kendall also brings Richard Fields to town to torment her mother. Kendall leaves town in 1995 and returns in 2002 portrayed by a new actress, Alicia Minshew
, and Kendall's birth year was revised to 1976. The later story between Erica and Kendall displayed each character's point of view as they both deal with the ramifications of how Kendall's conception traumatized them, which Lucci praised. A reconciliation later occurs for the characters wherein they bond as mother and daughter.
In 1973, the same year as the Roe v. Wade
ruling, Erica aborts the baby she conceives with her first husband, Jeff Martin (Charles Frank
). This is the first legal abortion aired on American television. Erica was chosen for this storyline as a way to prevent controversy. Since she was a bad girl and not one of the heroines, her choice would not be viewed as something the show supported. The show also protected themselves from controversy by writing Erica as mentally blocking out the abortion and, for a time, believing she miscarried. Viewers loved the story and Erica became a symbol of free choice. Erica develops a potentially fatal infection after having the abortion. "Erica's abortion was simply because she didn't want to have a child, and I think if you do that now, you would perhaps hurt your character," said former All My Children head writer Megan McTavish. McTavish later rewrote the story so that the doctor who performs the procedure, Greg Madden (Ian Buchanan
), transplants the aborted fetus into his infertile wife. They raise the child, Josh Madden
(Colin Egglesfield
), as their son without Erica's knowledge. Inkling Magazine pointed out how unrealistic this storyline was because "the techniques by which abortion is performed don't exactly lend themselves to excising an embryo
viable enough to survive in another woman's womb." The magazine said more likelihood existed in the possibility that Madden harvested Erica's eggs during the procedure, though an invasive surgery like that going unnoticed appeared unlikely as well. Egglesfield gained different information on the probability of the story. In an interview with Soap Opera Digest, he said, "Actually, my father is an obstetrician/gynecologist and my brother is a doctor, as is one of my best friends, and their collective opinion is that this is possible; it is possible to take a fetus out of one woman and place it into the womb of another woman, but it's only possible within the first week of pregnancy, before the fetus actually starts attaching itself to the uterine lining." In the storyline, Greg harbors an obsession with Erica, which motivates him to choose her for the transplant in the first place. Greg and Josh make their first onscreen appearances in 2005. Greg's wife recently died and he moves to Pine Valley for closer proximity to Erica under the guise of opening a clinic. Josh follows him soon afterward and, not knowing Erica is his mother, attempts to destroy Erica in order to steal her fame for himself. Erica discovers the truth and is eventually able to form a relationship with him. In 2009, All My Children let Egglesfield go and killed off Josh. Zach Slater
(Thorsten Kaye
) shoots him and Erica is then forced to decide whether or not to donate Josh's heart to a seriously ill Kendall. "The first thought that came to my mind when I was told the storyline and read the script was Sophie's Choice
," said Lucci. Erica reluctantly agrees to the transplant. Lucci said she believed this decision would "haunt" Erica because if Kendall's life was not in the balance, she would have put more effort into saving Josh.
Erica's youngest child, Bianca Montgomery
, enters the series in 1988. At that time in the series, Bianca is Erica's first and only child since the Kendall and Josh characters were not created yet. In the storyline Erica becomes pregnant with Travis Montgomery
's child and develops toxemia
. The story was written to inform and educate the audience on the details of the condition. Inkling Magazine looked into the plausibility of her developing toxemia and found it believable. The magazine said, "[W]omen who were born small for their gestation
al age have a higher risk of developing pre-eclampsia
during their own pregnancies. The petite form of [Susan Lucci as Erica] seems to fit that description well. Also, given the character's storyline, which included shooting her sister's mother, Goldie, and the attraction she feels for Jack, her husband's brother, she could have had high blood pressure from stress. That hypertension increases the risk of toxemia." Erica overcomes the medical difficulties and gives birth to Bianca. As she grows up, Erica sees her through Reye's syndrome
and anorexia nervosa
. In 2000, All My Children cast Eden Riegel
in the role of a teenage Bianca. The character comes out
as a lesbian
to her mother. Erica has trouble accepting the revelation, but eventually does. This storyline was inspired by the real life coming out story of Chastity Bono
, and the initial reaction by her famous mother Cher
.
Erica's other relatives include half-siblings Mark Dalton
(Mark LaMura) and Silver Kane (Mary LeSeene). In 1977, Mark and Erica begin a romance, which leads Mona to reveal that Mark had also been fathered by Eric Kane, who had engaged in an affair with Mark's mother Maureen Dalton, Eric's secretary. In 1982, while working in New York City
as a model, Erica discovers a half-sister named Silver. Unlike Mark, Silver is the product of a secret marriage between Eric and a woman named Goldie. Silver secretly plots against Erica while pretending to form a bond with her. Silver is later exposed as an impostor named Connie, but the real Silver shows up soon after, only to be killed.
As the series begins, Erica's romantic role is as the rival keeping the "true love" pairings apart. The first story she is used this way in is the teenage love quadrangle between Erica, Phillip Brent, Tara Martin, and Chuck Tyler. In that story, Erica is used as one of the devices separating Tara and Phil. She breaks them up in 1970, but does not get him for herself until years later. Other couples she is used as a roadblock for are Jeff Martin and Mary Kennicott, Linc Tyler and Kitty Shae, and Chuck Tyler and Donna Beck.
Erica's first two marriages, first to Jeff Martin in 1971 and then to Phil Brent in 1975, end because both men want her as a housewife instead of a career woman. Also, Erica is more interested in marrying them to spite Tara. Lucci described Jeff as a "trophy" and gaining Phil as "a matter of pride for Erica." The marriage to Jeff ends when she leaves him for her modeling manager, Jason Maxwell, who Mona later kills in self defense. Erica and Phil marry to give the baby they conceive a name. In the 1970s, pregnancy on a soap opera was romanticized so it was more influenced by the emotions and actions of the characters than by modern medicine. Since Phil and Erica do not conceive their baby for love, they are "rewarded" with a miscarriage, which was typical of loveless unions in that time. Phil wants a divorce after their baby's stillbirth. Though her interest turns to pursuing richer men like Linc Tyler, she refuses to let him go because she does not want Tara to have him. Erica agrees to divorce Phil after his father, Nick Davis, offers her a job as a hostess at his restaurant, the Chateau, in exchange for letting his son go. Erica and Nick develop a romance. The relationship displays antagonistic yet loving qualities. It is the first time Erica meets her match in a man. Erica sees Nick as both a father figure and a lover. Though he loves her, he refuses to marry her, which infuriates Erica. She begins a romance with Tom Cudahay (Richard Shoberg) in the hopes of making Nick jealous. Even though it works, Nick fails to act on his jealousy and instead moves to Chicago. On Erica and Tom's wedding day she hopes he will come back to interrupt the ceremony, but he does not.
All My Children shot Tom and Erica's honeymoon on location in St. Croix, the location where Nixon wrote the bible for the series. This was the first daytime location shoot filmed outside of the United States. The location shoot involved activities never seen in daytime soap operas up to that point, such as snorkeling and horseback riding. They used the steady-cam
technique, which was new at the time. The cameraman Nick Udack "could walk or jog along side us on the beach", Shoberg said. "The steady-cam had a gyroscope that would keep it from bouncing when you took steps". The stumbling blocks designed for Erica and Tom's marriage involve the same as her last two since Erica puts her modeling career ahead of starting a family with Tom. They divorce after he discovers that she uses birth control pills.
Erica becomes involved with Mike Roy, the man writing her biography, Raising Kane. "He was Erica's first great love", Lucci said. "They were very different. He was very intellectual and she was not, and still he loved her for who she was." Mike and Erica fall in love and are kept apart by Adam Chandler
(David Canary
), the man producing a film adaptation of Raising Kane. Adam sends Mike away to Tibet
to separate him and Erica. While Mike is away, Adam offers Erica the lead role in the movie if she marries him. She agrees and they marry in 1984, but Adam casts another actress in the role. After Mike returns, Adam tests Erica's feelings for him by faking his death. She responds to his supposed demise by marrying Mike. Adam reveals he is alive, making their marriage invalid, and forces Erica to choose between him and Mike. She chooses Mike. They plan to marry but before they can he is shot. On his deathbed, he and Erica exchange vows.
Erica's next love interest is the Tibetan monk Jeremy Hunter (Jean Leclerc
). The Jeremy Hunter character was created as a polar opposite of Erica, in part, because he swore a vow of celibacy which contrasted with her sexuality. He is described as "caring, creative, vulnerable, nurturing, patient, and tender." The maternal nature of the character was balanced by his physical and public power. Their relationship was written to reflect a form of protective dominance. Within the storyline, from the summer of 1985 to the summer of 1986 Jeremy rescues her from Adam, his father, and Latin American terrorists, all of whom kidnap and attempt to sexually assault Erica. He also saves her from Natalie Marlow who holds her at gun point. The relationship does not go both ways as they break up when Erica attempts to rescue him. In the story, Jeremy is convicted for a crime he did not commit, so Erica stages a wedding ceremony in prison as a way to break him out by escaping on a helicopter from the roof. Jeremy refuses to let her help him escape, ending their relationship. During the story where Jeremy rescued Erica from Adam, All My Children went on location to Canada to film the scenes. Later, the show again went on location, this time to New York's West Chester County's Wingdale hospital, which provided the setting for Erica's attempt to break Jeremy out of prison.
In 1987, Erica becomes involved with the politician Travis Montgomery
(Larkin Malloy
). Erica and Travis are portrayed as sexually equal and infused with elements of romance and fantasy. Erica becomes pregnant with his baby but does not tell him for fear that it will disrupt his political career. In 1988, when Travis finds out about the baby they get married. She becomes attracted to his brother, Jackson Montgomery (Walt Willey
), but does not act on the feeling until after she and Travis divorce. They have "a very hot romance" and fall in love, but Erica remarries Travis in 1990 at their daughter Bianca's insistence. Travis and Erica's second marriage is not a happy one. "I think after they got back together," said Lucci, "it was never the same again. There was always this rift. He became bitter and sort of cruel to Erica." Their second marriage ends after Travis catches her cheating on him with Jack. During the custody hearing over Bianca, Jack refuses to lie about their affair, resulting in Erica losing custody of her daughter.
In 1991, Adam reveals to Erica that they are still married. He blackmails her into staging another wedding ceremony and living with him as his wife. During this marriage, she meets and falls in love with Dimitri Marick
(Michael Nader
). She fights her feelings for him while he pursues her despite their marriages to other people. Adam eventually grants Erica a divorce, freeing her to be with Dimitri. Erica and Dimitri carry on a long relationship involving two failed marriages and a miscarriage. The pairing was imbued with fairytale elements that were reflected in the wardrobe designs for Erica's wedding dresses. Once Erica and Dimitri separate for a final time in 1997, Erica reunites with Jackson. They become engaged right before Mike Roy is revealed to be alive. Erica is torn between them. Though she chooses Jack, she and Mike engage in sex one last time before he leaves Pine Valley. Jack finds out and breaks things off with her.
In 1999, a car accident with David Hayward
(Vincent Irizarry
) leaves Erica's face disfigured. This storyline unintentionally mirrored a similar car accident Lucci was involved in, in 1966 which almost permanently scarred her face. Like Erica, she needed plastic surgery. In the storyline, Erica and David fall in love while he helps her through her recovery. The obstacles designed to come between them are her continued feelings for Dimitri and his inability to fully give himself to a woman because of what happened to his father when he loved his mother too much. They become engaged to be married but Erica calls it off. She next falls in love with Chris Stamp (Jack Scalia
). "I really think that she found someone very special in Chris Stamp," Lucci said. "They are a pretty hot combination, and he seems strong and capable enough of being with her." In the story, after becoming engaged to Chris, Erica cheats on him with Jack and Chris is killed. She and Jack marry in 2005. They form a family unit including all of their combined children. The union does not last, as they grow apart and Erica cheats on him with Jeff Martin.
All My Children hired Mario Van Peebles
in 2008 to portray Samuel Woods, Erica's new love interest. The writers based the story on Martha Stewart
's insider trading scandal. Erica buys Chandler Enterprises stock based on privileged information Adam Chandler shares with her. U.S. Attorney, Sam Woods brings charges up against her. They develop an attraction while he prosecutes her and she goes to prison for the crime. The relationship goes no further than dating before Sam leaves Pine Valley to campaign for a seat on the Senate.
Charles Pratt, Jr.
took over as head writer of All My Children in 2008. The next year, he decided to put Erica and Ryan Lavery
(Cameron Mathison
) together as a couple. News outlets labeled the her a "cougar" since Erica is older than Ryan. Pratt defended the story and said what they have "isn't a relationship that's borne out of anything except true respect and a growing affection for each other as Erica becomes Ryan's pillar of support. [He] offers her an escape from what her life has become, which is digging her various daughters out of trouble." He described the couple as "a very odd but natural coming together of two people [who are] pushed apart by the attitudes of society."
On July 25, 2011 Erica stabs David. She is taken to Oak Haven and there she first see Janet "Janet from another Planet" Dillon
, then Annie Lavery
, then Marian Colby Chandler, and finally she sees Dixie Cooney Martin
. On August 11, 2011 Jane takes the blame for stabbing David so Erica can remain free. During the last few episodes of the show Erica is offered a chance to right a movie about her book (much to the dismay of Jack who wants to marry her). This leads to a fall out between the two at Stuart Chandler's welcome home party. As Jack leaves the party Erica admits in front of everyone that she needs and loves Jack, to which he replies by bitterly telling her he doesn't give a damn about what she needs. As Erica goes after Jack, JR fires his pistol ending the show. It is implied that the bullet hit Erica as she was last to be shown before the screen blacked out.
reported in 1986 that sixty students at California State University, Fullerton
of a group of 100 could recognize Erica Kane but not historical figures such as Alexander Hamilton
, Geoffrey Chaucer
and Desmond Tutu
when asked by English instructor Judith Remy Leder.
Susan Lucci hosted the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live
on October 6, 1990. In one sketch, Lucci played Kane as a contestant on the fictional game show
"Game Breakers". She seduced fictional game show host Jack Morgan (portrayed by Phil Hartman
), thus enabling her to soundly beat her opponent. Morgan came close to marrying Kane (in a ceremony presided over by Don Pardo
), but the wedding was interrupted by real-life game show host (and "current husband") Gene Rayburn
. The sketch ended with Kane being mauled by a panther owned by Siegfried and Roy (portrayed by Kevin Nealon
and Dana Carvey
).
The Erica Kane character provided inspiration for three songs, all of which were named after her. Alternative rock
band Urge Overkill
titled a song after the character on their album Saturation
. The late musical artist Aaliyah
recorded a song about it called "Erica Kane" which was released posthumously on the album I Care 4 U
. The band B5 also recorded a song about Erica Kane entitled "Erika Cain." The song talks about how they're in a relationship with a beautiful girl, but she is crazy. The group contacted All My Children's producers about doing a cameo on the show. They appeared in the April 25, 2008 episode as activists rallying for Erica's release from prison. During the appearance, the group performed "Erika Cain." They also taped a video for the song with Susan Lucci.
Rapper Lil' Kim
at times refers to herself as "the black Erica Kane."
Mattel
created two dolls based on Erica Kane as part of the company's Daytime Drama Collection. They released the first one in 1998. Mattel modeled that doll after the character's appearance during the Crystal Ball, an annual event in All My Childrens storylines. After that doll met with success, they released the second in 1999 called the Champagne Lace Wedding Erica Kane Doll. This one was based on the character as she was during the 1993 wedding to Dimitri Marick.
Over the years, Susan Lucci became known for gaining Daytime Emmy nominations for her portrayal of Erica, but never winning. Almost every year from 1978 to 1998, Lucci received nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama series and never won. Her negative reactions to the losses, including pounding her fist on the table and leaving one ceremony in tears, were mentioned in tabloids. Her losses also caused her fellow cast mate Ruth Warrick to speak out to the press. In 1983, when Lucci lost to All My Children newcomer Dorothy Lyman (Opal), Warrick said, "It seemed impossible that Susan wouldn't win this year. We are all very puzzled, amazed, and disgruntled." She later added, "It was a slap in the face to Susan that Dorothy should walk off with it after being on the show such a short time. And of course her role was so outrageous and so, well, it was a caricature. That's not in any way to put down what Dorothy did, but it really was a supporting role rather than a leading role." The losing streak became a "long-running gag" in the entertainment community. Jay Leno
on The Tonight Show
used it as a joke as did Saturday Night Live. The author of The Emmy, Thomas O'Neil, attributed the losses to the material she submitted for consideration. "In the episodes she sent in last year, she was crying 75 percent of the time," he said. "She drowned her chances in a tsunami of tears. Lucci won the Emmy in 1999, receiving a two minute standing ovation at the win and again after the show in the press room. A reporter in the press room questioned whether she would miss the attention she got for losing, to which Lucci responded, "Oh, not for a minute. Winning is definitely better." The entries Lucci submitted for the 1999 Emmys involved scenes from Erica's storyline where she helps Bianca deal with her anorexia.
Character (arts)
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
daytime drama All My Children
All My Children
All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
.
The character has been portrayed by actress Susan Lucci
Susan Lucci
Susan Victoria Lucci is an American actress and entrepreneur, best known for portraying Erica Kane on the daytime drama All My Children. The character is considered an icon, and Lucci has been called "Daytime's Leading Lady" by TV Guide, with New York Times and Los Angeles Times citing her as the...
since the show first aired in January 1970, until the last broadcast television episode aired in September 2011. Erica is considered to be the most popular character in soap opera history. TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
calls her "unequivocally the most famous soap opera character in the history of daytime TV".
Background
Agnes NixonAgnes Nixon
Agnes Nixon is an American writer and producer. She attended Northwestern University where she was a member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority, and is best known as the creator of soap operas such as One Life to Live and All My Children...
created Erica Kane in the 1960s as a part of the story bible for All My Children, a light-hearted soap opera that focused on social issues and young love. Nixon unsuccessfully attempted to sell the series to NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, then to CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
, and once again to NBC through Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble is a Fortune 500 American multinational corporation headquartered in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio and manufactures a wide range of consumer goods....
. With Procter & Gamble unable to make room for the new series in its line up, she put All My Children on hold. Nixon became head writer of Another World
Another World (TV series)
Another World is an American television soap opera that ran on NBC from May 4, 1964 to June 25, 1999. It ran for a total of 35 years. It was created by Irna Phillips along with William J...
where she used the model of the Erica character to create a brand new character named Rachel Davis (originated by Robin Strasser
Robin Strasser
Robin Strasser is an American actress.Strasser is best known for her Daytime Emmy Award-winning portrayal of Dr. Dorian Lord on the ABC daytime soap opera One Life to Live. Strasser stepped into the role in March 1979, first appearing Friday, April 13, 1979 and left in 1987, returning from...
, who later plays Dorian on Nixon's One Life to Live). Nixon said Rachel was Erica's "precursor to the public" but Rachel was a lower-class version. She detailed Rachel's goals as less "stratospheric" in nature since her primary motivation involved marrying Russ Mathews or a man with money while Erica wanted love, independence, and fame. "What Erica and Rachel have in common is they thought if they could get their dream, they'd be satisfied", Nixon said. "But that dream has been elusive."
After the success of One Life to Live
One Life to Live
One Life to Live is an American soap opera which debuted on July 15, 1968 and has been broadcast on the ABC television network. Created by Agnes Nixon, the series was the first daytime drama to primarily feature racially and socioeconomically diverse characters and consistently emphasize social...
, a series Nixon created in 1968, ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
asked her to create another soap opera for them. She used the story bible for All My Children to create the new program. The Erica character officially debuted in 1970 once All My Children made it onto the air.
Casting
At the time, soap operas featured mostly older casts. To add a contemporary feel to the show, Nixon focused on younger characters, while also mixing in older ones so as not to lose traditional soap opera viewers. The youths on All My Children were Tara Martin (Karen Lynn GorneyKaren Lynn Gorney
Karen Lynn Gorney is an American actress, known for her roles on television and film.-Early life:Gorney was born in Beverly Hills, California. She is the daughter of 20th-century composer Jay Gorney, who wrote the music for what many consider the definitive song about America's Great Depression,...
), Phillip Brent (Richard Hatch
Richard Hatch
Richard Hatch is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Captain Apollo in the original Battlestar Galactica television series, and also as Tom Zarek in the remake of Battlestar Galactica....
), Chuck Tyler (Jack Stauffer
Jack Stauffer
Jack Stauffer is an American actor of film, television, and theater. He is also a director of theater productions....
), and Erica Kane (Susan Lucci). For those parts, the show wanted to cast unknown actors.
In 1969, Susan Lucci responded to a casting call for All My Children. She initially auditioned for the role of Tara Martin. The "character that we were all interested in was not Erica, but Tara," said Doris Quinlan, the show's former executive producer. "She was the sweet young ingenue - the one with all the problems that everyone was supposed to care about...I certainly couldn't cast [Lucci] as a young, innocent, sweet little Irish girl. That's not what comes out. She's much more sophisticated- at least she gives that appearance. She was perfect to play Erica." After a meeting with a casting director, they promised to call her back in six months. One of hundreds of people they called back in, Lucci progressed on from each reading of the part until she received the role. "I saw the audition tapes, and she just stood out," said Agnes Nixon. "There was never a question, ever."
Before being cast as Erica Kane, Lucci did not have much success in her acting career. A casting director discouraged her from pursuing roles on television because her hair, skin, and eyes were too dark. Though Lucci's olive complexion held her back from other acting opportunities, it worked in her favor while up for the role of Erica. "Agnes Nixon, the show's creator, really wanted somebody dark to play this part. She has always been ahead of her time," Lucci said. Lucci debuted in episode 10 of the series. In portraying Erica, the actress drew on the "self-centered" and "haughty" traits she recognized in herself while in college. Lucci said, "I love playing her. I enjoyed playing her when she was a 15-year-old high school girl, the naughty girl in town, and I enjoy playing her now, when she's still the naughty girl, but she's broadened her area of operation to include the entire world."
Archetypes
Over the years Erica developed into different character archetypes. Soap operas once featured only one-dimensional characters who were either good or bad. By the 1970s, characters were written with more depth, fitting into archetypes consisting of the young-and-vulnerable romantic heroine, the old-fashioned villain, the rival, the suffering antagonist, Mr. Right, the former playboy, the meddlesome and villainous mother/grandmother, the benevolent mother/grandmother, and the career woman. Erica was established as the rival to Tara Martin's young-and-vulnerable romantic heroine. As the rival, Erica was written as money- and status-conscious as well as sexually aggressive. Erica was generally positioned as the antagonist keeping true love pairings, such as Tara and Phillip Brent, apart.By the late 1970s, a different set of character types was established, including the chic
Chic (style)
Chic , meaning 'stylish' or 'smart', is an element of fashion.-Etymology:Chic is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s...
suburbanite, the subtle single, the traditional family person, the successful professional, and the elegant socialite
Socialite
A socialite is a person who participates in social activities and spends a significant amount of time entertaining and being entertained at fashionable upper-class events....
. Erica was in the chic suburbanite category which comprised "flashy", achievement-oriented characters with little interest in family and friends. Like others in this category, Erica was written as "flamboyant", "frivolous and carefree, with little commitment other than [her] own selfish enjoyment of life."
Overall, Erica is the embodiment of "the bitch goddess", a soap opera archetype that "transformed and defined" the soap opera genre. Irna Phillips
Irna Phillips
Irna Phillips was an American actress and most notably writer who created and scripted many of the first American soap operas.Phillips created radio and TV soap operas including:...
, Nixon, and William J. Bell
William J. Bell
William J. Bell was the creator and executive producer of the soap operas The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful.-Personal life:...
created the archetype in the 1960s and it became one of their defining legacies. The archetype is an assertive Cinderella
Cinderella
"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...
who goes after material things. This was a change from the heroines of the radio soap operas who waited to be rescued by men. As the bitch goddess, Erica started out as "a conniving teenage vixen
Vixen
A vixen is a female fox.Vixen may also refer to:-In the military:*HMS Vixen, various British Royal Navy ships*USS Vixen, various ships in the US Navy*Vickers Vixen, a biplane produced in small numbers in the 1920s...
" and transformed into "the femme fatale
Femme fatale
A femme fatale is a mysterious and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers in bonds of irresistible desire, often leading them into compromising, dangerous, and deadly situations. She is an archetype of literature and art...
incarnate." The characters in this category are outrageous, exaggerated, financially disadvantaged and determined to change that. Other characters in this archetype are Lisa Grimaldi
Lisa Grimaldi
Lisa Grimaldi is a fictional character on the CBS soap opera As the World Turns. The daughter of Henry and Alma Miller, Lisa grew up in Rockford, Illinois, USA before moving to Oakdale...
(As the World Turns
As the World Turns
As the World Turns is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS from April 2, 1956 to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her other soap opera Guiding Light...
) and Rachel Davis
Rachel Cory Hutchins
Rachel Cory Hutchins is a fictional character on NBC daytime soap opera, Another World.-Casting:...
(Another World
Another World (TV series)
Another World is an American television soap opera that ran on NBC from May 4, 1964 to June 25, 1999. It ran for a total of 35 years. It was created by Irna Phillips along with William J...
). General Hospital
General Hospital
General Hospital is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-running American soap opera currently in production and the third longest running drama in television in American history after Guiding Light and As the World Turns....
's Luke Spencer
Luke Spencer
Lucas "Luke" Lorenzo Spencer, Sr. is a fictional character in the American television soap opera General Hospital, and has been played by Anthony Geary since 1978.-Early years :...
later became daytime television's first bitch god.
Characteristics
Erica is a headstrong and selfish 15-year-old when All My Children begins in 1970. Although Nixon designed her as one of the bad characters, she was not intended to come off as evil or menacing. Since Nixon created All My Children as a "light hearted" soap opera, the series' villains, Erica included, came across as more fun and funny, than wicked. Over time, Erica evolved into a "heroine-vixen" who still did bad things, but was also a character the audience rooted for. Former associate producer Felicia Minei BehrFelicia Minei Behr
Felicia Minei Behr is an American TV producer and network executive who has worked on three daytime serials. She was fired from All My Children in 1996 when ratings for the show began to decline.-Career: Executive Producer:...
said, "The Erica that [Lucci] started with, was a kid who was one-dimensional, who was the rotten seed, and she turned her into a very fascinating character- the character that everybody loves to hate." Characterized as the "naughty girl in town", from the start, her motivations stem from her relationship with her father. Her abandonment by him led her to be written as sexually aggressive with men. She needs to receive love from men to prove she is not unlovable.
One of Erica's defining features is her extreme self-centered point of view. Erica is described as "imaginative, adventurous, and brilliant", yet writers detailed her as appearing "scarcely rational enough to cope with adulthood." Despite this, the character represents independence and power. "I think of Erica as a go-getter," Lucci said, "someone who's impatient to have a terrific life and have it yesterday. I think a lot of people can identify with that." She always controls her business whether involved with a man or not. Some of the jobs she has been given during her storylines include a high fashion model, a cosmetics tycoon, and a magazine publisher.
When Charles Pratt, Jr.
Charles Pratt, Jr.
Charles Pratt, Jr. is an American television writer, producer and director.-Daytime Soap Positions held:All My Children *Head Writer: August, 2008 - November, 2009...
took over as head writer of All My Children in 2008, one of his goals for improving the series involved making Erica the focus of the show again. "[A]bove all, the show is, and should always revolve around, Erica," he said in an interview with Soap Opera Digest
Soap Opera Digest
Soap Opera Digest is a weekly magazine covering American daytime soap operas. It features onscreen and offscreen news about the series, interviews with and articles about performers, storyline summaries and analysis, and related promotional information...
. "I can see the temptation to split her off and put her in jail and put her on the run. We did it on Ugly Betty
Ugly Betty
Ugly Betty is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which premiered on ABC on September 28, 2006, and ended on April 14, 2010. The series revolves around the character Betty Suarez and is based on Fernando Gaitán's Colombian telenovela soap opera Yo soy Betty, la fea...
! But to me, she is the Scarlett O'Hara
Scarlett O'Hara
Scarlett O' Hara is the protagonist in Margaret Mitchell's 1936 novel Gone with the Wind and in the later film of the same name...
of this show and she must always be that, be the center and the heart of the show. Challenging that character that way, making her the powerful woman she should be, is important."
Family
When All My Children debuts, the Kane family consists of Erica, her mother, Mona (Frances HeflinFrances Heflin
Mary Frances Heflin was an American actress.-Life and career:Heflin was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the daughter of Fanny Bleecker and Dr. Emmett Evan Heflin, a dentist. She was the sister of Academy Award-winning actor Van Heflin...
), and her absent father, the film director Eric Kane (Albert Stratton). Mona spoils Erica to fill the void Eric left behind. Despite this, the writers scripted the relationship between Mona and Erica as tumultuous with Mona disapproving of Erica's antics and Erica blaming Mona for her father's desertion. The relationship is later developed into a strong bond. The writers layered their interactions with "raw edges" and humor. "Erica idealized her father - who was a son of a bitch - and she refused to see that," Heflin said. Whenever Eric disappoints Erica, she blames her mother. "Then, of course, would come the moment of breakdown when she would cry on [Mona's] shoulder," Helfin said. "So it's more or less human. Really, more human and less saccharine than most of the mother/children relationships on soaps. It has an awful lot of bit in it." After Mona's death in 1994, the character continues on as a God-like figure Erica looks to for guidance repeatedly throughout the series.
From the start of the series, the lack of a relationship with her father serves as motivation for Erica's actions. She is an example of the Nixon staple of the "lost daddy's girl". Eric abandons her and her mother before the start of the show, when Erica is nine years old. As a result, she develops a severe abandonment complex. Since Eric leaves his family for a successful career in Hollywood, Erica also longs for a life of fame and a successful man. This motivation is maintained in the character decades into the series. "Susan added a lot of Erica's background," Behr said. "Rather than playing it as if Erica's just a rotten character, she added the pathos
Pathos
Pathos represents an appeal to the audience's emotions. Pathos is a communication technique used most often in rhetoric , and in literature, film and other narrative art....
of this child who was deserted by her father. Every time she did a scene about how 'My father loves me. I know that he loves me and nobody is going to tell me differently,' she colored it with the knowledge that she had really been deserted. It worked so well that the writers reached the point where they said we have to play this out." In 1989, the Eric Kane character makes his first onscreen appearance as Erica goes in search of him and finds him working as a clown at a circus. She attempts to help him out of his current circumstances, but he ends up betraying her and leaving Pine Valley
Pine Valley, Pennsylvania
Pine Valley, Pennsylvania is the fictional setting for the long-running American soap opera All My Children. It is a small suburb of Philadelphia...
.
The 1993 arrival of Kendall Hart
Kendall Hart
Kendall Hart Slater is a fictional character from the American daytime drama All My Children. The character was portrayed by Sarah Michelle Gellar from 1993 to 1995, and by Alicia Minshew from 2002 to 2011....
(Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Prinze , known professionally by her birth name of Sarah Michelle Gellar , is an American actress, singer and executive producer...
) prompted the reveal that prior to the series' debut, Erica had been raped at age 14 by Eric's friend, film star Richard Fields. Eric had allowed Richard, who had a crush on Erica, to be alone with her and had done nothing to prevent the rape from occurring. A revisitation of the event during Erica's 2004 alcohol intervention
Intervention (counseling)
An intervention is an orchestrated attempt by one, or often many, people to get someone to seek professional help with an addiction or some kind of traumatic event or crisis, or other serious problem. The term intervention is most often used when the traumatic event involves addiction to drugs...
storyline introduced the fact that Eric had actually offered up Erica for sex with Richard to convince the actor to star in one of Eric's films. Erica represses all memory of the rape until 16-year-old Kendall, a child conceived by it and put up for adoption, appears in 1993. Viewer reaction to the discrepancy created by Erica's having a 16-year-old daughter as the product of a 24-year-old rape prompted the series to immediately adjust Kendall's age to 23. The mother-daughter relationship between Erica and Kendall was designed as antagonistic, with Kendall, unaware of the rape, seeking revenge against Erica for "abandoning" her as an infant. Kendall's attempted seduction of Erica's love interest, Dimitri Marick
Dimitri Marick
Dimitri Marick is a fictional character from the ABC daytime drama All My Children, a long running soap opera set in the fictional city Pine Valley, Pennsylvania. Former Dynasty star Michael Nader originated the character. Anthony Addabbo took over the role on April 6, 2001, and played Dimitri...
, creates conflict between him and Erica, and Kendall also brings Richard Fields to town to torment her mother. Kendall leaves town in 1995 and returns in 2002 portrayed by a new actress, Alicia Minshew
Alicia Minshew
Alicia Herschenfeld best known as Alicia Minshew is an American actress. She is best known for portraying Kendall Hart on the daytime drama All My Children.-Early life and career:...
, and Kendall's birth year was revised to 1976. The later story between Erica and Kendall displayed each character's point of view as they both deal with the ramifications of how Kendall's conception traumatized them, which Lucci praised. A reconciliation later occurs for the characters wherein they bond as mother and daughter.
In 1973, the same year as the Roe v. Wade
Roe v. Wade
Roe v. Wade, , was a controversial landmark decision by the United States Supreme Court on the issue of abortion. The Court decided that a right to privacy under the due process clause in the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution extends to a woman's decision to have an abortion,...
ruling, Erica aborts the baby she conceives with her first husband, Jeff Martin (Charles Frank
Charles Frank
Charles R. Frank is an American actor noted for playing Bret Maverick's cousin Ben Maverick in the 1978 TV-movie The New Maverick with James Garner and Jack Kelly, and in the short-lived 1979 television series Young Maverick. Graduated with the class of 1969 from MIddlebury College.-Career:From...
). This is the first legal abortion aired on American television. Erica was chosen for this storyline as a way to prevent controversy. Since she was a bad girl and not one of the heroines, her choice would not be viewed as something the show supported. The show also protected themselves from controversy by writing Erica as mentally blocking out the abortion and, for a time, believing she miscarried. Viewers loved the story and Erica became a symbol of free choice. Erica develops a potentially fatal infection after having the abortion. "Erica's abortion was simply because she didn't want to have a child, and I think if you do that now, you would perhaps hurt your character," said former All My Children head writer Megan McTavish. McTavish later rewrote the story so that the doctor who performs the procedure, Greg Madden (Ian Buchanan
Ian Buchanan
Ian Buchanan is a Scottish television actor who appeared on the soap opera All My Children as Dr. Greg Madden.His first major work in the United States was playing the characters Duke Lavery on the soap General Hospital from 1986 to 1989, and Ian McFyfer in series three and four of the comedy...
), transplants the aborted fetus into his infertile wife. They raise the child, Josh Madden
Josh Madden
Joshua "Josh" Madden is a fictional character from the American daytime drama All My Children. He first came to Pine Valley on June 17, 2005 and was originally portrayed by actor Scott Kinworthy until September 15, 2005...
(Colin Egglesfield
Colin Egglesfield
Colin Egglesfield is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal as Dr. Josh Madden in the long-running soap opera All My Children, as well as Auggie Kirkpatrick in The CW's short-lived teen drama Melrose Place....
), as their son without Erica's knowledge. Inkling Magazine pointed out how unrealistic this storyline was because "the techniques by which abortion is performed don't exactly lend themselves to excising an embryo
Embryo
An embryo is a multicellular diploid eukaryote in its earliest stage of development, from the time of first cell division until birth, hatching, or germination...
viable enough to survive in another woman's womb." The magazine said more likelihood existed in the possibility that Madden harvested Erica's eggs during the procedure, though an invasive surgery like that going unnoticed appeared unlikely as well. Egglesfield gained different information on the probability of the story. In an interview with Soap Opera Digest, he said, "Actually, my father is an obstetrician/gynecologist and my brother is a doctor, as is one of my best friends, and their collective opinion is that this is possible; it is possible to take a fetus out of one woman and place it into the womb of another woman, but it's only possible within the first week of pregnancy, before the fetus actually starts attaching itself to the uterine lining." In the storyline, Greg harbors an obsession with Erica, which motivates him to choose her for the transplant in the first place. Greg and Josh make their first onscreen appearances in 2005. Greg's wife recently died and he moves to Pine Valley for closer proximity to Erica under the guise of opening a clinic. Josh follows him soon afterward and, not knowing Erica is his mother, attempts to destroy Erica in order to steal her fame for himself. Erica discovers the truth and is eventually able to form a relationship with him. In 2009, All My Children let Egglesfield go and killed off Josh. Zach Slater
Zach Slater
Zachary "Zach" Slater is a fictional character from the American daytime drama All My Children. He was portrayed by actor Thorsten Kaye from May 20, 2004 to November 19, 2010; Thorsten returned to the role on August 5, 2011 to September 23, 2011...
(Thorsten Kaye
Thorsten Kaye
Thorsten Kaye is a German-British actor.-Early life:...
) shoots him and Erica is then forced to decide whether or not to donate Josh's heart to a seriously ill Kendall. "The first thought that came to my mind when I was told the storyline and read the script was Sophie's Choice
Sophie's Choice (novel)
Sophie's Choice is a novel by William Styron published in 1979. It concerns a young American Southerner, an aspiring writer, who befriends the Jewish Nathan Landau and his beautiful lover Sophie, a Polish survivor of the Nazi concentration camps...
," said Lucci. Erica reluctantly agrees to the transplant. Lucci said she believed this decision would "haunt" Erica because if Kendall's life was not in the balance, she would have put more effort into saving Josh.
Erica's youngest child, Bianca Montgomery
Bianca Montgomery
Bianca Christine Montgomery is a fictional character from the American daytime drama All My Children. In June 2010, Christina Bennett Lind replaced Eden Riegel, who portrayed the role from July 2000 to January 2010. Until Riegel assumed the role, the character was portrayed solely by child...
, enters the series in 1988. At that time in the series, Bianca is Erica's first and only child since the Kendall and Josh characters were not created yet. In the storyline Erica becomes pregnant with Travis Montgomery
Travis Montgomery
Travis Montgomery was a fictional character of the daytime drama All My Children. He is the father of Bianca, Molly, and Sean Montgomery...
's child and develops toxemia
Toxemia
Toxemia may refer to:* A generic term for the presence of toxins in the blood, see Bacteremia* An outdated medical term for Pre-eclampsia...
. The story was written to inform and educate the audience on the details of the condition. Inkling Magazine looked into the plausibility of her developing toxemia and found it believable. The magazine said, "[W]omen who were born small for their gestation
Gestation
Gestation is the carrying of an embryo or fetus inside a female viviparous animal. Mammals during pregnancy can have one or more gestations at the same time ....
al age have a higher risk of developing pre-eclampsia
Pre-eclampsia
Pre-eclampsia or preeclampsia is a medical condition in which hypertension arises in pregnancy in association with significant amounts of protein in the urine....
during their own pregnancies. The petite form of [Susan Lucci as Erica] seems to fit that description well. Also, given the character's storyline, which included shooting her sister's mother, Goldie, and the attraction she feels for Jack, her husband's brother, she could have had high blood pressure from stress. That hypertension increases the risk of toxemia." Erica overcomes the medical difficulties and gives birth to Bianca. As she grows up, Erica sees her through Reye's syndrome
Reye's syndrome
Reye's syndrome is a potentially fatal disease that causes numerous detrimental effects to many organs, especially the brain and liver, as well as causing a lower than usual level of blood sugar . The classic features are liver damage, aspirin use and a viral infection...
and anorexia nervosa
Anorexia nervosa
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by refusal to maintain a healthy body weight and an obsessive fear of gaining weight. Although commonly called "anorexia", that term on its own denotes any symptomatic loss of appetite and is not strictly accurate...
. In 2000, All My Children cast Eden Riegel
Eden Riegel
Eden Sonja Jane Riegel is an American actress. She portrayed Bianca Montgomery on the daytime drama All My Children, and propelled the character into a gay icon, as well as a popular figure within the medium...
in the role of a teenage Bianca. The character comes out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
as a lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
to her mother. Erica has trouble accepting the revelation, but eventually does. This storyline was inspired by the real life coming out story of Chastity Bono
Chastity Bono
Chaz Salvatore Bono is an American transgender advocate, writer, actor, and musician. Bono is the only child of American entertainers Sonny and Cher, though each had children from other relationships...
, and the initial reaction by her famous mother Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
.
Erica's other relatives include half-siblings Mark Dalton
Mark Dalton (AMC)
Mark Dalton is a fictional character on the American daytime soap opera, All My Children. He was portrayed by Mark La Mura 1976 to 1985, again from 1986 to 1989 and returning in 1995 for Mona Kane's funeral...
(Mark LaMura) and Silver Kane (Mary LeSeene). In 1977, Mark and Erica begin a romance, which leads Mona to reveal that Mark had also been fathered by Eric Kane, who had engaged in an affair with Mark's mother Maureen Dalton, Eric's secretary. In 1982, while working in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
as a model, Erica discovers a half-sister named Silver. Unlike Mark, Silver is the product of a secret marriage between Eric and a woman named Goldie. Silver secretly plots against Erica while pretending to form a bond with her. Silver is later exposed as an impostor named Connie, but the real Silver shows up soon after, only to be killed.
Marriages and relationships
The character has been married numerous times to multiple men. Seven of her marriages to six different men have been valid while four of her other marriages are invalid. Generally, the number of times Erica has been married is named as ten, though the total of her valid and invalid marriages, plus her 1991 vow renewal with Adam Chandler, would come up to twelve. Along with the marriages, the character is also given a number of other love interests. The motivation behind the multiple romances stems from the character's need to fill the void her father left when he abandoned her.As the series begins, Erica's romantic role is as the rival keeping the "true love" pairings apart. The first story she is used this way in is the teenage love quadrangle between Erica, Phillip Brent, Tara Martin, and Chuck Tyler. In that story, Erica is used as one of the devices separating Tara and Phil. She breaks them up in 1970, but does not get him for herself until years later. Other couples she is used as a roadblock for are Jeff Martin and Mary Kennicott, Linc Tyler and Kitty Shae, and Chuck Tyler and Donna Beck.
Erica's first two marriages, first to Jeff Martin in 1971 and then to Phil Brent in 1975, end because both men want her as a housewife instead of a career woman. Also, Erica is more interested in marrying them to spite Tara. Lucci described Jeff as a "trophy" and gaining Phil as "a matter of pride for Erica." The marriage to Jeff ends when she leaves him for her modeling manager, Jason Maxwell, who Mona later kills in self defense. Erica and Phil marry to give the baby they conceive a name. In the 1970s, pregnancy on a soap opera was romanticized so it was more influenced by the emotions and actions of the characters than by modern medicine. Since Phil and Erica do not conceive their baby for love, they are "rewarded" with a miscarriage, which was typical of loveless unions in that time. Phil wants a divorce after their baby's stillbirth. Though her interest turns to pursuing richer men like Linc Tyler, she refuses to let him go because she does not want Tara to have him. Erica agrees to divorce Phil after his father, Nick Davis, offers her a job as a hostess at his restaurant, the Chateau, in exchange for letting his son go. Erica and Nick develop a romance. The relationship displays antagonistic yet loving qualities. It is the first time Erica meets her match in a man. Erica sees Nick as both a father figure and a lover. Though he loves her, he refuses to marry her, which infuriates Erica. She begins a romance with Tom Cudahay (Richard Shoberg) in the hopes of making Nick jealous. Even though it works, Nick fails to act on his jealousy and instead moves to Chicago. On Erica and Tom's wedding day she hopes he will come back to interrupt the ceremony, but he does not.
All My Children shot Tom and Erica's honeymoon on location in St. Croix, the location where Nixon wrote the bible for the series. This was the first daytime location shoot filmed outside of the United States. The location shoot involved activities never seen in daytime soap operas up to that point, such as snorkeling and horseback riding. They used the steady-cam
Steadicam
A Steadicam is a stabilizing mount for a motion picture camera that mechanically isolates it from the operator's movement, allowing a smooth shot even when moving quickly over an uneven surface...
technique, which was new at the time. The cameraman Nick Udack "could walk or jog along side us on the beach", Shoberg said. "The steady-cam had a gyroscope that would keep it from bouncing when you took steps". The stumbling blocks designed for Erica and Tom's marriage involve the same as her last two since Erica puts her modeling career ahead of starting a family with Tom. They divorce after he discovers that she uses birth control pills.
Erica becomes involved with Mike Roy, the man writing her biography, Raising Kane. "He was Erica's first great love", Lucci said. "They were very different. He was very intellectual and she was not, and still he loved her for who she was." Mike and Erica fall in love and are kept apart by Adam Chandler
Adam Chandler
Adam Chandler, Sr. is a fictional character from the daytime drama All My Children, portrayed by David Canary from December 1983 through his departure on April 23, 2010. Adam Chandler was one of the most devious and powerful individuals within the town of Pine Valley, Pennsylvania...
(David Canary
David Canary
David Hoyt Canary is an American actor, who starred in both soap operas and prime time television. He is best known for his roles as the ranch foreman, Candy Canaday on Bonanza and identical twins Adam Chandler from 1983 to 2010 and Stuart Chandler from 1984 to 2009 on the daytime serial, All My...
), the man producing a film adaptation of Raising Kane. Adam sends Mike away to Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
to separate him and Erica. While Mike is away, Adam offers Erica the lead role in the movie if she marries him. She agrees and they marry in 1984, but Adam casts another actress in the role. After Mike returns, Adam tests Erica's feelings for him by faking his death. She responds to his supposed demise by marrying Mike. Adam reveals he is alive, making their marriage invalid, and forces Erica to choose between him and Mike. She chooses Mike. They plan to marry but before they can he is shot. On his deathbed, he and Erica exchange vows.
Erica's next love interest is the Tibetan monk Jeremy Hunter (Jean Leclerc
Jean LeClerc (actor)
Jean LeClerc is a Québécois actor. In the original French, his name is spelled Jean Leclerc. He is best known for his work in the United States as Jeremy Hunter on the American daytime soap operas All My Children and Loving in the 1980s and 1990s.LeClerc first started his career in Quebec on the...
). The Jeremy Hunter character was created as a polar opposite of Erica, in part, because he swore a vow of celibacy which contrasted with her sexuality. He is described as "caring, creative, vulnerable, nurturing, patient, and tender." The maternal nature of the character was balanced by his physical and public power. Their relationship was written to reflect a form of protective dominance. Within the storyline, from the summer of 1985 to the summer of 1986 Jeremy rescues her from Adam, his father, and Latin American terrorists, all of whom kidnap and attempt to sexually assault Erica. He also saves her from Natalie Marlow who holds her at gun point. The relationship does not go both ways as they break up when Erica attempts to rescue him. In the story, Jeremy is convicted for a crime he did not commit, so Erica stages a wedding ceremony in prison as a way to break him out by escaping on a helicopter from the roof. Jeremy refuses to let her help him escape, ending their relationship. During the story where Jeremy rescued Erica from Adam, All My Children went on location to Canada to film the scenes. Later, the show again went on location, this time to New York's West Chester County's Wingdale hospital, which provided the setting for Erica's attempt to break Jeremy out of prison.
In 1987, Erica becomes involved with the politician Travis Montgomery
Travis Montgomery
Travis Montgomery was a fictional character of the daytime drama All My Children. He is the father of Bianca, Molly, and Sean Montgomery...
(Larkin Malloy
Larkin Malloy
Larkin Malloy is an American actor, announcer and voiceover artist as well as one of the most respected Acting Teachers and Private Acting Coaches in New York.Malloy was born in New York City...
). Erica and Travis are portrayed as sexually equal and infused with elements of romance and fantasy. Erica becomes pregnant with his baby but does not tell him for fear that it will disrupt his political career. In 1988, when Travis finds out about the baby they get married. She becomes attracted to his brother, Jackson Montgomery (Walt Willey
Walt Willey
Walt Willey is an American actor. He is best known for playing Jackson Montgomery on the soap opera All My Children from 1987 to 2011....
), but does not act on the feeling until after she and Travis divorce. They have "a very hot romance" and fall in love, but Erica remarries Travis in 1990 at their daughter Bianca's insistence. Travis and Erica's second marriage is not a happy one. "I think after they got back together," said Lucci, "it was never the same again. There was always this rift. He became bitter and sort of cruel to Erica." Their second marriage ends after Travis catches her cheating on him with Jack. During the custody hearing over Bianca, Jack refuses to lie about their affair, resulting in Erica losing custody of her daughter.
In 1991, Adam reveals to Erica that they are still married. He blackmails her into staging another wedding ceremony and living with him as his wife. During this marriage, she meets and falls in love with Dimitri Marick
Dimitri Marick
Dimitri Marick is a fictional character from the ABC daytime drama All My Children, a long running soap opera set in the fictional city Pine Valley, Pennsylvania. Former Dynasty star Michael Nader originated the character. Anthony Addabbo took over the role on April 6, 2001, and played Dimitri...
(Michael Nader
Michael Nader
Michael Nader is an American actor of Lebanese descent, known for his role on the ABC primetime soap opera Dynasty from 1983 to 1989 as Farnsworth "Dex" Dexter, the third husband of Alexis Colby .Nader's first soap opera role was opposite actress Marie Masters playing the character of Kevin...
). She fights her feelings for him while he pursues her despite their marriages to other people. Adam eventually grants Erica a divorce, freeing her to be with Dimitri. Erica and Dimitri carry on a long relationship involving two failed marriages and a miscarriage. The pairing was imbued with fairytale elements that were reflected in the wardrobe designs for Erica's wedding dresses. Once Erica and Dimitri separate for a final time in 1997, Erica reunites with Jackson. They become engaged right before Mike Roy is revealed to be alive. Erica is torn between them. Though she chooses Jack, she and Mike engage in sex one last time before he leaves Pine Valley. Jack finds out and breaks things off with her.
In 1999, a car accident with David Hayward
David Hayward
Dr. David Hayward is a fictional character from the ABC daytime drama All My Children, as portrayed by Vincent Irizarry from: November 27, 1997 - March 2, 1998, July 8, 1998 - November 28, 2006, October 23, 2008 - September 13, 2010, and returned on November 22, 2010.The character has been a top...
(Vincent Irizarry
Vincent Irizarry
Vincent Michael Irizarry is an American actor of Puerto Rican and Italian descent. He was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in 1985 and 2002, and won in 2009.-Early life:...
) leaves Erica's face disfigured. This storyline unintentionally mirrored a similar car accident Lucci was involved in, in 1966 which almost permanently scarred her face. Like Erica, she needed plastic surgery. In the storyline, Erica and David fall in love while he helps her through her recovery. The obstacles designed to come between them are her continued feelings for Dimitri and his inability to fully give himself to a woman because of what happened to his father when he loved his mother too much. They become engaged to be married but Erica calls it off. She next falls in love with Chris Stamp (Jack Scalia
Jack Scalia
Jack Scalia is an American actor. He has had many roles in television series , television movies, and feature films.-Early life:...
). "I really think that she found someone very special in Chris Stamp," Lucci said. "They are a pretty hot combination, and he seems strong and capable enough of being with her." In the story, after becoming engaged to Chris, Erica cheats on him with Jack and Chris is killed. She and Jack marry in 2005. They form a family unit including all of their combined children. The union does not last, as they grow apart and Erica cheats on him with Jeff Martin.
All My Children hired Mario Van Peebles
Mario Van Peebles
Mario "Chip" Cain Van Peebles is an American director and actor who has appeared in numerous Hollywood films. He is son of filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles.-Life and career:...
in 2008 to portray Samuel Woods, Erica's new love interest. The writers based the story on Martha Stewart
Martha Stewart
Martha Stewart is an American business magnate, author, magazine publisher, and television personality. As founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, she has gained success through a variety of business ventures, encompassing publishing, broadcasting, and merchandising...
's insider trading scandal. Erica buys Chandler Enterprises stock based on privileged information Adam Chandler shares with her. U.S. Attorney, Sam Woods brings charges up against her. They develop an attraction while he prosecutes her and she goes to prison for the crime. The relationship goes no further than dating before Sam leaves Pine Valley to campaign for a seat on the Senate.
Charles Pratt, Jr.
Charles Pratt, Jr.
Charles Pratt, Jr. is an American television writer, producer and director.-Daytime Soap Positions held:All My Children *Head Writer: August, 2008 - November, 2009...
took over as head writer of All My Children in 2008. The next year, he decided to put Erica and Ryan Lavery
Ryan Lavery
Ryan Aloysius Lavery is a fictional character from the American daytime drama All My Children, as portrayed by Cameron Mathison from January 12, 1998 to 2002 and from 2003 to 2011. The character is set to come back in January 2012 when the series returns online...
(Cameron Mathison
Cameron Mathison
Cameron Arthur Mathison is a Canadian actor and television host, perhaps best known for his role as Ryan Lavery on the ABC soap opera All My Children — a role which he has played from December 15, 1997 to 2002, and from 2003 to 2011...
) together as a couple. News outlets labeled the her a "cougar" since Erica is older than Ryan. Pratt defended the story and said what they have "isn't a relationship that's borne out of anything except true respect and a growing affection for each other as Erica becomes Ryan's pillar of support. [He] offers her an escape from what her life has become, which is digging her various daughters out of trouble." He described the couple as "a very odd but natural coming together of two people [who are] pushed apart by the attitudes of society."
On July 25, 2011 Erica stabs David. She is taken to Oak Haven and there she first see Janet "Janet from another Planet" Dillon
Janet Dillon
Janet Dillon is a fictional character on the daytime soap opera All My Children...
, then Annie Lavery
Annie Lavery
Annie Novak, more commonly known as Annie Lavery , is a fictional character on ABC's daytime drama All My Children. She has been portrayed by Melissa Claire Egan since July 10, 2006...
, then Marian Colby Chandler, and finally she sees Dixie Cooney Martin
Dixie Cooney Martin
Dixie Cooney Martin is a fictional character from the American daytime drama All My Children. The character's run lasted from July 1988 to June 1996, again from July 3, 1998 to February 26, 2002, from December 23, 2005 to January 31, 2007 with appearances from May to June 2008 and April 2010 before...
. On August 11, 2011 Jane takes the blame for stabbing David so Erica can remain free. During the last few episodes of the show Erica is offered a chance to right a movie about her book (much to the dismay of Jack who wants to marry her). This leads to a fall out between the two at Stuart Chandler's welcome home party. As Jack leaves the party Erica admits in front of everyone that she needs and loves Jack, to which he replies by bitterly telling her he doesn't give a damn about what she needs. As Erica goes after Jack, JR fires his pistol ending the show. It is implied that the bullet hit Erica as she was last to be shown before the screen blacked out.
Cultural impact
The Associated PressAssociated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
reported in 1986 that sixty students at California State University, Fullerton
California State University, Fullerton
California State University, Fullerton is a public university located in Fullerton, California. It is the largest institution in the CSU System by enrollment, it offers long-distance education and adult-degree programs...
of a group of 100 could recognize Erica Kane but not historical figures such as Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...
, Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages and was the first poet to have been buried in Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey...
and Desmond Tutu
Desmond Tutu
Desmond Mpilo Tutu is a South African activist and retired Anglican bishop who rose to worldwide fame during the 1980s as an opponent of apartheid...
when asked by English instructor Judith Remy Leder.
Susan Lucci hosted the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
on October 6, 1990. In one sketch, Lucci played Kane as a contestant on the fictional game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
"Game Breakers". She seduced fictional game show host Jack Morgan (portrayed by Phil Hartman
Phil Hartman
Philip Edward "Phil" Hartman was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter, and graphic artist. Born in Brantford, Ontario, Hartman and his family moved to the United States when he was 10...
), thus enabling her to soundly beat her opponent. Morgan came close to marrying Kane (in a ceremony presided over by Don Pardo
Don Pardo
Dominick George "Don" Pardo is an American radio and television announcer. He is best known as the voice of the long-running late night sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live....
), but the wedding was interrupted by real-life game show host (and "current husband") Gene Rayburn
Gene Rayburn
Gene Rayburn was an American radio and television personality. He is best known as the host of various editions of the popular American television game show Match Game for over two decades....
. The sketch ended with Kane being mauled by a panther owned by Siegfried and Roy (portrayed by Kevin Nealon
Kevin Nealon
Kevin Nealon is an American actor and comedian, best known as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1986 to 1995, acting in several of the Happy Madison films, for playing Doug Wilson on the Showtime series Weeds, and providing the voice of the title character, Glenn Martin on Glenn Martin,...
and Dana Carvey
Dana Carvey
Dana Thomas Carvey is an American actor and stand-up comedian, best known for his work as a cast member on Saturday Night Live and for playing the role of Garth in the Wayne's World movies.-Early life:...
).
The Erica Kane character provided inspiration for three songs, all of which were named after her. Alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band Urge Overkill
Urge Overkill
Urge Overkill is an alternative rock band, formed in Chicago, United States, consisting of Nash Kato , and Eddie "King" Roeser . Their cover of Neil Diamond's song "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon" appeared prominently in the movie Pulp Fiction, and became a hit in 1994...
titled a song after the character on their album Saturation
Saturation (album)
Saturation is the fourth album by American alternative rock group Urge Overkill, released in 1993 and produced by the Butcher Bros. Saturation was Urge Overkill's debut on Geffen Records, and a deliberate attempt at a hit record. The label released "Sister Havana" and "Positive Bleeding" as singles...
. The late musical artist Aaliyah
Aaliyah
Aaliyah Dana Haughton , who performed under the mononym Aaliyah , was an American R&B recording artist, actress and model. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was raised in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of 10, she appeared on the television show Star Search and performed in concert alongside...
recorded a song about it called "Erica Kane" which was released posthumously on the album I Care 4 U
I Care 4 U
I Care 4 U is the fourth album and first compilation album by the American singer Aaliyah, released posthumously by Blackground Records on December 10, 2002, in the United States. Along with her hit singles, a number of shelved tracks were included on the album, including the singles "Miss You",...
. The band B5 also recorded a song about Erica Kane entitled "Erika Cain." The song talks about how they're in a relationship with a beautiful girl, but she is crazy. The group contacted All My Children's producers about doing a cameo on the show. They appeared in the April 25, 2008 episode as activists rallying for Erica's release from prison. During the appearance, the group performed "Erika Cain." They also taped a video for the song with Susan Lucci.
Rapper Lil' Kim
Lil' Kim
Kimberly Denise Jones , better known by her stage name Lil' Kim, is an American rapper and actress who was a member of the group Junior M.A.F.I.A.....
at times refers to herself as "the black Erica Kane."
Mattel
Mattel
Mattel, Inc. is the world's largest toy company based on revenue. The products it produces include Fisher Price, Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels and Matchbox toys, Masters of the Universe, American Girl dolls, board games, and, in the early 1980s, video game consoles. The company's name is derived from...
created two dolls based on Erica Kane as part of the company's Daytime Drama Collection. They released the first one in 1998. Mattel modeled that doll after the character's appearance during the Crystal Ball, an annual event in All My Childrens storylines. After that doll met with success, they released the second in 1999 called the Champagne Lace Wedding Erica Kane Doll. This one was based on the character as she was during the 1993 wedding to Dimitri Marick.
Over the years, Susan Lucci became known for gaining Daytime Emmy nominations for her portrayal of Erica, but never winning. Almost every year from 1978 to 1998, Lucci received nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama series and never won. Her negative reactions to the losses, including pounding her fist on the table and leaving one ceremony in tears, were mentioned in tabloids. Her losses also caused her fellow cast mate Ruth Warrick to speak out to the press. In 1983, when Lucci lost to All My Children newcomer Dorothy Lyman (Opal), Warrick said, "It seemed impossible that Susan wouldn't win this year. We are all very puzzled, amazed, and disgruntled." She later added, "It was a slap in the face to Susan that Dorothy should walk off with it after being on the show such a short time. And of course her role was so outrageous and so, well, it was a caricature. That's not in any way to put down what Dorothy did, but it really was a supporting role rather than a leading role." The losing streak became a "long-running gag" in the entertainment community. Jay Leno
Jay Leno
James Douglas Muir "Jay" Leno is an American stand-up comedian and television host.From 1992 to 2009, Leno was the host of NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Beginning in September 2009, Leno started a primetime talk show, titled The Jay Leno Show, which aired weeknights at 10:00 p.m. ,...
on The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
used it as a joke as did Saturday Night Live. The author of The Emmy, Thomas O'Neil, attributed the losses to the material she submitted for consideration. "In the episodes she sent in last year, she was crying 75 percent of the time," he said. "She drowned her chances in a tsunami of tears. Lucci won the Emmy in 1999, receiving a two minute standing ovation at the win and again after the show in the press room. A reporter in the press room questioned whether she would miss the attention she got for losing, to which Lucci responded, "Oh, not for a minute. Winning is definitely better." The entries Lucci submitted for the 1999 Emmys involved scenes from Erica's storyline where she helps Bianca deal with her anorexia.