How to Survive a Marriage
Encyclopedia
How to Survive a Marriage is a soap opera
which aired on the NBC
television network from January 7, 1974 to April 17, 1975. The serial was created by Anne Howard Bailey
, with much input from then-NBC Vice President Lin Bolen
. The show's working title was From This Moment and was an in-house NBC production.
1975, Chris and Larry remarried, and she then battled alcoholism
.
Initially, the show featured veteran soap actress Rosemary Prinz
in the role of Dr. Julie Franklin, a staunch feminist who counseled her friends on the joys of being an independent woman, only to decide that her life was truly complete by marrying a man. Prinz only agreed to stay on the show for a short time (as she had with All My Children
several years earlier), and earned top billing, a three-day work week, and supposedly $1,000 a week, which was a big salary for a soap actress to earn in the 1970s. After six months Julie left town to marry Dr. Tony DeAngelo.
Another major story centered around Fran Bachman (Fran Brill
) coping with sudden widowhood. Brill received over a thousand letters of condolence from viewers.
The show did not profit from the large lead-in that the high-rated Another World
provided, mostly due to its many attempts to be socially relevant, which usually took the place of traditional storytelling to which American soap viewers at the time were acclimated. How to Survive a Marriage ran a distant third in the 3:30 PM timeslot, behind Match Game
on CBS
(daytime TV's highest-rated program) and One Life to Live
on ABC
; a move to 1:30 PM on January 6, 1975 (to enable AW to expand to an hour) only brought worse ratings. Despite its high hopes, NBC pulled the plug on the show after only sixteen months. The Monday after Survive ended, Days of our Lives
expanded to an hour and assumed the vacant half-hour left in NBC's daytime schedule. The program thus holds a rather dubious distinction as the victim of not only the first expansion of a soap opera to a full hour, but the first two (CBS did not expand any of its shows until December, and ABC did not until 1977).
; included Dallas
star Ken Kercheval
(Larry Kirby #2), Academy Award
-winning actor F. Murray Abraham
(Joshua Browne), film actor Armand Assante
(Johnny McGhee), and the late film actor Brad Davis
(Alexander Kronos).
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
which aired on the 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...
television network from January 7, 1974 to April 17, 1975. The serial was created by Anne Howard Bailey
Anne Howard Bailey
Anne Howard Bailey was an award-winning American writer known particularly for her work as a screenwriter and opera librettist....
, with much input from then-NBC Vice President Lin Bolen
Lin Bolen
Lin Bolen is an American television executive with a long-tenured career. Bolen is most noted for her role as the NBC Daytime Television Programming Vice President, a position she held from 1972 until 1978...
. The show's working title was From This Moment and was an in-house NBC production.
Synopsis
Attempting to tell life from the point of view of women in a changing world, the show stirred controversy when the 90-minute opener had the first "nude" scene on American network television (the nudity was only implied, as both of the bodies were under bedsheets) between Larry Kirby and his mistress, Sandra. Larry and his wife Christine (nicknamed "Chris," played by Jennifer Harmon) soon divorced and while battling for custody of their daughter Lori, Chris entered the workforce. On Valentine's DayValentine's Day
Saint Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day, is an annual commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine, and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496...
1975, Chris and Larry remarried, and she then battled alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
.
Initially, the show featured veteran soap actress Rosemary Prinz
Rosemary Prinz
Rosemary Prinz was a stage and television actress. She is most known for her work in the early era of the American soap opera.-Life and career:Prinz was born in New York City...
in the role of Dr. Julie Franklin, a staunch feminist who counseled her friends on the joys of being an independent woman, only to decide that her life was truly complete by marrying a man. Prinz only agreed to stay on the show for a short time (as she had with 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...
several years earlier), and earned top billing, a three-day work week, and supposedly $1,000 a week, which was a big salary for a soap actress to earn in the 1970s. After six months Julie left town to marry Dr. Tony DeAngelo.
Another major story centered around Fran Bachman (Fran Brill
Fran Brill
Frances Joan "Fran" Brill , is an American actress and puppeteer, best known for her roles on Sesame Street.Brill was born in Chester, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Linette and Joseph M. Brill. Her father was a physician...
) coping with sudden widowhood. Brill received over a thousand letters of condolence from viewers.
The show did not profit from the large lead-in that the high-rated 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...
provided, mostly due to its many attempts to be socially relevant, which usually took the place of traditional storytelling to which American soap viewers at the time were acclimated. How to Survive a Marriage ran a distant third in the 3:30 PM timeslot, behind Match Game
Match Game
Match Game is an American television game show in which contestants attempted to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
on 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...
(daytime TV's highest-rated program) and 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...
on 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...
; a move to 1:30 PM on January 6, 1975 (to enable AW to expand to an hour) only brought worse ratings. Despite its high hopes, NBC pulled the plug on the show after only sixteen months. The Monday after Survive ended, Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives is a long running daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday in the United States since November 8, 1965. It has since been syndicated to many countries around...
expanded to an hour and assumed the vacant half-hour left in NBC's daytime schedule. The program thus holds a rather dubious distinction as the victim of not only the first expansion of a soap opera to a full hour, but the first two (CBS did not expand any of its shows until December, and ABC did not until 1977).
Cast
Famous alumni, besides Fran Brill, who was (and still is) best known as a muppeteer on Sesame StreetSesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
; included Dallas
Dallas (TV series)
Dallas is an American serial drama/prime time soap opera that revolves around the Ewings, a wealthy Texas family in the oil and cattle-ranching industries. Throughout the series, Larry Hagman stars as greedy, scheming oil baron J. R. Ewing...
star Ken Kercheval
Ken Kercheval
Ken Kercheval is an American actor, best known for his role as Cliff Barnes on the television series Dallas....
(Larry Kirby #2), Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
-winning actor F. Murray Abraham
F. Murray Abraham
Fahrid Murray Abraham is an American actor. He became known during the 1980s after winning the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus. He has appeared in many roles, both leading and supporting, in films such as All the President's Men and Scarface...
(Joshua Browne), film actor Armand Assante
Armand Assante
-Personal life:Assante was born in New York City and raised in Cornwall, New York, the son of Katherine , a music teacher and poet, and Armand Anthony Assante, Sr., a painter and artist. His father was Italian and his mother was Irish, and was raised in a devoutly Roman Catholic family...
(Johnny McGhee), and the late film actor Brad Davis
Brad Davis (actor)
Robert Creel "Brad" Davis was an American actor, known for starring in the 1978 film Midnight Express.-Early life:...
(Alexander Kronos).