Julia Santos
Encyclopedia
Julia Keefer is a fictional character
from the ABC
daytime drama All My Children
. She was portrayed by actress Sydney Penny
from 1993 to 1996 as a series regular, with guest appearances in 1997 and 2002, and from 2005 to 2008. Julia's pairing with Keith Hamilton Cobb
's Noah Keefer formed one of daytime's first interracial supercouple
s and was one of the 90s' most popular pairings.
from Texas
to live with her sister, Maria Santos Grey. Soon after her arrival, a tornado struck the Pennsylvania
town and Julia was struck by a falling chandelier that scarred her face. She ran away to Center City and into the arms of Noah Keefer, with whom she lived and eventually fell in love.
In one notable storyline, Julia became pregnant after being raped by Louie Greco, a drug dealer who lived nearby, and chose to have an abortion, despite considerable opposition from her devout Roman Catholic Mexican-American family. The relationship between a Hispanic Mestizo
Julia and the African American Noah was also contentious in her family.
When Noah learned of Louie Greco's actions he chased him down and accidentally killed him. Noah was found guilty of his murder and the two escaped to Jamaica; Noah was eventually exonerated of the crime. After this ordeal the two eventually married, but two thugs who were after Noah's aunt Grace tried to end Julia's life. Julia then witnessed the attempted murder of Noah's sister Belinda and when she testified against her sister-in-law's attacker she had no other choice but to enter the witness protection program with Noah. The two quickly left Pine Valley
in 1996 for somewhere in Northern California.
In 1997, Maria was presumed killed in a plane crash and Julia was allowed to return for her funeral. Five years later, in 2002, Maria was found alive and once again Julia returned to see her sister and they shared an emotional reunion.
Julia returned in 2005, following Noah's murder, and ended up avenging Noah's death by murdering Garret Williams in self-defense. Since then, she became the legal guardian of a little girl, Kathy, (after her parents were killed in a car accident) and embarked on an affair with Jamie Martin which slowly turned into love. Their romance ended, however, with Julia leaving town. She returned to Pine Valley
to find her ex-boyfriend had gone to Africa to do work with Doctors Without Borders.
After Jamie's departure, Julia and Jack began a brief flirtation period, which made Erica Kane
furious.
Julia was offered the head nurse job at a hospital in Australia and was planning on leaving Pine Valley. But before she could, on May 23, 2008, while at the wedding of Jesse and Angie Hubbard, Robert Gardner (Ray Gardner's brother) busted into the reception holding Angie at gunpoint. Gardner spotted Aidan Devane
gunning for him out of the corner of his eye and fired off a wild shot in Aidan's direction. Gardner missed Aidan, but accidentally shot Julia. At the hospital, Joe Martin
tells her that the wound lacerated her liver. Together with a steady internal bleed, Julia knew her chances of surviving were slim to none, even with surgery, and so she decided against it. Knowing that Kathy had lost her mother in the same hospital, she would not let Krystal, who travelled with her in the ambulance, get Kathy so she could say goodbye. She asked Krystal to call her sister Maria to come and take Kathy. In the hospital bed, in the presence of Joe and Krystal, Julia tearfully slipped away, speaking of her love for Kathy. Also, before she died, Dixie came and thanked her for taking care of Kate (Kathy). Dixie stated she wished Julia didn't have to go. After Dixie left, Julia realized Kathy was going to be all right. With this thought in mind, Julia died.
Fictional character
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 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...
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...
. She was portrayed by actress Sydney Penny
Sydney Penny
Sydney Penny is an American Daytime Emmy-nominated actress best known for the roles of Julia Santos Keefer on the soap opera All My Children and Samantha "Sam" Kelly on the CBS soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful.She is of part Cherokee descent and raised in Chatsworth, California, the daughter...
from 1993 to 1996 as a series regular, with guest appearances in 1997 and 2002, and from 2005 to 2008. Julia's pairing with Keith Hamilton Cobb
Keith Hamilton Cobb
-Career:He is best known for his roles as the ruthless Nietzschean mercenaryTyr Anasazi in the science-fiction series Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda from 2000 to 2002, and as Noah Keefer on All My Children from 1994 to 1996...
's Noah Keefer formed one of daytime's first interracial supercouple
Supercouple
A supercouple or super couple is a popular or financially wealthy pairing that intrigues and fascinates the public in an intense or even obsessive fashion...
s and was one of the 90s' most popular pairings.
Character history
Julia came to Pine ValleyPine 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...
from Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
to live with her sister, Maria Santos Grey. Soon after her arrival, a tornado struck the Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
town and Julia was struck by a falling chandelier that scarred her face. She ran away to Center City and into the arms of Noah Keefer, with whom she lived and eventually fell in love.
In one notable storyline, Julia became pregnant after being raped by Louie Greco, a drug dealer who lived nearby, and chose to have an abortion, despite considerable opposition from her devout Roman Catholic Mexican-American family. The relationship between a Hispanic Mestizo
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
Julia and the African American Noah was also contentious in her family.
When Noah learned of Louie Greco's actions he chased him down and accidentally killed him. Noah was found guilty of his murder and the two escaped to Jamaica; Noah was eventually exonerated of the crime. After this ordeal the two eventually married, but two thugs who were after Noah's aunt Grace tried to end Julia's life. Julia then witnessed the attempted murder of Noah's sister Belinda and when she testified against her sister-in-law's attacker she had no other choice but to enter the witness protection program with Noah. The two quickly left 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...
in 1996 for somewhere in Northern California.
In 1997, Maria was presumed killed in a plane crash and Julia was allowed to return for her funeral. Five years later, in 2002, Maria was found alive and once again Julia returned to see her sister and they shared an emotional reunion.
Julia returned in 2005, following Noah's murder, and ended up avenging Noah's death by murdering Garret Williams in self-defense. Since then, she became the legal guardian of a little girl, Kathy, (after her parents were killed in a car accident) and embarked on an affair with Jamie Martin which slowly turned into love. Their romance ended, however, with Julia leaving town. She returned to 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...
to find her ex-boyfriend had gone to Africa to do work with Doctors Without Borders.
After Jamie's departure, Julia and Jack began a brief flirtation period, which made Erica Kane
Erica Kane
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...
furious.
Julia was offered the head nurse job at a hospital in Australia and was planning on leaving Pine Valley. But before she could, on May 23, 2008, while at the wedding of Jesse and Angie Hubbard, Robert Gardner (Ray Gardner's brother) busted into the reception holding Angie at gunpoint. Gardner spotted Aidan Devane
Aidan Devane
Aidan Devane is a resident of the fictional town of Pine Valley from the ABC soap opera All My Children. He has been portrayed by Aiden Turner, from June 6, 2002 to December 21, 2009...
gunning for him out of the corner of his eye and fired off a wild shot in Aidan's direction. Gardner missed Aidan, but accidentally shot Julia. At the hospital, Joe Martin
Joe Martin (All My Children)
Dr. Joseph Henry "Joe" Martin Sr. is a fictional character on the American soap opera All My Children. Ray MacDonnell played the character from the show's inception on January 5, 1970 until his retirement on January 5, 2010. He reprised his role for three episodes in March 2011, and again for two...
tells her that the wound lacerated her liver. Together with a steady internal bleed, Julia knew her chances of surviving were slim to none, even with surgery, and so she decided against it. Knowing that Kathy had lost her mother in the same hospital, she would not let Krystal, who travelled with her in the ambulance, get Kathy so she could say goodbye. She asked Krystal to call her sister Maria to come and take Kathy. In the hospital bed, in the presence of Joe and Krystal, Julia tearfully slipped away, speaking of her love for Kathy. Also, before she died, Dixie came and thanked her for taking care of Kate (Kathy). Dixie stated she wished Julia didn't have to go. After Dixie left, Julia realized Kathy was going to be all right. With this thought in mind, Julia died.
External links
- Julia Santos's biography soapcentral.com
- Soap Opera Digest Profile