Margaret Cochran
Encyclopedia
Margaret Cochran is a fictional character
on the soap opera
, One Life to Live
. The character was played by Rebecca Mader
from March 26 to June 8, 2004. Tari Signor
portrayed the role from June 9 to July 14, 2004,November 8, 2004 to March 12, 2005, April 29 to May 31, 2005, August 17 to September 19, 2005, December 27, 2005 to January 19, 2006, February 3 to February 14, 2006 and March 16 to June 16, 2006. Signor returned for a short run on January 17, 2008 and December 18, 2008.
— who had been with Todd's fiancee Blair Cramer
— Todd leads Margaret on, making her believe he has feelings for her. Eventually, Todd reveals to Margaret that he had been using her, and Margaret is furious when she hears that Todd is engaged to and in love with Blair. Having fallen in love with Todd, Margeret is now obsessed with him. Deciding that she cannot let Todd and Blair be together, Margaret creates a fake photo of herself in bed with Todd and shows it to Blair, claiming that she and Todd have been sleeping together. Eventually, Blair realizes that Margaret is lying. and everyone in Llanview
sees that Margaret is mentally unstable. Margaret kidnaps Todd and Blair's son Jack
, and then Kevin's adopted son Ace. She is caught by the police and placed in a mental institution.
Months later, Margaret is released as her doctors decide that she has been given the help that she needed. Margaret, however, has been faking her sanity; still obsessed with Todd, she appears on his wedding day to ex-wife Blair. When he refuses to leave with her willingly, Margaret shoots both of his knees, kidnaps him, and holds him hostage in a cabin. Todd's repeated attempts to escape fail, and they are snowed in. Meanwhile, Blair and the rest of Llanview think that Todd has run off on his own. Eventually, Todd's assistant Mrs. Bigelow discovers what Margaret has done; Margaret finds Bigelow and kills her. Soon Blair realizes that Margaret must be behind Todd's disappearance and Bigelow's death; Blair tracks her to the cabin, and sneaks in to save Todd when Margaret is away. But Margaret returns unexpectedly, locking Blair in the trunk of her car.
Margaret makes it clear that she wants a child by Todd, and ultimately rapes him; he allows it to happen to keep Margaret from murdering Blair. When the pregnancy test comes back negative, Margaret is furious; she sets a bomb in the cabin and leaves Todd there to die. Todd is rescued by Kevin; Blair's ex-husband Asa Buchanan
finds her in the trunk but, hating her, he puts Blair into a mental institution. Todd finds her there and the two are reunited. Margaret soon discovers that she is indeed pregnant, and returns to Llanview when she starts to show. Asa allows her to stay at his house to infuriate Todd; he finds her there and tries to strangle her. Margaret stabs him with scissors and gets away. She finds an apartment to hide out, but Todd finds her and she is on the run again. Desperate, Margaret calls her niece Ginger Foley for help; Ginger gives her some money, which Margaret uses to buy bullets and knitting supplies. Margaret and her unborn baby are soon found murdered. Todd is tried, convicted and sentenced to death for the crime; he is administered the lethal injection but revived at the very last second by his enemy Dr. Spencer Truman
as proof surfaces that Margaret is alive.
Found in Thailand
by David Vickers
, Margaret is escorted back to Llanview by Detective John McBain
and Todd's niece, Natalie Buchanan
. With no memory of her time in Llanview, Margaret is first unable to recall even having a child; soon the memories come flooding back. It is revealed that Spencer had taken Margaret in, orchestrated her "murder" and framed Todd. Spencer had delivered Margaret's baby — whom she unofficially named Todd Manning, Jr. — on February 6, 2006, and had then disposed of it in a black market adoption. Margaret dies on June 15, 2006 following a van wreck, before she can reveal all the details; Blair and Spencer visit her body in the morgue on June 16, 2006.
Todd is led to believe his child with Margaret is dead, when in actuality the boy has been adopted by Llanview residents Marcie and Dr. Michael McBain
and named Tommy. A conspiracy of sorts begins as people close to the McBains, and Michael himself, begin to learn the truth. Eventually Miles Laurence
gives Todd proof that Spencer orchestrated the adoption of Todd's son by the McBains. Todd takes the McBains to court, and is awarded custody on October 9, 2007. Marcie escapes through a window with Tommy and flees town, and the two are pursued for months by FBI agent Lee Ramsey and Marcie's brother-in-law, Detective John McBain. With Marcie and his son still at large, Todd announces on December 20, 2007 that "Tommy" will be renamed "Sam Manning," in honor of his deceased mentor and friend, Sam Rappaport
. Marcie is finally found, and Todd's son Sam is returned to him on January 14, 2008.
Back in Llanview, Blair steps into the role of stepmother to young Sam. But her subconscious doubts about loving the son of the evil Margaret Cochran temporarily manifest themselves as taunting visions of Margaret herself from January 17, 2008 to January 24, 2008. A vision of Margaret later appears to taunt a jailed Todd on December 18, 2008.
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...
on the soap opera
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,...
, 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...
. The character was played by Rebecca Mader
Rebecca Mader
Rebecca Leigh Mader is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Morgan Gordon on All My Children and Charlotte Lewis on Lost.-Career:...
from March 26 to June 8, 2004. Tari Signor
Tari Signor
Tari Signor is an American actress.Born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Signor has appeared off-Broadway in Death Defying Acts , Mr...
portrayed the role from June 9 to July 14, 2004,November 8, 2004 to March 12, 2005, April 29 to May 31, 2005, August 17 to September 19, 2005, December 27, 2005 to January 19, 2006, February 3 to February 14, 2006 and March 16 to June 16, 2006. Signor returned for a short run on January 17, 2008 and December 18, 2008.
Character biography
A quiet and lonely accountant for Buchanan Enterprises, Margaret Cochran is approached by publisher Todd Manning. Looking for information to use against his nephew Kevin BuchananKevin Buchanan
Kevin Lord Riley Buchanan is a fictional character on the soap opera One Life to Live. The character is the first child born to original characters Victoria Lord and Joe Riley.-Casting:...
— who had been with Todd's fiancee Blair Cramer
Blair Cramer
Blair Cramer is a fictional character on the American daytime drama One Life to Live...
— Todd leads Margaret on, making her believe he has feelings for her. Eventually, Todd reveals to Margaret that he had been using her, and Margaret is furious when she hears that Todd is engaged to and in love with Blair. Having fallen in love with Todd, Margeret is now obsessed with him. Deciding that she cannot let Todd and Blair be together, Margaret creates a fake photo of herself in bed with Todd and shows it to Blair, claiming that she and Todd have been sleeping together. Eventually, Blair realizes that Margaret is lying. and everyone in Llanview
Llanview, Pennsylvania
Llanview, Pennsylvania is the fictional setting for the long-running American soap opera One Life to Live. The city exists in the same fictional universe as cities from other existing or defunct ABC daytime dramas, including Pine Valley from All My Children, Port Charles from General Hospital, and...
sees that Margaret is mentally unstable. Margaret kidnaps Todd and Blair's son Jack
Jack Manning (One Life to Live)
John "Jack" Cramer Manning is a fictional character on the American soap opera, One Life to Live. He is the first-born son and second child of Todd Manning and Blair Cramer.-Casting:...
, and then Kevin's adopted son Ace. She is caught by the police and placed in a mental institution.
Months later, Margaret is released as her doctors decide that she has been given the help that she needed. Margaret, however, has been faking her sanity; still obsessed with Todd, she appears on his wedding day to ex-wife Blair. When he refuses to leave with her willingly, Margaret shoots both of his knees, kidnaps him, and holds him hostage in a cabin. Todd's repeated attempts to escape fail, and they are snowed in. Meanwhile, Blair and the rest of Llanview think that Todd has run off on his own. Eventually, Todd's assistant Mrs. Bigelow discovers what Margaret has done; Margaret finds Bigelow and kills her. Soon Blair realizes that Margaret must be behind Todd's disappearance and Bigelow's death; Blair tracks her to the cabin, and sneaks in to save Todd when Margaret is away. But Margaret returns unexpectedly, locking Blair in the trunk of her car.
Margaret makes it clear that she wants a child by Todd, and ultimately rapes him; he allows it to happen to keep Margaret from murdering Blair. When the pregnancy test comes back negative, Margaret is furious; she sets a bomb in the cabin and leaves Todd there to die. Todd is rescued by Kevin; Blair's ex-husband Asa Buchanan
Asa Buchanan
Asa Buchanan is a fictional character and patriarch of the Buchanan family on the ABC soap opera One Life to Live. The Texan industrialist father of newly-arrived characters Clint and Bo Buchanan, Asa was originated in 1980 by Philip Carey. Carey portrays the nearly continuously for nearly three...
finds her in the trunk but, hating her, he puts Blair into a mental institution. Todd finds her there and the two are reunited. Margaret soon discovers that she is indeed pregnant, and returns to Llanview when she starts to show. Asa allows her to stay at his house to infuriate Todd; he finds her there and tries to strangle her. Margaret stabs him with scissors and gets away. She finds an apartment to hide out, but Todd finds her and she is on the run again. Desperate, Margaret calls her niece Ginger Foley for help; Ginger gives her some money, which Margaret uses to buy bullets and knitting supplies. Margaret and her unborn baby are soon found murdered. Todd is tried, convicted and sentenced to death for the crime; he is administered the lethal injection but revived at the very last second by his enemy Dr. Spencer Truman
Spencer Truman
Dr. Spencer Truman was a fictional character on the soap opera One Life to Live. He was played by Paul Satterfield from May 25, 2005 to January 30, 2007. Satterfield has reprised the role, in the form of Ghost by characters Miles Laurence and John McBain, several times in 2007...
as proof surfaces that Margaret is alive.
Found in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
by David Vickers
David Vickers
David Vickers Buchanan is a fictional character from the daytime soap opera One Life to Live, portrayed by Tuc Watkins.-Appearances:...
, Margaret is escorted back to Llanview by Detective John McBain
John McBain (One Life to Live)
John McBain is a fictional character on the American daytime drama One Life to Live, portrayed by Michael Easton since October 1, 2003.-Natalie and Evangeline:...
and Todd's niece, Natalie Buchanan
Natalie Buchanan
Natalie Buchanan Banks is a fictional character on the ABC soap opera, One Life to Live and daughter of former supercouple Victoria Lord and Clint Buchanan...
. With no memory of her time in Llanview, Margaret is first unable to recall even having a child; soon the memories come flooding back. It is revealed that Spencer had taken Margaret in, orchestrated her "murder" and framed Todd. Spencer had delivered Margaret's baby — whom she unofficially named Todd Manning, Jr. — on February 6, 2006, and had then disposed of it in a black market adoption. Margaret dies on June 15, 2006 following a van wreck, before she can reveal all the details; Blair and Spencer visit her body in the morgue on June 16, 2006.
Todd is led to believe his child with Margaret is dead, when in actuality the boy has been adopted by Llanview residents Marcie and Dr. Michael McBain
Michael McBain
Dr. Michael McBain is a fictional character on the ABC soap opera One Life to Live.-Casting:The role was originated by R. Brandon Johnson in November 2003, with Nathaniel Marston stepping in on February 16, 2004 and ultimately leaving on November 29, 2007. On January 9, and January 10, 2007, Robert...
and named Tommy. A conspiracy of sorts begins as people close to the McBains, and Michael himself, begin to learn the truth. Eventually Miles Laurence
Miles Laurence
Miles Laurence is a fictional character on ABC's daytime drama One Life to Live. He was portrayed by David Chisum from February 12, 2007 to April 22, 2008.-Storylines:...
gives Todd proof that Spencer orchestrated the adoption of Todd's son by the McBains. Todd takes the McBains to court, and is awarded custody on October 9, 2007. Marcie escapes through a window with Tommy and flees town, and the two are pursued for months by FBI agent Lee Ramsey and Marcie's brother-in-law, Detective John McBain. With Marcie and his son still at large, Todd announces on December 20, 2007 that "Tommy" will be renamed "Sam Manning," in honor of his deceased mentor and friend, Sam Rappaport
Sam Rappaport (One Life to Live)
Samuel "Sam" Rappaport is a fictional character on the long running ABC soap opera One Life to Live. He was originally portrayed by Kale Browne from March 5, 1998 to April 11, 2001. The role was taken over on May 8, 2001 by veteran All My Children actor Laurence Lau, who was made famous for...
. Marcie is finally found, and Todd's son Sam is returned to him on January 14, 2008.
Back in Llanview, Blair steps into the role of stepmother to young Sam. But her subconscious doubts about loving the son of the evil Margaret Cochran temporarily manifest themselves as taunting visions of Margaret herself from January 17, 2008 to January 24, 2008. A vision of Margaret later appears to taunt a jailed Todd on December 18, 2008.