MARCH 1977
All My Children
Written by: Agnes Nixon
Produced by: Bud Kloss
Anne and Paul Martin's infant daughter Beth was dead, the victim of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome - crib death -. Despite the efforts of Phillip Tyler's partner Clay at rescussitation, and the arrival of Ruth and Dr. Joe Martin moments later, there was nothing that could be done. Anne refused to put the infant down for a moment and Ruth tried vainly to get Anne to let the child go. Finally Paul appealed to his mother Kate Martin, who had lost an infant years ago, to see Anne and she managed to get Anne to relinquish the child. In a complete about face, Anne insisted on taking personal charge of the funeral arrangements over the next few days. Explaining that she wanted a very private service, only the minister, herself and Paul were present as Anne felt that only Beth's parents got to know her in the short time she had lived.
Paul told Joe he felt that Anne blamed him for the baby's death because he was the only one present at the time and because he was in favor of abortion. He asked who was to say she was wrong; that he was disappointed when their child was damaged. Paul told Christina Karras that he believed God was merciful; that it would have been hell for him to watch her grow up.
At one point after the baby's burial, Anne was about to take a handful of pills just as Ruth called out. Anne hid the pills and agreed to talk to Ruth in her bedroom where Beth's crib was still up, saying she felt so much closer to Beth in there. Ruth told Anne that there was a time for tears and that it could be a help to her. Paul came in and told Anne he planned to take a few days off to be with her and suggested they go away together, but Anne insisted that no one understood that the time she was with Beth was the happiest of her life. Paul told her he wanted her to go on and be as brave and strong as she was right at the moment. As Ruth left them, telling them she had prepared their supper, Anne took the bottle from under her pillow and put it in the drawer of her bedside table. Anne later told Paul that she didn’t want to go away with him but she would. When he asked where she would prefer, she said that it didn’t matter, "whatever you say."
Chuck Tyler had asked Donna Beck if she would be willing to take on a job as companion to little Philip if he could arrange to get an apartment. Donna could go on with her studies in the time that the boy was at school and he would be out of the Tyler house where Phoebe had been drinking. Donna agreed excitedly and waited for word from Chuck who planned to speak to Philip Brent. When Phil heard about it, he refused to consider letting his son be cared for by an ex-hooker and threatened to come and take the boy immediately. Chuck warned him not to try it as he was the boy's legal father.
After the death of his cousin, little Philip was disturbed by the fantasy that his own mother, Tara might die while he was staying at the Tylers’ and told Tara that he wanted to go home immediately.
Early in the evening proceeding the baby's death, Christina Karras dined with the Martins at Kate's house and when Kate spoke of having known of her famous father through her friendship with Dr. Charles Tyler and praised him, Christina was again haunted by visions of her father. She cut the evening short and rushed off. While driving through the night, the voice of her father filled the car and her distress caused her to drive erratically. She heard a siren and was pulled over by Clay who inquired if she had been drinking. Just then, breaking police policy, Philip joined his partner and vouched for her. After Christina was permitted to go on her way, Clay dressed down rookie cop Phil, warning him he had to follow procedure in what could have been a dangerous situation for both partners.
When Clay learned that little Philip was living at the apartment Tara and Phil had taken, he warned Phil that he had to take extra precautions with his police revolver as he had a small boy living with him. He advised Philip to lock up his gun in a strong box and they tried to get one, but Philip had to resort to putting it out of reach in a closet until the arrival of a box he had ordered. As Tara was out shopping and Philip was busy with some plumbing repairs, little Philip who had once before, unknown to Tara and Phil, played with the gun, got it down and aimed it around the room. As he heard Philip approaching, he pointed the gun in his direction. Philip angrily demanded to know what the boy was doing and took the gun away. Little Philip in stubborn silence refused to answer and Phil was about to administer a spanking for the boy's disobedience when Tara came in. The boy pleaded with his mother to make Phil stop and Tara told her son that if he would say he was sorry for his disobedience, "Uncle Phil" would not have to spank him. Little Philip cried out that Phil had no right to spank him: only his father had that right.
Dr. Jeff Martin went to Christina's apartment after he heard about her departure and insisted that Christina needed help. He told her that the reason he gave up the apartment she then lived in was because he saw and spoke to his dead wife there and was unable to function until Joe Martin convinced him that he should take the job in Wisconsin, even at the risk that Jeff would not return to Pine Valley. Christina was calmed and grateful for the comfort Jeff tried to give her but some days later when Erica referred to the similarity of their situations - Erica's father was a famous director - and prattled on about how her father loved her, Christina lost track of herself and Erica saw that she was momentarily disoriented.
Chuck Tyler insisted that Donna break a date with Benny Sago and arranged to take her to dinner at the Chateau. The evening turned out to be a surprise birthday celebration with champagne to celebrate Donna's coming of age. Nick sang for her and Donna realized that Chuck was no longer her guardian. Nick left to go to his office charging Erica with getting rid of a loud drunk and Erica realized that the man was a former "John" who was a regular with Donna when she was a prostitute in Center City. When Chuck left to phone in to the hospital the man thought he might be mistaken as Donna was with a doctor, but Erica suggested he check it out as Donna was alone at the moment. Donna was too startled not to acknowledge him and told him that the man with her was not a "John" but her guardian and begged him to leave. Nick and waiter Bruno hustled the man off and Donna ran off to the ladies room with Erica right behind to "comfort" her.
Erica told Donna that what happened might turn out to be a good thing; that Chuck was a champion of the underdog who sometimes did more harm than good. She said that Chuck would always love Tara and his little boy and she didn’t want to see Donna get hurt.
Back at the apartment, Chuck told Donna he needed her and if she left, his life was going to be empty. They were kissing as Caroline and Frank came in and both broke apart guiltily. Caroline talked to Donna and Frank and Chuck left. Frank learned that Chuck had given Donna a gold chain that belonged to his mother - he didn't have time to go out and find something . He told Chuck he had to act responsibly. He pointed out that Chuck knew that she had a crush on him and he had taken her out and given her an expensive present, and told her not to leave. When Chuck said he didn’t want to lose Donna, Frank said if he meant that and told her so, he was making a commitment and that he'd better live up to it or he might as well have left her in Center City.
Paul Martin scheduled a trip to Sea Island, and when Anne was accepting but unenthusiastic, he accused her of just going through the motions. When Ruth offered to clear away Beth's things while they were away, Paul told her that Anne hadn't moved a single thing and he didn’t dare propose it. He told Ruth he couldn’t do anything to make Anne hate him more. At her apartment, alone, Anne crooned: "Don't worry Beth, mustn't be lonesome. I will be with you very soon."
A spinal tap on Kitty Tyler revealed that she had a rare degenerative disease, a disorder of the nervous system for which there was no cure. Dr. Desmond told Linc that Kitty could live for years with only occasional symptoms or it could prove fatal in a matter of months or even weeks. Linc insisted that Kitty not be told.
Paul Martin had been in touch with Nancy Grant and had told Dr. Frank Grant that Nancy had agreed to an amicable divorce. He warned Frank that he would be foolish to take this step if he had any ambivalent feelings. Frank told Caroline Murray that he was relieved knowing he was going to be a free man soon but unhappy that Caroline wouldn’t make a commitment to marry him, saying he knew for his part that he was ready. Caroline insisted that it was not right to make plans.
Dan Kennicott and Brooke English had spent a night together at a ski resort – Brooke had accepted the invitation after finding Benny fooling around with a maid at the Tylers. Brooke had managed to make certain that there was only a double room available and overcame Dan's reluctance to share it with her. On their return, Phoebe Tyler fished for some information, saying that the two of them were positively glowing. Unable to learn anything she retired to her room to nurse a cold. When Dan left, Benny asked Brooke if she made out with Dan or not. When Brooke told him angrily to cut it out, Benny guessed she didn't and it was bugging her. When Benny grabbed for her she told him, haughtily, he was "entirely too presumptuous." She asked Benny about Donna Beck and Benny insisted that Donna and Dan were both small potatoes and suggested they take advantage of Phoebe's indisposition and the servants' night off.
At a dinner Erica had arranged for Mona Kane to give, Erica fumed as Mona and Erica's date Mark Dalton, a young music professor, carried on an erudite and enthusiastic conversation pertaining to classical music. Erica reminded her mother it was time to serve dinner. Afterwards, Mark offered to obtain another ticket to the concert he and Erica were attending, but Mona declined. When Mark made no move to leave, Erica asked what the matter was. Mark again - as he had done on several occasions before - mentioned how he was struck with the feeling that he had seen Erica before. Mona said that she felt she knew Mark from the moment she saw him standing in the doorway on his arrival. She mentioned that she knew a woman named Maureen Dalton once. When Mark said that was his mother's name, Mona blanched.
APRIL 1977
New schedule beginning on Monday, April 25th.
| ABC | CBS | NBC |
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11 :30 – 12 :00 am
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| Love Of Life |
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12 :00 – 12 :30 pm
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| The Young And The Restless |
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12 :30 – 1 :00 pm
| Ryan’s Hope | Search For Tomorrow | Lovers and Friends |
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1 :00 – 1 :30 pm
| All My Children |
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1 :30 – 2 :00 pm
| As The World Turns | Days Of Our Lives |
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2 :00 – 2 :30 pm
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2 :30 – 3 :00 pm
| One Life To Live | The Guiding Light | The Doctors |
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3 :00 – 3 :30 pm
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| Another World | ||
General Hospital | ||||
3 :30 – 4 :00 pm
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4 :00 – 4 :30 pm
| The Edge of Night |
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All My Children
Written by: Agnes Nixon
Produced by: Bud Kloss
The show expanded to an hour on Monday, April 25th, airing from 1:00 to 2:00
Paul Martin learned that his wife Anne had been to the cemetary. He told her he'd have gone with her if he knew. Anne asked how he could have any feelings when he wanted to run off on a holiday and leave their little girl "all alone.” When Paul mentioned Ruth's suggestion that she clear away Beth's things for them while they were away to spare Anne, her reply was a vehement no! She said nobody was going to touch Beth's things. Paul said it had to be done sooner or later but Anne retorted it did not. She said she was not planning to give away one single thing belonging to her dead baby. Anne cut the trip short when she and Paul began to talk with a little girl who told them her name was Elizabeth. When Paul recounted the incident to Ruth, he said he was not sure Anne wanted to go on with the marriage. He was worried that Beth had become Anne's only reason for living and Ruth and he agreed Anne shouldn't be left alone. When Paul learned that Anne had cancelled a luncheon date and wouldn't allow Ruth to come and see her, he rushed home.
Anne had been to see Phoebe who was out and spent time talking to Sara Valentine, one of Phoebe's servants and an old friend who, trying to comfort and encourage her, quoted Ecclesiastes. At home the phrase "a time to die" overrode all others in Anne's mind. She allowed the phone to ring unanswered as she crooned to and comforted a photograph of Beth. When Phoebe, worried at not being able to reach Anne, came over, Anne insisted she was taking a shower and carried off the visit so that Phoebe was reassured. When Paul arrived, Anne had dressed and done her hair and looked better than she had in some time but Paul saw the picture in the crib with the blanket tucked very carefully around it. Anne admitted to having done it but said she knew that it was only a picture and it helped her. Paul worried that she would get deeper and deeper into this fantasy and lose herself. Anne turned on him and accused him of wanting to forget Beth because of his guilt. She said he was ashamed of Beth, that he and Christina Karras wanted to get Beth out of the way and then he wanted to kill her memories. She told him if he didn’t like it he could get out and then ordered him out of her and Beth's room, saying he could stay out of the room if he didn’t like how "we (she and Beth) are making our adjustment."
Tara asked her father for a prescription for tranquilizers saying she had been nervous and had had trouble sleeping. When she mentioned that she had felt queasy, Joe suggested that she might be pregnant and arranged to have her see another doctor. When the pregnancy was confirmed, Tara couldn’t believe it, saying that it was not planned and could not have come at a worse possible time. She insisted that little Philip would resent her pregnancy at a time when he needed all her attention and was having difficulty enough accepting her marriage to Phil. When Tara finally made up her mind to tell Phil, he rushed off to go to a community relations meeting with his partner Clay. Joe, believing he knew, told Phil and Philip rushed home. He came in and saw Chuck there asking if he knew the good news.
Tara, despite the urging of everyone, including her son's psychiatrist, had held off telling little Philip, fearful of his reaction. She went to Chuck and asked him what his reaction would be if little Philip were to run away again and ask to live with Chuck. Chuck told her that he believed that she was mistaken and borrowing trouble but that in the event the boy couldn’t accept living with Tara and Philip and the new baby, he would take him in.
Mona Kane had dismissed Mark Dalton’s speculation that she might have known his mother as "unlikely,” saying the Maureen Dalton she knew was never married and left for California long before he was born. Mona was deeply disturbed when she learned that Erica planned to audit a class of Mark's at the University and showed signs of interest in Mark. She confided to Dr. Charles Tyler that she had reason to think Mark Dalton was Erica's half-brother, her late husband's illegitimate son. She knew of her husband's affair with his secretary but kept quiet and once overheard angry voices from her husband's office when Maureen asked "What about the baby?" Mona said the girl quit her job and left town and she always assumed that she had had an abortion. The child would be about Mark Dalton's age and he had mentioned that his mother worked for the same advertising agency where her husband was employed at the time, before he began his career as a director. Mark had said that his father died before he was born.
Christina Karras had been turned down on her request that she be allowed to discontinue her practice in pediatrics and take up research work. Dr. Tyler told her that there were no funds available. When a nurse left the station to get some aspirin for a headache Christina had claimed to have, Christina took the key to the drug cabinet. Some time later the nurse raised an alarm and Dr. Tyler, Christina and Jeff saw that everything had been taken out of the drug case and stacked neatly in rows on the floor and a doll from Pediatrics was then lying on the shelf. Dr. Tyler ordered a drug count and nothing was missing. But it appeared that the bizarre incident was attributable to a member of the staff.
Phoebe Tyler came into the room as Dan Kennicott and Brooke were kissing and sent him home. She told Brooke that because of radio reports of a heavy snowfall the previous weekend in the region of the ski resort, she phoned and was told by the desk clerk that Brooke and Dan shared the same room. Brooke assured Phoebe that it was a perfectly innocent mix-up and told her about their "Walls of Jericho" but Phoebe said no matter if nothing happened, it was very foolish to have placed herself in a very compromising position. Brooke left saying Phoebe was right and Dan would be the first one to agree with her. Brooke left behind her purse and when Phoebe picked it up, the contents spilled on the floor. As she was putting them back, Phoebe saw Brooke's compact of birth control pills. Phoebe sent for Dan and told him about the incident asking him to account for the pills being in Brooke's bag, He said there was no reason why he should know. Phoebe asked if he agreed that young girls didn’t put themselves on the pill for no reason - when asked, Brooke told Phoebe that she was taking the pills for a complexion problem -. Phoebe asked if it could be a liason with Benny Sago. Dan told her he wouldn't know and wouldn't discuss it with her if he did.
Nancy Grant called Frank in an effort to end her marriage on a person-to-person basis as Frank's failure to speak to her personally before he and Paul sent her the letter about divorce still rankles. Just before the phone rang at Frank's apartment, he had asked Caroline to stay and she had agreed. When he answered, he was abrupt, and Nancy told him it seemed he had a lot better things to do than talk to a wife he hadn't seen in months. She asked him angrily if he couldn’t face up to anything and was going on in that way when Frank dropped the phone and doubled over. Caroline took the phone and told Nancy that there was something wrong with Frank and she would call her back.
Frank was hospitalized and Joe Martin told him after tests that it wasn't a heart attack but that Frank was a victim of hypertension and had to avoid emotional stress.
Clay Watson and Phil Brent answered a call about a family disturbance and learned that a man was holding his wife's son at the point of a gun. He had been drinking and insisted that his estranged wife was keeping his pension check from him. The woman told Clay that they had been separated for five months but his check still came to her address in the mail and it had not arrived so far this month. When they learned that a back up unit would be delayed, Clay arranged with Phil to go into the back of the apartment through the kitchen while Clay went unarmed into the room to talk to the man and keep an eye on the boy. The man was beyond reason and said he intended to kill "all of us." Phil entered behind him and shots rang out.
Tara was at home listening to the radio when hearing that an officer had been fatally wounded and his partner injured, when the phone rang. Phil had a bullet in his spine and Clay was dead. As Philip was about to undergo emergency surgery, Dr. David Thornton arrived at the hospital and offered to assist.
Dr. Joe Martin as much as admitted to Nick Davis - Philip's father - that Phil's chances to survive surgery were not good. Philip told Tara that he wanted her to promise that she would let little Philip go on thinking that Chuck Tyler was his real father if he, Phil, should die. Philip insisted on seeing Chuck before he was taken to O.R. and Chuck rushed over to the hospital in time for Philip to tell him that he wanted him to take care of Tara. He included the baby Tara was carrying and said he didn’t want Tara to raise the child alone. He told Chuck he had to understand that what he was saying was that he wanted Chuck to marry Tara. Chuck said, "I'll marry her."
Phil nearly died when his heart stopped during surgery but the skill of the surgical team and his good constitution pulled him through.
Nancy flew to Pine Valley to be with Frank. As Nancy kissed him, Frank looked up to see Caroline Murray in the doorway. When he told Nancy she shouldn't have done that with the door open, she was puzzled for a moment and then realized that Caroline probably had been there. She said that Caroline left her with the impression he was having a heart attack. Frank asked warily if she had made arrangements for a place to stay. She said she thought she would stay at Frank's apartment but added "or is Caroline staying there now?" Frank insisted that Caroline had kept him at arm's length but Nancy told him she was doing that to consolidate her position later. Frank refused to believe that Nancy was not having an affair with Carl Blair, despite her assurances to the contrary, and Nancy said that Frank would be more willing to listen to her and believe her if Carl weren't white.
Donna Beck had been offered a large sum of money, in cash, in an envelope, from Phoebe to leave town and start life somewhere else. Phoebe reminded Donna that she had been lucky to have a man like Chuck "take pity on her" but that Chuck was no longer her guardian. Phoebe insisted that Chuck loved Tara and his son and that she was sure that Tara's marriage to Phil Brent wouldn’t last much longer. Donna threw the money in Phoebe's face and was very much upset when she had to take her High School Equivalency Test immediately after.
Paul came home to find Anne napping in her room with the door locked. She screamed out, and after battering at the locked door, Paul went in another way to find Anne insisting that she saw Beth. Just then the doorbell rang, bringing Linc and Kitty who had dropped by after celebrating Linc's birthday. Anne emerged from the room to greet them as if nothing had happened. However when she learned about Philip, her voices became hard and she said that Phil was doing to die. "He has because he let Beth die." Linc took her into the bedroom and told her that she was becoming an emotional wreck. He urged her to get rid of the reminders of Beth all over the room and return to the land of the living. Anne said that Beth was in the room with her: that she heard her crying out just as she had at Phil and Tara's wedding. Anne told her brother "She needs me ... and I have to find a way to get to her."
Dan Kennicott had told Kate that he wouldn't be staying on in Pine Valley at the end of the semester. When Brooke went to see him, he made excuses not to keep a date with her. Brooke cried out that he believed Phoebe that she had been sleeping with Benny and told Dan he and Phoebe were two of a kind with their busybody little minds. She said it was not true and even if it were, it would be none of Dan's business. When she returned to the Tylers' she confronted Phoebe, saying her Aunt had an evil mind. Phoebe's answer was "not evil — perceptive." Brooke told her that her own mother wouldn't speak to her like that. Phoebe replied that if that was the case, perhaps Brooke would be happier at home.
