Another Life (1981 TV series)

Not to be confused with Another World (TV series).

Another Life is an American television soap opera produced and broadcast by The Christian Broadcasting Network from June 1, 1981 to October 5, 1984. It was co-created by Roy Winsor and Bob Aaron, and ran for 875 episodes. It attempted to combine standard afternoon intrigue with religious overtones, as many characters were portrayed as born again who relied on the power of prayer to solve their problems. Set in the fictional east coast town of Kingsley (ostensibly thought to be in Virginia), the show was taped in CBN's hometown of Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Another Life
Genre	Soap opera
Created by	Robert Aaron Gerard Straub Lloyd Watson Roy Winsor
Composer	Brent Havens
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of episodes	875
Original release
Network	CBN
Release	June 1, 1981 (1981-06-01) – October 5, 1984 (1984-10-05)

Synopsis

Throughout its run, Another Life revolved around the Davidson family - local anchorman Scott Davidson, his wife Terry who works as a nurse (Mary Jean Feton), daughter Lori (Jeannette Larson and later Debbie McLeod), and teenage son Peter (Darrel Campbell). Although they sometimes struggle with their faith, they stick by their principles, and show compassion towards their fellow man - most notably next-door neighbor Liz Cummings (Carolyn Lenz) who lives with her alcoholic and adulterous husband Jeff (Tom McGowan) and their daughter Jenny - and eschew revenge on those who have caused them grief.

Wealthy businessman Charles Carpenter (Randy Kraft) attempts to control every situation with his power and influence, and holds a grudge against the Davidsons, particularly after Scott investigates a crime story involving a mob gang which has connections with Kingsley's uppercrust which includes the Carpenter family. Charles' daughter Miriam Mason (Ginger Burgett) also holds a grudge against the Davidsons, and files an adultery case against daughter Lori who is accused of having an affair with her husband Paul, a lecturer at the local college. Although it was later proved that Lori was innocent, Paul and Miriam get a divorce, with the latter losing custody of their son - although it is often hinted that Paul does indeed have feelings for Lori. Charles would later date Terry Davidson's half-sister, the equally nefarious Nancy Lawson (Nancy Mulvey) who also clashes with the Davidsons and uses her charms to lure wealthy men into relationships with her, but never appears to hold down a steady career.

Russ Weaver (Christopher Roland), a pre-medical student who is about to propose to Lori, finds himself tangled with the drug ring when he is left with a huge debt after paying his girlfriend's medical bills following a serious car accident the couple are involved in. He is also torn between Lori and fellow student Becky Hewitt (Sue Scannell) who is Lori's best friend. Unknown to Lori, Becky slept with Russ after the latter grew frustrated with Lori's refusal to have sex with him due to her beliefs. Lori would later catch the attention of Ben Martin, a handsome but older doctor who attends to Lori after her accident, and this infuriates Russ even after she breaks up with him. Russ's father is later revealed to be Vince Cardello, a member of the local mob.

Russ and Becky secretly marry shortly after she becomes the lead singer of the rock band Summerwind. The lead guitarist and founder, Phil Hayes (Scott R. Brown), falls for her, thus creating tension in her relationship with Russ. Becky later becomes pregnant by Russ, but miscarries due to Summerwind's hectic schedule. After discovering Russ had cheated on her with another student, and that their wedding is not legal, Becky leaves Russ to pursue a solo singing career in New York.

The Davidsons are also close friends of the Redlons, an African American family which includes the deeply religious Ione (Edye Byrde) and her son Gene (Eddie Hailey) who is Scott's colleague, and involved in a custody battle with his ex-wife Carla (Elain Graham) over their son Jimmy who is often stuck in the middle; the situation is not helped when Carla puts her singing career before her family. Jimmy is hospitalized following a drug overdose, but refuses to name his dealer. Scott and Gene realize there is a connection between the mob and drug ring and both vow to investigate, leading to their dismissal at work after their TV station receives threats.

Following the Cummings' departure from Kingsley more families are featured, including the Prescotts and the Phillips.

In a nod to how The Secret Storm began its story, Scott and Nora are killed in a car accident on New Year's Eve.

Production

One of the program's creators, Bob Aaron, left the show, after a dispute on one of the show's most heavy-handed moments when Jeff was in the hospital suffering from cancer, and was miraculously healed when a beam of light entered his hospital room. Declaring such soap writing "deplorable", Aaron quit the show soon after.

On the set

Eddie Hailey, who played the non-Christian part of Gene Redlon, is actually the son of a minister. At the time of making the series, he had been a born again for some time. He credited his rebirth into Christianity as a result of his failure to win the part of Alex Haley in Roots: The Next Generations. He started attending a Los Angeles church that Bob Dylan went to. One day, he was reading a Parish magazine saw something about Another Life and later successfully auditioned for a part. While on the set of Another Life, he would lead the cast in a half hour prayer service each morning.

Title sequences and theme music

During its first nine months on the air, Another Life had a simple opening shot of a beach at sunrise. Brent Havens, who was the music director of CBN's signature show, The 700 Club, composed the theme music. The original opening and closing arrangement consisted of a trumpet solo, backed by quietly played strings and a Rhodes electric piano, which was a frequently used instrument in the show's music cues.

In March 1982, a new, jazzier opening was introduced. This sequence consisted of dramatic scenes from past episodes (which changed regularly), and close-ups of all the main characters. At the end of the montage, a shot of Terry praying in her kitchen dissolves into the sunrise beach scene from the original opening. A "hotlicks" version of Brent Havens' theme music was used for the new opening, but the quiet original arrangement continued to be used for the end credits, which featured stills from that day's episode.

Cancellation

In 1984, Another Life was cancelled due to low ratings and a shortage of advertising revenues. In its first year, 68 stations nationwide bought syndication rights to the show which reached an estimated 50,000,000 households daily, but as it entered its third year the number of stations buying the program had dropped to 25, and television ratings showed that Another Life was reaching just 500,000 households.

Airings

Reruns of the series were shown on Trinity Broadcasting Network during the late 1980s and early 1990s, but have not aired in the United States since. The show has aired in the United Kingdom on the GOD TV, and in the Middle East on Middle East Television. Episodes have also been uploaded onto YouTube, and the show remains popular in Africa, particularly in Nigeria; in an interview with The Punch, Nollywood producer/director Zeb Ejiro revealed Another Life had inspired his own soap opera Ripples. As of 2017, Another Life is broadcast in the Netherlands by Christian cable channel Family7.

Cast

Notable cast members

One of the show's more successful alumni Susan Scannell (Becky Hewitt), left after the first year to join the cast of Search for Tomorrow. Dee Dee Bridgewater had a minor role as Sam Marshall, Gene Redlon's boss and later love interest. Additionally, Paul Gleason, who originated the role of troublemaker Lee Carothers, would go on to greater fame as high school principal Richard Vernon in the 1985 film The Breakfast Club.

Actor	Character	Role
Mary Jean Feton	Terry Davidson	Local nurse; married to Scott; mother of Lori and Peter; half sister of Nancy.
John Corsaut	Scott Davidson	Anchorman of the news for Kingsley's local TV station, husband of Terry.
Jeanette Larson and Debbie McLeod	Lori Davidson (later Lori Martin)	College student; daughter of Terry and Scott. Originally involved with Russ Weaver, she would later marry Dr. Ben Martin.
Darrel Campbell	Peter Davidson	Student: son of Terry and Scott, brother of Lori. Known for his frequent wisecracks.
Naomi Riseman	Nora Lindsay	Mother of Terry; step-mother of Nancy Lawson; grandmother of Peter and Lori.
Matt Williams	Benjamin 'Ben' Martin	Local surgeon and college lecturer; married Lori after her engagement to Russ ended.
Nancy Mulvey	Nancy Lawson	Terry's half-sister; aunt to Peter and Lori; step-daughter of Nora; Another Life's main villain.
Edye Byrde†	Ione Redlon	Mother of Gene and one of Terry's best friends.
Eddie Hailey	Eugene 'Gene' Redlon	Local anchorman who worked with Scott Davidson, son of Ione, husband of Carla; father of Jimmy.
Elain Graham and Kari Page	Carla Redlon	Singer; wife of Gene; mother of Jimmy.
Aaron White and Troy Paris	Jimmy Redlon	Son of Gene and Carla.
Dee Dee Bridgewater	Samantha 'Sam' Marshall	Gene's boss/love interest
Edward Allen	Leon Marshall	Real estate agent-turned- dinner chef; brother of Sam; close friend of Gene
Joe James	Monroe 'Monk' Lassier	Juvenile delinquent taught by Lori
Alan Sader	Harold Webster	Local lawyer, representing the Carpenters.
Ray Owens	Mitch Dunbar	Local lawyer, representing the Davidsons
Julie Jenney†	Barbara 'Babs' Farley	Former prostitute, lodging with the Redlons
Randy Kraft†	Charles Carpenter	Local businessman, villain, married to Helen, father of Miriam
Suzanne Grandfield	Helen Carpenter	Wife of Charles, mother of Miriam.
Susan C. Carey	Courtney Carpenter	Niece of Charles, and cousin of Miriam; dated Peter Davidson, but was pressurized into marrying Vaughn Sumner.
Ginger Burgett	Miriam Mason (née Carpenter)	Daughter of Charles and Helen, and formerly married to Paul Mason; mother of his son, Fredrick.
Robert Bendall	Paul Mason	Local college professor; ex-husband of Miriam, and father of Fredrick.
Jeff Jamison	Norman 'Norm' Eliot	Business associate of Charles'; in love with Miriam; holds grudge against Lori
Kelly Gwinn	Hugo 'Lance' Lancelot (Miriam's kidnapper), and Jeremy Lancelot (Lance's twin brother) (Dual role)	Hugo kidnapped Miriam, and Jeremy fell for her
Nicholas Benedict†	Ronnie Washington	Head of drug/prostitution ring; Miriam's kidnapper
Chandler Hill Harbin	Blue Nobles	Also known as "Cinderella Rapist"; works for Ronnie
Nancy Allen	Paula James	Local prostitute working for Ronnie Washington
Christopher Roland	Russell 'Russ' Weaver	Pre-med student; college football hero; Lori's boyfriend. Secretly involved with Becky Hewitt
Michael Ryan	Vincent 'Vince' Cardello	Local gangster; father of Russ; associate of Charles
Marty McGaw	Carrie Weaver	Mother of Russ; Vince's secret mistress
Sue Scannell	Rebecca 'Becky' Hewitt	Student/Model/Singer; Lori's best friend and college roommate; has a secret affair with Russ
Chris Auer	Francis Miller	Student at college; has unrequited crush on Becky
Read Morgan†	Jason Prescott	Local building construction manager/Politician; father of Gil and Marianne
Jerry Timm† and J. Michael Hunter	Gil Prescott	Works in father's firm; male chauvinist playboy
Renee Crawford	Marianne Prescott	Lori's friend who works in father's firm; dates Russ after Becky's departure
Peggy Woody	Amber Phillips	Model; daughter of Dave and Kate Phillips; sister of Stacey
Karen Chapman	Stacey Phillips	News reporter; daughter of Dave and Kate Phillips
John Cardoza and Tom Urich	Dr. Dave Phillips	Former abortionist-turned-general practitioner; ex-husband of Kate; father of Amber and Stacey
Dorothy Stinnette	Kate Phillips	Former wife of Dr. Dave Phillips. Mother of Amber and Stacey
Jim Williams and Paul Gleason†	Lee Carothers	One of the wealthiest residents of Kingsley; political associate, and later fiancé of Kate
Diane Seely	Vanessa Fazan	Head of local secret society DOMI; hypnotist
Tom McGowan	Jeff Cummings	Next-door neighbor of the Davidsons; husband of Liz father of Jennifer
Carolyn Lenz	Liz Cummings	Jeff's wife, Terry's neighbor and friend and mother of Jennifer.
Michele Seidman	Jill Hanson	Juvenile delinquent living with the Cummings
Donna McLaughlin	Beth Sleighmaker	Local court judge; biological mother of Jill
Annamarie Smith	Vicki Lang	Love interest of Peter; worked with Gene, and later Miriam
Bob Burchette†	Dr. Alex Greenley	Local doctor at Kingsley General; love interest of Terry
Frankie Cardoza	Lucille Figgins	Local nurse at clinic
Scott R. Brown	Phil Hayes	Founder of rock band 'Summerwind'; rival of Russ Weaver

External links

• Another Life at IMDb