Worlds Without End: The Art and History of the Soap Opera

by Ron Simon, Robert J. Thompson, Louise Spence

What is it that makes soap operas so compelling, that attracts a loyal worldwide audience -- college students, homemakers, and professionals -- larger than that of any other entertainment form? Who created soaps, and why have they lasted so long?

These and other questions about this remarkably enduring, hugely popular phenomenon of modern culture are answered in The Museum of Television & Radio's groundbreaking survey of the soap opera from its infant days in radio to its contemporary international impact. Museum curator RON SIMON and a group of specialists examine the genre from the creative process behind the soap opera to the make-up of the audience to the differences in style and content in soaps around the world.

This heavily illustrated volume features behind-the-scenes production shots and cast photos from current popular favorites, among them The Guiding Light, Days of Our Lives, As the World Turns, and All My Children, alongside cult and long-running serials from the past. A specially created "family tree" of soap creators and their shows and interviews with leading writers, producers, actors, and directors further illuminate the birth and growth of this television staple. As an added bonus, three delightful articles by James Thurber provide a wry and witty commentary on soaps that is as pertinent today as when the pieces originally appeared in The New Yorker 50 years ago.

Worlds Without End is published to accompany a major exhibition opening in December 1997 at The Museum of Television & Radio's New York and Los Angeles locations.

176 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1997