Actress Trish Van Devere originated the role of Meredith from the series pilot aired July 15, 1968 through December 1968.[1][2] Meredith was then recast by series creator and writer Agnes Nixon to Lynn Benesch, who became most associated with the role by playing the character from January 1969 until the character's onscreen death August 8, 1973.[3][4] Benesch last appeared in the role briefly in April 1987.[5][6]
Storylines
Enter Meredith
The daughter of newspaper tycoon Victor Lord (then played by Ernest Graves) and his deceased wife Eugenia, Meredith (Trish Van Devere) is the younger sister of main protagonist Victoria Lord (then Gillian Spencer). An assertive free spirit, Meredith defies her father by dating upwardly-mobile Dr. Larry Wolek (then Paul Tulley), a suitor not to Victor's liking. Larry was of Polish descent and his siblings had scrimped to put him through medical school, so he did not come from an old moneyed family like the Lords. In the opening months of the serial, Victor pushed Meredith into an engagement with the more socially-acceptable Dr. Ted Hale (played by Terry Logan). Ted accidentally falls down a flight of stairs at Llanview Hospital while in the company of Larry (then Jim Storm). Hospital nurse Karen Martin (Niki Flacks) overheard, from the other side of the closed stairwell door, Larry and Ted argue over Meredith, and Larry threaten Ted. Karen tells this to the police, leading to Larry's arrest.
Larry stands trial for murder and is nearly convicted, but it is revealed he threatened Ted over keeping Meredith's terminal blood disease a secret. Larry is released from custody and hopes to spend time with Meredith in her remaining days. Meredith learns of her condition from Dr. Steve Hardy (John Beradino), in a crossover role as consultant on her case from ABC sister soap General Hospital. Wanting to spare Larry the pain of watching her die, Meredith runs away to San Francisco and leaves him a "Dear John" letter claiming she no longer loves him. Depressed, Larry confides in his former accuser, Karen.[7][8]
Star-crossed lovers
Larry (Michael Storm) and Meredith (Benesch), 1971
In 1969, Karen saves Larry (now played by his previous portrayer Jim Storm's brother, Michael Storm) from a fire that left his face badly burned, and nurses him back to health, with them becoming very close. When he recovers from his injuries and reconstructive facial surgery, they consummate their relationship. This was the first time a soap opera took the plastic surgery route to explain away the different face of a recast, a ruse that would be used many times over the years on all soaps, and used twice more on One Life to Live when recasting the hugely popular original portrayers of Max Holden (James DePaiva) and Todd Manning (Roger Howarth). Meredith (Lynn Benesch onward) returns from California, her condition miraculously improved. Larry, upon seeing her again, hopes for a reconciliation. The two eventually get back together, much to Victor's ire. Days later, however, Karen tells Larry that she is pregnant. He breaks the news to Meredith and then marries Karen to prevent her from having a dangerous and potentially fatal back-alley abortion. The character of Pat Matthews (Susan Trustman) on Another World had the soaps' first abortion in 1964, and suffered the consequence of sterility, until she underwent a procedure and was then able to conceive.[9] Abortion was still illegal in the United States in 1969 when the character of Karen Martin was pregnant, and would remain so until Roe v Wade in 1973, when the All My Children character Erica Kane (Susan Lucci) would undergo the first legal soap opera abortion the same year (though it was retconned 32 years later).[10] The usual soap opera solution to a single woman's pregnancy was to have her get married, as unwed motherhood was not widely accepted by the viewing public until decades later.
A heartbroken Meredith meets an amnesiac whom she calls Tom Edwards (Joseph Gallison). Victor invites Meredith to take him in at Llanfair. Falling for Tom, whose identity is uncovered to be Bruce McKenzie, the two become engaged, with Victor's approval.[11] Karen miscarries in 1970, leading to a divorce from Larry, and she leaves town. He soon resumes his courtship of Meredith, despite her recent engagement. Bruce, whom she still calls "Tom", sees her desire to be with Larry, and breaks it off with her. Meredith and Larry soon marry on the terrace of Llanfair on June 25, 1970, with Viki as maid of honor and a begrudging Victor giving away the bride.[6][12][13]
Settling into marriage, Meredith insists they should have a baby to complete their happiness. Larry is against it, worrying that her illness, which is in remission, could return. She soon convinces him, and quickly becomes pregnant with twins. In 1971, after months of bed rest, she gives birth to a son named Daniel and a stillborn daughter. She falls into post-partum depression and deep grief for Danny's dead twin sister. Larry calls in Dr. Joyce Brothers, who played herself, to help his wife through her grief. This celebrity cameo was another soap opera first for One Life to Live, and would be increasingly common for all soaps in years to come.[7][14][15]
In August 1973, thieves break into Llanfair to steal Victor's valuable art collection. They take Meredith, plus Larry's auto mechanic brother, Vinny (Antony Ponzini), hostage. After days of crisis negotiations with Lt. Ed Hall (Al Freeman, Jr.) of the fictitious Llanview Police Department, Vinny and Meredith attempt to escape from the garage where they are being held. Meredith stumbles, falls, and hits her head when one of the gunmen shoves her. She suffers massive brain trauma on the August 8, 1973, episode, but before succumbing to her injuries tells Viki (Erika Slezak onward) to tell Larry how happy he made her.[4][16][17] Lynn Benesch as Meredith briefly returns in 1987, for scenes when Viki has a near-death experience and goes to Heaven.[5]
Public impact
The featured character's name "Meredith", a Welsh name meaning "magnificent lord", became an increasingly popular baby name in the United States in the immediate years following the One Life to Live premiere in 1968, with the show credited for the uptick in usage.[18]
Related Research Articles
Victoria Lord is a fictional character and matriarch of the Lord family on the American soap opera One Life to Live, played for over 41 years by six-time Daytime Emmy Award-winning actress Erika Slezak.
Dorian Lord is a fictional character and matriarch of the Cramer family on the American daytime drama One Life to Live, played most notably and for the longest duration by actress Robin Strasser. Strasser was cast by series creator Agnes Nixon and debuted on the episode first-aired on April 13, 1979. For most of the show's history, the character is the show's primary antagonist and Byronic hero.
Victor Dalby Lord is a fictional character and patriarch of the Lord family from the American soap opera One Life to Live.
One Life to Live is an American soap opera that was broadcast from 1968 to 2013, on the ABC network from 1968 to 2012. The series starts with One Life to Live storylines (1968–1979). The plot continues in One Life to Live storylines (1980–1989). The plot in the next decade is outlined in One Life to Live storylines (1990–1999) and the story concludes in One Life to Live storylines (2000—2013).
Tony Lord is a fictional character from the American soap opera One Life to Live. The elder child of Victor Lord and brother to heroine Victoria Lord, actor George Reinholt originated the role in April 1975. The character was featured continually through 1979, from 1981 to 1983, and last appeared in episodes in 1987.
The Wolek family are fictional characters from the American soap opera One Life to Live present at its debut in 1968. The Woleks were created as a working-class reflection of the affluent Lord family, and storylines focused on the shared relations of the two families.
Daniel Wolek is a fictional character on the American soap opera One Life to Live. He is the only son of original characters Larry Wolek and Meredith Lord.
Jenny Wolek is a fictional character from the American soap opera One Life to Live. The distant cousin of original characters Larry, Anna, and Vince Wolek, Jenny debuted June 1975, appearing continually until May 1986.
Karen Wolek is a fictional character appearing on the American soap opera One Life to Live between May 1976 and February 1983. The role was most notably performed by Judith Light beginning in November 1977. Karen ultimately departs for an off-screen life in Canada, coinciding with Light's departure from the series.
Larry Wolek is a fictional character from the American soap opera One Life to Live, played for 35 years by actor Michael Storm. Storm is the second longest running cast member of the ABC Daytime production after actress Erika Slezak, and he briefly crossed over in the role on premiere episodes of All My Children in 1970.
Vince Wolek is a fictional character from the American soap opera, One Life to Live. Actor Antony Ponzini originated the role from the debut episode in 1968 through 1975, and briefly reappeared in 1987.
The Lord family are fictional characters from the American soap opera One Life to Live. They were introduced in the show's July 15, 1968 debut episode on ABC, and featured for the entirety of its run until the series ended on August 19, 2013.
Joe Riley is a fictional character from the ABC soap opera One Life to Live originated on the debut episode by actor Lee Patterson. Patterson regularly appeared in the role from the inception of the serial July 15, 1968, through 1970, from 1972 through October 3, 1979, and briefly in 1987.
Tina Lord Roberts is a fictional character from the American daytime soap opera One Life to Live, originally and last played by Andrea Evans. The character is the daughter of original series patriarch Victor Lord, and sister to long-running characters Victoria Lord and Todd Manning.
Anna Wolek is a fictional character on the American soap opera One Life to Live. Actress Doris Belack played the character from the show's first episode in 1968 until 1977. After Belack left the show, Kathleen Maguire played the character from 1977 until 1978. Phyllis Behar last played the role from 1978 until the character's final appearance in 1982.
Mark Toland is a fictional character from the American soap opera One Life to Live. He was portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones from February 1971 until the character's onscreen death in 1975.
Allison Perkins is a fictional character on the American soap opera One Life to Live.
Ed Hall is a fictional character from the American soap opera One Life to Live, played by Al Freeman Jr.
Irene Manning is a fictional character from the ABC soap opera One Life to Live.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
