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The Problem is a one-act play by A. R. Gurney. It was originally performed in 1968 in Boston by a theatre group Gurney helped to organize called "The Theatre For Now". The reception was quiet but the play later opened to enthusiastic reviews at a popular playhouse in London, England and went on to be broadcast on BBC. [1] Like many of Gurney's other plays, The Problem concerns WASPs of the American northeast.
The unnamed husband and wife do not share any feelings of love, closeness or even awareness. As the wife walks into the study of their home, she immediately reveals her hugely pregnant stomach to her husband who seems to not have noticed that she was ever pregnant. The Husband is completely unfazed and uninterested and almost leaves, until the Wife presents him with the possibility that the baby may not be his. The husband stays, remarkably and comically, calm . He only becomes slightly surprised when the Wife states that they have not had sex in five years; he does not realize it has been so long. While the Husband becomes apologetic for this lack of intimacy, the Wife assures him not to worry as she understands that his attention is always rightfully focused on his work. Without a care in the world they both over sympathize and let each other get away with anything and everything.
The Husband attempts to quickly resolve the situation by instructing his wife to bear the child and that he will consider it his own child, however, the problem becomes more complex when the Wife worries that the baby will turn out be from black descent. The Husband, always retaining his calm demeanor, quickly comes up with a scheme to make it look like an adoption. The Husband is more worried about the family's public image than the family itself. Unfortunately, the Wife rejects this idea as the real father may object to the adoption, explaining that he shall continue to come around after the birth once she is capable of sexual intercourse again.
If the manner of the characters weren't ridiculous enough, an even more absurd flip-flop of story and power begins to emerge. The Husband reveals that he has not been leaving the house at night to teach class, but to sneak down to the cellar and daub himself in dark makeup and apply a fake wig. He confesses to being her “Negro” lover and capitalizing on her sympathies she has towards “that unhappy race”; signifying the narrow-mindedness of the WASPs. However, this is only the beginning; the Wife confesses that she knew her new lover was actually her husband the entire time, as she had followed him into the cellar the very first night. The Husband reacts happily as he is excited that his wife actually enjoys his love making. Unfortunately, she goes on to explain that after the first night she found a similar looking woman and replaced herself with her every night he went to the cellar to change. She reasons the predicament of her pregnancy by explaining how she sought out countless real racially exotic patrons for the past five years. The husband becomes excited to experience the comforts of married love in the bedroom.
However, the Wife reiterates the issue of her pregnancy. The Husband responds by saying there is no problem at all. A surprise twist is revealed, showing that it was all just a psychological game.
The Witch is a Jacobean play, a tragicomedy written by Thomas Middleton. The play was acted by the King's Men at the Blackfriars Theatre. It is thought to have been written between 1613 and 1616; it was not printed in its own era, and existed only in manuscript until it was published by Isaac Reed in 1778.
Paheli (transl. Riddle) is a 2005 Indian Hindi-language fantasy film. It is a remake of the 1973 Hindi movie Duvidha by Mani Kaul based on the short story written by Vijayadan Detha in Rajasthani. It was also reported to have been partially inspired by the 1997 Kannada movie Nagamandala based on the play of same name by Girish Karnad. Directed by Amol Palekar and produced by Juhi Chawla, Aziz Mirza, Sanjiv Chawla and Shah Rukh Khan, who also plays the male lead, the film tells the story of a wife whose husband (Khan) goes on a business trip and is visited by a Jinn, disguised as her husband, who is in love with her and takes her husband's place. Detha's story, which had earlier been adapted into the 1973 film by Mani Kaul, is folkloric in origin. Paheli diverges from its source material and the earlier adaptations in giving the plot and its lead female character a more feminist agency.
Kathleen "Kat" Slater is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Jessie Wallace. She is also played by Kate Peck in a flashback in 2001 and Sumar-Elise Sandford in a flashback in 2018. Kat is the second eldest Slater family sister and first appeared on 18 September 2000. Kat's usual dress is very short skirts and leopard-print tops, with much make-up and heavy fake tan. Her initial stint saw her involved in many storylines, most significantly in a plot twist which sees her sister Zoe, revealed to be her daughter after she was raped by her uncle Harry as a child. Another key aspect to the character's storylines is her marriage to Alfie Moon, prior to which she became briefly engaged to Alfie's love rival Andy Hunter ; after Kat jilted Andy on their wedding day, he blackmailed her into sleeping with him in his revenge bid against Alfie and Kat. Wallace has won multiple awards for her portrayal as Kat, who has become one of the show's best loved characters.
Stacey Slater is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, portrayed by Lacey Turner. She first appears in episode 2826, originally broadcast on 1 November 2004. The character is introduced as a feisty and troublesome teenager and extension to the already established Slater family. She was created by scriptwriter Tony Jordan with Turner in mind. Producers explored the character's backstory with the introduction of her mother, Jean Slater, who has bipolar disorder. They then paired Stacey with Bradley Branning and writers developed a series of problems for their marriage, including an abortion and Stacey's affair with Bradley's father, Max Branning.
Bradley Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Charlie Clements. He made his first appearance on screen on 24 January 2006 and last appeared on 22 February 2010 after he was killed off in the show's 25th anniversary. Clements won multiple awards for his portrayal.
Pamela Morgan Halpert is a fictional character on the U.S. television sitcom The Office, played by Jenna Fischer. Her counterpart in the original UK series of The Office is Dawn Tinsley. Pam begins the series as the receptionist at the paper distribution company Dunder Mifflin. She later becomes a saleswoman and, eventually, the office administrator, until she leaves in the series finale. Her character is at first shy and unsure but grows increasingly assertive as the series progresses. She is artistically inclined throughout the series and attends art school. Pam shares a friendship and then a romance with Jim Halpert, whom she begins dating in the fourth season, becomes engaged to in the fifth, marries in the sixth, and has children with in the sixth and eighth.
Paddy Kirk is a fictional character from the British soap opera Emmerdale, played by Dominic Brunt. He has been married four times: to Mandy Dingle in 1999, to Emily Dingle in 2002, to Rhona Goskirk in 2012 and to Chas Dingle in 2020. He has also had several extramarital affairs since arriving, notably with Viv Hope and Tess Harris. His other storylines in the series have included discovering his biological father and dealing with the loss of his child.
María la del Barrio is a Mexican telenovela produced by Angelli Nesma Medina for Televisa in 1995. The series is a remake of Los ricos también lloran. María la del Barrio is considered one of the world's most popular and successful shows ever, having been broadcast in over 180 countries. It is the last part of the Trilogía de las Marías.
Zach Slater and Kendall Hart Slater are fictional characters and a supercouple from the American daytime drama All My Children. Zach is portrayed by Thorsten Kaye, and Kendall is portrayed by Alicia Minshew. The couple is often referred to by the portmanteau "Zendall" on Internet message boards. Originally scripted by former All My Children head writer Megan McTavish, the couple was never intended to be a serious romance; notable viewer response to the pairing led All My Children writers to reconsider and script them as true loves.
Los ricos también lloran is a popular telenovela produced in Mexico in 1979, starring Verónica Castro, Rogelio Guerra and Rocío Banquells. Castro also sang the theme Aprendí a Llorar, a song written by Lolita de la Colina. The telenovela was produced by Valentín Pimstein and Carlos Romero, it was directed by Rafael Banquells. The story was written by Inés Rodena and adapted by Valeria Philips.
Nicole Walker is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera Days of Our Lives, a long-running series about working-class life in the fictional town of Salem. She was introduced in 1998 by head writer Sally Sussman Morina, and executive producer Ken Corday. Actress Arianne Zucker has portrayed the character since her introduction to the series in 1998. In 2006, Zucker left the soap in pursuit of other acting possibilities. She returned to the role in 2008. In 2016, Zucker also appeared as Helena Tasso, a deceased woman who bears a resemblance to Nicole, in flashbacks. In March 2017, Zucker announced she would once again leave the role. She made her final appearance in the role on October 20, 2017. Following her departure, media outlets began to report that Zucker was to reprise the role for a short-term visit in December 2017 after being spotted on-set; Zucker explained her visit, stating that her daughter was included in the annual telling of the Christmas Story at the University Hospital. In June 2018, it was announced that Zucker would reprise the role of Nicole later the same year. She appeared for a few weeks in October 2018. Zucker later returned in April 2019, but as Kristen DiMera, who was posing as Nicole. Zucker then returned to the role of Nicole in September 2019.
The Tunnel of Love is a 1958 romantic comedy film directed by Gene Kelly and starring Doris Day and Richard Widmark. The film follows a married suburban couple who, for reasons unknown, are unable to conceive a child and soon endure endless red tape on a path of adopting one. It is based on the 1957 hit Broadway play of the same name by Peter De Vries and Joseph Fields, which in turn was based on De Vries' 1954 book of the same name. The Tunnel of Love is the first film directed by Kelly in which he did not also appear. Day received a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for her performance.
Marguerite is a musical with a book by Alain Boublil, Claude-Michel Schönberg and Jonathan Kent, lyrics by Alain Boublil and Herbert Kretzmer, and music by Michel Legrand, with original French lyrics by Boublil. Based on the romantic novel La Dame aux Camélias by Alexandre Dumas, fils, the musical updates the story to 1940s German-occupied Paris. It tells the tale of a 40-year-old ex-singer and her affair with a young musician who is mixed up with the French Resistance, whilst she is the mistress of a Nazi officer.
Single Room Furnished is a 1968 drama film featuring Jayne Mansfield in her final "filmed" starring role. The film is based on the stage play of the same title by Gerald Sanford, adapted by Matt Cimber, who also directed. The screenplay is by Michael Musto.
Peri Lomax is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks. She is played by Ruby O'Donnell, who made her first screen appearance on 4 October 2013.
El secreto de Puente Viejo is a Spanish soap opera produced by Boomerang TV that originally aired from 23 February 2011 to 20 May 2020 on Antena 3.
Campanas en la noche is a 2019 Argentine telenovela created by Lily Ann Martin and Jessica Valls for Telefe. It premiered on January 14, 2019 and ended on May 15, 2019. It stars Esteban Lamothe, Calu Rivero and Federico Amador. The supporting cast includes Eugenia Tobal, Rodrigo Guirao Díaz, Patricia Viggiano, Mariano Argento, Adrián Navarro, Martín Slipak, Laura Laprida, Clara Alonso, Franco Masini, Azul Fernández, and Bárbara Amaral. There is also the special participation of Héctor Bidonde, Jean Pierre Noher, and Noemí Frenkel.