Tom Horton | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Days of Our Lives character | |||||||||||||||||
Portrayed by | MacDonald Carey Zach Chyz (2024) | ||||||||||||||||
Duration | 1965–94, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||
First appearance | November 8, 1965 | ||||||||||||||||
Last appearance | 2024 | ||||||||||||||||
Classification | Former; regular | ||||||||||||||||
Created by | Peggy Phillips and Kenneth Rosen | ||||||||||||||||
Introduced by | Ted Corday | ||||||||||||||||
Spin-off appearances | Days of Our Lives: One Stormy Night (1992) | ||||||||||||||||
|
Thomas Horton is a fictional character and patriarch of the Horton family on the NBC soap opera Days of Our Lives . He was played by Macdonald Carey from 1965 until his death in 1994.
Tom Horton is born in 1910 and married his wife Alice Grayson on March 7, 1930. Tom is a prominent doctor at Salem University Hospital and has five children, Tommy, Addie, Mickey, Bill, and Marie. In 1968, Tom learns that Mickey is infertile, and when Tom confronts Mickey's wife, Laura Horton, about her pregnancy, she tells Tom that Bill had raped her. The two agreed to keep their secrets from Mickey in order to spare his feelings. In 1974, Tom is devastated when Addie is run over shortly after giving birth to Hope Williams.
In 1977, Tom has a heart attack and remains in the hospital for several months. In 1978, Tom is promoted to Chief of Staff at University Hospital. Tom reads poetry, which he wrote himself, under the name Norm De Plume, wearing a disguise so Alice wouldn't know what he was up to. When it is discovered their first marriage was invalid they marry again on October 17, 1989. In 1993, Alice and Tom set up and found the Horton Center, which runs out of their home and provides shelter and help to run-away teens or families in need. Tom last appears on February 9, 1994 due to Carey's failing health. Following Carey's death in March 1994, the character of Tom dies off screen on June 21, 1994.
In 2024, Tom appears in flashbacks as the family remanences on the good times while salvaging through the charred remains of the Horton house. In further flashbacks, he is played by Zach Chyz where Tom and Alice are young and struggle until they buy the house for them and their children.
For his role as Tom, Carey won the Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series Award at the 1st Daytime Emmy Awards in 1974. [2] In 2020, Charlie Mason from Soaps She Knows placed Tom as #7 on a list of the 35 most memorable characters from Days of Our Lives, commenting that "Only the hourglass itself could possibly be a bigger part of the DNA of Days of Our Lives than the much-missed MacDonald Carey’s family man, a steadying presence in a town that desperately needed it". [3] Mason also placed Tom 37th on his ranked list of Soaps' 40 Most Iconic Characters of All Time, writing, "For nearly three decades, Macdonald Carey prescribed viewers a steadying presence as the doctor at the head of Salem's Horton family." [4]
Bo Brady is a fictional character from the NBC daytime soap opera Days of Our Lives. The role has been most notably portrayed by Peter Reckell, who originated the role on May 3, 1983.
Abe Carver is a fictional character on the long-running American soap opera Days of Our Lives. Actor James Reynolds has played the character since he originated it on the series in 1981, and is currently the fifth longest serving actor on the show. The role is one of the longest-running African American characters in American soap operas. The character was created by head writer Pat Falken Smith. Abe is the widowed husband of Lexie Carver, daughter of international crime lord, Stefano DiMera. He is the father of Brandon Walker and Theo Carver and the adoptive father of Lani Price.
Mickey Horton is a fictional character from the soap opera Days of Our Lives, played from the show's debut episode in 1965 until January 2004 by John Clarke, spanning 3,500 episodes. The role was briefly played in 2004 by Richard Voigts, then by John Ingle from 2004 through 2006. Kevin Dobson appeared as Mickey in the character's final appearances between April and October 2008.
Eric Brady is a fictional character from Days of Our Lives, an American soap opera on NBC/Peacock, played since 2012 by Greg Vaughan, the longest tenured actor in the role. Eric was introduced in the episode of October 16, 1984, together with his twin sister, Sami Brady.
Alice Horton is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera Days of Our Lives, portrayed by Frances Reid from the show's debut on November 8, 1965, until December 26, 2007.
Doug Williams is a fictional character on the American soap opera Days of Our Lives, portrayed by Bill Hayes from 1970 until 2024. After 1999, Hayes made recurring appearances as Doug, notably airing during the holiday seasons, with his final appearance on July 11, 2024, six months after his death on January 12, 2024.
Hope Williams Brady is a fictional character from Days of Our Lives, an American soap opera on the NBC network. Created by writer William J. Bell, she was portrayed by Kristian Alfonso on and off from April 1983 to the present day, most recently appearing in late April 2023. Hope is a member of the Horton family, the long-running core fictional family on Days. She is the mother of Shawn-Douglas Brady, Zack Brady, and Ciara Brady. Hope is one half of the supercouple Bo & Hope. She works as a cop for the Salem P.D. Hope was promoted to Commissioner of Salem P.D. in 2017.
Maggie Horton Kiriakis is a fictional character from the American Peacock/NBC network soap opera Days of Our Lives played by Suzanne Rogers since 1973, the longest running role on the show, and one of the longest running in American soap operas.
Adrienne Johnson Kiriakis is a fictional character on NBC's daytime drama Days of Our Lives. She had been portrayed by actress Denise Wanner from November to December 1986 before Judi Evans took over the role from December 1986 to February 1991, from May 2007 to January 2008 and from March 2010 to January 2020.
William "Bill" Horton is a fictional character from the American NBC daytime soap opera, Days of Our Lives. He was a surgeon, and was one of the five children of the show's original couple, Tom and Alice Horton. Bill was a regular character on Days of Our Lives for most of its first fifteen years. The role is most associated with actor Edward Mallory, who portrayed the character for the greatest time.
Addie Horton is a fictional character on the television soap opera Days of Our Lives, portrayed by Patricia Huston from November 10, 1965, to March 9, 1966, and Patricia Barry from April 19, 1971, to June 28, 1974. Barry reprised her role as Addie for one episode on December 18, 1974.
Marie Horton is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera, Days of Our Lives. Created by DOOL creator Ted Corday, actress Maree Cheatham is most recognized in the role, originating it on the debut episode of the serial airing November 8, 1965, and last appearing on June 28, 2010. Cheatham is the last surviving original cast member to appear in the show, returning for its 60th anniversary episodes in 2024. The youngest child of Tom and Alice Horton, she is the mother of Jessica Blake Fallon and grandmother of Nick Fallon.
Julie Olson Williams is a fictional character and member of the Horton family on the NBC daytime drama, Days of Our Lives, a long running serial about working class life in the fictional town of Salem.
Jennifer Horton is a fictional character from Days of Our Lives, an American soap opera on the NBC network, currently played by actress Cady McClain. Jennifer was created by scriptwriter Pat Falken Smith, and executive producer Betty Corday. Melissa Reeves played the role of Jennifer on and off for over 35 years, premiering on October 9, 1985. The role has also been portrayed by Maren Stephenson, Jennifer Peterson, Stephanie Cameron, and Marci Miller.
Melissa Horton is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera, Days of Our Lives.
Laura Horton is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera, Days of Our Lives, a long-running serial drama about working class life in the fictional, United States town of Salem. Created by writer Peggy Phillips, Laura's storylines focus on family troubles. She is a member of the series' Horton family. Laura's marriage to Mickey Horton was a big part of the characters' history. She was also married to his brother, Bill. Many of Laura's storylines have also revolved around her mental health issues. Laura was initially portrayed by Floy Dean from June to October 1966, before Susan Flannery stepped in, portraying Laura from November 1966 to May 1975. Susan Oliver then portrayed Laura from October 1975 to June 1976, followed by Rosemary Forsyth from August 1976 to March 1980. The character then took a hiatus until 1993, when the role was recast with Jaime Lyn Bauer, who played Laura from November 1993 to July 1999. Bauer returned as Laura for brief stints in 2003, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2018 and 2021. Cady McClain also briefly portrayed the role in flashbacks in February 2021.
Marlena Evans is a fictional character on the NBC/Peacock soap opera Days of Our Lives, a long-running serial about working life in the fictional town of Salem. She has been played by actress Deidre Hall since 1976, but the character was absent from the show from 1987 to August 1991 and again from January 2009 to September 2011. Marlena was created by scriptwriter Pat Falken Smith and executive producer Betty Corday, and has become one of Days of our Lives' most well-known characters. Hall made her debut on the soap on June 21, 1976, currently making her the second longest running actress on the serial, surpassed only by Suzanne Rogers.
Days of Our Lives is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from 1965 to 2022 and currently streams new episodes on Peacock. The soap is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday since November 8, 1965. A co-production of Corday Productions and Sony Pictures Television, the series was created by husband-and-wife team Ted Corday and Betty Corday. During Days of Our Lives' early years, Irna Phillips served as a story editor for the program and many of the show's earliest storylines were written by William J. Bell, who would depart the series in 1975 to focus full-time on The Young and the Restless, which he created for CBS in 1973. Following the 2007 cancellation of Passions, Days of Our Lives remained the only soap opera airing on NBC. On August 3, 2022, NBCUniversal announced that it would relocate the series exclusively to its Peacock streaming service beginning September 12 after 57 years on the network and leaving NBC as the only Big Three network without a daytime serial.