Profile of Douglas Marland on Famous Like Me

Douglas Marland (born Marland Messner, May 5, 1935 - March 6, 1993) was a writer of American soap operas, most known for his tenure as head writer for As the World Turns, which he held from 1985 until his death in 1993.

He first started writing scripts for soap operas in the 1970s, as a subwriter to Harding Lemay on Another World. He was hired by ABC in 1978 to work with Gloria Monty on "General Hospital". At that time, the show was near cancellation. Marland's writing, along with Monty's extensive production changes, helped the show rise in the ratings. Marland was instrumental in pairing the iconic couple of Luke and Laura, as well as creating vixen Bobbie Spencer. In 1979, he started head-writing Guiding Light. Marland's work at "Guiding Light" met with critical acclaim; Marland introduced the working class Reardons, and centered an important triangle around ugly duckling Nola Reardon, another vixen with a heart of gold. One storyline was quite unusual for soaps; it featured Nola's fantasies about her dreams and desires, all based on classic movies and musicals. Another envelope-pushing story featured the character of Carrie Todd Marler (played by General Hospital favorite Jane Elliot). Carrie was diagnosed with multiple personalities, and Marland had barely delved into her psychosis when Elliot's contract was abruptly terminated by producer Allan Potter in 1982. Marland resigned in protest.

He teamed up with fellow soap writer Agnes Nixon to create Loving, which he wrote for the show's first few months in 1983.

He was hired to write As the World Turns two years later. Marland refocused the show and moved the Hughes family back into cornerstone status. He utilized over 30 years of history to create new storylines for vixen Lisa and, most notably, for core characters Bob and Kim Hughes. (The story, where a child previously thought to be dead was found to be alive and living in England, was a dual role played by future Oscar-nominated actress Julianne Moore.) He also introduced a new working class family, the Snyders, into the storyline and added new dimensions to the wealthy Lucinda Walsh (Elizabeth Hubbard) by tying the Walshes and Snyders together, revealing a connection involving the Snyders and Lucinda's adopted daughter Lily (Martha Byrne).

The new Snyder family was based largely on Douglas Marland's own experiences; he grew up on a farm in West Sand Lake, NY. In several interviews, Marland remarked that the character of Seth Snyder was based largely on his own life. Seth was the oldest child, who had been taken on great responsibility in helping to raise his siblings following patriarch Harvey Snyder's death. This event was key to the formation of the Snyder family dynamic, in that Marland was allowed to write a strong and independent yet maternal figure in matriarch Emma Snyder (Kathleen Widdoes).

Marland was also responsible for adding the first gay male character on an American soap opera to his story during his tenure on As the World Turns, Hank Elliot. The story was short-lived (Hank was featured for about 18 months), but groundbreaking; the soap became a pioneer for others who wished to put gay male characters, heretofore unseen, on their respective shows. Although the story centered on Hank, it allowed the viewer to see another side to long running characters, when those characters reacted to the news that Hank was gay. The character of Hank was written off of the show to take care of his lover Charles, who was dying of AIDS.

Marland diversified ATWT's previously white-bread canvas, introducing an Amerasian character as the child of a Vietnam vet, and also featuring a story of a mixed-race couple marrying and having a baby (and showing negative reactions to the marriage and birth). Another story featured town matriarch Nancy Hughes helping a young, illiterate African-American girl learn to read. (That character, Kira, was played by future hip-hop legend Lauryn Hill.) Marland also penned a story featuring the character of Ellie Snyder aborting her baby; abortion is a rarity in daytime and this again allowed Marland to write about both sides of a controversial issue.

With the new storytelling and back-to-basics format, the ratings moved up to near the level they were in the 1970s. Marland wrote the show until his sudden death from a botched abdominal surgery procedure in 1993.

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