The 1980s were a golden age for soaps, and Days Of Our Lives was no exception. A few years after Genie Francis set daytime records as half of Luke and Laura marrying in the most-watched episode of all time, she came to Salem as Diana Colville, a woman with a secret – and a revenge plot.
But, it was a secret in which she was a victim, and her revenge plot wasn’t too bad as far as revenge plots go. Diana was fundamentally a good girl, which is why John (Drake Hogysten) — then assumed to be Roman — fell in love with her.
Diana accidentally got John shot and fled town in dismay. Plus, she was pretty sure he’d never get over Marlena (Deidre Hall), even though she was presumed dead at the time.
Were you a fan of original recipe Diana – before the Leo screeching and the cookie poisoning and the crazy, whakadoodle eyes? What almost 6,000 had to say:
Not really, no, 82% shrug. She was a kind of generic blonde, kind of generic heroine, kind of victim, kind of crying dishrag that soaps churn out by the dozens. If the role hadn’t been played by Francis, she’d have barely made any impression at all.
She was no Isabella, who you believe John truly loved and who might have given Marlena a run for her money.
She wasn’t even Princess Gina, who shared a past with John — and a chip in her head. Diana was nothing, and bringing her back, especially so changed, is still a move you can’t quite wrap your heads around.
Past Love
We did love her, 18% insist, but as she was then, not the way she is now! This woman shares absolutely nothing with that Diana save her name, and it’s an insult to the character Francis played to pretend!
Days of our Lives (DOOL) airs weekdays on NBC. Check your local listings for airtimes.
Video Credit: Movie Extras
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