September 25 was a memorable day in soap opera history, as Damian Spinelli (Bradford Anderson) told Maxie Jones (Kirsten Storms) that he couldn’t marry her when they arrived at the altar on General Hospital, Katie Logan (Heather Tom) and Bill Spencer (Don Diamont) welcomed their son on Bold and Beautiful, Sal Stowers made her Days of Our Lives debut as Lani Price and other big soap moments that took place on September 25.
In 2007, General Hospital‘s Elizabeth Webber Spencer (Rebecca Herbst) and Lucky Spencer (then Greg Vaughan) agreed to end their marriage. The split occurred in the wake of Jason learning that Liz had slept with Jason Morgan, and Lucky himself sleeping with Sam McCall. Lucky was the one to tell her he felt it was time for them to go their separate ways. Liz concurred, telling Lucky she was wrong to have remarried him in the first place because she knew deep down that what they had once had was over. Liz and Lucky noted that they would always be connected. That same day, Lucky broke the news of the split to Emily and Nikolas. While Nikolas consoled him, Emily sought out Liz and gently suggested that perhaps the divorce meant that Liz could have a future with Jason. Liz disagreed, noting that she and Jason had incompatible lifestyles.
In 2009 on General Hospital, the wedding of Maxie Jones (Kirsten Storms) and Damian Spinelli (Bradford Anderson) commenced. As the bride and groom stared deeply into one another’s eyes, Father Coates welcomed everyone and began the service. When it was time to say his vows, Spinelli told Maxie that he was going to speak from the heart. “I’m not like other people,” he began, earning some chuckles from the guests. “I never have been. But I became used to the outsider status, and I was really quite content. I mean, my mind is an active and fertile one. I’m never bored in my own company, and if being alone was to be my lot, well, there are worse things in this life to have to endure. But then there — then there was you. Luminous, transformative Maxie, and you saw me, you got me, and to my utter shock, amazement, and profound gratitude, you loved me, and that is the most precious gift, and I will never, ever betray it. And that,” he stammered, “that is why I cannot marry you.” Fans would have to wait until this Friday cliffhanger picked up the following Monday to find out why he was calling off the wedding!
In 2012, Katie Logan Spencer (Heather Tom) and Bill Spencer (Don Diamont) welcomed their son, Will Spencer. As Tom told Soap Opera Digest in 2024, she was the one who pitched the idea of Katie becoming pregnant with Bill’s child when she herself got pregnant with her son, Zane Achor. She explained, “I went to [Executive Producer/Head Writer] Brad [Bell] and I said, ‘It’s your prerogative, of course, but I think it would be nice if you wrote this pregnancy in. I think it’s something that for Katie and Bill would be the next step to their trajectory.’ And thankfully, he agreed.”
In 2015, Sal Stowers joined Days of Our Lives as Lani Price, who was revealed to be the secret, surprise daughter of Abe Carver (James Reynolds) and half sister of Abe’s son by the late Lexie Carver, Theo Carver (Kyler Pettis). (A controversal rewrite later recast Lani’s biological father as TR Coates.) Prior to joining the Salem ranks, Stowers had appeared on the short-lived 2013 Internet reboot of All My Children in the pivotal role of Angie Hubbard’s adopted daughter, Cassandra Foster. In 2017, Stowers noted to Soap Opera Digest, “When I walk onto the set now I’m very confident about what I’ve created with Lani…. I’ve definitely grown, not only as an artist on the show, but also as a human. I’m learning so much about myself in this career. By giving Lani a voice, I also gave myself a voice. That’s not easy to do, especially [with] a new job. We get so nervous and scared. We want to impress everyone and do things right, and I think that’s where we go wrong.
Instead, it’s just going in, being ourselves and diving into the work; that’s more important.” With Lani’s return, the character is more integrated into the fabric of the show. “I love that she’s actually a part of Salem!” Stowers enthuses. “Everyone respects her. She’s making great friendships. I think in the beginning [when I first started in 2015], that wasn’t there. Now, it’s there and it’s really cool to see. It’s amazing to get the scripts and see that my character is growing. Her life in Salem is growing.”In 2018 on Bold and Beautiful, Carter Walton (Lawrence Saint-Victor, c.) pronounced Katie Logan (Heather Tom) and Thorne Forrester (Ingo Rademacher) to be husband and wife. Ridge Forrester served as his brother’s best man, while Katie’s big sister Brooke Logan served as her maid of honor. Like so many B&B unions before this, Katie and Thorne’s marriage ultimately ended with an annulment.
