Caroline Brady
Encyclopedia
Caroline Brady 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
. The character still remains a large part of the current storylines. Created by writer Margaret DePriest
, the role was originated by actress Peggy McCay
on February 7, 1983. Jody Carter stepped into the role briefly in 1984, followed by Barbara Beckley from 1984 to 1985. McCay returned to portray Caroline from July 17, 1985 to December 5, 2003, when the character was seemingly murdered by a serial killer. McCay returned in 2004 when Caroline turned up alive, and currently remains in the role.
Caroline's storylines focus on family troubles. The matriarch of the series Brady family, she is portrayed as a stoic, opinionated battle-axe—a family-oriented woman. Caroline's marriage to Shawn Brady
was central to the character for the first years of her on the program, until his screen death in 2008. A famous episode in 1986, which included Bo (Caroline's son) discovering that his mothers ex lover, Victor Kiriakis
was his father. Peggy McCay announced Caroline's retirement from the serial in 2003, and the character was killed off in a "whodunnit?" murder storyline, with McCay making her final appearance in 2003. McCay returned in 2004 when Caroline turned up alive, and currently remains in the role.
McCay was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award
for Outstanding Lead Actress
for the role in 1986 and 1987. Actor Peter Reckell
, who has played Caroline's son Bo Brady
on and off since 1983, named the scenes of Caroline's 2003 death as among his top five storylines.
, and Margaret DePriest
. The show was slowly starting to introduce a new family to the canvas, The Brady Family. They needed someone to play the mother of the new characters such as Roman
, and Bo
. As the matriarch of the Brady clan, Caroline's children are Roman Brady
, Kimberly Brady and Kayla Brady
(with Shawn), and Bo Brady
(with Victor Kiriakis
), and adopted children Frankie Brady
and Max Brady
. She also has a special place in her heart for John Black, whom she once believed was Roman. Over time, the Brady family cemented their place as the second core family on the show.
, the role was originated by actress Peggy McCay
on February 7, 1983. Jody Carter stepped into the role briefly in 1984, followed by Barbara Beckley from 1984 to 1985. McCay returned to portray Caroline from July 17, 1985 to the present,
Caroline was "killed off" in a whodunit? murder storyline in 2003. The storyline was extremely controversial, and featured the firing of seven veteran actors over the course of a year. Caroline was poisoned at Maggie Horton
's funeral. McCay returned in 2004 when Caroline turned up alive, and currently remains in the role. In a surprised twist, all the killed off characters returned to the show in 2004 alive on the island of Melaswen (New Salem spelt backwards). Actor Peter Reckell
, who has played Caroline's son Bo Brady
on and off since 1983, named the scenes of Caroline's 2003 death as among his top five storylines.
, the parents of Roman
, Bo
, and Kayla Brady
, arrive in Salem
on February 7, 1983 (their estranged daughter Kimberly comes to town later in 1984). Crime lord Victor Kiriakis
appears in 1985 and pursues old flame Caroline. She refuses him, and a vindictive Victor becomes romantically involved with Kimberly and opens a business to compete with the Brady Fishmarket. Police officer Bo hopes to arrest Victor for his many crimes. When he nearly shoots Victor, Caroline suddenly reveals that Bo is Victor's biological son, the product of a secret affair. Though Bo hates Victor, he agrees to allow Victor into his life as a means to protect Caroline from him. Seeing how tormented Bo is by the truth, Victor eventually pretends to have had a vasectomy
in the past so that Bo can believe that Shawn is actually his father.
Caroline and Shawn adopt orphaned brothers Frankie
and Max
around 1987. Kayla is wrongly arrested for the murder of Marina Toscano in 1989, and Caroline makes a false confession in order to save her. Kayla is convicted anyway and gives birth to daughter Stephanie in prison in 1990, though she is ultimately exonerated. That year Shawn and Caroline also meet Dr. Carly Manning
, who soon becomes involved with Bo after the presumed death of his wife Hope
. Kayla's husband Steve Johnson is also presumed dead in 1990; Caroline is furious when Kayla becomes involved with Kim's ex Shane Donovan, and when Kim romances the sinister Lawrence Alamain
. In 1993, Vivian Alamain
attempts to kill a sedated Caroline as part of her plan to frame Carly for a series of murders, but Carly walks in before Caroline is harmed.
Caroline suffers a heart attack in 1994 after Roman's young daughter Sami
reveals that she is pregnant by half-sister Carrie Brady
's fiancé at their wedding. At the same time, it is revealed that Roman's daughter Belle
is actually the product of an affair between his wife Marlena
and John Black. In Winter 2003, several Salem residents are murdered by the Salem Stalker, and Caroline herself is poisoned and dies in church on December 5, 2003. Marlena is revealed to be the serial killer and murders a few other people before being killed herself. After her burial, Marlena awakens in Melaswen, a copy of Salem built on a remote tropical island by the villainous Tony DiMera
. Caroline and all of Marlena's "victims" are alive and living there as captives, Tony having faked their deaths and manipulated a drugged Marlena. As everyone tries to escape, Tony initiates a volcanic eruption that itself causes a tsunami
to strike the island. Some people are saved, but Caroline and Victor are among those presumed dead. They later appear as captives at a European castle, and are rescued; in 2007 it is revealed that Tony's cousin André DiMera had been impersonation him during that time.
Caroline is devastated in 2008 when Shawn dies; he had given Bo his oxygen mask as their sabotaged plane was going down. Caroline continues running the Brady Pub with the help of her returned son Max, who learns that his biological father is Salem University Dean Trent Robbins. Max is soon furious with the unsavory Trent, whom Caroline warns away from Max. After several confrontations with Trent, Caroline sees him while visiting Shawn's grave; having been stabbed, he stumbles toward her and dies, and Caroline is arrested for his murder. She is later exonerated when Nick Fallon
is revealed to be the murderer.
In 2010, Caroline switches the pregnancy results of the real father of Chloe
's baby. On November 11, 2010, Chloe gives birth to Philip's son Parker Jonas, whom Chloe names after Daniel's mother's maiden name. Chloe and Philip are still unaware that he is the real father, since Caroline switched the pregnancy results.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives is a long running daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday in the United States since November 8, 1965. It has since been syndicated to many countries around...
, a long-running serial drama about working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
life in the fictional United States town of Salem
Salem (Days of our Lives)
The town of Salem is the setting for the U.S. soap opera Days of our Lives. It is located in the Midwestern United States, though the state is never mentioned. It was built and named in 1802, since Salem celebrated its 200-year birthday in 2002. Originally set in New England, the vague setting was...
. The character still remains a large part of the current storylines. Created by writer Margaret DePriest
Margaret DePriest
Margaret DePriest is an American daytime serial writer.She began her career as an actress both onstage and on television. Her acting credits include a contract role as the first Abby Cameron on The Edge of Night from 1965-1966....
, the role was originated by actress Peggy McCay
Peggy McCay
Peggy McCay is a long-time American actress with a career lasting over sixty years in film and television...
on February 7, 1983. Jody Carter stepped into the role briefly in 1984, followed by Barbara Beckley from 1984 to 1985. McCay returned to portray Caroline from July 17, 1985 to December 5, 2003, when the character was seemingly murdered by a serial killer. McCay returned in 2004 when Caroline turned up alive, and currently remains in the role.
Caroline's storylines focus on family troubles. The matriarch of the series Brady family, she is portrayed as a stoic, opinionated battle-axe—a family-oriented woman. Caroline's marriage to Shawn Brady
Shawn Brady
Shawn Brady is a fictional character on the American soap opera Days of our Lives and the patriarch of the Brady family. He has been portrayed by Lew Brown , Frank MacLean , and Frank Parker .-Storylines:Shawn was the husband of Caroline Brady, and father of three biological children Roman Brady,...
was central to the character for the first years of her on the program, until his screen death in 2008. A famous episode in 1986, which included Bo (Caroline's son) discovering that his mothers ex lover, Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis I is a fictional character on NBC's Days of our Lives. The role has been portrayed by John Aniston since 1985. His time on the show has been 1985 to 1997, 1998 to present with a brief storyline driven absence in 2004 when his character was "killed off" but found alive on the island...
was his father. Peggy McCay announced Caroline's retirement from the serial in 2003, and the character was killed off in a "whodunnit?" murder storyline, with McCay making her final appearance in 2003. McCay returned in 2004 when Caroline turned up alive, and currently remains in the role.
McCay was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award
Daytime Emmy Award
The Daytime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Los Angeles-based Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American daytime television programming...
for Outstanding Lead Actress
Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series
The Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series is an award which has been given every year at the Daytime Emmys ceremony since 1974...
for the role in 1986 and 1987. Actor Peter Reckell
Peter Reckell
Peter Paul Reckell is an American actor. He is best known for playing Bo Brady, a role he originated in 1983 on the NBC drama Days of our Lives....
, who has played Caroline's son Bo Brady
Bo Brady
Beauregard Aurelius "Bo" Brady is a fictional character on the NBC Soap Opera, Days of our Lives, the youngest of the series' Brady family. Created under head-writer Margaret DePreist, the role was originated by actor Peter Reckell on May 2, 1983. Robert Kelker-Kelly briefly stepped into the role...
on and off since 1983, named the scenes of Caroline's 2003 death as among his top five storylines.
Background
Caroline Brady is one of the early characters introduced by Betty CordayBetty Corday
Betty Corday was a broadway dramatic actress and long-time American television producer. She co-created and executive produced the long running NBC drama "Days of our Lives from 1966 until her death in 1987.Becoming executive producer after the death of her husband, Ted Corday Betty Corday (née...
, and Margaret DePriest
Margaret DePriest
Margaret DePriest is an American daytime serial writer.She began her career as an actress both onstage and on television. Her acting credits include a contract role as the first Abby Cameron on The Edge of Night from 1965-1966....
. The show was slowly starting to introduce a new family to the canvas, The Brady Family. They needed someone to play the mother of the new characters such as Roman
Roman Brady
Roman Augustus Brady is a fictional character on the television drama Days of our Lives. Roman was played by Wayne Northrop from 1981 to 1984 and 1991 to 1994, and has been played by Josh Taylor since 1997, with a brief hiatus in early 2004, when he was a victim of the show's now-infamous serial...
, and Bo
Bo Brady
Beauregard Aurelius "Bo" Brady is a fictional character on the NBC Soap Opera, Days of our Lives, the youngest of the series' Brady family. Created under head-writer Margaret DePreist, the role was originated by actor Peter Reckell on May 2, 1983. Robert Kelker-Kelly briefly stepped into the role...
. As the matriarch of the Brady clan, Caroline's children are Roman Brady
Roman Brady
Roman Augustus Brady is a fictional character on the television drama Days of our Lives. Roman was played by Wayne Northrop from 1981 to 1984 and 1991 to 1994, and has been played by Josh Taylor since 1997, with a brief hiatus in early 2004, when he was a victim of the show's now-infamous serial...
, Kimberly Brady and Kayla Brady
Kayla Brady
Dr. Kayla Caroline Johnson is a fictional character on the NBC daytime soap opera Days of our Lives. She made her first on-screen appearance on in 1982. Kayla was created by Pat Falken Smith as one of the original members of the Brady family. The role was originated in 1982 by actress Catherine...
(with Shawn), and Bo Brady
Bo Brady
Beauregard Aurelius "Bo" Brady is a fictional character on the NBC Soap Opera, Days of our Lives, the youngest of the series' Brady family. Created under head-writer Margaret DePreist, the role was originated by actor Peter Reckell on May 2, 1983. Robert Kelker-Kelly briefly stepped into the role...
(with Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis I is a fictional character on NBC's Days of our Lives. The role has been portrayed by John Aniston since 1985. His time on the show has been 1985 to 1997, 1998 to present with a brief storyline driven absence in 2004 when his character was "killed off" but found alive on the island...
), and adopted children Frankie Brady
Frankie Brady
Frankie Brady is a character on the American soap opera Days of our Lives.The role of Frankie was played by veteran Emmy-Award winning actor Billy Warlock from July 1986 to October 1988, from November 1990 to July 1991 and from June 26, 2005 to November 24, 2006...
and Max Brady
Max Brady
Maxwell "Max" Brady is a character on the soap opera Days of our Lives. He was portrayed by Darin Brooks from June 21, 2005 to July 7, 2009 and briefly on March 15 and 16th 2010.-Character's background:...
. She also has a special place in her heart for John Black, whom she once believed was Roman. Over time, the Brady family cemented their place as the second core family on the show.
Casting
Created by writer Margaret DePriestMargaret DePriest
Margaret DePriest is an American daytime serial writer.She began her career as an actress both onstage and on television. Her acting credits include a contract role as the first Abby Cameron on The Edge of Night from 1965-1966....
, the role was originated by actress Peggy McCay
Peggy McCay
Peggy McCay is a long-time American actress with a career lasting over sixty years in film and television...
on February 7, 1983. Jody Carter stepped into the role briefly in 1984, followed by Barbara Beckley from 1984 to 1985. McCay returned to portray Caroline from July 17, 1985 to the present,
Caroline was "killed off" in a whodunit? murder storyline in 2003. The storyline was extremely controversial, and featured the firing of seven veteran actors over the course of a year. Caroline was poisoned at Maggie Horton
Maggie Horton
Margaret "Maggie" 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 town of Salem. She has been portrayed by actress Suzanne Rogers continuously since 1973, though she left the show briefly in 1984 and...
's funeral. McCay returned in 2004 when Caroline turned up alive, and currently remains in the role. In a surprised twist, all the killed off characters returned to the show in 2004 alive on the island of Melaswen (New Salem spelt backwards). Actor Peter Reckell
Peter Reckell
Peter Paul Reckell is an American actor. He is best known for playing Bo Brady, a role he originated in 1983 on the NBC drama Days of our Lives....
, who has played Caroline's son Bo Brady
Bo Brady
Beauregard Aurelius "Bo" Brady is a fictional character on the NBC Soap Opera, Days of our Lives, the youngest of the series' Brady family. Created under head-writer Margaret DePreist, the role was originated by actor Peter Reckell on May 2, 1983. Robert Kelker-Kelly briefly stepped into the role...
on and off since 1983, named the scenes of Caroline's 2003 death as among his top five storylines.
Storylines
Caroline and husband Shawn BradyShawn Brady
Shawn Brady is a fictional character on the American soap opera Days of our Lives and the patriarch of the Brady family. He has been portrayed by Lew Brown , Frank MacLean , and Frank Parker .-Storylines:Shawn was the husband of Caroline Brady, and father of three biological children Roman Brady,...
, the parents of Roman
Roman Brady
Roman Augustus Brady is a fictional character on the television drama Days of our Lives. Roman was played by Wayne Northrop from 1981 to 1984 and 1991 to 1994, and has been played by Josh Taylor since 1997, with a brief hiatus in early 2004, when he was a victim of the show's now-infamous serial...
, Bo
Bo Brady
Beauregard Aurelius "Bo" Brady is a fictional character on the NBC Soap Opera, Days of our Lives, the youngest of the series' Brady family. Created under head-writer Margaret DePreist, the role was originated by actor Peter Reckell on May 2, 1983. Robert Kelker-Kelly briefly stepped into the role...
, and Kayla Brady
Kayla Brady
Dr. Kayla Caroline Johnson is a fictional character on the NBC daytime soap opera Days of our Lives. She made her first on-screen appearance on in 1982. Kayla was created by Pat Falken Smith as one of the original members of the Brady family. The role was originated in 1982 by actress Catherine...
, arrive in Salem
Salem (Days of our Lives)
The town of Salem is the setting for the U.S. soap opera Days of our Lives. It is located in the Midwestern United States, though the state is never mentioned. It was built and named in 1802, since Salem celebrated its 200-year birthday in 2002. Originally set in New England, the vague setting was...
on February 7, 1983 (their estranged daughter Kimberly comes to town later in 1984). Crime lord Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis
Victor Kiriakis I is a fictional character on NBC's Days of our Lives. The role has been portrayed by John Aniston since 1985. His time on the show has been 1985 to 1997, 1998 to present with a brief storyline driven absence in 2004 when his character was "killed off" but found alive on the island...
appears in 1985 and pursues old flame Caroline. She refuses him, and a vindictive Victor becomes romantically involved with Kimberly and opens a business to compete with the Brady Fishmarket. Police officer Bo hopes to arrest Victor for his many crimes. When he nearly shoots Victor, Caroline suddenly reveals that Bo is Victor's biological son, the product of a secret affair. Though Bo hates Victor, he agrees to allow Victor into his life as a means to protect Caroline from him. Seeing how tormented Bo is by the truth, Victor eventually pretends to have had a vasectomy
Vasectomy
Vasectomy is a surgical procedure for male sterilization and/or permanent birth control. During the procedure, the vasa deferentia of a man are severed, and then tied/sealed in a manner such to prevent sperm from entering into the seminal stream...
in the past so that Bo can believe that Shawn is actually his father.
Caroline and Shawn adopt orphaned brothers Frankie
Frankie Brady
Frankie Brady is a character on the American soap opera Days of our Lives.The role of Frankie was played by veteran Emmy-Award winning actor Billy Warlock from July 1986 to October 1988, from November 1990 to July 1991 and from June 26, 2005 to November 24, 2006...
and Max
Max Brady
Maxwell "Max" Brady is a character on the soap opera Days of our Lives. He was portrayed by Darin Brooks from June 21, 2005 to July 7, 2009 and briefly on March 15 and 16th 2010.-Character's background:...
around 1987. Kayla is wrongly arrested for the murder of Marina Toscano in 1989, and Caroline makes a false confession in order to save her. Kayla is convicted anyway and gives birth to daughter Stephanie in prison in 1990, though she is ultimately exonerated. That year Shawn and Caroline also meet Dr. Carly Manning
Carly Manning
Dr. Carly Manning is a fictional character that appeared on the television soap opera Days of our Lives. Carly has been portrayed by Crystal Chappell from June 12, 1990 to October 18, 1993...
, who soon becomes involved with Bo after the presumed death of his wife Hope
Hope Williams Brady
Hope Alice Brady is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera Days of our Lives. Created by writer William J. Bell, she is portrayed by Kristian Alfonso since she was SORASed to an adult in April 1983. Hope is a member of the Horton family, a very prominent fixture in Salem...
. Kayla's husband Steve Johnson is also presumed dead in 1990; Caroline is furious when Kayla becomes involved with Kim's ex Shane Donovan, and when Kim romances the sinister Lawrence Alamain
Lawrence Alamain
Lawrence James Alamain is a fictional character on NBC's daytime drama Days of our Lives. He was portrayed by Michael Sabatino from 1990 to 1993 and returned for several guest appearances in 2009, 2010 and 2011.-History:...
. In 1993, Vivian Alamain
Vivian Alamain
Vivian Alamain is a fictional character on the NBC Soap Opera, Days of our Lives, head of the series' Alamain family. Created by writer Richard J. Allen, the role was originated in 1992 by actor Louise Sorel. In 2000, Sorel departed from the series and the role was not recast with another actress...
attempts to kill a sedated Caroline as part of her plan to frame Carly for a series of murders, but Carly walks in before Caroline is harmed.
Caroline suffers a heart attack in 1994 after Roman's young daughter Sami
Sami Brady
Samantha Gene "Sami" Hernandez is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera Days of our Lives. She was born onscreen on October 16, 1984, though was later SORASed to October 16, 1977. Created by head writer Margaret DePriest, Sami has been portrayed by Alison Sweeney since January 22, 1993...
reveals that she is pregnant by half-sister Carrie Brady
Carrie Brady
Caroline Anna "Carrie" Reed is a fictional character on the NBC soap opera, Days of our Lives, a long-running serial about working class life in the fictional town of Salem. Created by head writer Margaret DePriest, the role of Carrie was originated by child actress Andrea Barber, known for her...
's fiancé at their wedding. At the same time, it is revealed that Roman's daughter Belle
Belle Black
Isabella "Belle" Brady is a fictional character on the U.S. daytime television drama Days of our Lives. The only child of supercouple John Black and Marlena Evans, she is also one half of the supercouple Shawn Brady and Belle Black...
is actually the product of an affair between his wife Marlena
Marlena Evans
Dr. Marlena Evans Black is a long-running fictional character on the NBC daytime drama, Days of our Lives, a long running serial about working life in the fictional town of Salem. She was played by actress Deidre Hall since 1976, with a few minor breaks in between from 1987 to March 1991 and...
and John Black. In Winter 2003, several Salem residents are murdered by the Salem Stalker, and Caroline herself is poisoned and dies in church on December 5, 2003. Marlena is revealed to be the serial killer and murders a few other people before being killed herself. After her burial, Marlena awakens in Melaswen, a copy of Salem built on a remote tropical island by the villainous Tony DiMera
Tony DiMera
Count Antony "Tony" DiMera is a fictional character from the American soap opera Days of our Lives, played by actor Thaao Penghlis on and off from 1981 until 2009. One of the character's main storylines includes being impersonated by fellow character André DiMera, at various points in the...
. Caroline and all of Marlena's "victims" are alive and living there as captives, Tony having faked their deaths and manipulated a drugged Marlena. As everyone tries to escape, Tony initiates a volcanic eruption that itself causes a tsunami
Tsunami
A tsunami is a series of water waves caused by the displacement of a large volume of a body of water, typically an ocean or a large lake...
to strike the island. Some people are saved, but Caroline and Victor are among those presumed dead. They later appear as captives at a European castle, and are rescued; in 2007 it is revealed that Tony's cousin André DiMera had been impersonation him during that time.
Caroline is devastated in 2008 when Shawn dies; he had given Bo his oxygen mask as their sabotaged plane was going down. Caroline continues running the Brady Pub with the help of her returned son Max, who learns that his biological father is Salem University Dean Trent Robbins. Max is soon furious with the unsavory Trent, whom Caroline warns away from Max. After several confrontations with Trent, Caroline sees him while visiting Shawn's grave; having been stabbed, he stumbles toward her and dies, and Caroline is arrested for his murder. She is later exonerated when Nick Fallon
Nick Fallon
Nicholas "Nick" Fallon is a fictional character on the American soap opera Days of our Lives. The role was played by Blake Berris from November 7, 2006 to January 15, 2009.-Storylines:...
is revealed to be the murderer.
In 2010, Caroline switches the pregnancy results of the real father of Chloe
Chloe Lane
Chloe Lane is a fictional character on the American NBC soap opera Days of our Lives. Created by head writer Tom Langan, she is portrayed by actress Nadia Bjorlin...
's baby. On November 11, 2010, Chloe gives birth to Philip's son Parker Jonas, whom Chloe names after Daniel's mother's maiden name. Chloe and Philip are still unaware that he is the real father, since Caroline switched the pregnancy results.