| Lovers and Friends | |
|---|---|
| Format | Soap opera |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original run | 1977 – 1978 |
Lovers and Friends (later called For Richer, For Poorer) is a short-lived American soap opera that premiered on NBC on January 3, 1977 and ended on September 29, 1978. The show was created by Harding Lemay and Paul Rauch, both of whom were also working for the daytime drama Another World. Lovers and Friends was considered to be an indirect spin-off of the former series, and took the place of a direct spin-off (Somerset) on the NBC schedule upon its premiere.[1]
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The show was set in the fictional Chicago suburb of Point Clair, Illinois, and focused on the trials and tribulations of two neighboring families, the wealthy Cushings and the more middle class Saxtons. Point Clair was a highly wealthy suburb, allegedly modeled after the real life community of Lake Forest, Illinois, the wealthiest of the North Shore suburbs in the Chicago Metropolitan area.
The Cushings were Richard Cushing (Ron Randell), a successful stockbroker, who also had an affair with his secretary, Karen; his proper and high society wife, Edith (Nancy Marchand, Laurinda Barrett), who stayed in the marriage, even though she knew about and tended to tolerate Richard's infidelity; their college aged son, Austin (Rod Arrants) who was an alcoholic; and their daughter, Megan (Patricia Estrin; Darlene Parks) who was unhappily engaged to wealthy and stuffy Desmond Hamilton (David Knapp). She was engaged to him, because she felt that was what was prudent for her upbringing.
Also living with and offering some sage, down-to-earth advice and also a touch of humor to the often stuffy Cushing home was Edith's mother, Sophia Slocum (Margaret Barker). It was Sophia, who wasn't constrained by wealth or societal pretentions, who counseled Megan to look into her heart and to marry for love, and not for money or societal propriety, the way she and Edith had. These words of advice from Sophia helped Megan to break off her unhappy engagement.
The Cushing's neighbors were the Saxtons, who were newcomers to Point Clair. The father, Lester (John Heffernan; Albert Stratton) was a former factory worker and alcoholic, who had recently acquired a higher paying job as a warehouse supervisor, thanks to the help of his daughter, Eleanor Kimball (Flora Plumb) and her husband, wealthy attorney, George Kimball (Stephen Joyce), which also allowed them to purchase the house next door to the Cushings in Point Clair.
He was married to the compassionate Josie (Patricia Englund) and was the father of four other children, besides Eleanor, the oldest. Rhett (Bob Purvey, David Ramsey, Tom Happer), a photographer who had been engaged to Connie Ferguson (Susan Foster, Cynthia Bostick) until he fell in love with and eventually married his neighbor Megan Cushing; Jason (Richard Backus) who was somewhat conniving and scheming, always wanting to get ahead, but meant well; youngest brother, Bentley (David Abbott) and youngest sister, Tessa (Vicky Dawson; Breon Gorman). Both Bentley and Tessa, who were in high school, felt out of place in wealthy Point Clair, and longed to return to their former neighborhood in Chicago.
Also living with the Saxtons was their cousin Amy Gifford (Christine Jones). (Christine Jones brought the Amy Gifford character from Another World, hence the ties to Lovers and Friends.)
Austin gained the support and help of next-door neighbor, Lester, who had been through the alcoholic road before, and with his support and help, stayed off the booze and faced his problems in Point Clair. Richard had wanted him to go into a wealthy sanitarium to dry out, but Austin stunned his father by taking responsibility for his actions and remained in town to deal with his troubles, being helped along by Lester, who became his support system.
When the show was retooled into For Richer, For Poorer, several major changes had occurred. The show's setting was still Point Clair; Rhett's name was changed to Bill and he married Megan; Edith Cushing's husband Richard died, leaving her a widow; the Cushings and Saxtons, although they were now related due to Bill and Megan's marriage, were no longer neighbors; and Amy Gifford married Austin Cushing. Also in the story, in both versions of the show, was the Brewster family, mother Viola (Patricia Barry) and her daughter, Laurie (Julia MacKenzie). Despite his marriage to Megan, Bill's former fiancee, Connie Ferguson, announced that she was pregnant; the father was never revealed, but it was rumored to be Bill's.
Despite the story changes, the show didn't last and was cancelled in 1978.
Notable stars from the series who went on to greater fame in either daytime or primetime series, were Rod Arrants (who married his co-star, Patricia Estrin), Nancy Marchand, Patricia Barry, Christine Jones, Margaret Barker, Nancy Snyder, John Heffernan, and Patricia Englund.