On March 27, 1989, NBC debuted a new half-hour soap that was different from all the rest. Known as the first fully integrated daytime drama, it featured a wealthy African American family as one of its core clans.
The soap explored the lives of the Marshall and Whitmore families, and while it didn't last long -- NBC canceled it after just thirteen months -- it gave birth to several soap stars, primetime stars, and movie stars.
Before he ever made his mark on The Young and the Restless, a young Kristoff St. John made his soap debut as Adam Marshall on Generations as a young college student who had an affair with the beautiful Maya, played by future movie star Vivica A. Fox. Richard Roundtree played Maya's father, Richard, while Kelly Rutherford was Adam's BFF Samantha. Broadway and TV star Jonelle Allen helped round out the original cast as Doreen. Even Days of our Lives star James Reynolds jumped ship briefly to replace Taurean Blacque as patriarch Henry Marshall.
Created by Sally Sussman Morina and Anthony Morina, who last wrote for The Young and the Restless, Generations has found a whole new generation of fans thanks to clips and full episodes posted to YouTube. That's made some clamor for a Generation revival, but is that something that could ever happen?
"There are a lot of fans worldwide who are asking for a revival. There are these social media Generations groups from over the world," Allen, who stars on the web soap Forever and a Day, told Entertainment Weekly. "I mean, they know the show better than I do, really. They have photos or screenshots of things that I don't really remember because I never really watched the show."
https://ew.com/generations-soap-opera-catfight-vivica-fox-jonelle-allen-oral-history-8594139
Sussman acknowledged that she also gets asked about a revival on a frequent basis. "Over the last number of years, several young writers -- I'm talking very young, younger than 30 -- who love soaps of all different stripes, have been reaching out to me about how much they love the show, because there are so many episodes on YouTube. They say how much they love the show, and that I must try and do a revival."
But would the stars be up for it? Fox says she most certainly would, while paying homage to one of the show's writers who recently left her post at The Bold and the Beautiful.
"I would be totally game for a revival," Fox admitted. "Some of the young actors and I, we all still stay in touch. Kelly Rutherford and I stay in touch with each other. Even the writer, Michelle Val Jean, we still go out maybe every three months or so. We have dinner at Ruth Chris.... I'd love to see soap operas make a comeback."
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