Talk:Irna Phillips

Discussion
I don't think Irna Phillips was the co-creator of Peyton Place. The show was modeled after Peyton Place, a book by Grace Metalious. Mike H 22:49, Jul 28, 2004 (UTC)

She's listed as co-creator at IMDB, along with Paul Monash. Although the series was based on the book, they created the series. RickK 22:51, Jul 28, 2004 (UTC)

Okay, then. I'll leave it as is. Mike H 22:52, Jul 28, 2004 (UTC)


 * I removed Irna as creator of the show. I found another page more reliable than IMDB which says she was a creative consultant. Mike H 22:20, Aug 28, 2004 (UTC)


 * I found a 1964 NY Times article in which she is quoted about Peyton Place "I will be working on long term storylines". I says she was a "consultant for ABC primetime shows". Dowew 21:21, 24 October 2005 (UTC)

Cliffhangers and Soap Operas
I have absolutely no interest getting into an editing war, but would just like to make two observations.

Firstly, the cliffhanger has been around in literature since Eugene Sue ('The Mysteries of Paris', 1842 to 1843) and Charles Dickens, both of whose work was published originally in weekly installments in newspapers. The best example of a literary cliffhanger is 'Little Dorrit,' whose final installment was reportedly awaited with such anticipation in NYC that enormous crowds were on the docks to greet the arrival of the ship transporting it from London, all shouting for the end to be revealed before the ship even docked.

The name was coined in the silent movies era where weekly serials such as 'Perils of Pauline' quite literally had the main character hanging from the edge of a cliff at the end of an installment -- or tied to railway tracks, with a train approaching, or anything else that fantasy could imagine.

So Irna Phillips cannot be called the inventor of the cliffhanger by any stretch of the imagination.

Secondly, she should be credited properly as the inventor of soap operas, by removing the cite request after 'historians say' and linking to the Soap Operas and Painted Dreams entries. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Petercascio (talk • contribs) 02:39, 23 April 2017 (UTC)

Stillborn child
Does anyone know anything about the stillborn child that Phillip supposedly had ? The story goes that Phillips suffer a stillbirth and found comfort in the words of a priest for which The Guiding Light was originally based on. Dowew 16:46, 24 October 2005 (UTC)

GL tie-in book
I have read that in the 50's (according to the book "Worlds without end published by the Museum of Broadcasting) that Phillips wrote a tie-in novel to Guiding Light explaing the backstory of the town & characters...I would think this is probably the first time that a soap opera had a tie in book. Does anyone know any more about it ? Dowew 16:57, 24 October 2005 (UTC)

Personal Life
She could not have shared a bedroom with her mother for 37 years if she was in Dayton as early as age 25. 1930 census does show her in Dayton and her mother still in Chicago. Questors 17:56, 20 November 2005 (UTC)

What is the source for her Jewish ancestry? Census records back to 1870 for her father's side show they were German-speakers from Prussia who immigrated in 1863. Census records for her mother back to 1900 state that she was a German speaker from Germany. Parents are William (a provisions dealer) and Betty Phillips. Irna was the last of the ten children, only 5 of whom lived to adulthood. Questors 17:56, 20 November 2005 (UTC)


 * Ths stuff I put up there is from the book "Prime Time, Prime Movers". If you have other data please add it, particularly the stuff about five children not living to adulthood.  I would be interested to find out where you got the census records. Dowew 19:19, 20 November 2005 (UTC)

Why are her writing credits dated after her death?
According to the article Phillips died in 1973 and yet her writing credits in the Television sub-section extend after her death. Is this a mistake or is she really contributing from beyond the grave? Random Passer-by (talk) 18:09, 26 April 2007 (UTC)
 * (The) Guiding Light (1952-present)
 * As the World Turns (1956-present)
 * Another World (1964-1999)
 * Days of our Lives (1965-present)


 * Those are dates the series were broadcast/telecast. Pepso 19:23, 26 April 2007 (UTC)


 * Ah. Ok. Thank you. I wonder if it could be made clearer in some way that the dates are for the series and not for her? Random Passer-by (talk) 22:01, 26 April 2007 (UTC)

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