Television Matriarch Frances Reid Passes

On November 8, 1965, Frances Reid appeared as character Alice Horton for the first time on daytime drama, “Days of Our Lives.” For forty-two years, she continued to appear on the show until her health no longer permitted her to do so. It really touched me whenever she was able to make an appearance on the show in the later years because it reminded me of many happy years that I spent watching the show with my grandmother.

Frances Reid passed away on February 3, 2010 and the theater world shed a tear — Frances Reid found her acting start in theater, after all.

Frances Reid started her career with an uncredited role in a film called
Man-Proof.
From there she went to act in Broadway plays before accepting her role
on “Days of our Lives.” To me one of the most amazing things about her
career is how she was there in the first episode of the show and she
watched as so many men and women joined the cast and eventually left —
and yet she was still there.

When she started “Days of our Lives,” she was already in the actress dead zone and she remained loyal to the show in an industry where leaving a show to pursue “real” acting careers is too common.

Sometimes the reverse is true, although we have found that James Franco had ulterior motives for briefly joining General Hospital.  It was clear that she was in it for the long haul, and cared more about staying true to the character on the show than making a name for herself and getting out quickly.

The best equivalent to which I could compare her happens to be on one of my other favorite soap operas, “Coronation Street.” The character of Ken Barlow has been portrayed by actor William Roache for the last fifty years come this December and that is an accomplishment of which any actor should be proud.