Opal Cortlandt - Background

Background

In the beginning, Opal was only supposed to remain on All My Children for about six weeks. But when the show's executives saw Dorothy Lyman's electric portrayal of the character, the writers kept her on and wrote for her more and more.

"I have a true collaboration with Agnes Nixon (AMC's creator)", says Lyman between. "The writers write for me, but a lot of Opal's impulses come from me. I think what people like about Opal is that they don't know what to expect from her. There's a kind of danger to her."

Dorothy Lyman

The producers of the show disagreed with the way Lyman portrayed Opal:

"When I was hired last winter, 'they' kept calling me in every week, telling me to change my act or I'd be fired", says Lyman, referring to The Powers That Be. "I guess I just felt I could always work in the theater if I was written off. There was no point in being scared. The most important thing an actor needs is to have courage to get up every day in front of people. To put on clothes and pretend to be somebody you're not takes a lot of guts. I think what makes Opal so popular is the fact that people can relate to her. A lot of women will come up to me and say, 'I'm Opal.' Then they'll take out a picture of their daughter and, 'This is my daughter, she's Jenny. We call each other Opal and Jenny.' And I look at this poor middle-aged woman with bleached hair and wonder, 'What must she think?' To me, Opal is the epitome of bad taste and bad manners. I can't understand why anyone would want to be like her, but I love the fact that they do. That they see to her good parts."

Dorothy Lyman

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