Marc Alaimo – Soap Opera History, Part II

One of Marc Alaimo's soaps that fascinated me most was the short-lived daytime drama, Somerset, a spin-off of the popular serial Another World. From August 1972 to September 1973, Marc played Virgil Paris, an ex-con and hired gun for a mafia-like “syndicate” bent on causing havoc in the small town of Somerset.

During the year Virgil Paris was in Somerset, he:

• arranged an “accident” that paralyzed a plant manager, thus usurping the role

• threatened and/or extorted various townspeople 

• may or may not have killed a few townspeople

• attempted to drive the canned food business he worked for into the ground, then got fired

• spied on various members of the community via hidden microphones

• became obsessed with a married woman, and eventually seduced her

• was wrongfully accused of being the father of her baby

• went into hiding, but then ended up being murdered by the same syndicate he belonged to…

What a storyline for Marc to play with! And the fans just ate it up!

Filmed in NBC’s Brooklyn studios, Somerset only lasted from 1970-1976 and never did that well in the ratings. Actually, the best ratings it had were during the time Marc was on the show…coincidence? I think not! 

Somerset and Marc’s first soap opera, The Doctors, were live-to-tape, which means that unless something really terrible happened – scenery falls down or an actor gets hurt – the show continued on as if it were live! Marc mentioned at a 1996 Q&A session that although there were teleprompters to help the actors remember their lines, he never used them. 

At the same Q&A, he related how challenging soap operas were: 

“You could be doing a show for five days and you get five scripts on a Friday night for next week. And you’ve got five scripts to memorize, you might be in every other scene or whatever. 

Soap opera is the hardest.” 

Sadly, since no one in the late 70s had the prescience to think that people in the future would be interested in seeing Somerset, almost all tapes were erased (as was the procedure at the time to reuse them), except for a few episodes from 1976. This means that unless a collector or archivist has these tapes, none of Marc’s performances are still around. (I am currently working with a few contacts to see if they have access to any materials that may still be available as I’ve become absolutely fascinated by Virgil Paris and his misdeeds!)

The good news is that I’ve uncovered this little gem that I want to share with all of you. This is Marc’s photo and short bio from the popular soap opera magazine, “Who’s Who in Daytime TV” from 1973, Issue #4 that is now a part of my collection.

MARC'S SOAPOGRAPHY

The Doctors (Frank Barton, February 1971-May 1972) The Edge of Night

(Unknown character – possibly Sheriff Penbrook, Fall 1971; Bailey, Summer 1972) Somerset (Virgil Paris, August 1972-September 1973) Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman (George Curtis, 1 episode – April 1976)

(Many thanks go to the amazing soap opera fans who keep Somerset’s memory alive online and seller-turned-friend Diane for helping me with my research.)

Click here to read Part I of Marc's soap opera history

©2020/2021 Elisa Ward