On November 8, 1965, Days of Our Lives debuted on NBC. The show overcame a rocky beginning to become one of the best-loved and longest running soap operas on daytime television. For 30 years, the story of the show's Horton family has been closely followed by a dedicated audience. Through extensive research, including the first-ever examination of the show's archives, and interviews with cast members, writers, producers and production personnel, the show's history is told here. This reference work provides a complete cast list from the show's debut through 1994, as well as the most comprehensive storyline of the show ever available. Also included are family trees of the show's characters, tracing the often confusing relationships involved in thirty years of developing roles.

On a November day forty-five years ago, the first episode of Days of our Lives appeared on the NBC Network. What few know though is that the show started as the dream of one family, the Corday family, who still owns and runs the show to this day. These are the days of their lives. The Days of our Lives is the first insider account of the history behind one of our most beloved soap operas. It is about the family who believed in it, conceived it, and sometimes seemed to live it along with millions of viewers, as they struggled to emerge from nowhere to create and produce one of the most successful and enduring television shows in history. You will discover for the first time the true stories behind the show, a story of living a dream and raising a family while things all around you, even fate, seem to conspire against you-and succeeding against all odds. "Blending inside stories about the show with a personal, philosophical view of his hardworking parents, the reader gets to experience a true classic American success story." – AOL NEWS "The Days of our Lives is a must for any fan of the show, or those looking into insight of daytime television." – MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW "A really good book... a loving, surprisingly spiritual, sometimes shocking tribute to the Corday family business... revelatory." – TV GUIDE