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Claire Labine
Claire Labine
Claire Labine
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Claire Vaughn Labine (née Wood; June 28, 1934 – November 11, 2016) was an American soap opera writer and producer.[1][2]

Key Information

Career

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1960s

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Labine’s first television writing job was for Captain Kangaroo in 1967, she was fired in 1970.

1970s

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1971 saw her first real foray into daytime television securing the head writing position on “Where The Heart Is” with her future writing partner of nearly 25 years Paul Avila Mayer. That job lasted until the show’s cancellation in 1973.

1973-1975 was spent writing for Love of Life which got the attention of ABC.

In 1975 she began what was to become her best known and acclaimed work creating and head writing Ryan's Hope for ABC. She sold the show to ABC after skyrocketing costs, and was soon fired, rehired, fired then rehired again in 1987 until the shows final demise in 1989.

1990s

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In 1993, Labine returned to daytime as head writer of ABC's General Hospital. She brought the show much critical acclaim, and won her seventh Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Writing for her work on the show. She chose to depart the show in early 1996. During this time, she created a proposed General Hospital spin-off, Heart and Soul, about two families, one black, one white, both show business families. The black family was three generations of jazz musicians. Next door was a theatrical family. The show was not picked up by ABC or NBC; Wendy Riche's competing Port Charles was ABC's choice instead.

Labine co-wrote, with Judith Pinsker, the 1995 New York Times bestseller General Hospital tie-in novel Robin's Diary, based in the AIDS storyline between characters Stone Cates and Robin Scorpio.[3]

In 1996, Labine was offered the head writer role at As the World Turns but turned it down because she and her son Matthew Labine were trying to get HEART & SOUL [aka Union Place] on the air. "I had to turn it down because we were in the middle of that development. I said to Procter & Gamble, 'I am gratified by this offer, but if I have any chance at all...' I didn't think there was much chance but I thought it was worth a go to do our own show. And they were very lovely about it."

In late 1996, she was made head writer of ABC's One Life to Live because she had a year and a half left on her contract with ABC. She remained with the show until early 1998.

2000s

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Most recently, Labine had a short stint at CBS' Guiding Light. She was head writer of the show from 2000 through 2001. Labine shared the reins of GL with her children, Matthew Labine and Eleanor Labine. Rumors abounded throughout Labine's tenure at GL that she, executive producer Paul Rauch, and executive in charge of production Mary Alice Dwyer-Dobbin had frequent arguments about the show's direction.

At one point, it was announced in the soap press that the Labines were departing, only to have the announcement recanted a week later.[4] P&G did eventually replace the Labines the following year with writers Lloyd Gold and Christopher Dunn.

In November 2009, Labine gave WeLoveSoaps.net an exclusive interview during which she discussed her struggles with ABC during Ryan's Hope, her enjoyment of writing General Hospital, and her less enjoyable experiences on One Life to Live and Guiding Light. She discussed details about her aborted project, Union Place, and insights into her illustrious career.[5]

Death

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Labine died on November 11, 2016, at her home in Somers, Connecticut, at the age of 82. No cause of death was disclosed.[2]

Positions held

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Captain Kangaroo

  • Script writer: 1966-1967

Where the Heart Is

  • Co-head writer: 1971–1973
  • Script writer: 1970–1971

Love of Life

  • Co-head writer 1973–1975

Ryan's Hope

  • Co-Creator
  • Executive Producer: July 1975 – June 1982
  • Head writer: July 1975 – June 1982, January 1983 – November 1983, February 1987 – January 1989

General Hospital

  • Head writer: October 11, 1993 – March 1, 1996

One Life to Live

  • Head writer: December 1996 – April 1998

Another World

Guiding Light

  • Head writer: August 2000 – July 2001

Awards

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Daytime Emmy

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9 Wins

  • (1995; Outstanding Writing; General Hospital)
  • (1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983 & 1984, Outstanding Writing, Ryan's Hope)
  • (1977, 1979 Outstanding Drama Series, Ryan's Hope)

12 nominations

  • (1978, 1981 & 1982, Outstanding Drama Series, Ryan's Hope)

National Academy Of New York Arts And Sciences Silver Circle Recipient

  • 2000

Writers Guild of America

[edit]

Wins

  • 1995, General Hospital
  • 1994, General Hospital
  • 1980-1983, 1986–1989, Ryan's Hope

Nominations

  • 2001, Guiding Light
  • 1996, General Hospital
  • 1979, Ryan's Hope

Other

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Headwriter tenure

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References

[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Claire Labine

View on Grokipedia
from Grokipedia
Claire Labine was an American television writer and producer renowned for her influential contributions to daytime soap operas, most notably as the co-creator, head writer, and executive producer of the long-running ABC series Ryan's Hope. She earned nine Daytime Emmy Awards over her career for outstanding writing and drama series, recognized for her dramatic plots, strong character development, and memorable cliffhangers that kept viewers engaged. Born Claire Vaughn Wood on June 28, 1934, in Jacksonville, Florida, Labine initially wrote for children's television, including Captain Kangaroo, before entering daytime drama as a writer on Love of Life and later Where the Heart Is. In 1975, she co-created Ryan's Hope with Paul Avila Mayer, a series centered on an Irish-American family running a bar in New York City's Washington Heights neighborhood; the show ran for 13 years and garnered critical acclaim along with multiple Emmy wins for its writing and performances. Labine served in key creative roles throughout much of its run, often returning despite creative differences with network executives. Later in her career, she served as head writer for General Hospital from 1993 to 1996, where she introduced socially relevant storylines addressing topics such as AIDS, breast cancer, and cardiac transplants, often collaborating on scripts with her children Matthew and Eleanor. She also held head writer positions on Guiding Light and contributed to other soaps, leaving a legacy as an imaginative storyteller who inspired subsequent generations of writers in the genre. Labine died on November 8, 2016 at age 82.

Early life

Family background and childhood

Claire Labine was born Claire Vaughn Wood on June 28, 1934, in Jacksonville, Florida. She was the daughter of Newton Wood, a salesman, and Madeleine Beaulac. Limited biographical records exist regarding her early childhood beyond these familial and birthplace details.

Education

Claire Labine attended the University of Kentucky, where she majored in journalism. She did not complete her degree there, leaving instead to enroll at Columbia University's School of the Arts. At Columbia, she focused her studies on playwriting. After completing her education, she transitioned into professional writing for television.

Career

Early television writing

Claire Labine's first professional television writing position was as a script writer for the children's program Captain Kangaroo, where she worked from 1966 to 1968. After two years on the show, she was fired. Following her dismissal, Labine was at home nursing her young children when she became a devoted viewer of the CBS daytime soap opera Love of Life, as she explained in a 2009 interview: “I was a great fan of ‘Love of Life,’” she said, only because “when I was nursing my babies, they were too big to nurse and hold a book at the same time.” This period of watching the program while caring for her infants inspired her interest in the soap opera genre and led her to audition for writing work in daytime drama.

Soap opera entry: Love of Life and Where the Heart Is

Claire Labine entered the field of soap opera writing after her agent arranged an audition for the CBS daytime drama Love of Life, a series she had followed as a viewer while nursing her children. She was hired for the show and later served as head writer for 299 episodes. In 1971, Labine became head writer for the CBS soap opera Where the Heart Is. She also worked as a writer on the series for 7 episodes in 1973. These early head writing roles on CBS daytime dramas marked her initial prominence in the genre and positioned her for subsequent projects, including the creation of Ryan's Hope.

Ryan's Hope

Ryan's Hope was the most significant achievement of Claire Labine's career, a daytime soap opera she co-created with Paul Avila Mayer for ABC in 1975. The series centered on the Ryan family, an Irish-American clan who owned a bar in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, and explored generational conflicts between the immigrant parents' traditional values and their children's pursuit of professional careers in fields such as medicine, law, and journalism. Labine and Mayer served as executive producers from the show's premiere on July 7, 1975, until 1982, when Labine departed that role. She also functioned as head writer during several periods across the series' run. Her relationship with ABC was often contentious, resulting in her being fired twice as head writer over disagreements concerning casting and plotlines, though the network rehired her each time due to her importance to the program's identity. Ryan's Hope aired for 13 years, from July 7, 1975, to January 13, 1989, with Labine contributing to 3,126 episodes.

General Hospital

Claire Labine served as head writer of the ABC daytime soap opera General Hospital from 1993 to 1996. During this period, she collaborated on scripts with her son Matthew Labine and her daughter Eleanor Labine. Her tenure brought critical acclaim to the series through storylines that addressed significant social and health issues, heightening public awareness of breast cancer, cardiac transplants, and the AIDS epidemic. Key examples included Monica Quartermaine's battle with breast cancer, a heart transplant storyline involving B.J. Jones that explored organ donation and family grief, and the impactful AIDS storyline centered on young characters Robin Scorpio and Stone Cates. The AIDS storyline, which depicted the realities of HIV diagnosis and loss, inspired the 1995 tie-in novel Robin's Diary, which offered additional insight into Robin's experiences. Labine's work during this era earned General Hospital a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series Writing Team in 1995. This role marked her return to daytime television, drawing on her prior experience creating socially conscious narratives.

Guiding Light and other projects

Claire Labine contributed to several television movies in the 1990s by writing teleplays and stories. She provided the story and teleplay for The Bride in Black (1990), a CBS television film starring Susan Lucci. Labine wrote She Woke Up (1992), another TV movie, and supplied the teleplay for Star (1993). In 1996, she penned the teleplay for For Love Alone: The Ivana Trump Story, a CBS adaptation based on Ivana Trump's novel. In 2000, Labine returned to daytime soap operas as head writer and co-head writer for Guiding Light, a position she held until 2001. During this tenure, she was credited on 125 episodes. This marked her final major role in the genre before retiring. These later projects reflected a more selective phase in her career compared to her earlier extensive contributions to soap operas.

Personal life

Marriage and family

Claire Labine was married to Roland A. Labine Jr., though their marriage ended in divorce. She had three children: sons Matthew Labine and John Labine, and daughter Eleanor Labine. Labine was also survived by six grandchildren. While nursing her babies early in her career, Labine watched the soap opera Love of Life, later recalling in an interview that she enjoyed the show because "when I was nursing my babies, they were too big to nurse and hold a book at the same time." In 1993, as head writer on General Hospital, she collaborated on scripts with her son Matthew Labine and her daughter Eleanor Labine.

Awards and recognition

Death

Death and legacy

Claire Labine died on November 8, 2016, at her home in Somers, Connecticut, at the age of 82. Her son Matthew confirmed her death, stating that the cause had not yet been determined. She was survived by her daughter Eleanor Labine, sons Matthew Labine and John Labine, and six grandchildren. Labine is remembered as a pioneering figure in daytime soap opera writing, whose work emphasized character-driven drama, family-centered narratives, and the integration of social issues into serialized storytelling. Her tenure as head writer on General Hospital included storylines that heightened public awareness about breast cancer, cardiac transplants, and the AIDS epidemic. ABC described her as "an imaginative storyteller who inspired hope and sparked conversations through her stories and characters, paving the way for a new generation of writers who would follow in her footsteps." Her legacy endures through her influential contributions to the realism and social relevance of the genre, particularly via Ryan's Hope and her impact on subsequent daytime television narratives.
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