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AMC's original beloved Ruth Martin, Mary Fickett has died!

By Michael Fairman

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Courtesy/ABC

Courtesy/ABC

What unbelievable timing, and with such a heavy heart tonight, On-Air On-Soaps has learned of the passing of All My Children’s original heroine, and lead actress, Mary Fickett!  For over 26 years, Fickett played the role of beloved Nurse Ruth Martin.  Mary made a brief and final return to the series in 2000.  The role has since been played by Lee Meriwether.

At the height of the Vietnam War in the show’s 1972-73 season, Fickett delivered a touching monologue expressing her character’s doubts about the war and fears about her drafted son. Ruth’s speech resonated with millions of viewers across America with the same doubts and fears. It also won Fickett an Emmy in 1973, the first ever awarded to a performer in a daytime drama. With Ruth and her doctor husband as the drama’s tent-pole characters, All My Children became the top-rated daytime TV drama in 1978. Ray MacDonnell played the role of Dr. Joe Martin, Fickett’s TV husband.

Fickett “never really acted,” MacDonnell said in 2008. “She was just a wonderful human being and a delight to work with. She was very bright and always cheerful and inspired natural emotions in me and her fellow actors.”

According to Fredericksburg.com, “Mary Fickett, a New York actress whose career spanned 50 years of radio, television, stage and movies, died Thursday at her home in Callao, Virginia in Northumberland County. She was 83.”

All My Children is said to now be planning to dedicate the upcoming September 21st episode to Mary, two days before the show ends its network television run. What irony that as AMC winds down its incredible journey and legacy on daytime, that its original star passed away Thursday night before its conclusion.

On-Air On-Soaps thoughts and prayers are with Mary’s family, friends and longtime colleagues.

Now watch a vintage clip from AMC when Ruth and Joe deal with discovering the death of Grandma Kate Martin and much more.

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There was an article a few years ago, she was bedridden and living with her daughter. Someone asked for happy birthday wishes be sent to her and they would bring them to her daughter. I sent/posted mine. I hope she did receive them all ultimately.

This is something else that she passed away near the time her show is going dark. RIP Mary Fickett.

Very sad news…she has been missed on AMC for years (no offense to Lee Meriweather). I’m sure Fran Heflin gave her a big hug from all of us…

So sorry to hear this.Really loved her acting.RIP

I am so sorry but it seems all most karma that she has left this earth.I watched faithfully and just adored her.Thanks for letting us know an angle has gone to the angels.Wonderful actress so real being a nurse and her family so important to her.

omg!! she was just awesome in the role of ruth martin – my heart & prayers definitely go out to her family & loved ones……..

What a gift she gave us for almost 30 years.
She was an incredibly important part of AMC for me from the very first day. I don’t know why, but for some reason, that actress and that character always had a great appeal for me.

In Chicago, where I’d moved from Iowa in 1972, I actually got to meet her. A friend who worked at a department store, Carson Pierie Scott, called me at the bank I was working at to tell me that RUTH MARTIN was on her floor!! I got permission for an early lunch and ran right over there. She was as nice as I thought she’d be. How exciting it was to meet her, and such graciousness….

In all her interviews, she comes off as just about as nice as her character.

R.I.P. indeed.

Actress Mary Fickett, who twice appeared on ‘The Edge of Night,’ and was married to Edge long-time director Allen Fristoe, has died in Fredericksburg, Va., at the age of 83.
Mary Fickett’s passing now makes four of the most recently cancelled shows have suffered losses in their professional families. Days before the final airring of GL, Tom O’Rourke, aka Dr. Justin Marler, died. O’Rourke’s passing was ironic, as his character was the biological father of Phillip Spaulding, and days before GL’s final episode, the man who had raised Phillip, Alan Spaulding, died (played by Ron Raines). As we all know, on May 1, 2010, ATWT lost its matriarch Helen Wagner (Nancy), just weeks before taping its final show on June 23. Just a couple of weeks ago, longtime OLTL director David Pressman died at the age of 97, and, now, sadly, Mary Fickett, of AMC, has died. She was TWICE on the Edge of Night, and her third and most recent husband Allen Fristoe, was Edge’s director. He passed away a couple of years ago. My condolences to Mary’s family.

Rest in peace, Mary. We love you & Ruth very much!

Oh what sad news….Rip Mary and God speed.
Your good works on AMC will never be forgotten.

Sad news….as with Helen Wagner (ATWT) she didn’t make it until the end (of her show’s run).

I always liked Ruth my deepest condolences to her family.

Mary was as All My Children is, part of our family. She seemed like a sweet, genuine person. My deepest sympathy to your family Mary. May God grant them peace. Thank you for being a part of our lives for 30 years!

I am so sorry to read this. I grew up with this wonderful woman , watching her daily. She was like family. Rest In Peace Mary. We love you always!

All My Children

‘All My Children’ Movie Writers for Lifetime Revealed: Ron Carlivati, Jamey Giddens and Leo Richardson

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This week began and as reported with a spotlight article on Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos and how their production entity, Milojo, has been teeing up the All My Children reboot with Lifetime.

The L.A. Times featured the married couple, co-hosts of Live with Kelly and Mark, and former All My Children cast members (where they met and fell in love) about their plans to bring two All My Children movies to Lifetime and how they are working with the Agnes Nixon estate to make it come to fruition,

On Wednesday, it was revealed by Daytime Confidential, that All My Children reboot producer, Andrew Stearn handpicked none other than Ron Carlivati (ex-head writer, One Life to Live, General Hospital and Days of our Lives) and Jamey Giddens (who is the new co-head writer of The Young and the Restless, following his tenures on the writing teams of Beyond the Gates and Days of Our Lives), as the two scribes who will bring the first of two of Kelly and Mark’s All My Children movies to the page.

Photo: IMDb

RON CARLIVATI AND JAMEY GIDDENS CONFIRM THEIR BOARDING THE ALL MY CHILDREN MOVIE PROJECT

The second installment is said to be written by primetime writer Leo Richardson whose credits include: Star, Katy Keene and more recently the Penn Badgley (ex-Phillip Chancellor IV, The Young and the Restless) starring series, You.

Richardson also wrote for three years on the U.K.’s long-running soap, EastEnders. All My Children revival fans will recall Richardson’s name was attached as the writer for the first incarnation of the All My Children movies, entitled, Pine Valley.

Ron Carlivati took to X and confirmed he is indeed boarding the All My Children movie project. Carlivati shared, “So excited to share this news! Thanks to Andrew Stearn, Kelly Ripa, Mark Consuelos, Albert Bianchini and the Agnes Nixon estate for entrusting Jamey Giddens and me with the first of two planned All My Children movies for Lifetime! Stay tuned!”

Photo: Jeremy Smith/imageSPACE

Jamey Giddens confirmed DC’s announcement by taking to his account on X and expressing, “I’ve been booked and busy in 2026. Thanks to Andrew Stearn, the Agnes Nixon estate, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos for entrusting Ron Carlivati, and me with the first of two planned All My Children movies for Lifetime!”

Some fans seemed to question how Giddens could be writing for the first All My Children movie at Lifetime, when he is the new co-head writer at The Young and the Restless with Dan O’Connor. Jamey answered that head on via X and explained, “We turned in our All My Children script months ago. My sole focus as of this past Monday, is Genoa City, Wisconsin! #YR”

ERICA KANE, MARIA SANTOS AND HAYLEY AND MATEO SANTOS TO APPEAR IN THE ALL MY CHILDREN MOVIE REVIVAL?

In the planned stories, Susan Lucci’s Erica Kane and Eva LaRue’s Maria Santos will be two characters whose lives we will get to see for the first time since the series was canceled by ABC back in 2011 after 41 years on the air. As well, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos confirmed they will make brief appearances on-screen; one could assume as Hayley and Mateo Santos.

“It’d be wonderful to give the fans something that they’ve been yearning for so many years,” shared Mark Consuelos to the LA Times. “All My Children gave me my family. I met my wife there. It gave me my start in the business. It gave us so much. It would be a dream to be able to give back.”

So, what do you think of Ron Carlivati and Jamey Giddens getting nod to write the All My Children movie #1 script and Leo Richardson #2? Weigh-in via the comment section below.

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‘All My Children’ Revival Updates: Lifetime EVP Speaks on Why Proposed Movies are Great Fit, Mark Consuelos Wants To ‘Give Back’ to Fans

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The All My Children revival via movies at Lifetime is still in the works from former series stars and marrieds, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos, through their production company, Milojo.

The co-hosts of Live with Kelly and Mark were featured this week in a Los Angeles Times article which detailed their efforts to bring some of the citizens of Pine Valley back to your screens.

As previously reported, and reaffirmed by the L.A. Times, the All My Children movies will be set in the present day and focus on what beloved characters such as Erica Kane (Susan Lucci) and Maria Santos Gray (Eva LaRue) are doing now. In addition, Kelly Ripa confirmed that she and Mark Consuelos will also appear on screen briefly most likely appearing in their signature soap roles as Hayley and Mateo Santos.

Mark Consuelos, Kelly Ripa, All My Children

Photo: ABC

ALL MY CHILDREN MOVIES BRING NOSTALGIA THAT CAN BE MADE TO FEEL NEW AGAIN

Elaine Frontain Bryant, executive vice president and head of programming for A&E, Lifetime, and Lifetime Movie Network said of the All My Children reboot, “Lifetime is always interested in shows that kind of tap into a powerful nostalgia that can be made fresh for today’s audience. There’s a whole generation of women that have missed these stories and these characters.”

As for working with Kelly and Mark on the Lifetime movie versions of the soap, “They’re exactly the kind of partners you want at a brand,” expressed Bryant. “They’re trusted voices because every day they’re talking to their audience, which, a lot of times, is our audience. They bring a real credibility and have an authentic point of view. You meet Kelly and Mark and kind of what you see is what you get, and I think they bring that same authenticity to their development standards.”

Albert Bianchini, executive producer for Milojo, says he knows All My Children is so wildly popular with the fans of daytime. That was punctuated when seeing it in person, and how the energy was off the charts back in January of 2025 when Kelly participated along with Susan Lucci, former head writer, Lorraine Broderick and casting director, Judy Blye Wilson in a conversation with Andy Cohen at the 92nd Street Y in New York City.

Susan Lucci, Kelly Ripa, Andy Cohen

© Steven Bergman/AFF-USA.COM Credit: AFF/Alamy Live News

“I’ve never seen a crowd like that in my life. People were lined up around the block, recalled the Bianchini.  “Everyone wanted to know, ‘When is (All My Children) coming back? We want more.’  We got to see that in real life and Kelly got to feel it in real life, and it made so much sense. I just know that the minute it gets out in the world, people will want more and more and more. There’s just a love there.”

Kelly Ripa added that they are, “working closely with Bob and Sarah Nixon, who are also serving as producers.” She recalled, “She (Agnes Nixon) was so far ahead of her time. She covered topics that weren’t being covered. It was extraordinary the audiences that the show drew, and she served them real stories that were affecting Americans across the country but weren’t necessarily being represented anywhere.”

“It’d be wonderful to give the fans something that they’ve been yearning for so many years,” shared Mark Consuelos. “All My Children gave me my family. I met my wife there. It gave me my start in the business. It gave us so much. It would be a dream to be able to give back.”

THE CANCELLATION AND STOPS AND STARTS OF ALL MY CHILDREN REBOOTS

All My Children aired on ABC from 1970 to 2011. It got a second chance at life when Prospect Park resurrected the show and brought it to The OnLine Network and Hulu for one season in 2013.

Recently, the series made a return through the estate of Agnes Nixon and is streaming internationally on BEONDTV and through their partnership with PlutoTV Canada with episodes starting in 1995. Fans hope original episodes will some day soon be available in the U.S. as well, but that could prove more difficult since ABC owns the rights to the episodes stateside.

Now 13 years later, while there is no word yet on a definitive production start date to the two movies at Lifetime, all the people involved seemed determined to make it come to life.

So, what do you think of the executive vice-president of Lifetime and LMN being enthusiastic about Kelly and Mark’s All My Children movie revivals? Are you wanting to see this come to fruition? Kelly and Mark seem to have made this a very high priority.  Do you hope that by 2027 we might be able to get this to the finish the line and into production? Weigh-in via the comment section.

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‘All My Children’ Episodes to Stream on Pluto TV Canada

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Starting on May 1, All My Children fans in Canada will be able to see classic episodes of the beloved former ABC soap opera when they stream on Pluto TV Canada. 

Pluto TV picked-up the All My Children Channel that the Nixon family has created in partnership with BEONDTV +. The show which aired for 41 years on ABC and ended on the network in 2011, had so many memorable storylines and characters; the least of which is the enduring run of Erica Kane played by soap icon, Susan Lucci.

As previously reported, starting with episodes from the year 1995, which was the 25th anniversary of the soap. Pluto TV Canada viewers will be able to catch 8 episodes on repeat per day. With the success of the venture, the Nixons are hopeful that they will bring viewers many more years of the show to come.

Photo: ABC

Sarah Nixon, producer, shared with Michael Fairman TV exclusively, “We are thrilled that Pluto TV has launched All My Children in Canada! Let’s hope the engagement from our incredibly loyal fans across the border will encourage ABC to bring it to the U.S.!  We share what Aggie (Agnes Nixon) always felt, that it is the enthusiasm and love from the fans that has kept this legacy beloved and relevant – to this day!”

In addition, 0ne week ago, during Susan Lucci’s visit to Los Angeles promoting her book La Lucci, she was joined by her former Pine Valley castmates, Rebecca Budig (ex-Greenlee, AMC, now Taylor, B&B) and Eva LaRue (ex-Maria, AMC) and the trio posed for a pic. At that time, LaRue shared via Instagram, “NEW All My Children channel streaming classic episodes 24/7 now on Pluto TV Canada! Fingers crossed to watch soon on Pluto US.”

That was also confirmed this week by TV Watercooler’s Jeevan Brar who took to X and expressed,The All My Children channel begins streaming this Friday, May 1 on Pluto TV Canada.

So, Canadian viewers, excited about Pluto TV’s All My Children channel? United States fans, hopeful from Sarah’s message that perhaps soon, we can see the beloved soap once again as well? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

 

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