The prime-time televised soap opera Peyton Place aired on ABC from 1964 to 1969. The storyline revolved around the lives of a large cast of characters living in the small fictional town of Peyton Place. At the peak of its popularity viewers could watch the program three times a week. Listen in to a few bars of the show’s theme.
Peyton Place’s thirty-minute episodes involved intrigue, convoluted relationships, and complicated storylines. Like all good soap operas, there were reformed convicts, illegitimate children, and love triangles. Peyton Place was unusual in its frank treatment of infidelity and sex, which were taboo subjects for television during that era.
Visit UW’s American Heritage Center to learn more about Peyton Place in the Walter Doniger papers.