Family Passions
Encyclopedia
Family Passions was the first hour long television serial produced in Canada
and Germany
. It was produced and distributed by Baton Broadcasting System and ZDF
between 1993 and 1994. In 1996, BBS stations replayed the entire series in a half hour format.
when a jewel thief and his lover (who had been in a coma for seven years and wanted revenge on the women her husband had married in the meantime) stole the Dimarco diamond from a museum in that country.
Another milestone of this show was the exploration of a lesbian
couple attempting to adopt a daughter whose biological mother was deemed unfit because of her addiction to cocaine. Their attempts were thwarted when the child's biological father (who had been working as their butler) intervened. This couple also frequently shared on screen kisses. When the ABC Daytime
serial All My Children
did this ten years later, it made international news.
Family Passions featured popular soap actors like Kin Shriner
, Roscoe Born
, Andrew Jackson
and Gordon Thomson as well as many Canadian actors including future The Walking Dead
actress Laurie Holden
, future Star Wars
actor Hayden Christensen
, Barry Flatman
, Jennifer Dale
and Von Flores
. Also German actors like Dietmar Schönherr
, Raphael Wilczek, Adelheid Arndt and Tina Ruland.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It was produced and distributed by Baton Broadcasting System and ZDF
ZDF
Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen , ZDF, is a public-service German television broadcaster based in Mainz . It is run as an independent non-profit institution, which was founded by the German federal states . The ZDF is financed by television licence fees called GEZ and advertising revenues...
between 1993 and 1994. In 1996, BBS stations replayed the entire series in a half hour format.
Storylines
To assist with bringing in a German audience, the show went on location to HamburgHamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
when a jewel thief and his lover (who had been in a coma for seven years and wanted revenge on the women her husband had married in the meantime) stole the Dimarco diamond from a museum in that country.
Another milestone of this show was the exploration of a lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
couple attempting to adopt a daughter whose biological mother was deemed unfit because of her addiction to cocaine. Their attempts were thwarted when the child's biological father (who had been working as their butler) intervened. This couple also frequently shared on screen kisses. When the ABC Daytime
ABC Daytime
ABC Daytime is a programming block on the ABC Network which has historically encompassed soap operas, game shows and talk shows.-Schedule:...
serial All My Children
All My Children
All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
did this ten years later, it made international news.
Family Passions featured popular soap actors like Kin Shriner
Kin Shriner
Kin Shriner is an American actor, best known for playing Scott Baldwin on both daytime serials General Hospital and Port Charles .-Personal life:...
, Roscoe Born
Roscoe Born
Roscoe Born is an American actor, born in Topeka, Kansas, who is best known for playing a variety of roles over the years in successful television shows, most recently in The Young and the Restless.-Career:...
, Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson (actor)
Andrew Jackson is a Canadian actor.Jackson has played major roles in various television shows and movies, including All My Children, Shadowbuilder, Millennium Man, Catch A Falling Star, Wind At My Back - 5th season, Deadly Betrayal, The Collector, Kyle XY, and Sea Wolf just to name a few.He is...
and Gordon Thomson as well as many Canadian actors including future The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead is a monthly black-and-white US comic book series published by Image Comics beginning in 2003. The comic was created by writer Robert Kirkman and artist Tony Moore, who was replaced by Charlie Adlard from issue #7 onward, although Moore continued to do the covers through issue...
actress Laurie Holden
Laurie Holden
Heather Laurie Holden is an American-Canadian actress and human rights activist. She is perhaps best known for her roles as Marita Covarrubias in The X-Files, Adele Stanton on The Majestic, Cybil Bennett in Silent Hill, Amanda Dumfries in The Mist, Olivia Murray in The Shield, and Andrea in The...
, future Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
actor Hayden Christensen
Hayden Christensen
Hayden Christensen is a Canadian actor. He appeared in Canadian television programs when he was young, then diversified into American television in the late 1990s. He moved on to minor acting roles before being praised for his role of Sam in Life as a House, for which he was nominated for a Golden...
, Barry Flatman
Barry Flatman
Barry Flatman is a Canadian actor. He has appeared in many film and television roles such as Rideau Hall in which he plays a fictional Prime Minister of Canada. His other works include My Name is Tanino, The Company, Saw 3, Just Friends, H2O, and most recently in the 2008 A&E's miniseries The...
, Jennifer Dale
Jennifer Dale
Jennifer Dale, née Ciurluini , is a Canadian television, dancer, and actress.- Early life :She is the sister of Canadian actress Cynthia Dale...
and Von Flores
Von Flores
Von Flores is the stage name of Valentin Andres Tanga Flores IV, a Filipino-Canadian actor. Flores has enjoyed leading roles in a number of television productions, including the series Kung Fu: The Legend Continues and the Atlantis Films TekWar, TekJustice and TekLords TV movies...
. Also German actors like Dietmar Schönherr
Dietmar Schönherr
Dietmar Schönherr is an Austrian film actor. He has appeared in 120 films since 1944. He is famous for playing the role of Major Cliff Allister McLane in the German science fiction series Raumpatrouille....
, Raphael Wilczek, Adelheid Arndt and Tina Ruland.
Main Crew
Jørn Winther http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0936037/, Bruce Neckels http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0623942/, and Thom RacinaThom Racina
-Personal:He hails from Kenosha, Wisconsin, went to school in Albuquerque and Chicago, where he got a MFA in Theatre Arts and Directing.He is close friends with Sally Sussman Morina.-Positions held:Another World*Breakdown Writer: 1988*Script Writer: 1987...