Peter Ames was the lead male character in the now-defunct American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 soap opera

Soap opera

A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...

, The Secret Storm

The Secret Storm

The Secret Storm is a soap opera which ran on CBS from February 1, 1954 to February 8, 1974. The series was created by Roy Winsor, who also created the long-running soap operas Search for Tomorrow and Love of Life...

. Although played by many actors, Peter Hobbs was the actor most identified in the role.

Sudden widower

Peter was the father of three children who had suddenly lost his wife, Ellen

Ellen Ames

Ellen Tyrell Ames was a fictional character in American Soap Opera The Secret Storm. She was played by Ellen Cobb-Hill.-The catalyst of the Storm:...

 in a tragic car accident. She died of her injuries at Woodbridge (New York) Hospital. he tried his hardest to be both mother and father to his three children. His oldest, Susan Ames Dunbar, became the mother figure, and also became somewhat bossy; his son, Jerry was so angry with the driver who took his mother's life that he nearly killed him, and landed in reform school. Amy

Amy Ames

Amy Ames Rysdale Britton Kincaid was a character in the long-running and now cancelled American Soap opera, The Secret Storm She was played, with a few breaks, here and there, by actress Jada Rowland, who grew up in the role, a rarity for any soap....

, the youngest, was worried, and was the focus, as everyone tried to make sure she was all right.

He had always been loved by Pauline Rysdale

Pauline Rysdale

Pauline Tyrell Harris Rysdale, known more familiarly as "Aunt Pauline", was a character in the now-defunct American Soap Opera, The Secret Storm. She was played by actress Haila Stoddard.-Jilted sister:...

, his former sister-in-law, whom he had been engaged to before eventually eloping with Ellen. Pauline and Susan worked overtime to deflect the attention of any women who were interested in Peter. He did remarry a woman named Myra Lake (June Graham), who was one of Amy's teachers, but the marriage dissolved because the two families didn't like each other, although Amy considered her a mother figure.

His third and most successful marriage was with widow Valerie Hill Ames

Valerie Hill Ames

Valerie Hill Ames Northcote was a fictional character on the now-defunct American Soap Opera, The Secret Storm. She was played from 1961 until the show's end in 1974, by actress Lori March.-The shelter for the Ames family:...

. They were happy for quite a number of years until he succumbed to a heart attack while he was on a business trip.