The Edge of Night, one of the top ten longest running soap operas in daytime television history, debuted on April 2, 1956 on CBS, along with As the World Turns. The two shows were the first soaps to air for a full half-hour on a major television network, and the enthusiastic audience response marked a new trend in the orientation of popular television. The Edge of Night's original time slot, 4:30 p.m., inspired the show's title, but the title reflected the content, which was at times graphically violent. While some television critics, including the redoubtable TV Guide, have argued that The Edge of Night was technically a serialized melodrama rather than a soap opera, over its almost three-decade run the show turned to themes most commonly associated with soap opera drama: sex, romance, and family turmoil.

Set in Monticello, a turbulent midwestern town...