Despite the fact that the Forrester photographer was passed around like a hand-me-down sweater and once accidentally shagged the older woman at No. 3 — yes, accidentally; it happens! — he probably doesn’t belong on this list even as a bonus entry. But we really, really love this picture of him — which made us altogether rethink the concept of a lullaby.
“You want crazy? I’ll show ya crazy!” said the daughter of Thorne and Darla. Not literally. But she might as well have, before she went from prim and proper to armed and dangerous, landing herself in an early grave courtesy of a tire iron (and a rock).
Insert head-shake here. The Forrester scion at No. 7 is cool and all, but that isn’t — and, to be clear, never was — any reason to banish his oft-recast, perpetually-underused kid brother to the basement of the family’s gladrags high-rise.
Mixed are our feelings about the grandniece of the original Sally. We were always told that she was a strong, independent woman… yet she kept behaving like a desperate conniver who would’ve been happy to let a Richie Rich pay her way.
You don’t survive a bear attack on The Bold and the Beautiful and not gain yourself a reputation as a bit of a badass. So, uh, word to the wise, Quinn: Don’t count out Eric‘s fourth wife — ever.
Yeah, yeah, the original Sally Spectra’s gal Friday was meant to be the embodiment of a dumb-blonde joke. But she had the last laugh, making us care more when she passed away than we ever imagined we would.
Whether he was forbidden fruit (during Drew Tyler Bell’s stint in the role), pretty, pretty eye candy (during Adam Gregory and Pierson Fode’s) or a psycho for the ages (welcome aboard, Matthew Atkinson), Ridge and Taylor’s son held our attention.
We’d say that Alley Mills’ off-kilter alter ego was the antithesis of her ball-busting older sibling… except for the fact that, sans her meds, Eric’s sweet-hearted sister-in-law was the sorta nutso from whom you’d be reluctant to accept so much as a lemon bar.
The biological father of the lady killer at No. 7 (and, for that matter, No. 14), the late Joseph Mascolo’s character was a shipping magnate who never failed to float our boat.
Too horrific a monster for The Young and the Restless alone, Lauren Fenmore’s archenemy crossed over to The Bold and the Beautiful, only to ultimately… wait, what?!? Become a waitress at Il Giardino? That can’t be right… can it?
Sean Kanan’s sleazy alter ego did the impossible: made us believe that he cared, really cared for Brooke… even after he took her daughter’s virginity while on speakerphone! Top that… well, everyone else!
Her fondness for boy toys nothwithstanding, we always saw Nick’s mother, checkered past and all, as the heiress apparent to Stephanie’s throne. Just please, whatever you do, don’t tell the character at No. 17; the last thing we’d want to do is make her mad!
You know a character has made a real impact when, as Joanna Johnson’s virtuous one was, she was given a twin sister after being killed off and, years after that, a namesake niece to boot.
Don’t. Just don’t you dare call Darin Brooks’ character the poor man’s Liam. He’s flip-flopped half as much as his half brother and had us rooting for him every misstep of the way!
Is Jennifer Finnigan’s (and then Ashley Jones’) character a doctor dedicated to healing? A fashion designer happy to hide behind the alias Madame X? We’re still not sure and, therefore, fascinated!
If anyone’s a real threat to the mantle that’s long been carried by the character at No. 1, it’s Rena Sofer’s on-screen persona, a jewelry designer who’s harder than any metal she’s ever welded into shape!
Since the CBS soap’s debut, John McCook hasn’t just established the Forrester family’s patriarch as a (much-needed) voice of reason, he’s cemented his rep as a lady killer who earned his nickname of “honey bear” the fun way!
One of daytime’s first frontburner transgender characters, Karla Mosley’s alter ego broke barriers and paved the way for… well, we’re still waiting to see, actually, and would happily settle for a storyline for Rick’s ex-wife!
Ahoy, matey! Once Jack Wagner’s sailor dropped anchor in the City of Angels, one storyline after another set sail, to the point that he became recognized as a more than viable alternative to his half brother at No. 7.
Bobbie Eakes’ songbird spent the bulk of her long run on The Bold and the Beautiful singing the blues, thanks to the fact that her relationship with true love Thorne was, in the best of times, on-again/off-again.
A portrait of ambition, Eric and Brooke’s son has always had his eye on the prize. Trouble is, that eye, as focused by Jacob Young, Justin Torkildsen and Kyle Lowder, has wandered to one wife/girlfriend after another after another.
For decades, we liked Hunter Tylo’s shrink as a heroine who always got the short end of the stick. But we’ve come to love her as the woman scorned who, if she hasn’t completely lost her marbles, has certainly misplaced some of ’em!
Our Hope For the Future? More of this sweetheart, a born-to-be-distressed damsel who’s striven to take the high road, whether she’s been played by Kim Matula or Annika Noelle.
It’s almost impossible to believe that anything ever happens on the West Coast since it lost its foremost scheme queen, the mischievous imp that Adrienne Frantz made so pivotal, she couldn’t be contained by one soap opera.
Despite his (well-earned) reputation as a waffler, we couldn’t love Scott Clifton’s character any more than he does Hope. Or Steffy. Then Hope again. Then Steffy. And that once, Ivy. But mostly Hope. And Steffy…
Whether he was being played by Ronn Moss or Thorsten Kaye, the dressmaker, to borrow a diss from the character at No. 6, has always been in vogue as far as we — and the ladies of L.A. — have been concerned.
The Young and the Restless’ loss was most definitely The Bold and the Beautiful’s gain when Don Diamont was killed off as Brad, thus freeing him up to bring to life a playboy who’s since become one of soapdom’s most infamous.
The term “red-hot mama” was all but coined for Jacqueline MacInnes Wood’s fierce and feisty alter ego, a cool rider with an exterior that’s as tough as leather and a heart that — despite how Liam treats it! — is as delicate as lace.
Since the formidable Heather Tom stepped into the role of the supposed “ugly duckling” of the Logan family, the heroine has spread her wings and taken flight in ways that neither her sisters nor we dreamt she would when she was first introduced!
The so-called “slut from the Valley” has come a long way, baby! But — thank goodness! — Katherine Kelly Lang’s character remains a slave to her (cough) destiny, as much passion’s plaything as she ever was.
The late, great Darlene Conley’s larger-than-life character may have trafficked in knockoff fashions, but her portrayer was 100-percent original — a camp classic whose spirit has proven to be impossible to recycle!
Never in the history of daytime television, much less the history of The Bold and the Beautiful, has any character stung quite as hard as three-time Emmy winner Susan Flannery’s queen bee. Eric can hang whomever’s portrait he wants in the living room, but for our money, that space now and always shall belong to his first wife.
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