Peyton Place is an American prime-time soap opera that aired on ABC in half-hour episodes from September 15, 1964, to June 2, 1969. Loosely based upon the 1956 novel of the same name by Grace Metalious, the series was preceded by a 1957 film adaptation. A total of 514 episodes were broadcast, in black-and-white from 1964 to 1966 and in color from 1966 to 1969. The first color episode is episode #268. At the show's peak, ABC ran three new episodes a week. The program was produced by 20th Century Fox Television. A number of guest stars appeared in the series for extended periods, among them Dan Duryea, Susan Oliver, Leslie Nielsen, Gena Rowlands, and Lee Grant, who won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Drama for her role of tough-as-nails Stella Chernak. The series served as the springboard for such performers as Mia Farrow, Ryan O'Neal, Barbara Parkins, Christopher Connelly, David Canary, Mariette Hartley, and Lana Wood. History With Peyton Place, ABC hoped to bring the success of the British serial Coronation Street to America. Inspired by that serial, it was decided that it should be aired in prime time. Producer Paul Monash wanted to launch a revival of Grace Metalious' novel of the same name. He refused to acknowledge it as a soap opera, calling it a 'high-class anthology drama'. An hour-long pilot was shot in 1962. Originally, the Cross family from the novel was included, but when Irna Phillips was contracted to change the pilot, she decided to scrap it. Various disagreements between the makers ensued, and the official pilot was not aired until September 15, 1964. When the series premiered in late 1964, it marked the birth of the prime time American soap opera. The early stories were adapted from the 1956 book and 1957 film of the same name, although some principal character names, backstories and occupations were changed or simply eliminated. The time setting was changed from the early 1940s (of the novel and film) to the present day, and the town's location, which had previously been unidentified, was established as being in the commonwealth of Massachusetts in the fourth episode. Some sensational plot lines from the novel (like incest) were replaced with less controversial themes (like teen pregnancy). The series, nevertheless, immediately was criticized for the sexual themes with which it dealt. Peyton Place