by Julianne Moore, who began her career playing the role of Frannie in the 1980s.) In Nancy's final appearances on the series, she is seen having breakfast with Casey and Alison, and then giving advice to Katie on coping with Brad's death. Nancy was quietly written out of the show by having her die in her sleep in her apartment and be found by her son Bob. Episodes that aired August 30 and August 31, 2010 dealt with her death, the former episode depicting news of the death and the latter serving as a memorial. Creation and casting Characterization Wagner began portraying Nancy in the first episode in 1956. Six months on, producer Irna Phillips sacked Wagner due to her dissatisfaction with the way that she poured coffee – an important task for a character who provided a sympathetic ear and a shoulder on which to cry. The character was later reinstated. In a 1968 New York Times interview, Wagner called Nancy Hughes "a tentpole character." "Nothing ever happens to Nancy," Wagner said. "She's the one the others come and talk to." However again in the 1980s, Wagner and on-screen husband Don MacLaughlin were relegated to recurring status by new producer, Mary-Ellis Bunim, who wanted to attract a younger audience. She voiced her displeasure at the situation in a 1981 Associated Press article, where she claimed she'd been given one line in three months worth of television. "There just hasn't been anything to Nancy's character. Anybody could read the lines I've been given," Wagner said. She and MacLaughlin returned as contract players in 1985. Wagner appeared on contract from April 2, 1956 to June 28, 1956; July 17, 1956 to April 1981, as recurring from April 1981 to March 1985, and again on contract from March 1985 until her death in the spring of 2010. Wagner highlighted in 1998 that the characters were now "destructive, mean, immoral, unattractive and selfish." "They care about nothing but themselves — me, me, me. That's a dead end. That's no life." She also wished her character hadn't receded into the background in later years while most of the plot developments happened to the younger characters. "I don't like the making of Nancy into only an extra figure at parties," she said. "She is too dynamic a person to be made into a ghost." Death When Wagner died in 2010, the show dedicated two shows