World, had aired its finale on the same date in 1976. After initially filling the slot with reruns of CHiPs for a few months, NBC experimented with other programming in the 3:00 timeslot; two 60-minute game shows occupied the slot over a period of nearly two years. The first of these, Fantasy, ran for thirteen months and was replaced by The Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour. When the latter ended its run in July 1984, Santa Barbara premiered in the 3:00 timeslot; aside from running for nine years, it achieved better ratings and critical acclaim than Texas ever did. Santa Barbara was also the last network program NBC aired in that slot, as NBC returned the hour to its affiliates after the show ended in 1993. Shortly after the cancellation of Texas and The Doctors, NBC turned its focus back to game shows and improving the struggling but still higher-rated soaps Days of Our Lives and Another World in early 1983. The daytime block led off with the Jim Perry-helmed revival of Sale of the Century at 10:30 am in January 1983. The 11:00 slot went back to Wheel of Fortune, which Texas had displaced with its move to the mornings, and the 11:30 slot was filled by Hit Man, which introduced audiences to Peter Tomarken. The noon slot, which The Doctors previously occupied, was taken by Just Men!, hosted by Betty White. Of the shows that premiered that day, Sale of the Century lasted until March 1989, but Hit Man and Just Men! each lasted only 13 weeks. Beverlee McKinsey Texas was used as a starring vehicle for Daytime Emmy-nominated Beverlee McKinsey, whose Another World character of Iris Carrington, penned in 1972 by Harding Lemay on the mother show as the rich, spoiled daughter of publishing magnate Mackenzie Cory, was made the focal point of the series. McKinsey was given the distinction of having a starring credit on the opening of the show. Narrator Ken Roberts announced at the end of the theme song, "Texas, starring Beverlee McKinsey," grazed with an outside picture of the iconic actress. However, she left Texas 16 months after its debut. Texas was also the first daytime soap opera to air hour-long episodes from its inception, as all the other hour-long soaps airing at the time had expanded from 30 minutes. Noteworthy, the multiple Emmy Award-winning Santa Barbara, which took over the former Texas time