Megan McTavish (born April 2, 1949,

Elgin, Illinois Elgin ( ) is a city in Cook and Kane counties in the northern part of the U.S. state of Illinois. Elgin is located northwest of Chicago, along the Fox River. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 114,797, the seventh-larg ...

) is

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

television actress and

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio drama ...

writer. McTavish is best known for several head writing stints on ''

All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 2013, via Hulu, Hulu Plus, and ...

''.

Early career

Before becoming a writer, McTavish was a Chicago-based stage actress. She played Penelope in the

National Radio Theater The National Radio Theater was a non-profit independent producer of radio plays created in Chicago by Yuri Rasovsky and Michelle M. Faith. The company produced a radio drama anthology series called ''The National Radio Theater of Chicago'', whic ...

's Peabody Award-winning radio dramatization of Homer's ''Odyssey'' (1980). On television, McTavish broke into the

industry as an actress; she played Lola Fontaine on ''

Guiding Light ''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the third longest-running drama in television in American history. ''Guiding Light'' a ...

'' from 1983 to 1984.

Writing

McTavish began her writing career as a staff writer on the Procter and Gamble Productions' ''Texas''. (The show was notable for allowing actors to contribute as writers; its final head writer,

Pam Long Pamela K. Long is an American writer and executive producer. Long won several Emmys for her work on CBS soap opera ''Guiding Light'' from 1983 to 1990. She was also writer and executive producer on the NBC film ''Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Color ...

, had been portraying the front-burner role of Ashley). McTavish worked as a staff writer for the company's ''

''. McTavish was head writer of several shows. She was at ''

'' from 1995 to 1996, at ''

One Life to Live ''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes ...

'' from 1999 to 2001, and at ''

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the longest-running American soap opera in production, and the second in American history after '' ...

'' from 2001 to 2002. However, she is best known for three separate stints at ''

''. McTavish was mentored by ''All My Children'' creator

Agnes Nixon Agnes Nixon ( Eckhardt; December 10, 1922 – September 28, 2016) was an American television writer and producer, and the creator of the ABC soap operas ''One Life to Live'', ''All My Children'', as well as ''Loving'' and its spin-off '' The Ci ...

and her 1992 ascension to

head writer A head writer is a person who oversees the team of writers on a television or radio series. The title is common in the soap opera genre, as well as with sketch comedies and talk shows that feature monologues and comedy skits. In fictional comedy o ...

was reported in the press as a change of the guard. McTavish wrote for ''AMC'' until 1995, and returned for two additional stints, from 1997 to 1999 and from 2003 to 2007.

Accomplishments and criticisms

McTavish's first stint on ''All My Children'' was her most critically and commercially successful. McTavish updated some of the existing characters and introduced new ones. She wrote several sweeping umbrella stories over the years, most notably a story where Pine Valley is hit by a tornado. During her third run as head writer, she penned a baby-swap story involving two of the show's young ingenues,

Bianca Montgomery Bianca Montgomery is a fictional character from the American daytime drama ''All My Children''. Until Eden Riegel assumed the role, portraying the character from July 2000 to January 2010, the character was portrayed solely by child actresses: La ...

and Babe Carey. She created several popular characters, including

Ryan Lavery Ryan Lavery is a fictional character from the American daytime drama ''All My Children'', as portrayed by Cameron Mathison from 1998 to 2002 and from 2003 to 2011. He has a daughter with ex-wife Annie Lavery, a son with Kendall Hart, and is marri ...

during her second stint in 1998 and

Kendall Hart Kendall Hart is a fictional character from ''All My Children'', an American soap opera on the ABC network. The character was portrayed by Sarah Michelle Gellar from February 24, 1993, to July 3, 1995, and by Alicia Minshew from January 2002 unti ...

in 1993, who were still cornerstones of the show until its series end. McTavish was criticized for various plot-driven stories during her tenures at ''All My Children''. The 2003 Bianca rape storyline incited controversy when viewers and critics debated the storyline as an attempt by the writers to avoid onscreen physical intimacy between characters Bianca and

Lena Kundera Lena Kundera and Bianca Montgomery are fictional characters from the American daytime drama ''All My Children''. Commonly referred to by the portmanteau "Lianca" (for Lena and Bianca), they were the first lesbian couple on an American soap opera. ...

, as well as Bianca seemingly being punished for being a

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

. She was criticized for rewriting history, such as the reversal of the landmark story where central character

Erica Kane Erica Kane is a fictional character from the American ABC Daytime soap opera ''All My Children''. The character was portrayed by actress Susan Lucci from her debut on January 16, 1970, until the last broadcast television episode on September 23, ...

undergoes daytime's first abortion; McTavish rewrote the story to reveal that rather than having had an abortion, Erica's fetus was stolen and implanted into another woman's uterus, resulting with character Josh Madden. McTavish also rewrote history and the timeline of Erica's past to introduce character Kendall in the early 1990s, though this proved to be a popular story. Her decision to kill off character

Dixie Cooney Martin Dixie Cooney is a fictional character from ''All My Children'', an American soap opera on the ABC network. The character was initially portrayed by actress Kari Gibson from her debut in July 1988 until October of that year when she was replaced b ...

in 2007 was criticized and cited as the "worst of 2007" by ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news. The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine LLC, in 2008. Corporat ...

''.

Writing credits

'' *

Head writer A head writer is a person who oversees the team of writers on a television or radio series. The title is common in the soap opera genre, as well as with sketch comedies and talk shows that feature monologues and comedy skits. In fictional comedy o ...

: 1992–1995, December 1997 – February 1999, July 1, 2003 – April 26, 2007 *Breakdown writer: 1987–1992 ''

'' *Head writer: April 2001 – June 12, 2002 ''

'' *Head writer: 1995–1996 *Breakdown writer: 1985–1986 *Script writer: 1984–1985 *Actress; Lola Fontaine: 1983–1984 ''

'' *

: February 1999 – January 2001

Awards and nominations

Daytime Emmy Awards The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (N ...

WINS *(1986; Best Writing; ''Guiding Light'') *(1988 & 1996; Best Writing; ''All My Children'') *(2003; Best Writing; ''General Hospital'') NOMINATIONS *(1985; Best Writing; ''Guiding Light'') *(1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1999 & 2004; Best Writing; ''All My Children'')

Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility ...

WINS *(1999 & 2004 seasons; ''All My Children'') NOMINATIONS *(1986, 1996 & 1998 seasons; ''Guiding Light'') *(1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2007 & 2008 seasons; ''All My Children'')

Head writer tenures

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McTavish, Megan 1949 births Living people People from Pembroke, New Hampshire American soap opera actresses American soap opera writers American women screenwriters Screenwriters from Illinois Daytime Emmy Award winners Writers Guild of America Award winners American women television writers Women soap opera writers People from Elgin, Illinois Screenwriters from New Hampshire 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American women writers 20th-century American actresses