Barbara Ryan

Barbara Ryan is a fictional character in an American soap opera, a resident of Oakdale in As the World Turns. In the early 1970s, Barbara was played by a succession of short-lived actresses, but the actress most associated with the role is Colleen Zenk Pinter, who has played her since September 1978.

Barbara was introduced to the show when her mother, Jennifer Sullivan, married Bob Hughes. Unlike her brother Rick, Barbara expressed great approval of the marriage. She left for art school soon after, only to return six years later.

For much of the character's run, Barbara was a heroine who experienced many tragedies, mostly at the hands of her controlling ex-husband, James Stenbeck (Anthony Herrera). When writer Douglas Marland came on board at ATWT in 1985, he made Barbara a "bitch" of sorts, and had her break up a long standing couple (Tom and Margo). This proved to be unpopular, and Marland quickly reverted the character back to being "good" by pairing Barbara with Oakdale police detective (and later chief) Hal Munson (Benjamin Hendrickson).

Barbara again became a villainess in 2000 under the writing reign of Hogan Sheffer. Leaving Hal Munson for roguish Craig Montgomery, she was ostricized by much of her family, and was eventually caught in an explosion that permanently scarred her face. As a result, she became resentful, withdrawn, and committed a multitude of sins, including kidnapping three of the main characters and meddling in her children's lives, most notably causing her son Will to snap and poison Rose (Martha Byrne), the fiancé of her older son Paul (Roger Howarth). In 2004, when writers felt that they could not make the character any more destructive without her eventually being imprisoned (and thus written out), they made her slightly more sympathetic, attributing many of her transgressions to ex-husband James Stenbeck's influence. However, her children have not thus far forgiven her, and she is still being depicted as bitter and vindictive.

Family, marriages, romantic entanglements and children

Family

• Chuck Ryan (father)
• Jennifer Sullivan (mother; deceased)
• Rick Ryan (brother)
• Frannie Hughes (half-sister; Jennifer's with Bob)
• Melinda Grey (half-sister; Jennifer's with unknown man)
• Kim Sullivan Hughes (aunt)
• Andy Dixon (cousin; Kim's with John)
• Sabrina Hughes (cousin; Kim's with Bob)
• Chris Hughes (cousin; Kim's with Bob)
• Hope Dixon (first cousin once removed)

Marriages

Marital status: Single

• James Stenbeck (1980-1983; divorced)
• Gunnar St. Clair (1983-1984; deceased)
• Hal Munson (1988-1990; divorced)
• Hal Munson (1992-1994; divorced)
• John Dixon (1995-1996; divorced)
• Hal Munson (1999-2001; divorced)
• Craig Montgomery (2001-2002; divorced)
• James Stenbeck (2002; divorced)

Significant relationships

• Tom Hughes (lovers)
• John Dixon (dated)
• James Stenbeck (lovers)
• Steven Farrell (lovers)
• Tom Hughes (engaged)
• Brian McColl (engaged)
• Duncan McKechnie (lovers)
• Gavin Kruger (lovers)
• Darryl Crawford (affair)
• Tonio Reyes (affair)
• Evan Walsh (lovers)
• John Dixon (lovers)
• Walker Daniels (dated)

Children

• Paul Ryan (Paul Stenbeck) (son; with James Stenbeck)
• Jennifer Munson (daughter; with Darryl; adopted by Hal Munson; deceased)
• Will Munson (son; with Hal Munson)
• John "Johnny" Dixon, Jr. (son; with John; deceased)

Grandchildren

• John "Johnny" Dustin Donovon (Jennifer's son with Craig Montgomery; adopted by Dusty Donovon)
• Jennifer Ryan (Paul's daughter with Emily Stewart; stillborn)

Businesses

• Simply Barbara (Ryan's first fashion line, started in mid 1980s.)
• BRO (Fashion line, created after Simply Barbara was dissolved.)
• Fashions, LTD (boutique which Ryan founded with Lisa Miller Grimaldi in 1985. She sold her shares to Grimaldi in 2003 to pay her attorney's fees, during legal troubles.)

Evil misdeeds/Crimes committed

• had tried to break up Tom and Margo Hughes, tried to get Hal Munson to her side and then ended up pregnant by him....
• blackmailed Denise Darcy to keep quiet about Tad Channing's past
• tried to kill James Stenbeck twice
• had James kidnap Emily Stewart, Rose D'Angelo and Carly Snyder to keep them away from her, executing revenge on them...
• had Will poison Rose, but it eventually killed her...
• tried to gaslight Rosanna Cabot by using Emily to do the deed
• Tried to keep Will, Jennifer and Paul happy by manipulating Craig Montgomery, Rosanna Cabot, and Meg Snyder later on...
• blackmailed Emily Stewart to stay away from Paul
• viciously accused Will and Gwen Norbeck of assaulting her
• blackmailed Lucy Montgomery to stay away from Dusty Donovan
• will attempt to bribe Jade Taylor to stay away from Will

Medical crisises

• (1981) Shot in the heart/in a coma
• (1983) Injured ankle in bullring
• (1994) Injuries in malfunctioned elevator
• (1997) Injured in church bombing/son was stillborn
• (2001) Another explosion/badly scarred
• (2002) Strangled and beaten by Will,Rose and Alison
• (2004) Crashed thru window/injured her hand
• (2005) Fell and hit her head on table/framed Gwen for assault
• (2006) Injured in the storm

in (2007) broke neak