Is John Black on Days of Our Lives married? Explained

John Black was one of the longest-running characters on Days of Our Lives. He was portrayed by American actor Donald Drake Hogestyn, who was cast on the soap in 1986. Initially, Hogestyn played the role of Roman Brady but was soon retconned as John Black by 1991.

John Black married Marlena Evans during the course of the storyline, making them one of the most popular couples in the history of the soap. Hogestyn's pairing actress Deidre Hall (who plays Marlena) was also well-appreciated by audiences.

John was briefly removed twice from the show as a character: once in 2007 when he was presumed dead and again in 2008 reportedly due to budget cuts. However, the legacy character always made it back and continued to be an active part of the soap till Drake Hogestyn's recent passing in September 2024.

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What is the story behind John and Marlena's marriage in Days of Our Lives? Storyline summary explored

The character development of John and Marlena on Days of Our Lives is one filled with many twists and turns. John was introduced to the town of Salem under another name: The Pawn, who had no memory of who he truly was. Marlena was his psychiatrist at the beginning of the story and tried to restore his memory. She ended up falling for him in the process.

Marlena then discovered that John was her husband, Roman Brady, who had been presumed dead. The couple renewed their marriage vows after this revelation. Here, a cast change took place in 1991, with actor Wayne Northrop being cast as Roman Brady.

However, the showrunners of Days of Our Lives wanted to retain John Black as a character despite the Roman Brady switch. Hence, the plot was retconned and rewritten to reveal that John had been brainwashed into believing he was Roman.

Initially, Marlena returned to her husband, the real Roman, to honor her marriage vows. Meanwhile, John struck a relationship with Isabella Toscano, and they even had a child named Brady Black. Unfortunately, Isabella died of pancreatic cancer in 1992, leaving John to care for their son alone.

After some time, John started having feelings for Marlena again. She reciprocated his feelings, and they ended up having an affair. As a result, Marlena got pregnant with John's child and gave birth to a girl named Belle. Unfortunately, Roman's teenage daughter Sami discovers the affair and kidnaps Belle to protect her father's feelings.

Seeing that the affair was hurting a young girl and her family life, Marlena returned to her family with Roman. John understood her predicament and started pursuing other relationships. But with another twist in the tale, Roman filed for divorce from Marlena after finding out about the affair.

Finally, after many struggles, John and Marlena got together without any obstacles marring their way. They got married on July 5, 1999, in a historic Days of Our Lives episode.

Later, John was shot by EJ Wells, the son of his nemesis Stefano DiMera. Though he recovered from the wound, he was hit by a car in 2007 and presumed dead. In 2008, the character was revealed to be alive but wiped of his memory again. John joined a life of crime and was brainwashed into being a part of the DiMera family.

Finally, after Marlena threatened to file for divorce, John's memories resurfaced, and the two remarried in 2009. The couple has been going strong since then, presiding over their family and raising their children, Brady, Eric, and Sami.

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Audiences can watch Days of Our Lives online via Peacock. New episodes of the soap are released on all weekdays.