Claim: Jensen Ackles is known for his roles in television as Eric Brady in Days of Our Lives in 2007.

Days of Our Lives -LRB- also stylized as Days of our Lives ; often abbreviated to DOOL or Days -RRB- is an American daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network . It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world , airing nearly every weekday since November 8 , 1965 . It has since been syndicated to many countries around the world . Until the network 's closure in 2013 , Soapnet rebroadcast episodes of Days on a same-day basis each weeknight at 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. -LRB- Eastern and Pacific Time -RRB- . The series was created by husband-and-wife team Ted Corday and Betty Corday . Irna Phillips was a story editor for Days of Our Lives and many of the show 's earliest storylines were written by William J. Bell . In February 2016 , the soap received a one-year renewal through 2017 , with the option of an additional year by NBC .   Due to the series ' success , it was expanded from 30 minutes to 60 minutes on April 21 , 1975 . The series focuses on its core families , the Hortons and the Bradys . Several other families have been added to the cast , and many of them still appear on the show . Frances Reid , the matriarch of the series ' Horton family remained with the show from its inception to her death on February 3 , 2010 . Suzanne Rogers celebrated 40 years on Days of Our Lives in 2013 , appearing on the show more or less since her first appearance in 1973 . Susan Seaforth Hayes is the only cast member to appear on Days of Our Lives in all five decades it has been on air .   Days of Our Lives aired its 10,000 th episode on February 21 , 2005 , and its 12,000 th episode aired on January 11 , 2013 . The soap was given the title of most daring drama in the seventies due to covering topics other soaps would not dare to do . The show 's executive producer is Ken Corday , and co-executive producers are Greg Meng and Albert Alarr . Days of Our Lives is the most widely distributed soap opera in the United States .   The show has been parodied by SCTV -LRB- as `` The Days of the Week '' -RRB- and the television sitcom Friends , with some cast members making crossover appearances on the show , including Kristian Alfonso , Roark Critchlow , Matthew Ashford , Kyle Lowder , and Alison Sweeney . The show has had high-profile fans such as actress Julia Roberts , and the Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall .