Harold Robbins' The Survivors(1969)

Harold Robbins' The Survivors is a prime-time soap opera that premiered on ABC in fall 1969. Based on Robbins' bestselling novel, the series follows wealthy and powerful families navigating scandal, betrayal, and romance. The cast includes Hollywood legend Lana Turner in her only regular television role, alongside Jan-Michael Vincent, Ralph Bellamy, Diana Muldaur, and George Hamilton. Despite the star-studded lineup and prestigious source material, The Survivors struggled against competing programs on CBS and NBC, failing to attract the large audience needed to justify its expensive production. The network cancelled the series at midseason, though it was rerun the following summer in hopes of recovering some of the substantial investment.