What Happened to Abe Carver on DAYS OF OUR LIVES
Abe Carver has been one of the most beloved characters on DAYS OF OUR LIVES for years. So whenever anything bad happens to him, fans fear he might be leaving the soap. But thankfully, over the years, Abe has been through the wringer and always comes out the other side stronger than ever. The character was introduced back in October of 1981 and had always been played by James Reynolds.
Abe hoped to rid Salem of crime, including the villainous Stefano DiMera. He had failed relationships with Nikki Wade, Valerie Grant, and Tamara Price before finding love with Lexie Brooks. Unfortunately, Lexie discovered that her aunt Frankie was really her mother and her father was Stefano DiMera, which caused problems frequently throughout their marriage.
Next, Abe was caught up in the murder of Tony DiMera, and he and Lexie flew to Paris to rescue a kidnapped Marlena Evans. However, they were forced to break Stefano out of jail because he had a drug that could save Roman’s life.
Abe and Lexie were devastated when they learned that the little boy they’d adopted was actually Bo and Hope’s son who Stefano had switched at birth. Abe was furious that Lexie had discovered the truth and kept it from him so they could continue raising Isaac, but they ultimately reconciled.
A more complicated situation arose when Brandon Walker arrived in Salem with a grudge against Abe. During a weak moment, Lexi slept with Brandon and when she became pregnant, she didn’t know who the daddy was. Thankfully, Abe turned out to be the babydaddy. And in fact, it was later revealed that Brandon was Abe’s illegitimate son with Fay Walker!
Tragically, on the day of his son, Theo’s, christening, Abe was shot dead, the first victim of the Salem serial killer. Months later, he and the other “murdered” residents of the town were discovered very much alive on a remote tropical island. Unfortunately, after reuniting with his family, Abe discovered he was going blind and suffered impotency issues. He accused Lexie of cheating on him with Tek, and when his eyesight was restored, he actually caught them in bed together. Still, Abe and Lexie were able to reconcile again, and they were together until she was presumed dead in a car accident.
His eyesight deteriorating again, Abe underwent another retina transplant, and Lexi was discovered being held hostage in the tunnels under Salem by Andre DiMera. The couple was reunited and became a family with Theo once more. Frustrated with the corruption at City Hall, Abe ran for mayor and was elected in 2008. Despite accusations of tampering, Abe was also re-elected in 2011.
Abe and Lexie’s love story came to a tragic end when she was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. Choosing to spend time with her loved ones over treatment, Lexi spent her remaining days with her friends and family and ultimately died in Abe’s arms as they sat together in the garden. Abe continued to raise Theo on his own and continued to work with the Salem PD on occasion. in 2015, Abe was asked to take over again as mayor and he agreed.
Abe found himself reconnecting with his former ex, Valerie, but after giving her a series of expensive gifts, he was arrested for being Dario’s silent accomplice in the counterfeit money scheme. Thankfully that was all just an elaborate sting to flush out the real criminals. JJ shooting Theo in the line of duty caused heated conflict between the Carvers and the Bradys, but as his son got better, Abe backed off. And after Theo left town to recover fully, Abe turned his attention to Lani Price, the daughter he hadn’t known Tamara had given birth to years ago.
Although Abe and Sheila only had a close friendship, Jack exposed their “affair” at his press rally to humiliate him. Sheila resigned as his assistant to salvage his mayoral run, but there was no salvaging his relationship with Valerie. Abe was happy to give Lani away at her wedding to Eli, not realizing Gabi was going to force her to dump him at the altar. After a year passed, Abe was stunned to learn that Lani had been living in Europe studying to be a nun. When his daughter chose to return to Salem, he asked her to return to work at the police force and happily gave her away when she finally did marry Eli.
Abe found himself drawn to Lani’s aunt, Paulina Price, but their budding relationship was derailed when he learned that her plans for Horton Square included demolishing the place to build a superstore! He joined everyone else in protesting the demolition and convinced Paulina to change her mind. And while happy that Theo came home for another visit, he wasn’t crazy about his son’s intention to marry Ciara while she still didn’t have her memories. (She called it off once they came back!)
After Paulina went out of her way to make amends to everyone, Abe got back together with her and their relationship deepened further. Eventually, he proposed and she accepted! When Abe was shot by a mob enforcer, he actually died, but Lexie’s spirit sent him back to the land of the living. He and Paulina finally celebrated their wedding day, but Chanel Dupree — egged on by a possessed Marlena — revealed in front of everyone that Lani was really Paulina’s daughter! Abe assured Lani she would always be his daughter, but told Paulina he needed time to process her lie. He also asked Shawn to take over as police commissioner.
Paulina continued trying to make amends, but Abe rejected her and she turned to her ex, TR Coates. When they planned to leave town together, Abe tried to stop them and TR knocked him out. When he came to, TR had been shot dead and Paulina claimed to have done it with Lani’s gun. Abe finally confessed he still loved Paulina and they were married on Juneteenth. During this ceremony, a guilt-ridden Lani decided to confess that she really killed TR! Abe adopted Lani officially before she was sent off to prison.
Once things had settled down, Paulina urged Abe to consider running for governor, but in the end, he ran for mayor and she ran for governor! They both won their elections, and Abe planned to step down to support his wife’s gubernatorial career, however, Sloan Petersen appeared looking for revenge because Chanel had been responsible for the death of her mother and Paulina helped cover it up! The City Council called for Abe’s resignation, but it was Paulina who chose not to take her position.
When Paulina’s family continued to be targeted, Sloan was the prime suspect, but she claimed innocence. It was actually her brother, Colin Bedford, and when he enacted his final plan for revenge, he knocked Abe out and abducted Paulina! Rushed to the hospital, Abe begged Rafe to save his wife and Rafe had to call Theo to give consent for emergency surgery! Abe survived, but woke up with amnesia, which allowed Nurse Whitley to abduct him and take him home with her to pretend to be his wife. She even went so far as to fake Abe’s death to get his loved ones to stop looking for him! Thankfully, Abe was rescued and brought home, but his memory still hadn’t returned so he didn’t remember anyone.
Stay tuned to DAYS to see how Abe’s story continues!
