Days of our Lives: July 4th Milestones – Eli & Lani’s Historic Moment & More Surprises

On Days of Our Lives, this week, there are some major milestones, including Eli Grant and Lani Price making history in Salem.

Celebrating July 4th in Salem: A Decades-Long Tradition on Days of Our Lives

Salemmites will be celebrating July 4th, 2025 in style on Days of our Lives again this year. They have for decades on the NBC Peacock series with some years being really, really spectacular with some big moments that are absolutely unforgettable.

And many longtime watchers may recall just how significant the Fourth of July used to be for both the good and not so good people of Salem. In recent years, it hasn’t always been such a big deal, but in history on days huge.

So to honor that tradition, we have compiled some of the most memorable July 4th moments for you. The 60-year-old sudser has often gone out with a big bang and we hope this year is no exception. And we’ll talk about Lani and Eli’s history making moment.

Horton and Brady Family BBQ: A Classic DOOL July 4th Celebration

You may remember the 4th of July was usually in times past a really big celebration on days on Days of our Lives. Especially for the Hortons and the Bradys with an annual barbecue featuring Jack’s infamous Deveraux burgers and lots of family and friends gathered.

They did it either at the Horton House or at Bo Brady and Hope Williams Brady‘s former home. Too bad they left just before the holiday. In more recent years, Salemites celebrated by picnicking at the lake. We’ve had stuff downtown with the fireworks, things like that.

Bo and Hope’s First Kiss: A Romantic Days of Our Lives Flashback on Independence Day

I know that a lot of you were disappointed that Peter Reckell and Kristian Alfonso departed from Days of Our Lives after such a short time back on the show and doing it a couple of weeks ago before Independence Day.

However, OG fans may recall that Bo and Hope’s very first kiss happened on July 4th, 1983. If you were watching back then, Hope was in charge of a kissing booth at Eugene Bradford’s fundraiser.

So, Bo bought a couple of dozen tickets and initially, he kissed Hope on the cheek. And he was teasing her saying she couldn’t handle a real kiss from him. Well, Bo laid one on her and the rest is soap history.

Family Advice and Holiday Gatherings: Doug Williams’ Wisdom on Days

Jumping a couple of decades forward to 2008 at one of these holiday family gatherings for Independence Day, Bo shared some quality time around the grill with his father-in-law, the dearly departed Doug Williams (Bill Hayes). He needed some sage advice.

Bo was talking to Doug about his daughter Chelsea Brady (Rachel Melvin) dating an older man. That older man was Dr. Daniel Jonas (Shawn Christian). So Doug took that moment to remind Bo that if he tried to keep them apart, it would only make Chelsea want Daniel more.

And of course, the late great Doug Williams was not wrong. And you know, Bo had a little bit of an effort winning Doug over as well. So he went to the right person for advice.

Rainy Day Parodies: DOOL Characters Reimagine Oscar-Nominated Films

Of course, a little bit of rain did not stop the Fourth of July celebration on DOOL. A few years later in 2011, that’s when Salemmites were rained and they retreated to the Brady Pub and imagined themselves as best picture Oscar nominees.

So, Bo and Abigail Deveraux (formerly played by Kate Mansi and Marci Miller) were considering themselves starring in True Grit. Other parodies included Maggie Horton Kiriakis (Suzanne Rogers) and Hope’s crazy version of Black Swan.

And EJ DiMera (then James Scott) and Nicole Walker (Arianne Zucker) had a re-imagining of the movie The King’s Speech. So that one was kind of an oddball moment.

Burger Battles and Romantic Entanglements: Sarah Horton’s July 4th Dilemma

Fast forward eight years. In 2019, writers were trying to revive the grand tradition. This was, you know, Ron Carlivati’s work by hosting a barbecue. And in one of the light-hearted scenes, if you remember, Sarah Horton (Linsey Godfrey) was asked to judge at the BBQ.

She had to decide whose burger was the best, Rex Brady’s (Kyle Lowder) or Eric Brady’s (Greg Vaughan). And at the time, both men were vying for her. And let’s be real, burgers are a perfect dish cuz they are both some serious beefcake.

So, Sarah let her feelings be known by saying that Eric’s was the better burger. But Rex’s burger was perfect. And of course, both of them are perfectly sexy and smoldering hot, just like that grill.

Now, Sarah is on the outs with her husband Xander Cook (Paul Telfer) and she’s going to get much closer to Brady Black (Eric Martsolf) before the summer is over. But Xander’s the man in her heart. But Sarah won’t check out Xander’s burger or his buns this July 4th.

History-Making Wedding: Lonnie Price and Eli Grant’s Groundbreaking Ceremony on Days

Jump ahead a year and in 2020, Eli Grant and Lani Price made Days of Our Lives history. They tied the knot at a wedding and they did the whole jumping the broom thing. That was on screen during the week of Fourth of July.

Amazingly, they were the first African American couple to ever get married onscreen on the NBC soap opera. And of course, Abe Carver (James Reynolds) and Paulina Price (Jackee Harry) followed in their footsteps, getting married later and also jumped the broom.

But Eli and Lani made history five years ago, Independence Day week. And we know that Eli and Lani had lots of hurdles to jump before getting to jump the broom. Especially after they lost their first child, baby, David, as a stillborn.

Lani’s adoptive father, Abe, of course, married his first wife, Lexi Carver (Renee Jones), and that is part of Days of Our Lives history. But Days did their wedding offcreen if you don’t remember that.

So, yeah, Lani and Eli hold a very significant moment in the history of the show, and they’ve got twins, Jules and Carver. And Lani and Eli’s love story is still going strong. Would love to see them back soon.

Upcoming Romance and Fireworks: Alex and Stephanie’s Budding Relationship

This week or next, we could see another big fireworks moment on Days of Our Lives. Alex Kiriakis (Robert Scott Wilson) is soon professing his love for Stephanie Johnson (Abigail Klein).

And it looks like it might happen underneath the fireworks during Salem’s Fourth of July celebration. Unless those were New Year’s Eve fireworks they put in the promo. But I feel like they are July 4th. Alex and Stephanie are getting serious. It’s very sweet.

So, that could be a big moment. We also may see some romance for Tate Black (Leo Howard) and Holly Jonas (Ashley Puzemis), among others. Plus, there’s going to be more family drama in weeks to come for Alex and Stephanie.

But for now, hopefully it’s just fireworks and hot dogs and beer and family fun.

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