Nora Hanen Gannon Buchanan is a high-powered and headstrong liberal defense attorney. She is funny, tense, driven and proud of her Jewish heritage.
Nora grew up in an affluent Chicago suburb, the daughter of a highly influential judge. She has a sister, Susannah, a psychiatrist, who came to Llanview in 1996 to treat Viki Carpenter's multiple personality disorder.
While in college at Midwestern University she met and married Hank Gannon, a black student. For many years, Hank never knew that, while in school, Nora had an affair with his younger brother, R.J. After Nora gave birth to a daughter, Rachel, her marriage to Hank became strained as constraints on their time and money intensified. When Rachel was five, Hank and Nora divorced. Hank was extremely bitter when Nora was granted full custody of their daughter.
Prior to coming to Llanview, Nora represented her brother-in-law R.J. Gannon against charges of aggravated assault and armed robbery. She lost the case (deliberately - according o R.J.) and a vengeful R.J. was sentenced to ten years in jail. Years later, R.J. got even with both Hank and Nora when, during Hank's wedding to Sheila Price, he blurted out their deep family secret: that he had slept with Nora behind Hank's back while they were in college.
In 1992, Nora moved to Llanview and met her future husband, Bo Buchanan, and helped him in his search to find the hit and run driver responsible for the death of his wife, Sarah. Bo was about to propose when Nora admitted that she might have killed Sarah. Her fears were laid to rest (a drunk driver was the culprit) and she soon moved in with Bo and they became engaged in 1993. Marriage was postponed when Nora underwent surgery for a brain tumor that left her temporarily blind.
In 1993, Nora, fully convinced of their innocence, defended several fraternity brothers, including Viki's son Kevin Buchanan (who was exonerated) and football hero Todd Manning against rape charges leveled by Marty Saybrooke. Nora eventually realized that her clients were not innocent as she had thought. Unable to represent them any longer knowing the truth Nora tried to withdraw from the case. Unable to do so, she gave a very compelling closing argument in which she made it clear to all that her clients were indeed guilty. The trial ended in a mistrial, but Todd was eventually tricked into a confession and sentenced to jail.
During her recovery from surgery, Nora, temporarily blind, was stalked in her beach house by former client and convicted rapist Todd Manning out for revenge. Todd threatened Nora with a knife and tried to rape her, but was momentarily thwarted when Nora hit him over he head with a lamp. Bo rescued Nora, brought her back to Llanview where she was operated on once again, and her sight was restored.
In 1994, Nora was forced to represent Dorian Lord who was accused of the murder of her husband (Viki's father) Victor Lord which occured 18 years ago. Viewers were entertained by this dynamic duo's great scenes. (Please see the transcripts section for a full script of the trial.) Due, to Dorian's antics and compelling evidence, Dorian was pronounced guilty but later exonerated when new evidence showed up. Eventually, it was found that Viki, not Dorian, had killed Victor.
In 1995, Nora and Bo married in a rock and roll wedding ceremony (presided over by Little Richard) and they settled into their new home at 912 Greenfield Avenue in Llanview, where Nora has proven to be absolutely useless in the kitchen -- she can't cook! A former tennis champ, Nora is very competitive and dances a mean jitterbug with her husband, Bo.
Nora often goes head to head in court with her former husband, District Attorney Hank Gannon. In 1997, she successfully defended Antonio Vega against charges that he murdered Carlo Hesser.
Nora is prone to migraine headaches, which are sometimes accompanied by blackouts. The condition, which abated in 1994, returned in the spring of 1997. To combat her hard-living ways, Nora pledged to take life a bit easier. She even became a health food nut which meant no more ice cream sundaes to be shared with her beloved Bo!
Recently, Bo's son Drew was killed, and Nora, wanting to give her husband a reason to live, lied and said that she was pregnant. Believing that Bo was unable to have anymore children, Nora slept with Sam Rappaport in order to become pregnant and give Bo the child we wanted.
Her dark secret eventually came to light when Lindsay, knowing the truth and out for revenge against her nemesis, got up on stage and forced Nora to tell Bo the truth. Bo left Nora and they were eventually divorced.
Meanwhile, Nora shares a new life with Sam Rappaport and her son Matthew Hanen Rappaport. However, when Nora finally found out that Bo can father children after all Nora, for some time Nora found herself trying to deal with the fact that Bo could possibly be Matthew's father while at the same time growing closer to Sam. When the DNA results 'proved' Sam to be Matthew's father, Nora's doubts were laid to rest but not viewers' as we know that there is still a possibility that Bo could be the father!
CREDITS: The majority of this article has been taken from:
