Sometimes it seems that there are soap stars, and then there are movie stars. Soap stars don't often progress into being movie stars and movie stars never 'lower themselves' to appearing in soaps, so it feels like people stay in their lanes. Those rules don't apply to Morgan Fairchild, who got her big break in 'Search for Tomorrow' in 1973.
Fairchild stood out among the cast of the soap, and a year after leaving the show she found herself cast in 'Dallas' and then 'Mork and Mindy', all of which left her well positioned to move on to bigger and better things. There were many actresses who could portray 'sexy,' and far fewer who could do 'glamorous.' Fairchild could, which made her a 'go to' casting choice when roles demanded it. The world was her oyster, and she was ready to take a bite as the 80s approached.