Francine Pascal, ‘Sweet Valley High’ Creator, Dies at 92

Francine Pascal, the author best known for creating hit teen book series “Sweet Valley High,” has died. She was 92.

Pascal died on Sunday in New York, the New York Times reports. The cause of death was lymphoma Pascal’s daughter, Laurie Wenk-Pascal, told the newspaper.

“Sweet Valley High” debuted in 1983 after a friend remarked to Pascal there was no teen version of 1980s soap “Dallas.” Pascal was reportedly inspired to create the series, about blonde Californian twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield, immediately. The books went on to spawn hundreds of sequels and spin-offs detailing the twins at different ages, ranging from middle school to college. There were also some wackier books which saw the twins mixed up in murders and even supernatural events.

Only the first 12 books were written by Pascal although she wrote most of the outlines for the others. A TV adaptation of the books ran for four seasons starring twins Brittany and Cynthia Daniel. Diablo Cody was said to be penning a feature film adaptation of the books in 2009 for Universal, although the movie never materialized.

As well as having sold over 200 million copies, “Sweet Valley High” arguably inspired the modern teen drama genre as we know it, with shows including “Degrassi” and “Beverly Hills, 90210” debuting in late 1980s and early 1990s following the novels’ initial success as well as “Clueless,” “Dawson’s Creek” and “The OC” in the following years.

In 2011 a new adult novel series, “Sweet Valley Confidential” was released, revisiting the Wakefield twins in their 30s. The original book series ended in 2003.

Pascal was born in New York in 1932. She studied journalism at New York University before going on to work for a variety of publications including True Confessions and Cosmopolitan. Her first young adult novel, “Hangin’ Out With Cici,” was published in 1977 and quickly adapted into a TV special. She also wrote other novels as well as writing for soap opera “The Young Marrieds” alongside her husband John Pascal, who died in 1981.

Pascal is survived by two of her three daughters, six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.