On Earth-One, the redhead singer Rita Phillips, blonde actress Karen Wilder Summers, and Karen's brunette sister Peggy Wilder were a trio of ladies navigating the turbulent waters of romance. Their tales were quite possibly fictional, as their series “Reaching for Happiness within the publication Secret Hearts was later revealed as a television soap opera*. 
The gals in Secret Hearts lived in the smaller Earth-One burg of Danville Corners, and revolved around former starlet Karen returning to her hometown after the tragic death of her husband of two years. Moving in with her more conservative sister Peggy, Karen reacquainted herself with her former fiancée, Doctor Greg Marsh.. This sets up a conflict between Karen and Rita, the latter of whom grew up in the wrong side of town, as jealousy brews between the ladies over the affections of Greg. As Rita didn't have the childhood connection, nor the affluent background of her cosmic twin Chris, this caused Rita to have a deep insecurity not shared with Chris.
Chris shared a penthouse with her childhood best friends, television model Sandy Simms and advertising executive Mariam Tyler, each of whom moved from the small town of Cedar Grove to the big burg of New York City. Sandy sought to comfort from Phil Preston, a duplicitous young man who secretly schemed for her inheritance. Miriam secretly sought the affection of her assistant Jeb Crosby, while Sandy's father and wealthy financier William Simms had his eye on Miriam though years older than her.
Eventually, Sandy was blackmailed into accepting an engagement offer from Bud Stone when he threatened to accuse her for the death of her ex-boyfriend Bud Troy, who two-time her with another woman. And that other woman, responsible for his death, was the sister of Count Sergio Bellini! Once the true killer was exposed, Mariam was free to pursue her own engagement with the Count, while Sandy found love with Police Detective Ryan.
The true star of this series was Chris Mason. After initially investigating a scandal involving celebrity debutante Miss Devon, Chris was tasked with uncovering details of an elite private girl's school There, she became romantically attached to chemistry teacher Larry Cole, which jeopardized his position at the institution. While providing a mentor to the young ladies she met, she left behind a heartbroken Larry whom she could not see herself staying with in his small college town.
After uncovering a bullying scandal and defending Larry's reputation before an administrative hearing, Chris returned to the penthouse. There, she provided the moral support her friends needed when their romantic lives were in crisis. For Mariam, this meant convincing her to expose a murderer even at the cost of her own true love, and for Sandy, this meant giving her to courage to not succumb to fear at the cost of love.
During Miriam and the Count's wedding, Chris met Alexander Barnett from the Museum of Art, and finally found a man she could see herself settling down with in wedded bliss! And her counterpart Rita found her own rekindled love in former boyfriend Ray Silva, once she left the Doctor to her romantic rival. For Rita, she made the decision with a sense of resignation. For Chris, she made the decision with a sense of optimism.
* Years later, actress Linda "Supergirl" Danvers portrayed Margo Hatton on the Secret Hearts soap opera
** As with other characters from Quality, those individuals portrayed in Heart Throbs originated on Earth-Two.
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