Lucille Wexler was first introduced, in July 1978, when Alan Spaulding concocted a plan for two of his employees, Roger Thorpe and Dean Blackford, to compete for the vice-presidency of Spaulding Enterprises. Whoever could get Lucille to sell her property, the Wexler Estate, on Thornway Road, would become the next vice president of Spaulding Enterprises. To that end, Roger Thorpe finagled, through his relationship with Hillary Bauer, an invitation to a housewarming party thrown by newlyweds, Eve and Ben McFarren, who were renting a guest cottage at the Wexler Estate. Though Roger failed to charm Lucille into, selling, this wouldn't be the last time Springfield, or the Spauldings, would hear of Lucille Wexler.

Lucille had a daughter, Amanda, a talented classical pianist, whom Lucille sheltered and treated like a little girl. Amanda had been married to a handsome architect named Gordon Middleton, but she lost him on their wedding night because she couldn't bring herself to consummate the marriage. Lucille had filled Amanda's head with the thought that Gordon Middleton was a rapist. However, Amanda soon began blossoming into a woman, thanks to artist Ben McFarren. Ben did a painting of Amanda that stirred such deep, frightening feelings in her that one stormy night she slashed it to shreds. Ben witnessed this scene, and Amanda admitted to him that she couldn't shake the memory of being twelve years old and hearing a man beating Lucille in her bedroom. The horrible episode ended with Lucille telling Amanda firmly that she must never trust a man. Lucille continued to nurture this fear throughout her daughter's life, to the extent that Amanda remained essentially a child, talking to dolls and avoiding intimate contact with men. With Ben's help, Amanda threw away her dolls and became her own person. Lucille didn't approve of this, one bit, and decided to make Ben and Eve her virtual slaves. A twisted woman, Lucille burned down the art gallery where Ben was having a showing. Had the show been successful, Ben would have been able to send Eve to college so she could fulfill her dream of becoming a teacher. Now, that their hopes were dashed, Lucille came to the "rescue" and hired Eve to manage her real estate holdings and gave Ben household chores to perform at the mansion.

By March 1979, Ben had also gotten a job at Spaulding Enterprises as a staff artist and felt overworked. Eve was also overworked by the demanding and deranged Lucille. As for Amanda, she was obviously smitten with Ben so, to cause trouble, Lucille falsely insinuated to Eve that Ben and Amanda were sexually involved. Since Ben insisted on keeping their friendship strictly platonic, Amanda returned to her estranged husband, Gordon, and finally consummated their marriage. The next morning, Amanda awoke and realized she'd made a mistake and divorced Gordon. Meanwhile, Lucille became angry when she discovered that Brandon Spaulding, her former lover, had initiated contact with Amanda. Years earlier, Brandon presented Lucille, who was his secretary at the time, with a baby girl and led her to believe that the girl was his illegitimate daughter by another woman--Jane Marie Stafford. Brandon gave the baby, Amanda, to Lucille her adopted her in hopes of becoming closer to Brandon.

Meanwhile,, Lucille learned that Ben had a one-night stand with Diane Ballard and told a horrified Amanda. Ben admitted his indiscretion to Eve, who promptly filed for divorce and resigned from Wexler properties and went to live on her own. Certain that Ben and Amanda would become an item, Lucille began stalking Ben. One day while Ben was getting ready for a shower, Lucille walked into the cottage and, behind Ben's back, threw Ben's electric razor into the shower. Luckily for Ben, he jumped out of the shower just in time. Later, on Halloween night, Amanda threw a party in hopes that her new friendship with Carter Bowden, who had inherited his deceased father, Alex Bowden's art gallery, could help to revive Ben's career as a painter. Before the dinner, Lucille made the Wexler cook set aside a special plate to serve to Ben during the dinner. Without the cook's knowledge, Lucille laced Ben's food with arsenic and rat poisoning. Unfortunately, the Wexler cook served that dinner plate to Carter Bowden. Fortunately for Carter, the conversation was so lively he didn't have time to eat. Unfortunately, for Ben, Lucille had another attempt to kill him in store. While a huge rainstorm was converging outside, everyone heard a door slam open. It turned out that Lucille had set up to have a door on the third floor, which led to nowhere, blow open. Ben, the constant handy man, went to go try to close the door but instead ended up dangling from the door about to fall to the pavement, below, to his death. Fortunately for Ben, someone came along to save him-- attorney Ross Marler. Before the end of the year, Lucille tried two more things in her attempt to keep Ben away from Amanda. When Carter Bowden was about to have the show for Ben's paintings, Lucille broke into the art gallery and slashed many of Ben's paintings with an exacto-knife all the time wearing gloves.

Meanwhile, when Brandon Spaulding fell ill and was hovering near death, Lucille went to visit him at his nursing home. Brandon admitted to Lucille that Amanda was, in fact, his son Alan's, daughter by a woman whose name Brandon whispered to Lucille. Brandon insisted that Lucille tell Amanda the truth, but Lucille adamantly refused. During the intense confrontation, Lucille slowed down the IV drip, and he became short of breath while Lucille brusquely left the scene without summoning his nurse. Moments later, Lucille heard on her car radio that the legendary millionaire Brandon Spaulding was dead. The name that Brandon had whispered was Jane Marie Stafford. Lucille investigated the woman's background and discovered that her sister, Janice, had been involved with Alan Spaulding. Janice drowned in a lake after discovering Alan in a tryst with Jane Marie. Lucille traced Jane Marie's widowed father, Logan Stafford, to Toronto and paid him a visit. Logan gave Lucille a chilly reception and tersely informed her that Jane Marie was dead.

In the New Year of 1980, Amanda continued to pursue Ben until he finally gave in to her romantic overtures. Ben was convinced that Amanda was now a strong woman with earthly desires, not the sheltered girl who retreated into a world of dolls. When Eve visited Ben at the Wexler cottage to ask him to consider a reconciliation, it was too late -- Ben and Amanda had just married. Lucille and Ross conspired to break up the couple by trying to get Ben and Eve together again, but there was a sinister undercurrent to the scheme. Ross was too blinded by ambition to admit, even to himself, that he had feelings for Eve, and he had no idea Lucille was plotting to kill the unsuspecting Ben.

Enter, Jennifer Richards became Lucille's household manager. As Jennifer and, her teenage daughter, Morgan, continued to live at the Wexler estate, they were at odds over Morgan's impulsive behavior when it came to men. The truth was, Jennifer had a valid reason for keeping her daughter from growing up too fast. Jennifer was in fact Jane Marie Stafford! Meanwhile, Ross told Lucille he'd picked up on Vanessa Chamberlain's attraction to her Ben and planned to use it to break up Amanda and Ben -- a move that pleased Lucille, who continued to hate Ben. Ross soon stumbled upon more ammunition. Soon Amanda found herself pregnant with his child. By this point, Jane Marie/Jennifer was forming such a close bond with Amanda and Lucille was becoming insanely jealous. Lucille also knew that Jennifer had caught on to her scheme to separate Ben and Amanda. A deranged Lucille began terrorizing Amanda with anonymous phone calls and hanging up whenever Amanda answered. She also began to remove items from her mansion so that she could frame Jennifer for theft. The stage was now set for Lucille's ignominious downfall. Lucille spotted a picture in the hotel room of Chet Stafford -- who had come to Springfield to look for his missing sister -- and recognized her as Jennifer. Raving mad, Lucille rushed home and confronted Jennifer, while she was playing the piano. Screaming "Jane Marie Stafford!", Lucille lunging at Jennifer with a gold plated letter opener. As the two struggled, Lucille fell on the blunt instrument. When Amanda heard the commotion and rushed in, Lucille weakly murmured that Jennifer had tried to kill her. Lucille died on the operating table, and Jennifer was booked for murder.