I'm convinced that the DS storyline of Victoria & Peter loving each other, and following each other through the centuries, was borrowed from the sublimely romantic Portrait of Jennie (1949), one of my favorite films.
In the film, Joseph Cotten plays Eben, a struggling artist. He meets a young girl named Jennie (Jennifer Jones).
As he does her portrait, they begin to fall in love.
She speaks of the past in present tense & appears to be a few years older every time they meet.
When you see who Jennie turns out to be, you'll see the DS connection.
The film airs Thur Jan 31st at 9:45 Eastern on TCM.
And here's the casting for my proposed TV remake, produced by Dan Curtis in 1973:
David Selby (Eban)
Kathryn Leigh Scott (Jenny)
Grayson Hall (Miss Spinney)
Louis Edmonds (Mr. Mathews)
Joel Crothers (Eban's cab driver friend)
Dennis Patrick (Irish bar owner)
Clarice Blackburn (Mrs. Jeeks)
Jane Draper (Mrs.Bunz)
and
Joan Bennett as
the Reverend Mother
David