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General Hospital News & Gossip

News for the week of 15-Nov-2004
by Carol Banks Weber

Co-head writers Bob Guza and Charles Pratt have no problem with the Internet’s considerable influence over the soap industry. Quite the contrary, they enjoy the publicity such message board buzz affords them in their upcoming stories—even though spoilers occasionally get leaked before their time. According to Guza, online spoiler leaks serve to pique fans’ interest even more, so they want to tune in to see how each major story’s plot points play out, as opposed to being bummed out that the surprises were ruined in advance. Pratt goes one step further in his praise of the online soap community by referring to the discussions and debates as “an electronic watercooler,” with more fans and more instant access to communicate fan feedback. Actresses Catherine Hickland (Lindsay, OLTL) and Terri Ivens (Simone, AMC), on the other hand, offer up another side to cyberspace, a darker side where false rumors of firings and nasty idle gossip reign supreme, causing hurt, misunderstanding and needless fear. Hickland’s a frequent target of rumors, notably, that she’s being fired every other week. She’s had to learn to ignore the crap or just deal with it as part of the business. Ivens used to troll the ‘Net a lot for feedback and such, but lately, has cut back because of the nastiness of some fans’ opinions. Ivens doesn’t have a problem with sharing opinions per se, but she doesn’t have to embrace them all either. “I have opinions on a lot of issues in the world, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I know what I’m talking about.” –ABC Soaps in Depth, November 23, 2004

[I provide my own take on the issue in my weekly column, channeling, over at Eye on Soaps. Look for the update, along with some thoughts from fellow soap fans and soap colleagues by Monday afternoon, November 15.]

Steve Burton (Jason) will leave the parading around half-naked to Ingo Rademacher (Jax) and Tyler Christopher (Nikolas/Connor), he’s done. The actor joked that he got too old, and fat from eating so much lately anyway, Christopher could probably snap his flabby body in two and Rademacher’s always into stripping anyway. But the jokester doesn’t rule out stripping in the near-future, like, maybe for Sam, maybe for Sonny. He acknowledged that Jason and Sonny should just admit they dig each other, go topless and wrestle.

Wally Kurth (Ned) can’t wait for his son with wife Debra to come – the baby’s due around Thanksgiving – so he can indulge in all the proud papa activities he never had with his eldest daughter Meghann, 18, and wants to re-experience from the time he had with his younger daughter Rosabel, 7, the early years of infancy. Kurth bragged that Debra will be such a wonderful, doting mother, and then kidded around that he’ll have to step in to make sure their son receives lots of macho-fatherly influence as well, maybe introduce him to the ha ha ... theater.

Lesli Kay (Lois; ex-Molly, ATWT) actually has a darling son, Jackson, 4, and wouldn’t mind adding another to the brood, she has said. But because of her daytime jobs, she’s been an on-screen (and off-screen somewhat) mother to two teenaged daughters, giving her a different, female experience there. She’s so close with her former ATWT daughter Kristina Sisco (Abigail) and current GH daughter Adrianne Leon (Brook Lynn); they’ve been over her place lots of times, just to hang. Leon hung out way past midnight recently and Sisco frequently babysits for Kay, when she’s not playing poker with the Kay clan. While trying out for a non-daytime show, Kay found herself up for a role as another mother to a teenaged daughter. When producers wondered about her youth, she quipped that in daytime, she’s old enough—twice over.

Doing a Bensonhurst, Brooklyn accent right, without coming off like an insult, has been one of Lesli Kay’s (Lois) major concerns in taking over the GH role Rena Sofer made popular in the late ‘90s. Luckily, she’s lived for years in Brooklyn while playing bad girl Molly on ATWT, her son still speaks with a New Yawk accent and on GH, a crew member named Sandy helps keep the actress real. “The challenge is to make people who have never been there or met someone from Brooklyn believe that Lois is not a caricature. To make her believable, likable and sexy — to fit in — that's the challenge,” Kay – who’s shopping for a house in California with husband Keith Coulouris (ex-Keith, OLTL) – explained to TV Guide Online’s Delaina Dixon for a Q&A last week.

The New York transplant has adjusted to sunny California quite nicely. But then, Lesli Kay (Lois; ex-Molly, ATWT) would be able to adjust anywhere, as long as she had a salary and felt joy in her life, which she does. She doesn’t disparage New York, where she worked and lived for years on ATWT before moving back to L.A. for GH, for a much longer stay than before. She just feels New York is different, in equally good ways, from the more laid-back, outdoorsy California lifestyle. Back on the East Coast, she loved to take walks, take in the colorful characters and appreciate the no-BS attitude of the residents. On the West Coast, she thrills to a simple act of driving to the supermarket. “It's just an easier life. Kids in New York are inside most of the year because it's cold, and they're used to spending time in bookstores and libraries. Out here everybody's outside all year, so it is quite different, but you know it's great.” And now that she’s legally permitted to drive around the streets of L.A., even better. For a few months since moving over there, it was touch and go, with her driving around without the proper license plate and license, and worrying that one day a cop will catch her, throw her in jail and her bosses at ABC would have to bail her out. –Soap City

For the premiere Daytime Emmys red carpet special, several years ago, Lesli Kay (Lois) picked up a microphone and did on-the-spot interviews with celebrities, just like Joan Rivers does in the Primetime Emmy specials over on the E! channel. Only, at the time, Kay and co-host Doug Davidson (Paul, Y&R) couldn’t find any celebrities to interview, thanks to the missed timing of the special’s producers. Everybody was inside Madison Square Garden eating dinner at 5 p.m., and nobody was going outside, not even between 7-8 p.m. when Kay and Davidson were standing around with mikes hoping for someone, anyone from the industry to show up. She ended up talking to her husband, fellow soap actor Keith Coulouris (ex-Keith, OLTL; ex-David, ATWT). Maybe next time, she can do it again with more success... at least that’s her hope.

Tyler Christopher (Nikolas/Connor) will take all of January and a huge chunk of February-May of next year to shoot a Steven Spielberg mini-series called, Into The West, on location in New Mexico and Canada. He will play the lead character named Jacob Wheeler Jr., the son of an Indian woman and a white man. The mini-series will air in two-hour segments on an estimated $50 million budget for TNT, for the following fall season.

On the November 9th Northwest Afternoon – a week-daily Seattle talk show on ABC affiliate KOMO-TV – “Queen of Soaps” co-host Cindi Rinehart excerpted a little of her interview with Maurice Benard (Sonny) on-set about recently-wrapped, emotionally-disturbing scenes related to the Kristina stem cells story. I only caught the tail-end of it, where he admitted to breaking down in a scene, crying uncontrollably and being unable to stop even when cameras stopped rolling. He said he had to leave the set in tears to regain his composure, and only remembered doing the same once before in his daytime career. Rinehart previewed more behind-the-scenes interviews with several members of the cast, but couldn’t speak with Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis) at the time of filming, because the actress, too, felt so overcome by the painful material that she couldn’t even formulate words at that point. Also, heavy, dark emotion overtook everyone else watching the poignant scenes backstage and in dressing rooms, not a dry eye in the house.

Turning in outstanding work as a man grieving for the loss of Sam’s unborn baby and a chance at becoming a surrogate father again as he’d done with Carly’s son Michael, Steve Burton (Jason) had nothing but praise for this current children-in-peril story. He acknowledged the sorrow in Courtney’s miscarriage last year, but elaborated that Sam’s going into premature labor will go farther in exploring the reactions and relationships of the characters involved.

It must not have been easy pretending a baby died, least of all for the real-life parents paid to be actors on GH. Almost every core character involved, from Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis) and Maurice Benard (Sonny), to Rick Hearst (Ric) and Steve Burton (Jason), had to go there personally in order to summon up the authenticity of grief-stricken abject horror in deciding one toddler’s fate over another baby’s.

Burton’s own daughter Makena, 1, sometimes takes over the dressing room area, crawling around, exploring, and when her daddy tries to keep her from wandering, she just pauses and smiles at him before continuing her merry way, described Lindze Letherman (Georgie), whose dressing room resides in the same vicinity. “...and [Burton] just shook his head after that and couldn’t do anything about it [laughs]. It was adorable!” –Soap Opera Digest, November 16, 2004

One time, Tamara Braun (Carly) indulged in her curiosity for an infomercial product, buying an ab-zapper that cost over $100. She tried it on for size, putting jelly on her tummy first, then the belt and – OUCH! – the thing caused so much pain, after laughing herself silly, she later got rid of it in a hurry at a garage sale for a reduced $5.

Lindze Letherman (Georgie) has tried, and recommends, spiffing up the home with Mr. Clean Magic Erasers and Dawn’s Wash & Toss Disposable Dish Pads. She uses both products to spiff up her own studio apartment. When they nicked the doorway entrance moving in her armoire and fridge, Letherman simply applied the Magic Eraser and the scuff marks went away.

Natalia Livingston (Emily) praised her former high school calculus teacher, Mike Garvin, who also double-dutied as the football coach. She praised the kindness and passion of Mr. Garvin, which won him plenty of fans in the student body, including her. He’s since retired, but she does run into her former teacher now and again when visiting her Macon, GA hometown.

Leslie Charleson (Monica) went in big for the ‘80s shoulder pads, but doesn’t really know why since she said she hardly needs bigger shoulders. She had drawers of the things. John J. York (Mac) mentioned his pet rock and his pet dog that waters the pet rock, as his nod to fads.

Two hobbies depict Corbin Bernsen’s (John Durant) divergent interests starkly. He knows his martial arts, having studied Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do. And he has amassed over 6,000 snow globes in his collection.

Let’s try this again. Maurice (Sonny) and Paula Benard will be guests on Oprah for the November 17th show. That is, unless they’re bumped off again. Benard will go in-depth about his experiences as a manic-depressive, that one dark time he went off on his wife Paula – who’ll be there too, to tell her story – and threatened to murder her, and do the general feel-good, self-help Oprah thing. Benard thought very highly of the show, the show’s host (who went to the crux of one of the problems early on) and his wife’s ease in handling such a touchy subject matter. He said Paula and Oprah got along well, even embracing when the show was done.

Accepting the recurring role of a lifetime – as Sonny’s take-no-prisoners custody lawyer Jordan Baines and possible love interest – requires balls. Sounds like Kristin Minter is up to the challenge. Her SID Nov. 23rd interview glimpsed a ballsy, brassy broad, a hint of her ER admissions clerk character, unafraid to speak her mind and her fantasies. She joked that she plans to bed as many of the sexy GH studs while she’s there. But seriously folks... she also knows she must be as tough and “shady” as her on-screen client, Sonny-the mobster, in order to win sole custody of Kristina for him, and said she’s ready. As for Sonny’s younger brother Ric, no slouch in the tough and shady department himself, the actress built up a back story for herself about them and their former acquaintance, something along the lines of “I just decided in my mind that the D.A. did something crappy to me once.” I think she’ll fit right in. Nice full lips, too. Jordan began her three-month tenure last week, November 12.

December 3rd is when Heather Webber schemes her last.

In casting, a young, tough woman full of fire (no, it’s not me cleaning out the competition) named Erin will soon be on the canvas. They just have to find the right actress for the part first.

Jonathan Jackson (ex-Lucky) just came out with a new CD – Identity Theft – with his fairly revised new band Enation with brother Richard Lee and pals. The CD took 14 months for Jackson and Co. to put together, wasn’t very difficult to create (since JJ finds easy, fluid inspiration in writing) and contains tunes about finding oneself.

Gossip for the week of 15-Nov-2004
by Carol Banks Weber

Kelly Monaco (Sam) has only a handful of months left to prove herself with Steve Burton (Jason). If she fails to light any spark with the bulk of the fans, the Jason spoils will go to Rebecca Herbst (Elizabeth), for a long-awaited Liason reunion, by spring.

Hope springs Liason (Liz & Jason). While Elizabeth will revisit feelings for Lucky in the next few months, she may wind up back in Jason’s arms, to stay... until Courtney takes over, until all the whining fan bases are satisfied with their individual story arcs.

Nikolas and Connor look alike because they’re twins, and they’re both Cassadines?

Could a GH actress be with child?

Based on an advanced Showfax script, Jason goes shopping for a baby on the teen black market, so Sam won’t feel deprived of motherhood.

When is a casting call a recast in disguise? When she’s FBI agent Julia, and about to fall for Sonny, the mobster she’s supposed to bring down. This could very well be an original female character, a fiery 20-something bombshell, or a pink slip for an existing actress. The guesses are on!

John J. York (Mac) told Northwest Afternoon talk show co-host Cindi Rinehart that he’d heard Kin Shriner (soon-to-be-ex-Harrison, Y&R; ex-Scott) would soon head to the East Coast, to sign a full-time contract with a soap – maybe ATWT, as Sarah Brown’s (Julia; ex-Carly, GH) on-screen father – filmed there. York himself may switch soaps soon.

The part about Brown sticking around at ATWT and Shriner joining as a connection, relation?, to her Julia might be correct, as per SPW’s latest. Brown, btw, hasn’t been well-received by ATWT fans at all.

Shaun Benson as Dr. Steven Webber sucks and blows. Most fans know it. TPTB know it. They just don’t know what to do about it, yet. Here’s a helpful tip: Dr. Doogie, dude, stop smiling when you’re delivering a dire diagnosis.

Lesli Kay (Lois) promised that sooner, rather than later, Lorenzo will show why Lois has become so fond of him and his romantic potential... when he says nice things to her. But, she added, don’t forget Wally Kurth’s Ned, he’s not out of the running by any long shot.

It’s cute how Adrianne Leon (Brook Lynn) keeps insisting there can be nothing between her and Scott Clifton’s (Dillon) characters, because they’re related by blood. She explained away their, ahem, close bond by referencing her own real-life brother and how protective he is, then back to Dillon and how wacky but accessible he is. Silly girl, in soaps, anything can happen and fans are witnessing a DNA switcheroo in progress every time the two share the screen.

Oops! Didn’t I mention Debbi Morgan last week (while kissing Michael Bruno’s ass in a review of I Wanna Be A Soap Star) with a reference to her soap resume as ex-Angie for both AMC and PC? I meant ex-Angie, AMC; ex-Ellen, PC. I keep thinking Ellen turned into Angie for some reason.

I also meant Keith Coulouris (ex-Keith, OLTL; ex-David, ATWT) in previous Lesli Kay (Lois; ex-Molly, ATWT) mentions. I’d been writing ex-Keith, ATWT lots of times before, thanks, you guys, for not berating me about my gaffe. Sometimes, I get an idea in my head that won’t leave.

Btw, I disagree in that talent manager Michael Bruno’s been pegged as the mean judge, aka Simon Cowell of American Idol, in the new SoapNet reality-TV competition, I Wanna Be A... I think actress Debbi Morgan fits that type better. She seems no-nonsense and provides most of the tough love in her estimations of the finalists as they vie for a three-month GH contract. However, Morgan likens herself somewhat to another, kinder American Idol judge – singer/dancer Paula Abdul, as the nurturer. Before taking on the role of one of the three I Wanna Be A... judges, Morgan assumed Abdul wasn’t discriminating enough. Now, she understands what Abdul went through, it wasn’t and isn’t easy for the judges to dole out constructive, sometimes harsh, criticism to the very sensitive finalists. Morgan has been busy herself, completing three indies, putting together one of them, and her own memoirs, entitled “I’ve Traveled Seven Miles And Seven Light Cities.”

For those living in caves, I Wanna Be A Soap Star just happens to be an original reality-TV series hosted by cable channel, SoapNet. It premiered earlier last month and is up for renewal for a second year, depending on fan feedback. Thousands of acting hopefuls waited for a chance to audition to make it into the final dozen, then that dozen went through their performing paces until, each week, the number is whittled down one by one, until only one actor remains, earning the coveted 13-week contract with GH. Three judges, talent manager Michael Bruno, GH casting director Mark Teschner and actress Debbi Morgan, decide who stays and who goes based on outstanding acting, ability to take direction and that soap look. The finalists live in a cramped dressing room on the GH set, sleeping in bunk beds, waking at the ungodly hour of 6 a.m. and being faced with any number of last-minute changes. Right now, as of this writing, there are three finalists remaining: Mykel—the primping stud, Kelly—the soap look, and Maya—the angry diva. My boss Jeff thought Robyn, the 30-something with the hot body and the velvet voice, would’ve outlasted them all. But my bet’s on Kelly, even though she never learns her lines right and resembles AMC’s ex-Mia (actress Amelia Heinle) too much.

General Hospital News & Gossip, Copyright © 2004 Carol Banks Weber. No part of this page may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, by any means (electronic, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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