General Hospital News & Gossip
 |
| scoops & spoilers |
| General Hospital |
| Young and the Restless |
| news & gossip |
| This week’s News & Gossip |
| News & Gossip from last week |
| ...from two weeks ago |
| ...from three weeks ago |
| ...from four weeks ago |
News for the week of 08-Oct-2007
The legendary Patrick Mulcahey gave SoapTown USA’s Giada DeRos – and us soap fans – plenty to consider from the vantage point of a soap writer. Mulcahey cut his teeth on soaps under the infamous Douglas Marland of GL, and made lasting impressions on Santa Barbara and GH as the “Clink-Boom” guy. Currently, the four-time Emmy winner is putting flesh and soul to B&B as one of executive producer Bradley Bell’s lifers.
In Mulcahey’s experience, writers are born, not taught. He did learn by observing Marland at work, but he took from those experiences more a general philosophy of what makes a soap opera appealing to audiences – by not giving them what they think they want based on what you’ve led them to want. For himself, and other writers, Mulcahey advised outside of any textbook; he didn’t mystify, structure or glamorize the language of writers, but tapped directly into who and what they are when they’re writing. By doing this, he showed not only that he’s one of us, but enormous respect for this secret, oddball club.
In trying to answer the age-old question of what skills a writer requires to become more successful, Mulcahey reflected this respect and understanding with his thoughtful, experienced response focused on subjective rules not skills: “A skill is a very different thing from a rule. I think we all develop our own private rules about writing and refer to them mentally when we try to diagnose what’s wrong with what we’re working on. For instance: every character must be both faithful to himself and able to surprise you. That’s what people are like. If your character can’t do those two things at the same time, he’s not a character, he’s a construct, and something’s gravely wrong with how you conceived him. I would say though that creating that sort of character is not a matter of skill but of heart.”
He judged his own personal writing style a little more harshly, in that he said he has a bad tendency to focus and “fret” so much on the writing that he often misses deadlines. And he hates working from soap outlines written by other staff writers as dictated by network suits. While discussing what it’s like for him to write scripts from outlines, Mulcahey revealed the renegade and the original for which he is renowned on the soap boards. “As a scriptwriter, though, when you’re handed somebody else’s outline to write from, all sorts of creative decisions have already been made, you don’t know how or why, which ones are considered indispensable and which are only there because the outline writer didn’t have time to think of something better. You didn’t hear the discussion that informed the decisions and you don’t know what’s going to pay off next week, you’re flying blind,” he explained. “So you do one of two things. You get very cautious and only write what’s in the outline, whether it feels organic and right for the characters or not. Or you do what I’m a little notorious for doing: look over the outline, find something solid in it that really works, build on that dramatically and get to where the story says you need to, changing or just bypassing the stuff that seems inert or wrong to you. The latter, less safe approach will either drive your head writer nuts or make him or her very happy; but you know your script will play and the actors will get you, if no one else does. Still, inevitably you’re going to screw up and skip over something in the outline you didn’t know was important, to future story, and you or your editor will have to scramble to fix it later.”
One of his best efforts on GH utilized this renegade tendency, thanks to the trust factor from head writer Bob Guza Jr. In the late 1990s “Clink-Boom” episode, all Mulcahey, Sonny is shown blown back from an explosion that kills his pregnant wife Lily, just as Sonny’s former love Brenda clinks her champagne glass to new beau Jax’s on his yacht. That episode was the culmination of Guza’s painstaking vision, and the result, said Mulcahey, of Guza’s amazing trust in his writers. At the first read-through, Mulcahey didn’t get Guza’s point, and instead, found the overall effect of this episode outline to be “mechanical and amped-up and hokey.” Instead of feeling insulted, Guza simply had Mulcahey change whatever he had to to make the episode not that way. “Well, given that liberty, I went back to it, and thought it through and felt it through – and you know what? It turned out almost exactly the way Bob had it. I think I might’ve inserted or deleted one cut. ‘Writing it the way I wanted’ meant finding the power in it that Bob had already found and fallen in love with. But he was willing to put it on the chopping block for me.”
Assuredly, Mulcahey – who said he picked up a book and started reading before entering school and writing shortly thereafter – probably has plenty of true stories behind the people in the industry that have won his admiration and friendship, from GH writers (former and present) Michele Val Jean and Elizabeth Korte, to former GH executive producer Wendy Riche, to actors Stuart Damon (Alan), Leslie Charleson (Monica), Jackie Zeman (Bobbie), Constance Towers (Helena), and Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis).
Any soap fan who is a Mulcahey fan should read this SoapTown USA interview (note to Tristan Rogers/Robert Scorpio, who asked fans last week to explain Y&R’s classic, unchanging soap format: check the interview out too). He spoke more about his evolution as a more honed, focused writer (perhaps a little too simplistic at times, he added), his odd habit of hearing dialogue in his head and saying it out loud in mixed company, and his view of soaps as a relevant genre in today’s world of cable options.
Alan is not Port Charles’ friendly, neighborhood ghost; he is Tracy’s conscience, and as such, he may very well spread out and comfort other loved ones he left behind when he died. This baffling sneak preview, as well as two others, was provided by head writer Bob Guza Jr. in Soap Opera Digest’s October 9th issue, under “GH’s Burning Questions.” Apparently Tracy’s conscience, in the form of the deceased Alan, will take on more qualities of Alan, and then may go off searching for Jason, Emily and Monica to “haunt.” Skye, for sure, will see more major story now that she’s back, and definitely mixing it up with a co-conspirator in this mob mess (duh, Ric!). Guza compared her to Lady Macbeth. … while Alexis’s hots for villain Jerry will prove her emotional undoing, in that she kind of doesn’t want to face this part of herself, being attracted to damaged men.
Little did any of us fans know but soap vet Rachel Ames stepped down as Audrey Hardy quite a bit ago. Ames decided to retire from GH, but then she wasn’t really on much anyway before leaving. A rep spouted the party line about Ames always being welcome back, blah blah, but whatever.
Since landing the recast role of Emily, Natalia Livingston has made many close co-star friends, such as Rebecca Herbst (Elizabeth)—right off the bat!, Kelly Monaco (Sam), Tyler Christopher (Nikolas) and the newest to the bunch, Sebastian Roche (Jerry). Livingston said she and Christopher try to ease new actors’ introduction to the fast-paced world of GH’s soap. She does it, because she remembers how nerve-wracking it had been for her when she was new, and how Herbst went out of her way to ease her intro. Although, she said, laughing, Roche didn’t need any pointers when she tried to help him get used to surroundings, “he was already so confident.” The women on this show are so nurturing, Livingston praised, they remember special occasions, like her birthday, with parties, they’re super-supportive, and they exhibit “positive energy and attitude on the set and make the working environment such a fun and warm place.” –Soap Opera Digest, Shop like a Soap Star, October 9, 2007
Megan Ward (Kate) stands 5’6” tall—without her standard four-inch heels—which is considerably shorter than her leading man Maurice Benard (Sonny). Okay, as a side note, if this is true, then I must have grown from 5’4” to 5’8” ‘cause I’m taller than both of these actors! She could probably go without the heels, to afford Benard the taller, authoritative stance in their shared scenes. But what fun is that? “A lot of times, Maurice puts his hand on his hip and slouches down so he can look into my eyes. Then, I stand awfully straight and proud like, ‘You’re not going to get to me.’ All of a sudden, I look taller!” she said, with a twinkle in her eye. –Soap Opera Weekly
Like most of us growing up in the ‘80s, Megan Ward (Kate) grew up worshipping rocker Rick Springfield (Noah). But most of us will never meet the rock god in our lifetime. Ward – who attended a Springfield concert as her first as a young girl – knows how privileged she is to be in the same studio with the guy, even if she’s too shy to approach him for any sort of meaningful conversation. Viewing Springfield around the halls as the rock god he is, Ward has so far managed only to make small talk once around the time he was filming Eli Love’s concert (and she and Rick Hearst/Ric were waiting around for their scenes in a separate story).
If Megan Ward (Kate) had her own magazine column, she wouldn’t go the route of her alter-ego and go fashionista on her readers. Instead, she’d go to her online habit – YouTube – and write about that. She and her friends go to YouTube a lot, to catch a missed TV episode from a favorite show, for herself—to learn more about past GH characters, “[e]verything you could possibly imagine” is up on that site. –Soap Opera Digest, October 9, 2007
With their first child two years ago, Jason Gerhardt (Cooper) suffered the same hunger pangs and cravings—and enlarged tummy—as his wife Chalae. Now that Madyson is two, and Chalae is well into her second pregnancy (I predict it’s a boy!), due out in this world in two months, Gerhardt faces the same sympathy weight dilemma. He said he would try extra-hard not to give in, since he works on GH where keeping the tummy tight and flat is essential. Good luck, dude. “[It’s] a little difficult when she gets a late-night craving for a Wendy’s frosty or something like that.” If he falters and gives in to some, say, Krispy Kremes, he said that at least everybody at work will understand where the extra poundage came from. –Soap Opera Digest, October 9, 2007
Jason Gerhardt (Cooper) praised John Eldredge’s book “Wild At Heart [Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul]” as an uplifting testament to the adventurous streak in all men. He said men, women, boys and girls would all be edified from the book which looks at men through an original Christian perspective that defies the watered-down, post-feminist expectations of a diluted, emasculated gender.
Deep In The Valley stars some big names in the movie/TV industry and in our youth-obsessed culture: Denise Richards, Tracy Morgan, Kimberly Kardashian, Chris McDonald and GH’s own Jacklyn Zeman (Bobbie). Zeman wrapped filming of the Christian Forte-directed and written comedy/fantasy indie about a video booth time machine and the porno world. She plays a mom named Sonia Monia who will do whatever it takes to land her daughter in a top cheerleading spot. The indie – due out next year – follows two buddies as they go into a magic video booth and get teleported to a parallel world in the 1970s where it feels like a porno come to life.
Wally Kurth (Ned) goes on ATWT as Sam for a spell.
How was that October 4th GH: NS finale? Explosive, compelling, dying for more? ABC Daytime president Brian Frons and his people are currently working out a more conducive way of giving NS fans their regular dose of this SoapNet GH spin-off. He may rent a separate studio apart from GH, add on NS writers, whatever it takes to make this happen.
Gossip for the week of 08-Oct-2007
Drake Hogestyn (John Black, DOOL) as GH’s recast of Dr. Jeff Webber? With all due respect but… God help us all if this is true.
What gives here? Head writer Bob Guza Jr. and actress Genie Francis (ex-Laura) have both said, at separate times, that they’re really getting sick and tired of the same question about when Luke’s other-half will next return to the show. They’ve also both indicated a willingness to work out some deal where it can happen. So why isn’t it happening? In the latest SOD, Guza said he loves Francis, GH is open to her return, and then he brings up her “wanting to stay up in Maine to raise her kids,” promising that all of this sweet-talk isn’t “interview-speak.” But then, Francis has made it clear in past interviews that she is willing to go back to GH, with family considerations (maybe she can do short-term story arcs) in place.
Okay, so I’m about a week or so behind (as usual), but Carolyn Hinsey of SOD’s “It’s Only My Opinion” really upset quite a number of female fans with her defense of another soap columnist, TV Guide’s controversial Michael Logan. Worst of all in these fans’ eyes, Hinsey contended in her October 9th column that, in her opinion: “My pal… Michael… and I do not believe that women can physically ‘rape’ men any more than people can come back from the dead or get a new head…. [T]here is a certain physical … thing … that has to happen to men so that they can have sex, which I just don’t see happening when a Rocky and Bullwinkle-style villain climbs on your lap with an Uzi after you’ve been beaten to a pulp.” My advice to Hinsey, if she even bothers to read this (and she doesn’t, I’m not famous enough) is to STFU about male rape already, it’s a losing argument. I know, I’ve been there (you’d be surprised). Besides, her definition is starting to look like she doesn’t understand what rape is and what rape isn’t; it has nothing to do with “a certain physical … thing …” (just say erection!).
Anthony Zacchara may just be kin to a major, established GH character. Wait, does that mean Lulu and Johnny are siblings?
General Hospital News & Gossip, Copyright © 2024 Carol Banks Weber. Published by SoapZone.com / Jeff Jungblut. 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. Opinions expressed on this page are those of the author and may not be representative of SoapZone.com or its advertisers. Don't steal scoops.
