Port Charles News & Gossip

News for the week of 25-Sep-2000
by Carol Banks Weber

Emmy award winning soap scribe Lorraine Broderick joins Port Charles as its breakdown writer. The September 18^th announcement took many fans by surprise, causing them to wonder about the state and stability of this half-hour show. Broderick’s resume includes All My Children, Another World and Guiding Light.

How bizarre. I could’ve sworn ABC.com announced last week that Barbara Bloom and Karen Harris were still on the staff as head writers and that recently-axed GL head writers Barbara Esensten and James Harmon Brown were just joining them. But in the September 26^th article of Soap Opera Weekly, it’s quite a different story, as in Bloom and Harris were replaced.

PC’s story, "Matt Walks," is a nominee for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Sentinel Health Award in daytime drama. If it wins, we’ll know on October 14 when the ceremony happens at the Soap Summit Conference in L.A. PC competes with three of its ABC soap rivals for the glory of positively portraying such moving issues about the human condition - - best.

It’s only a two-bedroom Hollywood Hills apartment and she only insisted on the bare minimum fuss, hands-on designing throughout, but it looks like much more, like a perfectly extravagantly lavished mansion in soft hues and country accents. From mixing store-bought with antique, new and hand-me-down familials, red and white plaid armchair to pink, white and lime green floral motif sofa, throwing in low maintenance floral greenery in special spots, Julie Pinson’s (Eve) touch transforms into a warm, cozy, inviting home away from. Two years ago, she found the 1927 apartment complex from a Pennysaver ad. She adores the built-in bookshelves, the bathroom’s original tiling, the kitchen’s old Keefer Merritt stove, the open floorplan boasting plenty of nooks and crannies. Her favorite place to relax when studying lines is the living room. She just sits back on the couch, turns the TV on mute, puts her feet atop the coffee table and loses herself in the world of soap opera. Another favorite activity when the day’s over is putting on her pjs, jumping into bed and reading a book, something she does every night, as it helps her sleep better. What stands out . . . original framed artwork hanging on the walls. "A lot of the paintings around my apartment were passed down to me, as well as some other things, like the Russian triptych above my armoire. That’s been in our family for a long time. My mom gave it to me for my birthday last year," Pinson explained. Her uncle Sergei Plotnoff, for example, was one of the painters she spotlights with his variations on various members of her family. An ever-expanding Barbie and doll collection and a black-and-white-turned-airbrushed-color-splash portrait of her by Denis Mukai (resembling Lauren Bacall a lot) . . . complete her stamp on the apartment. Now, if she’d only use that divine formal dining room, all cream, wood and black iron, with six places just waiting for company. [SOURCE: Soap Opera Weekly, September 26, 2000]

When Sarah Aldrich (Courtney) found herself with a break the same time as her friend Sabryn Genet (Tricia, Young & The Restless) this summer, they headed off for an impromptu trip to a few parts of Italy. Eight days weren’t exactly enough to see the romantic country, but they did their best, booking only the first and last days at a hotel in advance. The rest was left to chance and their whims. Milan offered the same wares as could be found in the States, so they journeyed further to uncharted, non-touristy territory, namely a fishing village in Cinque Terre on the Italian Riviera. Dining, shopping, hiking, swimming, absorbing the exotic . . . turned them on so much they’re planning a return, to see even more, longer. In preparation, they’ve signed up for Berlitz language classes together, just the two of them, around their acting schedules.

She likes chocolate and smoked salmon, but hates water chestnuts. She’s tried out the Atkins Diet, resembles Minnie Driver and would love to live in England or the Virgin Islands. If she couldn’t act, she’d architect or graphic design. The cause dear to her heart is animal and environmental rights. Her admired actors include Susan Sarandon and Kenneth Branagh. Listens to Barenaked Ladies and Peter Gabriel. When she dies, what might go on her tombstone: "To be continued. . ." - - just a tad about Marie Wilson (Karen).

Gossip for the week of 25-Sep-2000
by Carol Banks Weber

Two more co-head writers? What on earth for, to fix or to prepare for cancellation?

Last week, I rumormongered PC will end by year’s end. But maybe ABC is merely strengthening it to do further battle, because it is firmly behind this little soap that could if only given half a chance and a battalion of new writing leadership.

Port Charles News & Gossip, Copyright © 2002 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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