grow but be in the right hands, to be with smart, talented people who know what they're doing. So I feel a very lucky actress.
TV GUIDE called Erica Kane "the most famous soap opera character in the history of TV." Why do you think that is, and do you think it was helped by your streak of 18 nominations before your Daytime Emmy win?
I think it was because they liked Erica Kane that they hoped I'd win. Maybe people who didn't know me as Erica Kane became aware of the Erica Kane character because of that press, but I tell you that the millions of people who watched AMC, the guys who got hooked on it in college, the professors who watched. Not only did the kids say they scheduled their classes, but I would get letters from professors saying they scheduled their classes around AMC, too. Just now this year I've been on book tour and I've heard so many incredible comments across the board. One man came through the line after the show was cancelled, and he said, "You know, Susan. They say cotton is the fabric of our lives. But really it's AMC.”
I believe that every once in a long while, some magic happens. And it's what everybody's looking for, the magic. I think it happened with AMC. I think the American public, embraced it across the board, across generations. People told me they came to this country not speaking English, but they watched Erica Kane to learn how. So I don't think the Emmy nominations made Erica Kane an icon. I think it was [creator] Agnes Nixon's writing, and this incredible character was embraced, for whatever magical wonderful reasons, they all came together at the time they did.
That was a long and intense gig. Did you ever get sick of playing Erica Kane?
I never got sick of playing Erica Kane. I love Erica Kane. I love this character. I never got sick of her, not for a minute. I got sick of the schedule sometimes. It was wild and crazy and frankly kind of inhuman toward the end, but it was a character of a lifetime, and I thank my lucky stars that I recognized that and stayed with it.”
And so are we, Susan!
THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, CBS/CSV — Is Kimberly Back?
• B&B heads into the future by revisiting its past: next week, Karen returns to town with a daughter in tow. Look for newcomer Linsey Godfrey’s debut as Karen’s daughter, Caroline Spencer. In DIGEST, Johnson says she an Katherine Kelly Lang remarked that Godfrey is the same age she and KKL were when they were cast on B&B all those years ago. I wonder if Jon Hensley’s character will be revealed to be Caroline’s father because Karen is pretty much related to all the non-Forrester men.
• When it rains, it pours: Rick is getting a major storyline and a slew of love interests in Caroline, Steffy, Amber, and Beverly. But is a woman from his past returning to town to complicate his black book? According to DIGEST, Ashley Tosoro (known then as Ashley Lyn Cafagna) is rumoured to be coming back to B&B as Kimberly. In this week’s DIGEST, Tosoro reports she also heard the deafening rumour (not!) and contacted Bradley Bell. His response? The multiple Emmy winner claimed to love the idea but would get back to the ingénue with an answer. Um, good luck with that, Ash. I highly doubt it so don’t be waiting by the phone.
• #Random Thought: DO you think Jennifer Finnigan regrets leaving B&B? Yes, she’s experienced moderate success in prime time, but had she stayed on B&B, she’d probably have made more money in the long term and have accumulated a lot more Emmy Awards.
DAYS OF OUR LIVES, NBC/GLOBAL — More Firsts For DAYS!
• Kristian Alfonso began her media tour last week in Toronto. She appeared on my morning talk show, BREAKFAST TELEVISION, to preview her new jewelry line Believe. Yep, I produced her segment. How ironic is that? Most noteworthy? Alfonso revealed to us that DAYS is going to get a lot more exciting in future months. “We shot something three weeks ago that DAYS has never done before. We couldn’t put our scripts down,” said the beauty. Something DAYS has never done before? Like stay on budget?
• In story 411, as Nicole plans to leave town before E.J. learns she’s pregnant, the sexy DiMera finds out the truth. Meanwhile, Carrie is stunned to learn from Sami that Rafe had sex with Rafe!
• Holy crap! Did you see Alison Sweeney’s smokin’ hot body on the cover of this month’s SHAPE MAGAZINE? Schwing. Perhaps Sami needs to take Rafe to the local Salem newsstand… that will solve all their problems.
GENERAL HOSPITAL, ABC/CITY — Sometimes, They Do Come Back!
• Allison Perkins, who? Ron Carlivati previewed upcoming GH in an abc.com interview. Expect major drama when Heather — as played by Robin Mattson — hits town next week. He said, “You absolutely need characters like that, who are nutty and fun and capable of doing anything, and Robin Mattson is just so wonderful as Heather. And this is not just a return for nostalgia's sake. There's an important story reason for Heather being on the canvas, part of a big mystery that's unfolding, so that's exciting too. Heather holds a big secret. It's connected to the video of baby boy Moore that Franco left behind for Jason and Sam. Don't forget that Heather and Susan Moore [Jason's bio-mom] were first cousins!”
As for the rest of the canvas, there seems to be hope for fans of romance:
You will definitely see some new couples, and you may see the return of some old couples. And the couples that currently exist are going to be tested. Obviously Jason and Sam are an incredibly popular couple. And there's a lot of story going on with them, with Sam's pregnancy and also with what happens after Jason finds out that Sam kept him in the dark about Robin. We have this great couple who are very strong and very solid in a lot of ways, who recently got married and are about to have a baby, but my intention is to shake that up a little and test their love – which I think will be exciting and interesting for the audience, to watch them try to weather those storms.
Lulu and Dante are another popular couple who recently got married. And now they're working together too at the police station, so look for some danger and adventure for them as well as romance.
Let's see, who else? Elizabeth and Ewen are going to start dating, but I'm well aware that there's a big fan base out there for Jason and Elizabeth, too. It's my intention to play that history whenever we can. They're friends, and they've gone through the death of a child together, so they'll always be in each other's orbit because of that. But they will be in story together, too, so stay tuned!
We also have Sonny and Kate, who've found their way back to each other after Brenda's exit. But now we've thrown in the complication of Connie, her split personality. So that's another couple who will be tested. On the one hand, you have Kate who truly loves Sonny, and on the other hand you have Connie, who wants to break them up. We're having a lot of fun with that – as the audience has seen – with the way she's planning to go about trying to bust them up by using Johnny. And at the same time Johnny is starting a new relationship with Carly. So that'll keep all those characters mixed up with each other and I think it's going to be very exciting to watch.”
• What a difference a year makes. Last year, Rebecca Herbst was fired, but passionate fans saved her job. A year later, the actress — who will probably win her first Daytime Emmy Award this year — has renewed her contract!
• Sometimes they come back. While Garin Wolf’s P.R. mantra was clearly shooting blanks, executive Producer Frank Valentini is full loaded and committed to bring back exciting past characters and actors. On Twitter, the Emmy winner teased: "Exciting #GH casting news coming... stay tuned!" SOAP OPERA DIGEST is reporting that the handsome exec will make the exciting announcement on Monday. My guess? Well, considering Vanessa Marcil Giovinazzo was on set recently (giving a set tour for charity) and met Valentini, I say Brenda Barrett — and Lucky Spencer!
GUIDING LIGHT — Spaulding, Phillip Spaulding!
• First, Reva Shayne; now, Phillip Spaulding. SOAPCLASSICS.COM revealed their latest GUIDING LIGHT DVD box set: and it’s all Grant Aleksander (perhaps some Jon Bolger, too?). Head over to the website to buy a collection of Aleksander’s best work. Hopefully, the next DVD set will be a tribute to Otalia!
ONE LIFE TO LIVE — Trevor Love Hewitt!
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p; • That didn’t take long: ONE LIFE superstar Trevor St. John has landed his first major post-ONE LIFE gig — and it’s not GH! SOAP OPERA DIGEST reports that the talented actor will guest star on Lifetime’s THE CLIENT LIST, which stars Jennifer Love Hewitt, on May 13. Whoohoo. Can’t wait to see St. John in action again. It’s been far too long!
• Robin Strasser recently tweeted that she’s been cast in a new comedy project but she’s waiting for the green light before she spills. Whatever it is, congrats, Robin!
THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS — Genoa City North!
• Guess who is headed to Toronto? Michelle Stafford, Joshua Morrow and Peter Bergman! Morrow will be filling in UNCENSORED readers once he gets the final deets!
• It looks like Y&R is headed full steam ahead with an Adam and Chelsea pairing. Me likes. But, then again, who doesn’t Michael Muhney have chemistry with? In story, Adam promises to help Chelsea find out who her dad is. Turns out Anita’s baby daddy is living in Genoa City. My guess? Jeffrey.
• Hurray: It looks like Angell Conwell is back as sexy Leslie Michaelson. Also, it’s been reported
Soap Opera Uncensored: Issue 23 Page 5
