EMMY NOMINATIONS!

For those who are looking, a complete list of this morning's nominees are available here, but as a PDF only.

Congratulations to all the PGP nominees. Stay tuned for our in-depth coverage in the days to follow!

WHERE ARE THEY NOW: KEVIN BACON (EX-TIM; GUIDING LIGHT)

In the early '80s, as Kevin's acting career began to blossom with regular soap opera work, the Bacon brothers lived for a brief while in the same Manhattan building, where they would, when time permitted, continue to work on songs together. While Kevin was finding success on The Guiding Light, Michael's musical career had taken a lucrative turn toward film and TV scoring. Starting with small, offbeat projects, he has since gone on to win an Emmy for his work on the 1992 historical film The Kennedys, one of many in the renowned American Experience documentary series.

More on both brothers, here.

MANY HAPPY RETURNS

It's a week of returns on As The World Turns!

Inturn winner Alex Charak is back as Elwood to make trouble for Casey on Monday, May 5 and Tuesday, May 6. (Make sure you check out the current season of Inturn, here.)

Also on May 6, Daniel Hugh Kelley's Col. Mayer once again brings his particular brand of open-minded charm to Oakdale.

GUEST COLUMN: MARIANN AALDA (DIDI; EDGE OF NIGHT)

Comin’ in from “The Edge…”
MARIANN’S MIDLIFE MAYHEM & MISCELLANY:
Ya Gotta Have Friends…Starting With
Being Your Own Best One!

I felt many of you might relate to my daughter-in-law Nikki’s response to last week’s column, so I wanted to share it with you:

“Oh, I absolutely love Tamara Tunie on SVU!!! That is my show and she does a GREAT job on it. One of my coworkers even has a lil crush on her (we talk about SVU episodes via instant messenger the day after the show runs).

I also hear you loud and clear on the friendship topic. My BFF from high school (Lisa) is that 'lifetime' friend. She has moved to just about every state in the US and gradually made her way back to NY post-high school. Over the past ~15 years since graduation, we managed to physically see each other maybe twice, but when we get on the phone (maybe 3 or 4 times a year), it's like we've seen each other everyday!! I can't say the same for my college friends who I thought we shared great bonding with. Some were too needy and you had to give them constant attention 100% of the time or they felt unloved and left out. Marriage and kids will not allow me to communicate with somebody THAT much -- not even my own mother, let alone a good friend. However, many of them chose the road of 'all or nothing' so I pretty much deemed it 'their loss'. No way I'm gonna act like a ten year old and say "I'm not your friend anymore" because they didn't know how to deal with me growing up and having other priorities that ranked higher. Not a total loss of friends, but a good number lost to attrition, as you mentioned.”

So much maturity in such a young woman; it took me a lot longer to learn that lesson…and to be able to assuage myself of the guilt I felt whenever a friendship seemed to be coming to an end.

And from Tamara Tunie (ex-Jessica; ATWT)…

“…what is ironic, I was having a conversation about friendship with another friend on Saturday and was trying to remember, searching the universe, and asking ‘what was that quote?’!"

As a “public service” :-) for others of you who might also have an interest, here is the expanded version of that quote :

"A Reason, a Season, or a Lifetime" - (a quote attributed to Michelle Ventor as author)

People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. When you figure out which one it is, you will know what to do for each person.

When someone is in your life for a REASON . . . It is usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally, or spiritually. They may seem like a godsend, and they are! They are there for the reason you need them to be.

Then, without any wrong doing on your part, or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away. Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand. What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered. And now it is time to move on.

When people come into your life for a SEASON . . .because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn. They bring you an experience of peace, or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it! It is real! But, only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons...things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person, and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life.

That's why it is said that love is blind...but friendship is clairvoyant.

Fascinating how, unbeknownst to me, Tunie had asked herself a question about that quote, and than, “clairvoyantly” I answered it for her, isn’t it?

So maybe the fact that I returned to the theme of “friendship” this week means I was “picking up on something” a lot of you readers might be going through right now. If so, I hope this was able to help.

Love,
Your friend, Mariann :-)
www.mariannaalda.com

OUT AND ABOUT

On the venerable CBS soap opera "Guiding Light," the fictional Bauer family each year holds a big Fourth of July barbecue. The production crew typically sets up fake smoke, in a fake grill, in a fake backyard.

"That's how it has always been," said Ellen Wheeler, the soap's executive producer. "And we add the sound of sizzling hamburgers."

Now the annual event, set to tape in June, will look a lot different. No more actors in swimsuits with water sprayed on them from bottles. This time, the cast really will be outside, and Wheeler is contemplating the idea of having live sparklers during the scene - an impossibility in a studio setting. "When you really are outside, it changes the feeling for you," Wheeler said.

Entire story, here.

WRITE A DINAH-MITE CAPTION

Since people seemed to enjoy our caption an ATWT photo game, we thought we'd try it with Guiding Light.

Caption the above photo!

GIVE ME LIBERTY

Meredith Hagner was riding the subway in New York when her agent left the message on her cell phone -- "Call us right back."

Six weeks later, the 2005 Chapel Hill High School graduate debuted Thursday on the CBS soap opera "As the World Turns."

Read the entire piece, here.

"VIEW"-ERSHIP

Van Hansis (Luke; ATWT) and Marcy Rylan (Lizzie; GL) will appear live on ABC’s The View to help announce this year’s Daytime Emmy Award-nominations on Wednesday, April 30 at 11:00 AM.

Make sure you tune in to cheer on your favorites!

WELCOME "MATT"

Due to popular demand, Eric William Morris returns to As The World Turns as Matt on Wednesday, April 30.

Check out our photos above of Matt's greatest hits from his last Oakdale go-around. Is there a clue in there for what might be bringing him back?

A PERSONAL MESSAGE FROM MARJ DUSAY (ALEX; GL)

PERSONAL APPEARANCE ALERT!!!

HI THERE, ALL YOU WONDERFUL DYED-IN-THE-WOOL FANS WHO ARE HANGING IN THERE WITH ME!

I'VE BEEN INVITED TO APPEAR AT THE APPLE BLOSSOM FESTIVAL IN THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY IN WINCHESTER, VIRGINIA.

CHECK THIS-- MY TITLE (LA-DEE-DAH) IS "COURT AMBASSADOR IN THE QUEEN'S CORONATION". THIS YEAR'S QUEEN IS THE DAUGHTER OF FOOTBALL STAR JERRY RICE.

SINCE MY OWN FATHER WAS A FOOTBALL/BASKETBALL/TRACK COACH, I AM ESPECIALLY PROUD TO BE A PART OF THIS.

THE EVENT BEGINS ON FRIDAY MAY 2ND AND CONCLUDES ON SATURDAY MAY 3RD WITH THE GRAND FEATURE PARADE.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, YOU CAN CHECK OUT THEIR WEBSITE AT http://www.thebloom.com/

SO JUST IN CASE ANYONE IS FLOATING AROUND THAT AREA, COME SAY "HI".

THANKS AGAIN FOR ALL YOUR LOVE AND SUPPORT.

LILY V.4

Soap vet Noelle Beck becomes the fourth actress to tackle the role of ATWT's Lily Walsh Mason Snyder Grimaldi Snyder on May 8, 2008.

In addition to a starring role on the primetime soap Central Park West, Beck is best known to television viewers for her role as ingenue Trisha Alden on Loving.

Beck debuted on the Douglas Marland created soap in 1984, playing a rich, spoiled, sheltered but nevertheless good-hearted daughter of bitchy, power-hungry mama Gwyneth and a mostly absent father (Clay Alden was such a royal pain that, years later, when an impostor was revealed to have stolen his identity, the majority of the family openly preferred the impostor!).

Innocent Trisha soon fell for diamond-in-the-rough bad boy mechanic Steve (Corinth didn't have as many stables as Oakdale, a filthy garage was the best she could do). Naturally, the course of their true love never had much of a chance to run smooth, and the couple was regularly torn asunder by, among other things, Steve's marriage to pregnant ex Celia (at one point played by actress Alice Haining who, two years later, would play Holden's in-between wife, Angel).

Though they eventually wed, Steve was shot and killed soon after. Trisha went on to affairs with a sleazy gambler, and an equally sleazy television producer who also slept with her mother then plotted with Gwyneth to keep Trisha from her new true love, equally blue-collar and good-hearted (despite the prison record) Trucker (as Soap Opera Digest noted at the time, the first man ever named after his profession).

Along the way, Trisha was kidnapped, suffered a miscarriage, lost her adopted child to the natural mother, suffered amnesia and was presumed dead.

Yup. She's going to fit right in.

GUEST COLUMN: MARIANN AALDA (DIDI; EDGE OF NIGHT)

Comin’ in from “ The Edge…”

MARIANN’S MIDLIFE MAYHEM & MISCELLANY:

That’s What Friends Are For…

Gotta give a shout-out to Tamara Tunie, (ex-“Jessica Giffin,” ATWT) on her fabulous cover article in the April/May issue of BOULEVARD magazine! ( http://www.boulevardli.com/ )

View full size

Tamara Tunie

View full size

Iona Morris

I got to spend a delightful afternoon in her kitchen this past Friday, courtesy of my business-writing partner in the stage-play, “MOIST!” ( www.moistonstage.com ) and BFF of many years, Iona Morris, who played Tunie’s sister, “Fiona,” on As the World Turns.

As you can see from these photos, the casting was definitely on the money in the DNA department… these two gorgeous, elegant women definitely look like their ancestors took a swim in the same gene pool, don’t they? Iona was in New York for a business meeting on our project and thought it was time that Tunie and I met.

Now, by nature, I am not a jealous person…no great act of benevolence on my part, I’m just not wired that way. But if there is anything in this world that I might covet, it would be Tunie’s (as her friends call her) kitchen! Sunny and bright with top-of-the-line appliances, it’s straight out of HGTV or Architectural Digest – but still warm and cozy. Kind of like Tunie, herself…top-of-the-line, but still warm and cozy.

For several hours we sat in her kitchen and the three of us laughed, ate, drank great wine and had wonderful conversation. We shared some of our dreams as well as some of our disappointments, and we supported each other’s quests. We high-fived and gave each other “atta-girls,” as we also wiped away a few tears.

By the end of the afternoon, I felt as though I’d made a new BFF, and I hope Tunie felt she’d made one in me as well.

To me, friendship is one of the world’s greatest natural resources. It feels good to have made a new friend…especially since I seem to have experienced some friendship “erosion” in the last couple years, due to attrition.

The online dictionary gives the definition of attrition as: a gradual diminution in number or strength because of constant stress.

As much as I may have tried to keep up my end of “due diligence” in friendship maintenance, sometimes it just didn’t work out. I reached out…and for whatever reason, some decided not to reach back.

Divorce, a change in economic status (both up and down), changing interests, a change of location…sometimes things just don’t work out the way you’d like them to.

Some friends drift away during tough times (theirs) when they feel the need to “save face;” or (yours) when they don’t want to be drawn into your “drama.” Some friends who are good at giving moral support when you’re down-and-out, feel out of place (or envious) when you make a “comeback."

Then, there are the friends that stay with you through thick and thin…good times and bad…and even though you may only see them every couple years or so, each time you get together it’s just like no time has passed at all.

It has been said that there are those who come into our lives for a reason…others for a season…and some, for a lifetime. I’m finally starting to appreciate the meaning of that statement. I’m learning to let go with love and move on with grace…making space for new friends to come into my life…for a reason, a season or a lifetime.

XO,

Mariann

www.mariannaalda.com

* * * *

TAMARA TUNIE has directed her first full length motion picture, See You in September, an original romantic comedy set in current-day Manhattan. The film centers around Lindsay, a successful career woman who is getting therapy to work through her fears of commitment. She's on the verge of a breakthrough when her therapist takes a month-long vacation for the month of August, so she puts together group therapy sessions for others, like her, who have been temporarily ditched by their vacationing shrinks. The movie is currently in post-production, for release later this year.

Click here for more info and to see a trailer:

http://www.syiseptember.com/home.html

* * * *

IONA MORRIS has most recently been utilizing her theatrical directorial talents on A Handsome Woman Retreats -- a one-woman show about a panicky woman's 10-day search through meditation for her anxiety's source -- written and performed by Kim Wayans ( In Living Color). It premiered in Los Angeles earlier this year to rave reviews and will be presented at the Cleveland Playhouse Wednesday, April 30, thru Sunday, May 4.

Click here for more info and to purchase tickets: http://www.clevelandplayhouse.com/showinfo.asp?eventID=19

_______________

Mariann also blogs at : Lee Bailey’s Electronic Urban Report

FAMILY UNTIED

Julie Pinson arrives in Oakdale on May 8 to play Janet, a woman from Brad's past.

And the actress does, in fact, have a past with Austin Peck, who plays Brad.

From 2004 until earlier this year, Pinson played the role of Billie on DOOL. Until 2007, Austin Peck played Austin... Billie's brother.

Which is a little bit disturbing, but not as bad as when Wally Kurth (ex-Sam; ATWT) and Jane Elliot played lovers on DOOL, then mother and son on GH.

Or the time that Thorsten Kaye's real-life significant other, Susan Haskell, played his (dead) sister on Port Charles.

But we're soap fans. We adjust.

(See Pinson and Peck above on DOOL, and Pinson as Janet.)

TREE TO BE YOU AND ME

Some CBS soap opera stars are visiting the Tri-State today. Cast members from Guiding Light hope to encourages others to give back. "Find your Light" is a volunteer effort created for the show's 70th anniversary. Caitlin VanZandt who plays Ashley and John Driscoll who plays Coop worked alongside local volunteers to plant trees in the West End.

Watch the video, here.

COME TO DADDY

A photo preview of Hawk Shayne's (Gil Rogers) return to Guiding Light this May.

Make sure to tune in!

OH, HENRY

Online consensus seems to peg Henry (Trent Dawson) as the star of yesterday's Bratie wedding festivities.

So to go with our unconventional spoilers, we offer an unconventional As The World Turns Wedding Album: All Henry, All the Time.

Enjoy!

YOUNG & GAINING

Ratings for soaps have been slipping for years as women join the workforce and cable lures away more viewers, and to reverse the trend the networks have been looking for ways to woo younger viewers.

It looks like it’s working for CBS.

Teen viewership for CBS soaps has risen this season....

“Guiding Light” has seen the biggest up tick among CBS soaps, rising 29 percent from 49,000 to 63,000, with “The Young and the Restless” second with a 23 percent jump, from 77,000 to 95,000.

Read the entire story at Media Life.

WORLD WEDDING

Yesterday, we had the non-traditional spoiler, today, we go the conventional route:

Katie, Brad and their admittedly unconventional wedding party. Will the bride and groom make it to "I Do," or will at least one of the above pipe up with a ceremonial objection? (Note how thrilled Jack looks by the whole thing.)

Tune in to As The World Turns today and find out!

KETTLE WHISTLE (FOR ALL YOU JANE'S ADDICTION FANS)

Beth Chamberlin (Beth; GL) has released her first workout video, The Kettlebell Way To Your Perfect Body, a total fitness workout led by America's foremost kettlebell expert, Anthony Diluglio and kettlebell enthusiast, Beth Chamberlin.

For more information please visit www.beacon-fitness.com.

BRATIE BRIDES

ATWT's Katie and Brad are set to tie the knot on Thursday, April 17, and a traditional wedding preview might include photos of the bide, the groom, the dress, the cake, and maybe a big man and wife kiss at the end.

But here, at the PGP Classic Soaps Blog, we believe the picture should match the spirit of the occasion. Which, in this case, involves this shot of three of the bride's (four) ex-husbands (Simon, for some reason, didn't make the cut). Mike and Jack are scheduled to be the groom's best men, while Henry is tapped to be the Man of Honor.

And Groucho... er...Henry, as you can see, is taking the entire proceedings very seriously...

GOOD HAWK BACK

Gil Rogers will make a return visit to Springfield as Hawk Shayne, Reva's good ol' boy Daddy, beginning Thursday, May 1.

Comin’ in from “The Edge…”
MARIANN’S MIDLIFE MAYHEM & MISCELLANY: The Red Hat

“Criticism” came up as a topic of conversation one day last week on “The View.” As stand-up comics, Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg both commented that an entire audience could be laughing and enjoying their act, but if there was just one person who appeared not to be enjoying it, that was the person they focused on.

Whoopi said that whenever that happened, she would often interrupt her show and ask the person how they were feeling.

“Because, you know, sometimes, the fact that they’re not laughing doesn’t have anything to do with you,” she said. “Maybe their dog just died, or they had a fight with their spouse just before they came to see the show. But if it turns out that I’m not what they expected and they don’t think I’m funny, rather than watch them suffer through it, I offer to give them their money back if they want to leave…which puts us both out of our misery.”

Joy took it more personally, saying that when she was just starting out, there was a woman who sat through her entire show with a scowl on her face.

“Everybody else was laughing like crazy…I really had a great show that night, except for that one woman,” she said. “And she was wearing a red hat, so I couldn’t miss her…it was like a magnet, my eyes kept being drawn back to her. That was 25 years ago and I still remember that woman. So, now, whenever there’s a not-quite-so-enthusiastic person in the audience, I refer to them as ‘Red Hats’.”

I didn’t transcribe the conversation as I was listening to it, so that’s not all word-for-word, but it’s pretty close…and timely; because the next day I got this comment in response to my last column:

Oakdalian said... Is this her personal blog now? There must be other former P&G actors we can get caught up with out there.

The first not-quite-so-enthusiastic response to my column. It may not have been intended as a personal criticism, but my immediate response was to take it personally…and to want to be accommodating…to somehow try and “fix” the situation. Would Oakdalian like me more if I wrote less? Then, hey, I could do that! Maybe I should PGP if she’d like me to cut back and contribute a column every two weeks instead of once-a-week.

Then I realized that I had just fallen under the spell of the “Red Hat.”

Wow, that quickly? That easily?

Yep. That’s just how it happens. We set a goal, establish an agenda and roll merrily along, collecting our “atta-girls!” – and then an unexpected criticism puts a crimp in our momentum and we start to doubt ourselves. But if we’re conscious of it and address it, it won’t last for long.

So that’s my column for this week! And if there’s a lesson to be shared here, it’s this…

“Sticks and stones can break your bones, and yes, criticism might even hurt you. But that’s just a feeling, with which you are dealing. YOU are the only one who can stop you.

Have a great week!

XO, Mariann
www.mariannaalda.com

Mariann also blogs at : Lee Bailey’s Electronic Urban Report

TRIPLE PLAY

A private family lunch for the Lewis men.

Just Billy (Jordan Clarke), Bill (Daniel Cosgrove), Josh (Robert Newman)... and a half-dozen crewmen.

That's life in Springfield!

AS THE SET TURNS

Tim Goodmanson, who has won Emmy Awards for his work on the soap opera "As the World Turns," came to Rochester to design and help paint the sets for the classic musical.

"He was able to fax his plans and sketches to us, and we built it," director Eric Decker said. "Then he was here for a week on-site."

Entire story, here.

SAY WHAT?

Since people seemed to enjoy our game of putting words into Kim's mouth, here's another one for the weekend.

What's Vienna saying to Henry? (Or vice-versa).

SHINING A LIGHT...

CORAOPOLIS (KDKA) ― Some big stars of daytime were in town this past weekend, all in an effort to raise awareness for breast cancer.... Four stars of the CBS Daytime drama, 'Guiding Light,' Frank Dicopoulos, Kim Zimmer, Bradley Cole and Robert Newman, were at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Coraopolis for the event on Sunday afternoon.

Watch the video, here.

COUCH POTATO

Redshift Productions' Scientist's Studio (Max Evjen, Artistic and Executive Director, Megan Halpern, Artistic and Producing Director ) will proudly present THREE ON A COUCH by Carl Djerassi, directed by Elena Araoz at the Soho Playhouse (15 Vandam Street), beginning performances on May 29 with its press opening Sunday June 8 through June 22, 2008.

Featured in the cast is:

Mark Pinter- Most recently starring in Guiding Light as Brad Green (2003-2004) and All My Children as Greenlee’s stand-in dad, Roger Smythe (2001, 2002, 2003), Pinter boasts a remarkable career in the daytime genre. He began his daytime stint in 1979 as Dr. Tom Crawford on Love of Life. From there he starred on Guiding Light as Mark Evans from 1981-1983. He also appeared on As the World Turns as Brian McColl (1984-1987, 1990); Loving as Dan Hollister (1987-1989); and, Another World as the second Grant Harrison (1991-1999). Film: Season of Youth, Carleton Keller in Vanilla Sky, Edward Speck in The Eden Myth.

Mark is married to ATWT's Colleen Zenk Pinter (Barbara).

All the ticket info, here.

ON THE MARKET

Michelle Newman has been upped to the newly created position of vp daytime programming and marketing at CBS Entertainment.

In her new position, she will work with senior vp daytime Barbara Bloom and will spearhead marketing campaigns for CBS' daytime series "The Young and the Restless," "The Bold and the Beautiful," "Guiding Light," "As the World Turns" and "The Price Is Right."

More at The Hollywood Reporter.

YOUR CAPTION HERE

What is As The World Turns' Kim thinking?

Post your suggestion to go with her expression, below.

ROCKIN' REVA

Kim Zimmer (Reva; GL) will perform in the Broadway Grand Rapids Annual Fundraiser, From Bawdy to Broadway, An Intimate Evening of Cabaret with Kim Zimmer on Saturday, April 26 at the private Lakewood Estate on Fisk Lake in East Grand Rapids, Michigan.

For more information or to purchase tickets, please call (616) 235-6285 or visit www.broadwaygrandrapids.com .

GUEST COLUMN: MARIANN AALDA (DIDI; THE EDGE OF NIGHT)

Comin’ in from “The Edge…”

MARIANN’S MIDLIFE MAYHEM & MISCELLANY:

An Acting Lesson or…Papa Said There’d Be Days Like This.

At a loss for what to write about this week, I decided to do a Google search for Edge of Night to try and come up with some ideas, and I made an interesting find: the “Television Without Pity” (TWoP) fan forum with the following link and subject feed:

Favorite/Best Soap Opera Scenes - TWoP Forums
Ooh, another one that scarred me for life occurred on Edge of Night in 1983 or so. ... Mariann Aalda (who played Didi) actually made me burst into tears...

* * *
(That captured my curiosity…I just had to click on the link to read on! :-)
* * *
Oct 29, 2007 @ 6:19 pm
daniel82

--
View Member Profile
Find Member's Posts
Fanatic Post#54

Ooh, another one that scarred me for life occurred on Edge of Night in 1983 or so.

Unknown to the audience (at first) an Evil Dude had planted surveillance devices in all the offices in a high-rise office building he owned in Monticello. One of the bugged offices was Cliff and Didi's law office. Over several months, DiDi became increasingly uptight and paranoid, (somehow able to sense the 'bugs') insisting that she felt as though she was being "watched". She'd always been a sort of second-tier character, but very likeable, sensible and such. They built this tension up slowly, but it all culminated in Didi freaking out and having a nervous breakdown right there in her office. Mariann Aalda (who played Didi) actually made me burst into tears watching this scene. By that point I believe viewers had been filled in on the various buggings, subliminal messages on the cable TV and such that Louis Van Dine (Evil Dude) had instigated, but the whole breakdown episode seemed like "the average guy (or gal)" was powerless to stop the whole plot.
* * *

Oh, this was a scene I remembered verrrrrrry well – for a number of reasons. So this week, I’m gonna let y’all in on what was going behind the scenes…

Soap writers collect royalties on the characters they create for as long as those characters remain on a show. So, whenever a bunch of characters get killed off at one time, it’s a pretty good bet that there’s-a-new-head-writer-in-town!

Lee Sheldon replaced Henry Slesar as EON’s head writer right about the time my contract was coming up for renewal. So, when Lee called a meeting to introduce himself to the cast and tell us what plans he had for our characters – and he didn’t lay out any plans for mine – I was reasonably sure that DiDi’s days in Monticello were about to be numbered.

Sure enough, my contract wasn’t renewed and a couple months later, I went to “day player” status, which meant going from a regular weekly salary and working a guaranteed number of days per week, to only getting paid for the days worked…with no guarantee. This is what usually happens when a character is about to be written off but there are still loose-ends to tie up in an actor’s storyline after his/her contract has expired.

When reduced to day player status, a lot of former contract players choose to walk away from the show. Believe me, my ego wanted to do just that…but my heart wouldn’t allow me to abandon DiDi. I also felt I owed it to the fans not to leave any “loose-ends” dangling.

Edge of Night wasn’t carried by as many ABC affiliates and seen in as many markets, and the story of “Calvin & DiDi” wasn’t as headline-grabbing as AMC’s “Angie & Jessie,” but as one of the few African-American soap opera characters at the time with a full-blown storyline, “DiDi Bannister” had come mean a lot to a lot of people…I didn’t want to let them down. In addition, as a single mom, I also needed to hold on to my job for as long as I could!

From the moment that “Cliff Nelson” (played by Ernie Townsend) and “DiDi Bannister” moved their law offices into The Isis Building, I, began heavily “layering the subtext” into my scripts.

In a workshop I once took at the Actor’s Studio, legendary Method Acting guru, Lee Strasberg said something that really “clicked” for me as an actor: “In great acting, 99% of the performance is what goes on in the audience’s imagination.”

Stimulating the audience’s imagination is done with “subtext.” In other words, it’s not just the lines that the actor has to say, it’s the motivation behind the way in which the actor says them that’s important. A well thought-out subtext engages the audience’s curiosity to make them wonder: “Hmmm….what did she mean by that?” or “Uh-oh, she’s figured it out, what’s she going to do next?!”

A diligent actor’s script is usually so filled with notes scribbled about what’s going on inside the character’s head when he’s delivering the lines, that it has led to the term “acting between the lines” as a connotation for “good” acting.

In the constant turn-around of scripts, and having to quickly learn new lines, the subtleties of subtext can easily be lost in daytime dramas…which has led to the negative connotation often attached to “soap opera” acting.

I remember doing due diligence in spending countless hours “breaking down the script” (coming up with contextual subtext for each scene along with a line-by-line subtext) during those months that DiDi was “…sensitive to something ‘amiss’ in the town of Monticello and desperately trying to warn and rescue its residents of the possible danger…”

At least that was my contextual subtext for all those scenes; the scenes were written, however, simply as “DiDi has a breakdown.” It was a formulaic “B-movie” plotline…but I played it heroically…like Sally Field in “Norma Rae!” :-)

I remember the episode referred to in the fan forum -- where DiDi was taken out of her office in a straight-jacket -- as an emotionally grueling one…topped off by the fact, that, for whatever reason, the show ran about 20 seconds short that day. The last scene was DiDi, still in a straight-jacket, lying on a gurney in the hospital psychiatric ward…crying and screaming in desperation: “Please, please…I’m not crazy….I’m not crazy.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the stage manager wildly waving her arms at me to keep going to fill the time! From somewhere deep in my subconscious, I suddenly ad-libbed: “Mama…Mama…..Help me! Please! Please!!!! Mama! MaaaaaaaMaaaaaaaaa! MaaaaaaaaaMaaaaa! MammmmmmmaaaammmmaaammaaaAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!

It was one of those gut-wrenching, tears-streaming-down-your-face, snot-running-out- your nose, moments….and when it was over, the entire cast and crew spontaneously burst into applause. And when the Daytime Emmy Awards rolled around, the cast nominated me to represent Edge in the “Best Supporting Actress” category.

In addition, I SAVED MY JOB…

Our casting director, Whitney Burnett, came to the set one day, a couple weeks after that particular episode had aired, excited to tell me that my recognizability from those “breakdown” episodes had earned me a TVQ ranking. My reaction was one of, “Oh, that’s nice.”

“You don’t understand,” she said, “ there are people who have been on this show for ten years and don’t have a TVQ!”

Waddaya know, my hard work had been rewarded! DiDi was more popular than ever…so, “the kid stayed in the picture!” And I stayed on Edge till it’s final episode, which aired December 28, 1984.

For your viewing pleasure :-) here is that final scene…

…along with the final closing credits…

THE MORAL OF THIS STORY…

The “Acting Lesson” referred to in the headline for this week’s column is not about how to be dramatic; it’s about being determined. It’s about acting (and taking action) on the fulfillment of a goal, ambition or your heart’s desire.

From about the time I was in first grade, my dad began instilling in me that because I was “a little colored girl,” I was going to have to work ten times as hard as others to achieve success. Daddy was born and raised in the South (Mississippi and Tennessee); and had he lived, he would have been 102 this year.

Daddy had observed -- and experienced -- a lot of discrimination “back in the day,” and he didn’t want me to feel victimized by it; he didn’t want it to limit me… he didn’t want it to stifle my dreams. So whenever Daddy said that to me, there was never a twinge of anger or resentment in his voice. He simply stated it as a matter of fact, so that I’d be prepared for whatever I might come up against. He said it so that I’d learn to be strong and persevere whenever the going got rough.

When I started writing this column, I shared my goals for 2008 with you and encouraged you to set your own goals, as well. Well, we’re now three and a half months into the year…more than enough time for you to have faced some challenges…get discouraged…want to give up.

So, consider this week’s column a little “pep talk” to inspire you to keep-on-keepin’-on!!!

My Dad, Joseph Dewey Berry

And to “Fanatic” daniel82, Bless you, whoever you are, for sharing the impact that scene had on you with the other members in your forum. Remembering the challenge I faced at that time – and all the effort and energy I exerted into overcoming it, it means a lot to me that you liked it…you really, really liked it!

And it was just the inspiration I needed this week…to keep-on-keepin’-on.

XO,
Mariann
www.mariannaalda.com

Mariann also blogs at : Lee Bailey’s Electronic Urban Report.

THE TIMES, THEY ARE A-WRONG

It only took The New York Times half a decade or so to catch on to the fact that soap opera tie-in books have a tendency to be hugely successful (and appear on the Times' very own best-seller list).

Of course, along the way, they also managed to get a multitude of facts wrong.

An excerpt from their April 7, 2008 feature:

In 2002, “Guiding Light” offered “Lorelei’s Guiding Light: An Intimate Diary,” “which filled in the blanks of a character’s life during a period when she wasn’t with the show,” said Ms. Leahey. In 2006, “As the World Turns” came out with “Oakdale Confidential,” which dealt with the past of a character, Katie Peretti, who was credited on the cover as co-author. Perhaps Ms. Peretti was a role model for Marcie Walsh, the police department receptionist on ABC’s “One Life to Live,” who two years ago was credited with “The Killing Club,” a best-selling mystery that was published by Hyperion.

Oakdale Confidential did not deal with Katie Peretti's past, but rather with that of her then-boyfriend, Mike Kasnoff. Katie was not credited as the author until the second edition, Oakdale Confidential: Secrets Revealed (which also didn't deal with her past, but with that of her rival, Carly). The first book was written by Anonymous, and the story of who was the actual author played out on the air in conjunction with ATWT's 50th Anniversary celebration.

Which happened in April 2006, more than a full year after The Killing Club was released in February 2005.

P&G's most recent best-seller was the Guiding Light tie-in, Jonathan's Story.

SING A SONG OF GUIDING LIGHT!

Guiding Light’s new theme song, Only Love, written and performed by Kati Mac, is now available for purchase on her website, www.KatiMac.com

ENCORE, EILEEN!

Eileen Fulton (Lisa; ATWT) was nominated for a 2008 MAC Award in the category of Female Celebrity Artist.

The Awards will be held on Tuesday, May 6 at the BB King Blues Club in NYC. For more information visit www.macnyc.com .

ISLAND BOUND

Stars from As The World Turns and Guiding Light will head down to Marco Island for the Southwest Florida Soapfest Celebrity Charity Weekend on Saturday, May 17 and Sunday May 18.

Events include a celebrity bartender bash and a cruise with the stars. Celebrities tentatively scheduled to attend include Van Hansis (Luke), Jake Silbermann (Noah) and Marnie Schulenburg (Alison) from As The World Turns and Mandy Bruno (Marina), John Driscoll (Coop), Jordan Clarke (Billy), Caitlin van Zandt (Ashlee) and Michael O’Leary (Rick) from Guiding Light.

For more information and tickets, please visit www.soapfest.com or call (239) 394-4559.

GOING, GOING, GUS

As Springfield says good-bye to Gus Aitoro, The PGP Classic Soaps Blog takes a pictorial look back at Ricky Paull Goldin's time at Guiding Light.