Berry Good
B&B’s Brooke became friends with Anthony last October when she and Stephanie visited Skid Row. In real life, his multi-talented portrayer, Rodney Saulsberry, is an actor, musician, voice-over artist and author. Digest caught up with the busy star, who shares why B&B is his dream job.
Soap Opera Digest: How did you end up on B&B? Did you know Brad Bell [executive producer/head writer]?
Rodney Saulsberry: No, I didn’t know him. I auditioned for the role. The script called for the character to be selling CDs, so I brought in my own CD, Better Than Before. The casting director [Christy Dooley] was like, “Wow, you have your own CD,” and took it to Brad. He really liked it, especially my song “Miracles.” I ended up getting this role where I can act, sing and play guitar. It’s great having this job where I can do all of these things I love.
Digest: You recently received an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Actor. Did you expect the role to get so much notice?
Saulsberry: Not really. But on the other hand, when I read the scripts for the episodes that dealt with the homeless, I knew that Brad had put together something very special. He has a great vision and is also a great writer. It was his idea for me to sing “Miracles” unplugged, where it was just me and the guitar in the studio. That’s what you heard when Susan Flannery [Stephanie] was in Skid Row talking to the people. What was really nice was that after I got the nomination, I got a call from Brad, who thanked me for being on the show. I still have the message he left for me and I’ll never erase it!
Digest: This isn’t the first soap you’ve been on. What were your stints on CAPITOL and YOUNG AND RESTLESS like?
Saulsberry: On CAPITOL, I played Jeff Johnson [from 1982-83]. That was my first soap. Jeff was an FBI agent who was friends with Tyler. Then on Y&R, I had a recurring role as a cop who was after Danny Romalotti for cocaine possession [in 1990]. My character was called Roy Wilkins, which is interesting because in real life, Roy Wilkins was a civil rights activist. Anyway, my character kept saying, “Danny Romalotti is going down!” [laughs]. I love soaps. I love the format and how much thought is put into the storylines and characters.
Digest: You’re also the Zatarain’s guy, which is very cool.
Saulsberry: Yes, that’s one of my character voices. I was also the announcer for Twix and I wrote two books about the business, Step Up To The Mic and You Can Bank On Your Voice. I was doing a lot of guest spots on nighttime television and then people kept telling me, “You have a great voice, you should do voice-overs.” I didn’t even know what they were, but I got work and enjoyed doing them. I love doing voice-overs because you can make a living at it and I do most of the work at home, in my pajamas.
Digest: Do you consider yourself to be primarily an actor, writer, singer or voice-over artist?
Saulsberry: That’s hard to say. I guess, actor. Or maybe singer … or writer [laughs]. I love doing all of them so I can’t choose. I like doing different things because I never get bored.
Saulsberry’s CD is available at www.cdbaby.com/cd/rodneysaulsberry2. You can order his book on his site www.rodneysaulsberry.com or on Amazon.
Conversation
All comments are subject to our Community Guidelines. Soap Opera Digest does not endorse the opinions and views shared by our readers in our comment sections. Our comments section is a place where readers can engage in healthy, productive, lively, and respectful discussions. Offensive language, hate speech, personal attacks, and/or defamatory statements are not permitted. Advertising or spam is also prohibited.