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Catching Up With ... Andrew St. John

GH fans may remember Andrew St. John for his 2003 role as Kyle, the charismatic creep who took Maxie’s (then — Robyn Richards) virginity, secretly taped their tryst and then put it on the Internet. But the actor insists he really is a nice guy.Soap Opera Digest: We hear you have a new TV show coming up?

Andrew St. John: You heard correctly. It’s called LIFE IS WILD on the CW network. It’s going to be Sundays at 8 p.m. We’re taking 7TH HEAVEN’s time slot. It’s a family show and it takes place in South Africa. It’s got that BRADY BUNCH theme, where the mother has two kids and the father has two kids. They get married and we’re all stuck together.

Digest: How do they end up in Africa?

St. John: Life isn’t going so well for the family in New York. The father, he’s my character’s stepfather, decides it would be best if they take a trip to Africa. He’s a veterinarian. He hears about dying animals over there. He says, “Let’s take a year off. We can do some good and maybe get our family centered.” My character, Jesse, is in a bit of trouble. He gets arrested and that’s a bit of a catalyst for the whole move.

Digest: And the whole show is filmed there?

St. John: Yes. I’ll be living there for the next six to eight months and hopefully more if it’s a hit.

Digest: You’re uprooting your whole life, then?

St. John: Absolutely. I’ll be honest, I had a long conversation with my girlfriend about it two weeks after the show got picked up. I’d been to South Africa [to film the pilot] and in the beginning, I was like, “Yeah, baby!” When you’re not working, you’ll take anything that comes along. “Antarctica? I’ll go. Work? Great.” But when you have some time to think about it, you’re like, “That is kind of far way.” But I’m nothing but excited. I’m moving to South Africa! It will be another life.

Digest: What about your girlfriend?

St. John: She’ll visit. We can also meet in Europe somewhere. It’s a 10-and- a-half-hour flight for each of us to London. We can make it happen. She’s an actor, too, so she needs to be here [in L.A.] and I would never ask her to compromise her dreams to move there with me. We’ll do whatever we can to keep it strong.

Digest: Have we seen her work?

St. John: If you haven’t, you will. Her name is Cara Santana. She’s a great young actress. She had a great pilot season. She was in ON THE LOT. She’s got a spot on the new show on NBC with Leslie Nielsen called LIPSHITZ SAVES THE WORLD. It’s been a great year for both of us.

Digest: Do you keep in touch with anyone from your GH days?

St. John: One of my good friends was a writer on the show, Michael Cinquemani. He wrote a lot for the teen storylines. I’m still real good friends with him. We’re practically neighbors. We live six blocks from each other. Other than that, I really haven’t kept in touch with anyone.

Digest: Are you still recognized from the show?

St. John: Up until 2005, I would still get recognized pretty often. I was working at T.G.I. Friday’s between gigs waiting tables and every other night, at least one of my tables would recognize me. It was either the mother or the girl who was there with her boyfriend.

Digest: Did you get flak for playing a bad boy?

St. John: I’ll tell you, the first time I ever got recognized, it was the most surreal experience. I was in Ralphs [grocery store] getting some food and I could see this woman staring at me real hard. I didn’t see her for another aisle, then I could see her out of the corner of my eye marching up to me. She was so mad at me. She was like, “Why are you so mean to that girl?” And I apologized! I was like, “I’m sorry, but it’s just a character on the show.” She told me to treat [Maxie] better, so I agreed [laughs].

Digest: Did you consider doing another soap after leaving GH?

St. John: I would take anything that would help me gain experience. I actually tested for YOUNG AND RESTLESS after GH. I tested for BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL. I would get called in a lot for soaps, but nothing ever came of it. But everything happens for a reason.

Digest: Do you ever get to catch GH?

St. John: If it’s late and I can’t sleep, I’ll usually watch LATE NIGHT POKER. But as I’m flipping through the channels, I’ll see SOAPnet, so I’ll flip it on and see who’s still there because a lot of the same faces are still there. I don’t follow the storylines at all, but I’ll check it out and see what they’re doing. They hired someone new [for Maxie], didn’t they?


Digest: They did [Kirsten Storms]. And now Maxie’s a bad girl.

St. John: Kyle corrupted her! I did it! They should be dropping Kyle’s name now and then!

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