First Look At Soapy, CBS Podcast Hosted By Greg Rikaart and Rebecca Budig (EXCL)
Today is premiere day for the Greg Rikaart (Kevin, Y&R; Leo, DAYS) and Rebecca Budig (Taylor, B&B)-hosted chat fest, Soapy — and we’ve got an exclusive first look at the new CBS podcast series. In the clip, the two veteran stars explain their off-camera history and demonstrate the chemistry that made them the perfect choice as hosts.
Friends & Neighbors
While both have a long history with CBS — she kicked off her soap career on the network’s Guiding Light with a 1995-98 run as Michelle Bauer, while he made his Genoa City debut in 2003 — the two share a real-life bond that also stretches back many years. “It all started because we were neighbors,” Budig says at the beginning of the clip. “We were neighbors for almost 20 years,” chimes in Rikaart. “Yeah, who knew when I met you, that this is where we would be today,” she marvels.
Recounting the story of their first meeting, Budig continues, “I would see you at the Emmys occasionally and I remember we said something to each other — this was before we really got to know each other.” Rikaart jumps in and jokes, “What did you say to me? Do you remember? ‘I love you, you’re’ amazing.’ ”
Budig concurs that her first words to him had been along the lines of, “I love your work.” Rikaart then invites Budig — who he affectionately refers to as “Becky Jo” — to tell the audience what happened “when you were driving past my house.”
From there, Budig explains that while on the hunt for a new house, she drove by Rikaart’s place. “I see this guy hosing his sidewalk or his garden — I don’t know what he was doing,” she says. “And I see him and I go, ‘Wait a minute, that’s Greg Rikaart!’ ” She describes that she rolled down her window and noticed a For Sale sign on the property, then called out to Rikaart. “I was like, ‘Greg! Rebecca — remember me? From All My Children [where she played Greenlee]?’ Rikaart interjects, “Yeah, and I was like, ‘Hey, can you stop stalking me? This is my home.’ ”
Budig cracks up as she recounts asking Rikaart if the house was his, which he confirmed it was. Rikaart explains how the house had been on the market for a month and on the advice of his realtor, they’d put showings on pause. “So, you know, the house was a mess,” he notes. “There was laundry piled up on the floor.” “Cat manure,” Budig adds. “Manure?!” teases Rikaart. “Cat litter,” Budig corrects herself.
Rikaart and Budig howl as they recall how right when they walked in for Rikaart to give her a tour of the home, “It’s as if my old cat, Zoe, had said, ‘Now’s the time I’m going to take a giant dump!’ ” Given the less than ideal presentation, Rikaart says, he was thinking to himself, “She’s never going to be into this house. It’s a mess, it smells like cat s–t…’ ” “And I bought it!” picks up Budig as they laugh again. “What does that say about me?!”
Budig concludes, “And so, that started our relationship.” Rikaart lived next door to the house he sold to Budig. “We were neighbors for a long time,” he notes.
Soapy promises more opportunities for the actors to show off their fun real-life dynamic as they get up close and personal with a wide array of guests from the world of daytime, a list that includes such soap luminaries as Eric Braeden (Victor, Y&R), Deidre Hall (Marlena, DAYS), Lauralee Bell (Christine, Y&R), Maurice Benard (Sonny, GH), Scott Clifton (Liam, B&B), Karla Mosley (Dani, BTG), Lawrence Saint-Victor (Carter, B&B), Melody Thomas Scott (Nikki, Y&R), Heather Tom (Katie, B&B), Tamara Tunie (Anita, BTG) and more!
Check out the actors’ hilarious repartee for yourself in the clip below, and catch new episodes of Soapy every week through Tuesday, Sept. 30, in both audio and video formats, available to listen to wherever you find your favorite audio podcasts or to watch on the official CBS YouTube Channel.
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.