GL Fan Clubbing
John Driscoll (Coop) was thrilled to be part of GUIDING LIGHT’s wild fan weekend on Oct. 9 and 10. At the Official Liz Keifer & Jerry verDorn Fan Club’s Bloss and Friends bowling event, in Manhattan’s Leisure Time Bowl Oct. 9, he said, “It’s a special weekend for everybody, so I’m all for it. The tourists, they’re new to the city, and I’m new to the city; we’re all in the same boat.”
Speaking of maritime excursions, the young actor had just gotten off Ricky Paull Goldin’s (Gus) Hudson River cruise with GL fans. “The boat trip was a lot of fun. I got up at 7:30 this morning; people were raring to go. The boat would take some dips, and I’d hang onto something.” Although Driscoll said none of his colleagues helped him along in his first fan weekend — “They just said, ‘Sink or swim'” — he added, “The fans have been so warm and loving to me; as a new actor, I couldn’t ask for a better group of fans. I’m looking forward to doing any event I can.”
He was also looking forward to taking on Tom Pelphrey (Jonathan), who was talking smack against him. Not that Driscoll was completely confident: “I’m horrible at bowling; I need the bumper lanes. I need the 5-pound ball that you can roll with one hand. I’ll have a granny showing me how to bowl. She’ll probably be kicking my butt.” Pelphrey did end up beating him, with a 147; Driscoll just revealed he got “more than 100, less than Tom.”
While those actors have become fast friends on the set, Scott Bailey (Sandy) also revealed he has a wonderful friendship with his cast mates. “It’s a great excuse to hang out with them,” he said of the bowling event, which raised more than $5,000 for the American Cancer Society. “We hang out at work all the time. Our dressing room’s like one big dorm room. Across the hall from me is Crystal [Hunt, Lizzie]; then there’s John and Stephanie [Gatschet, Tammy]. Sometimes after an intense day we’ll need to go out and chat about it. After a day of hating Tom and getting beaten up by him, we go out and have a beer and talk.” Bailey has a very clean home to return to each night, as he’s not a packrat: “The only furniture stuff I have is a laptop computer; I don’t collect stuff. In New York, you move from apartment to apartment.”
As for his bowling skills, Bailey noted, “I am lackluster. I’m ambidextrous, and sometimes I’m equally horrible with both hands. Bowling is one of those [times]…I can bowl 100 on my right hand and 100 on my left; that might work. Sometimes I alternate just to see which one’s working that day (laughs). But the tip is just to have fun.” But how about superstitions? “When you get a strike, then whatever you did for that becomes your superstition. Maybe this time it’ll be kissing one of the girls on the cheek; if that’s my good luck charm I’ll do it all [afternoon]. ‘Just give me a kiss right here.'”
One co-star he wouldn’t mind a kiss from, Hunt, didn’t want to jinx herself by talking about the score she wanted, but said, “I love Jerry verDorn (Ross); he’s a great guy. And Liz Keifer’s (Blake) great. We’re all happy to be here.” She was also pleased that her 2005 calendar was ready; it will soon be available on www.crystalhunt.net, and her favorite photo is in May: “It’s a cute picture of me and my puppy.”
“It’s so much fun; it’s an extravaganza weekend,” said Gina Tognoni, who recently returned Dinah to CBS’ oldest soap town. “Fans they keep telling me how much they love the fact that Dinah’s back on the canvas. I love that; that makes me feel good.” As an added bonus, the bowlfest allowed Tognoni to connect with colleagues. “There are some co-workers I haven’t gotten to sit down and talk with. We say hi in the makeup room.”
Fans were overjoyed to see one of those co-workers, Jordan Clarke (Billy), at the 23rd Annual Fan Club Gathering on Oct. 10, where Maureen Garrett (Holly) showed her own excitement by giddily raising her arms at the podium. She later said viewers should look for a funny upcoming scene between her and Doug Hutchison (Sebastian) featuring a remote control.
Pelphrey hugged Frank Dicopoulos (Frank), who high-fived everyone on the line of actors, and Ron Raines (Alan) echoed many attendees’ thoughts at the podium: “I just want you to tell your friends the LIGHT is back.”
Tognoni grabbed her on-screen foe Laura Wright
(Cassie) and brought her across the stage, in place of Wright’s escort David Andrew Macdonald (Edmund), who arrived late.
Aside from perennial host verDorn, who joined Keifer to introduce the stars by storyline this year, Daniel Cosgrove (Bill) was the hit of the day. After he and Crystal Chappell (Olivia) ducked then popped up behind the podium, his harangue began: “Are there any people who are newcomers this year? I just want to get this out because I promised Miss Zimmer I would. Maybe some of you are hoping, ‘This will be the year I get to put my loving arms around that Robert Newman. Or maybe this will be the year I get to put a little kiss on Miss Zimmer’s cheek; just a little hug, a handshake, maybe just a high-five.’ Don’t do it. Mr. Newman has problems with touching. He has intimacy problems. Please refrain from any spontaneous bear hugs with Mr. Newman.”
Cosgrove went on to warn fans not to make eye contact with Kim Zimmer (Reva), but that wasn’t enough. “One more thing: The rumors are true, the polls are in and just like we thought, GUIDING LIGHT can distinguish itself as the show with the greatest, the best, the best-looking fans to walk God’s green earth. So give yourselves a hand…no self-esteem issues here!”
Thanks to the organizers’ format change, the actors went right from standing on the stage to an extended meet-and-greet session at the signing tables. Attendees had 2 1/2 hours of photos and fun with the rowdy residents of Springfield, one of whom delighted the female fans by kissing their cheeks (guess who; he had high self-esteem…).
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