My GL Set Visit
Soap Opera Weekly intern Rudy Robles made his first visit to the GUIDING LIGHT studio on June 29, the day of the show’s 54th anniversary on television, and quickly learned that what one sees on-screen is not always what one sees behind the scenes. Here, Rudy recounts what he found most memorable and downright shocking about his stay in Springfield….
I tagged along with Weekly‘s GL Editor Heather Filemyr to the home of the Buzz Burger, the Company set. Though the burgerman himself, camera-shy Justin Deas (Buzz), politely declined to pose for a group photo, other cast members gathered around while waiting to get their hands on a slice of anniversary cake. Also in attendance were the crew members, the hard-working, little-seen men and women who make sure every episode actually gets on the air. Robert Bogue (Mallet) joked that the cake was so thick they needed a saw to cut it.
Robert Newman (Josh) stepped up to say a few words. “What we do here, I know it’s not brain surgery; we’re not changing the world, but it has value,” he said. “Everybody here is so good at what they do individually, and then we do it well together as a community. We have an opportunity and an obligation and a responsibility to do our job well so that others may do it well for another decade — or two decades, or for however long the show runs.”
As for myself, I was just trying to wrap my head around how small the Company set is. (And the new hospital set is just as…green in person.)
After the cake-cutting ceremony, it was time to hunt down Jordan Clarke (Billy) for a news story. I could tell he was very excited to be back on contract as he raved about upcoming events in Reva’s cancer storyline. Though the subject matter was serious, he injected some levity by explaining how worried he is that he sounded like a duck while wearing a surgical mask.
By the end of our talk, the set was being cleared for afternoon taping, so it was off to another room for us. First up in the hot seat was newcomer Lawrence St. Victor (Remy). He seemed very much like his on-screen persona: down-to-earth and genuinely having a good time. When asked about possible upcoming stories, he told me he is ready for anything. Does that include a romance with fellow cop Marina Cooper? “I think he’s still got Tammy on the brain,” St. Victor sighed.
Bogue’s brain, however, was wondering if he would make it home to Pennsylvania for the 4th of July holiday. “Whether or not I’m flooded will determine my holiday plans,” he hedged, citing poor weather there. “It rained for three days. It was a monsoon.” But Bogue was all smiles. “Gus and Mallet are going to go away on a weekend retreat and work on being able to listen to one another,” he joked of the characters’ strained friendship.
Next, the very beautiful Michelle Ray Smith (Ava) popped in, all revved up for the Out of the Darkness Community Walk in Chicago Aug. 12-13, which will raise money for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. “I’ve raised almost my entire $1,000 that I have to raise in order to walk,” she beamed. “I’ve got a little more work to do the next couple of weeks, but people have been very generous,” she smiled before rushing off to a photo shoot for a Pennsylvania catalogue.
Ava’s on-screen nemesis, Olivia, played by the very talented Crystal Chappell, stepped up next. When I told her I was a fan of her and husband Michael Sabatino (J.T. Cornell, PASSIONS) when they were on DAYS OF OUR LIVES as Carly and Lawrence, she laughed good-naturedly and suggested that I must have been in diapers at the time.
Just when I thought the excitement was over, the very small yet hugely energetic Marcy Rylan (Lizzie) walked in, fresh from dance class, holding a soda and snacking on a bag of potato chips. Rylan didn’t make it to the studio in time for the cake ceremony, but that didn’t stop her from grabbing a slice. “I’m pregnant, I’m always eating,” she teased. “No, just Lizzie. Not me.” The highlight of my day came when Rylan told me my question garnered her best answer of the day. That question: Who would you like to work with that you haven’t? Her answer: “Gina (Tognoni)! Gina! Gina! Gina! I hope to get as crazy as Dinah, and we’ll be crazy together.” Now there’s a scary thought! My personal favorite quote came when I asked about Lizzie’s dirtiest deed. Rylan responded with, “I was trying to get Coop to marry me, and I told him I had a dream about his mother, who’s dead,” she recalled. “That’s, like, sick and evil. His mother is going to haunt me for the rest of my life.”
And on that note, my fun-filled day as a Springfield resident came to a close. I definitely walked away with some great memories that made me appreciate the LIGHT even more. Now I hope to get bumped up from “dayplayer” to “recurring”!
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