Quick Take With Marla Adams
Do you think Dina is being treated unfairly by her children?
“Hell, no!”
Well, you sound very emphatic about that.
“You’re darn tootin’ and rightfully so. She deserted her family how many years ago and, my goodness, that was just horrendous for them. She was trying to hide her affair with Brent, the guy she met at the club, who is Ashley’s father. That’s a secret that has been kept for so long and this will be a very important part of the storyline, revisiting all of that, and Ashley’s justified hatred for her mother. Eileen [Davidson, Ashley] is amazing and we are so thrilled about working together again. We’ve been playing off of each other and it’s wonderful stuff. And the same with Peter [Bergman, Jack].”
Do you think Jack and Ashley are holding on to this grudge against their mom for too long?
“Dina understands why their feelings are still raw. The only two people who know about this secret besides Ashley and Dina are Jack and Victor. I’m still wondering if the police are going to come after Dina for trying to kill this dude! I hope the statute of limitations has run out on that one.”
What is Dina hoping to gain by reinserting herself into their lives?
“She really wants to connect with her family. Now that Dina’s back, I intend to show another side of her vulnerability, for reasons that have not been revealed. This is so important to the story. Fireworks are coming and there’s going to be so much drama, but you’ll see that Dina isn’t just the Wicked Witch of the Midwest. In the middle of the yelling and shouting, there are some lovely, touching scenes coming up.”
When it comes to her kids, does she have a favorite?
“Jack has always been her favorite, but she also admires Traci as the common denominator. The whole Abbott family’s sense of togetherness is because, if you think about it, Traci is the matriarch. She’s the only voice of reason while the rest of them are a little crazy [laughs].”
In getting to know Abby, is Dina hoping to establish the type of loving relationship that she didn’t have with her kids?
“Dina was never a mother to her kids and she had never met her granddaughter until recently. Ashley doesn’t want anything to do with her mother and Abby knows that, but she also has Dina’s genes in her as well as Victor’s, so she has a mind of her own. When I came back in 2008, there was supposed to be a scene where Dina was to meet Abby [then-Hayley Erin; Kiki, GH] and she said, ‘Grandma,’ and Dina says, ‘Call me Dina.’ But the actress playing Abby then had gotten very ill, so the entire scene was cut. I did ad-lib when Dina was leaving town again and said, ‘And please give my granddaughter my love and I hope she gets better soon.’ And that was left in.”
Does Dina regret selling her company?
“Let’s just say she may have a few secrets up her sleeve. Why would she come back if it wasn’t for something important?”
Conversation
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