Unleaded Gaskill
When Digest sat down with GL’s Brian Gaskill (Dylan) for a feature interview in the 7/31 issue, the Springfield newcomer was so forthcoming that we didn’t have room to fit everything he had to share in the pages of our magazine. From family life to dishing about his new castmates, here’s a look at some of Gaskill’s insights that didn’t make it into the article.
Soap Opera Digest: You recently became a vegetarian. Care to share why?
Brian Gaskill: It’s a choice both my wife and I made. My father-in-law brought over some freshly cut pork ribs and my wife [Tonya Watts] said, “Nah. No more!” We just imagined the pig being killed that day and she found out a couple months later from the slaughterhouse that they just use sledgehammers to knock them out. The thing is, I was never a big meat-and-potatoes guy anyway.
Digest: Speaking of your wife, she’s a rock musician. Does she tour at all?
Gaskill: When [daughter] Alabama was a baby, she would drive and play a lot. We kind of got started off MySpace. That was her version of getting herself out there, which works. Before people start thinking she’s Milli Vanilli she has to get out there and play live [laughs]. She just did a couple of shows with her new music and I was so pumped up about it and I’m so proud of her. She’s in the middle of mixing new songs and I can’t wait to get them up on MySpace.
Digest: Do you dabble in music?
Gaskill: No. I write lyrics, but that’s about as far as I go. I have ideas…Sometimes I think I missed my calling because I love music so much. I wouldn’t want to play it, but I like the idea of producing and mixing and playing with the sounds and engineering. It’s telling a story. It reminds me of directing or writing. You’re telling a story with sound. Anything that goes back to telling a story I somehow relate to.
Digest: Your daughter is about to turn 2 years old. Is she “terrible” yet?
Gaskill: She said, “Mama” first, but now “Mama” won’t come out of her mouth. I think she’s messing with us because she calls [Tonya] “Daddy” and she has a smirk on her face [laughs]!
Digest: What attracted you to the role of Dylan?
Gaskill: When I read about Dylan’s history, I was more interested in who Dylan was as a teenager and in his early 20s. I would like to bring more of that emotionally to the surface. GL is a more realistic world, I think, for soap operas, as real as it can be. With Gus [Ricky Paull Goldin] and Natalia [Jessica Leccia], it’s all about a kind of young love sprouting up again…It’s more tangible in the sense that she’s clearly been holding this torch and it’s this real first love. Whereas with Harley and Dylan, it’s this teenage thing. It’s not as quickly tangible for the audience to see if they can build this [relationship], added to the fact that they have a kid and it just sort of happened based on the circumstances. It’ll be interesting. 
Digest: What’s it like working with a powerhouse actress like Kim Zimmer [Reva]?
Gaskill: In coming to the show and the whole thing with being a recast was the fact that this character is already connected with almost every single person on the show. So [I was] hoping to have scenes with everybody, but I show up and only have scenes with two people! And [Kim] … I hardly work with her. I actually really love working with the vets.
Digest: One of those co-stars is your on-screen offspring, Bonnie Dennison [Daisy]. Have you enjoyed working with a younger actress?
Gaskill: We both have similar styles and [we’re] laidback and almost too casual sometimes. When we’re together, maybe we need more balance [laughs]! We need someone like Beth Ehlers [Harley] to balance us out. Bring her sort of I LOVE LUCY energy to it. I love having a kid on the show and that was weird at first.
Digest: GL fans often speak out about the show’s lack of continuity. What would you say to them, considering you’re a recast?
Gaskill: The problem is that there’s also a fine line. You have to keep the show going. You have a show for 70 years and you’re writing it every day. How difficult that must be! It’s a fine line between keeping everybody happy and dealing with the reality of the story and character and to be able to just physically keep the show going … it’s fun, it’s entertainment, it’s a story. And how hard it is to keep something going strong for an hour a day, every day, year-round. There’s going to be holes! So give us a break! So hopefully, I can just add what I can bring to the table and do a good job and we can all put on a good show.
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