Listen on Spotify to Dishing With Digest as we dish the latest soap news and get up close and personal with the biggest names in daytime.
1 of 9
Photo credit: JPI
Basic Black: “There’s a lot of action on that conference room table. The funny thing that Ari [Zucker, Nicole] and I always make comments about is that there’s one dress in there that they’ve had hanging on a mannequin since the beginning. There are no sketches around for anything new, no new drawings, no paperwork, no material, no nothing. It’s just an empty room. I guess we’re the fillers in it, the actors in our outfits.”
2 of 9
Photo credit: JPI
Salem Inn: “That’s the set I’m in most of the time, Kristen’s hotel room. The drawers are filled with all my mints. I love cinnamon Altoids and they are everywhere. I put my scripts in there, too. The bed in that set moves because it’s on boxes. Anytime Eric [Martsolf, Brady] and I have to do a scene there, I like to jump on the bed ahead of time. I bounce on it, and usually, the bed falls off the boxes. We call in the crew guys, and they put it back up.”
3 of 9
Photo credit: JPI
The Kiriakis Mansion: “There are a few entrances to that set. There are all these nooks and crannies that you can come through, like two or three doors that connect into the living room. A lot of times people come out from behind the couch in the living room, so there are a lot of hiding places behind the couch to leave scripts and things. It’s a very warm and cozy space. It’s filled with a lot of pictures of the family, and there’s a fireplace in it. There’s also the staircase that goes upstairs. Suzanne [Rogers, Maggie] comes running down the steps or going up the steps a lot. I went up the steps once, and like every other set, there’s no room at the top. It’s just a little ledge that you can hang out on and hope you don’t fall over.”
4 of 9
Photo credit: JPI
The DiMera Mansion: “It’s so spacious. I like to work in that set. There’s the big staircase and then you have Daddy’s picture hang- ing on the wall in the living room. You can feel the energy from his face. I actually enjoy looking into his eyes, because I always imagine what it would have been like working with [Joseph Mascolo, ex-Stefano]. There are lots of little props on that set. I like to go through drawers. Sometimes I’ll find somebody’s script behind a pillow on the couch. My favorite part of that set is the little tunnel. There’s that big armoire, and then behind it is the tunnel. I’ve gotten to go through there a few times. There’s actually a little hole in the back of the set. Sometimes I’ll hang out with another person and we’ll chat. It reminds me of when I was a little girl and I would hide in my closet and play with my crayons and my Barbies. At first, I thought that people just stood behind the armoire, but no, there really is a tunnel behind it. My first few times coming out of it, I was like, ‘Oh, my God! This is so cool!’ ”
5 of 9
Photo credit: JPI
Salem University Hospital: “I had a roller-coaster ride there — the pain of labor, the passing out, the birth of the baby, the baby ‘dying’. The monitors are the best. They don’t make any sounds — I think they add that in post-production — but they do have visuals that look very real and like they’re monitoring your heart. The room I was in totally reminded me of a real hospital room or doctor’s office where you would go get a checkup. The staircase [where nurse Haley fell to her death] is actually the staircase outside the stages. I was really impressed that it looked just like a hospital.”
6 of 9
Photo credit: JPI
John And Marlena’s Penthouse: “It’s a very pretty set, very bright and cheery. There are big windows with curtains, and there are a lot of creams [in the decor]. The couch is comfortable, too. What I remember most about that set is the little spill I had there, Kristen’s water breaking on Marlena. That was kind of fun and funny.”
7 of 9
Photo credit: JPI
Brady’s Pub: “I don’t think I’ve ever had a scene there. I do remember the first time I saw it, I looked at Eric and said, ‘Oh, my God! This has got to be cool, you own your own bar.’ Eric was like, ‘No. It’s not mine.’
8 of 9
Photo credit: JPI
The Salem PD: “I’m in the interrogation room a lot. It’s very sparse. You don’t see underneath that big table, so everyone throws their scripts there on the floor. We throw them down so we can pick them up quickly to look at them before the next scene. I always have my water under there or the tea I’m drinking. I’ve spilled my tea under there a few times.”
9 of 9
Photo credit: JPI
Salem Square: “That was the first set I worked on, when I first came on the show when Marlena got married. That has a lot of memories for me, very good ones. I don’t think the store windows change much. The doors to the stores do open, so you can go in and out. There’s a lot of life on that set. The bench under the tree is one of my favorite spots. There’s been a lot of counseling there and probably a few fights, too.”
Basic Black: “There’s a lot of action on that conference room table. The funny thing that Ari [Zucker, Nicole] and I always make comments about is that there’s one dress in there that they’ve had hanging on a mannequin since the beginning. There are no sketches around for anything new, no new drawings, no paperwork, no material, no nothing. It’s just an empty room. I guess we’re the fillers in it, the actors in our outfits.”
Salem Inn: “That’s the set I’m in most of the time, Kristen’s hotel room. The drawers are filled with all my mints. I love cinnamon Altoids and they are everywhere. I put my scripts in there, too. The bed in that set moves because it’s on boxes. Anytime Eric [Martsolf, Brady] and I have to do a scene there, I like to jump on the bed ahead of time. I bounce on it, and usually, the bed falls off the boxes. We call in the crew guys, and they put it back up.”
The Kiriakis Mansion: “There are a few entrances to that set. There are all these nooks and crannies that you can come through, like two or three doors that connect into the living room. A lot of times people come out from behind the couch in the living room, so there are a lot of hiding places behind the couch to leave scripts and things. It’s a very warm and cozy space. It’s filled with a lot of pictures of the family, and there’s a fireplace in it. There’s also the staircase that goes upstairs. Suzanne [Rogers, Maggie] comes running down the steps or going up the steps a lot. I went up the steps once, and like every other set, there’s no room at the top. It’s just a little ledge that you can hang out on and hope you don’t fall over.”
The DiMera Mansion: “It’s so spacious. I like to work in that set. There’s the big staircase and then you have Daddy’s picture hang- ing on the wall in the living room. You can feel the energy from his face. I actually enjoy looking into his eyes, because I always imagine what it would have been like working with [Joseph Mascolo, ex-Stefano]. There are lots of little props on that set. I like to go through drawers. Sometimes I’ll find somebody’s script behind a pillow on the couch. My favorite part of that set is the little tunnel. There’s that big armoire, and then behind it is the tunnel. I’ve gotten to go through there a few times. There’s actually a little hole in the back of the set. Sometimes I’ll hang out with another person and we’ll chat. It reminds me of when I was a little girl and I would hide in my closet and play with my crayons and my Barbies. At first, I thought that people just stood behind the armoire, but no, there really is a tunnel behind it. My first few times coming out of it, I was like, ‘Oh, my God! This is so cool!’ ”
Salem University Hospital: “I had a roller-coaster ride there — the pain of labor, the passing out, the birth of the baby, the baby ‘dying’. The monitors are the best. They don’t make any sounds — I think they add that in post-production — but they do have visuals that look very real and like they’re monitoring your heart. The room I was in totally reminded me of a real hospital room or doctor’s office where you would go get a checkup. The staircase [where nurse Haley fell to her death] is actually the staircase outside the stages. I was really impressed that it looked just like a hospital.”
John And Marlena’s Penthouse: “It’s a very pretty set, very bright and cheery. There are big windows with curtains, and there are a lot of creams [in the decor]. The couch is comfortable, too. What I remember most about that set is the little spill I had there, Kristen’s water breaking on Marlena. That was kind of fun and funny.”
Brady’s Pub: “I don’t think I’ve ever had a scene there. I do remember the first time I saw it, I looked at Eric and said, ‘Oh, my God! This has got to be cool, you own your own bar.’ Eric was like, ‘No. It’s not mine.’
The Salem PD: “I’m in the interrogation room a lot. It’s very sparse. You don’t see underneath that big table, so everyone throws their scripts there on the floor. We throw them down so we can pick them up quickly to look at them before the next scene. I always have my water under there or the tea I’m drinking. I’ve spilled my tea under there a few times.”
Salem Square: “That was the first set I worked on, when I first came on the show when Marlena got married. That has a lot of memories for me, very good ones. I don’t think the store windows change much. The doors to the stores do open, so you can go in and out. There’s a lot of life on that set. The bench under the tree is one of my favorite spots. There’s been a lot of counseling there and probably a few fights, too.”