Scene And Heard

When Denise Crosby took on the role of GH’s Carolyn, she was hoping to reconnect with two of the show’s legends. “Genie [Francis, Laura] and I have known each other for like, 25 years,” notes Crosby, who worked with Francis’s hubby, Jonathan Frakes, on STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION. “So I was really excited to see her at the studio. The show moves so quickly that when I ran into her, we could just give each other a hug and go, ‘Everything good? The family’s good? Okay, bye!’ We both laughed about it; she said, ‘Everything is so fast, we can’t even catch up!’ But the first day I was there, neither of us had to be on set and I was able to jump into her dressing room for about 15 minutes and sit down on the couch and talk with her. And then Finola Hughes [Anna], she and I go back, too. In the ’90s, she did a series called JACK’S PLACE and I did a guest-star, and George Clooney, oddly enough, played my husband! I was walking down the hall and saw her talking to Genie and I came over and Finola said, ‘Oh, my God, what are you doing here?!’ and we hugged and laughed and it was really great. I said, ‘My God, we haven’t seen each other in ages!’ It was just a sweet little catch-up, and later, she watched my scenes and she was very complimentary and kind. It was just a love-fest!”

Y&R’s Beth Maitland (Traci) was thrilled that Michael Damian’s (Danny) brief return to the show was a reunion for their characters, along with Ms. Abbott’s former foe, Lauren (Tracey E. Bregman), as they reminisced about their glory days of the ’80s. “Michael was always a big presence in the makeup room,” recalls the actress. “He would tell hilarious, silly jokes and never took himself too seriously. And he was always so kind to everyone, especially fans. I learned a lot from him about how to treat the people who keep us on TV. He always stopped to say hello and never refused a hug or an autograph.” Although Maitland and Bregman became besties, it wasn’t easy for the latter to play Traci’s bully. “Tracey hated the mean things Lauren said and did to Traci and took them way harder than I did,” sighs Maitland. “She’d cringe in the dressing room when we ran lines, but always the professional, she completely committed to her role. I think the lessons the show was teaching about acceptance became such a meaningful example to viewers as both characters matured into responsible and forgiving women.”

DAYS’s Stephen Nichols (Steve) believes he hit the recasting jackpot when it comes to his on-screen kids, Abigail Klein (Stephanie) and Tanner Stine (Joey). “I got very lucky,” says Nichols. “Abigail is a very sweet young woman and a really good actress. And I was just blown away by how much she reminded me of Shelley [Hennig, ex-Stephanie]. She looks likes her. Then she told me, ‘You know, I’m really a blonde.’ I guess they had her dye her hair to look more like Shelley. She has a real sweetness about her, and she’s always very present in the scenes. I got hold of her before we started working and asked her to go for coffee with me. I wanted to help her acclimate and feel comfortable coming in. Here she was replacing another actress who was very popular and revered on the show. It’s been many years since Shelley was on, but I wanted Abigail to feel comfortable. So we had coffee and, man, we hit it off right away. She’s such a sweetheart. She’s a dream.” As for his new TV son, Nichols only has more words of praise. “Tanner is a very cool customer,” shares the actor. “He comes in real easy. He’s got his little phone and is looking at his lines on the phone. All these kids have their script on their phones now. Tanner is a really solid actor. He came right in, hit the ground running, and he’s doing a great job. I’m surprised he’s not there more. I would like to have our entire family there. I’d like to have all the Johnsons on, so we could have more possibilities for story. I just love those kids. I think they’re really great.”

Henry Joseph Samiri (Douglas, B&B; Jasper) has won over the cast and crew of his new Freeform series, THE WATCHFUL EYE. “There’s child actors and then there’s Henry,” praises Executive Producer Emily Fox. “He is extraordinary and has an incredible depth and maturity, but also is able to play a real kid. He’s so natural. He’s so real. One thing that often drives me crazy is when characters who are children are just too clairvoyant or too articulate. It’s cute but also, it doesn’t feel real. He was incredibly professional and set an example for all the adults. He’s just a lovely kid and has a lovely family, and was able to tune in to what needed to be done during a particular scene, even if it was emotional or complex, and then was able to kind of come out of it and just be fun Henry. It was just a total delight to work with him.” Adds co-star Mariel Molino (Elena), “Also, for us actors that would sometimes swear on set, he would come up with a swear jar and make you pay the piper and hold you responsible. He was really the most professional actor there.”