Scene And Heard

THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES Kelly Kruger (Mac, Y&R) loved catching up with co-stars Thad Luckinbill (J.T.), Lauren Woodland (Brittany) and David Scott Lago (Raul) when she returned to the soap because they hadn’t seen each other in a while. “I ran into David once since the show,” she shares. “Thad and I hung out in Monte Carlo a couple of years ago. And then Lauren stayed really good friends with Sharon [Case, Sharon] and a couple of people, so she and I have bumped into each other over the years. But it was a very different feeling seeing them in this environment versus running into them out in the world.” They couldn’t help but remember the old days. “Thad and I were running lines and I looked at him and I had a flash of like ‘Baby Thad’ and now he’s a grown-up [laughs]. And we made a joke. He’s like, ‘I’m still Baby Thad’. But all of this time has gone by and we were able to reminisce. There was one specific time we went on a weekend to Catalina Island, a group of us, and the fun in that and the crazy memories there, and just the time on the set and the time we spent together and how much life has happened. So many things have changed and we’re all grown up. It’s unbelievable.”

SO EMOTIONAL Nathan’s death on GH had a big impact on his boss, Police Commissioner Jordan — and on Jordan’s portrayer, Vinessa Antoine. “At first, when I read it, I didn’t think I was going to be as emotional [as I was when taping the scenes], because I was thinking about it more like, ‘Oh, man, we’re losing my buddy Ryan Paevey [ex-Nathan],’ ” Antoine shares. “I wasn’t aware that they were making his death and funeral into more or less full episodes and that they would be so packed with amazing performances. It was just a beautiful way of telling the story and I tried to make the most of it and roll with it.” She wasn’t planning on watching the show where Nathan flatlined, “But then I got a lot of tweets all of a sudden and I was like, ‘Oh, right, it’s that episode.’ So I went back and watched it and oh, my goodness, Kirsten Storms [Maxie] and Michelle Stafford [Nina] and Dominic [Zamprogna, Dante] and Kathleen Gati [Obrecht], everyone had such stellar performances. It was really special.” Off camera, Antoine says that her parting with Paevey was casual. “We didn’t really bother with saying good-bye because we hang out and talk all the time. It was more like, ‘I’ll see ya soon!’ But he’s so great and such a gentleman. I see him going off and doing great things.”

A NEW DON There’s one former co-star who Beth Maitland (Traci, Y&R) is thrilled to be close to, both figuratively and literally. “I’ve said it before but I’ll never say it enough, I adore Don Diamont [ex-Brad],” declares the actress of her one-time soap husband, who’s now across the hall as B&B’s Bill. “Don was an amazing friend and co-worker, and has proven over and over what a kind and generous man he has become. He’s an adoring father, a terrific husband and, for me, has always been a kind, caring and gracious friend. He was a blast to do scenes with, has a wicked sense of humor, and I miss working with him in the worst possible way. We still chat and laugh and catch up on our lives and our kids. Oh, it would be a dream come true to somehow work with him again.” Maitland has actually devised a clever scenario for her and Diamont to share the screen one more time. “Maybe Traci needs to do a book signing in L.A. where she bumps into Bill in her hotel lobby,” she suggests. “He knocks her books out of her hands by accident, and as he helps her gather them, she looks up into his eyes and thinks he’s Brad and bursts into tears. Startled and helpless, even Bill Spencer is caught off-guard and charmed by this passing meeting.”

HERE’S HOPING When Annika Noelle joined B&B as the recast Hope, it created a bit of confusion over the public address system when the actors were paged to set. “The first couple of days, people would say ‘Hope’ and I’d look, because I have had friends call me ‘Hope’ for most of my life,” laughs Courtney Hope (Sally). “Especially when I was younger, because I grew up with a lot of Courtneys, so Annika and I both found this to be very funny.” Hope has had experience with name confusion on the set before, dating back to last year when the Spectra sisters made their debut. “Yeah, the whole ‘Hope’ thing wasn’t nearly as confusing as having two Courtneys on set,” she recalls. “We kind of solved that when they nicknamed Courtney [Grosbeck, Coco] ‘CC’ and by now, I’m used to being called ‘Sally’. So, if someone says ‘Courtney’ or ‘Hope’, I look and if it’s not for me, then I just walk the other way.” The experience has even brought the actresses closer. Hope points out, “When Annika started, I talked to her about being new and then I started reminiscing about being the new kid. So, it’s been nice knowing that I could finally show someone else the ropes.”