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Photo credit: JPI
WIPED OUT
Sleep deprivation nearly caused Josh Swickard (Chase, GH) to botch his screen test. “I had been shooting a film on location until 2 a.m., and then I took a 6 a.m. flight, went straight to the [GH] lot, slept for about 40 minutes and was trying to memorize and I was kind of a mess,” he recalls. “I got up there first and I couldn’t even get through the scene. Frank [Valentini, executive producer] comes over and he was like, ‘Do you want to just get this over with, or would you like the other guys to go first and you can take a few minutes to try to memorize it? I know you’re coming off of working.’ I was like, ‘Give me five minutes, I know I’m going to get this,’ so I went off into a corner and tried to memorize it and I came back and I got through it. I worked with Finola [Hughes, Anna] and Steve [Burton, Jason] and they helped me through it. They both came into my dressing room before my test and were like, ‘Do you want to run lines? Do you have any questions? Do you want to just talk?’ And they really didn’t have to do that. They were great to me. Afterward, I saw Frank in the hall and I said, ‘I’m so sorry!’ And he goes, ‘No, you did great!’ ”
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Photo credit: JPI
THE ACTOR’S DIET
B&B’s Heather Tom (Katie) reports that her son, Zane Achor (ex-Will), 6, is well aware of what actors go through when they have to appear on television every day. “Here’s a perfect example,” she begins. “Not all that long ago, we went out to dinner one night, and this was when I was doing all those [sexy] role-playing scenes with Wyatt. Well, we had a love scene coming up, which pretty much means I don’t eat for, like, two weeks [laughs]. We went out to dinner and afterward, we all went out for ice cream. I, however, did not have any ice cream and Zane was like, ‘Mother, you absolutely must have some ice cream.’ I told him that I was going to pass and he said, ‘Why are you not having ice cream? You absolutely must!’ I said, ‘Well, I’m not having ice cream, honey, because I’m in my underwear this week,’ and he’s like, ‘Oh, right. Gotcha.’ At that moment, I realized two things: First, I clearly use the word ‘absolutely’ quite a bit because I’m sure he got that from me, and secondly, that my child was now probably going to go into school the next day and tell everyone, ‘My mom goes to work in her underwear.’ ”
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Photo credit: JPI
WINNERS CIRCLE
For Beth Maitland, reprising the role of Y&R’s Traci is no easy feat — and that’s just fine with her. “I live about three-and-a-half hours away from work now and when I climb in my car at 3 in the morning and hurtle toward the studio, I feel like the postal service, neither rain nor sleep nor dark of night,” chuckles the actress. “There’s nothing I love more than the feeling of heading toward a day in Genoa City. What strikes me most about working with this marvelous group of actors is the professionalism that they bring each day. In an emotional sequence of scenes, focus, concentration and preparation are the only way to survive and deliver the level of performance we all want. It’s such a time crunch in today’s soap schedule. There is not much rehearsal and not much room for error, but these amazing actors bring it! We do most of these scenes in one take, and every single person is invested. There’s always room for a little levity, some chuckles and joking and letting off steam. But the Abbotts are always there, never distracting or disrespectful of the work. What an enormous pleasure to work with these darlings; every single take is a keeper! Just look into their eyes and it’s all there. Wow!”
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Photo credit: JPI
FUN, FUN, FUN
Deidre Hall (Marlena) loves any opportunity to play Hattie on DAYS. “I think that she’s the perfect contrast of Marlena, that’s why she’s funny,” says the actress. “I mean, she’s funny by herself, but Marlena is so reserved and contained, so I never get to act out. I watched my sister [Andrea] do it when she was playing Samantha and just thought, ‘Oh, so much fun!’ And then when Hattie came along, I got to have me some of that fun!” For the recent scenes where Hattie got her groove on in the hospital room, Hall shares, “They brought a woman in to sort of choreograph it. I didn’t quite understand the need for that because what you want is a lack of choreography. But anyway, it was just Hattie being Hattie and being a little bit obscene and a little bit absurd.” And the actress can’t help but hope there’s love in the cards for her alter ego. “I said to J.T. [Josh Taylor, Roman], ‘It would’ve been so fun to just have that Hattie/Roman relationship for a minute, just watch her maybe clean up a little bit.’ I just thought it would’ve been fun that she’s so desperate to see him and be with him and she loves him.”
WIPED OUT
Sleep deprivation nearly caused Josh Swickard (Chase, GH) to botch his screen test. “I had been shooting a film on location until 2 a.m., and then I took a 6 a.m. flight, went straight to the [GH] lot, slept for about 40 minutes and was trying to memorize and I was kind of a mess,” he recalls. “I got up there first and I couldn’t even get through the scene. Frank [Valentini, executive producer] comes over and he was like, ‘Do you want to just get this over with, or would you like the other guys to go first and you can take a few minutes to try to memorize it? I know you’re coming off of working.’ I was like, ‘Give me five minutes, I know I’m going to get this,’ so I went off into a corner and tried to memorize it and I came back and I got through it. I worked with Finola [Hughes, Anna] and Steve [Burton, Jason] and they helped me through it. They both came into my dressing room before my test and were like, ‘Do you want to run lines? Do you have any questions? Do you want to just talk?’ And they really didn’t have to do that. They were great to me. Afterward, I saw Frank in the hall and I said, ‘I’m so sorry!’ And he goes, ‘No, you did great!’ ”
THE ACTOR’S DIET
B&B’s Heather Tom (Katie) reports that her son, Zane Achor (ex-Will), 6, is well aware of what actors go through when they have to appear on television every day. “Here’s a perfect example,” she begins. “Not all that long ago, we went out to dinner one night, and this was when I was doing all those [sexy] role-playing scenes with Wyatt. Well, we had a love scene coming up, which pretty much means I don’t eat for, like, two weeks [laughs]. We went out to dinner and afterward, we all went out for ice cream. I, however, did not have any ice cream and Zane was like, ‘Mother, you absolutely must have some ice cream.’ I told him that I was going to pass and he said, ‘Why are you not having ice cream? You absolutely must!’ I said, ‘Well, I’m not having ice cream, honey, because I’m in my underwear this week,’ and he’s like, ‘Oh, right. Gotcha.’ At that moment, I realized two things: First, I clearly use the word ‘absolutely’ quite a bit because I’m sure he got that from me, and secondly, that my child was now probably going to go into school the next day and tell everyone, ‘My mom goes to work in her underwear.’ ”
WINNERS CIRCLE
For Beth Maitland, reprising the role of Y&R’s Traci is no easy feat — and that’s just fine with her. “I live about three-and-a-half hours away from work now and when I climb in my car at 3 in the morning and hurtle toward the studio, I feel like the postal service, neither rain nor sleep nor dark of night,” chuckles the actress. “There’s nothing I love more than the feeling of heading toward a day in Genoa City. What strikes me most about working with this marvelous group of actors is the professionalism that they bring each day. In an emotional sequence of scenes, focus, concentration and preparation are the only way to survive and deliver the level of performance we all want. It’s such a time crunch in today’s soap schedule. There is not much rehearsal and not much room for error, but these amazing actors bring it! We do most of these scenes in one take, and every single person is invested. There’s always room for a little levity, some chuckles and joking and letting off steam. But the Abbotts are always there, never distracting or disrespectful of the work. What an enormous pleasure to work with these darlings; every single take is a keeper! Just look into their eyes and it’s all there. Wow!”
FUN, FUN, FUN
Deidre Hall (Marlena) loves any opportunity to play Hattie on DAYS. “I think that she’s the perfect contrast of Marlena, that’s why she’s funny,” says the actress. “I mean, she’s funny by herself, but Marlena is so reserved and contained, so I never get to act out. I watched my sister [Andrea] do it when she was playing Samantha and just thought, ‘Oh, so much fun!’ And then when Hattie came along, I got to have me some of that fun!” For the recent scenes where Hattie got her groove on in the hospital room, Hall shares, “They brought a woman in to sort of choreograph it. I didn’t quite understand the need for that because what you want is a lack of choreography. But anyway, it was just Hattie being Hattie and being a little bit obscene and a little bit absurd.” And the actress can’t help but hope there’s love in the cards for her alter ego. “I said to J.T. [Josh Taylor, Roman], ‘It would’ve been so fun to just have that Hattie/Roman relationship for a minute, just watch her maybe clean up a little bit.’ I just thought it would’ve been fun that she’s so desperate to see him and be with him and she loves him.”