THE ONES THAT GOT AWAY
Before Lynn Herring was cast as GH’s Lucy in 1986, she auditioned for two major roles that ultimately went to other actresses. “I originally went in for the part of Felicia,” she recalls. “That was the first time I ever came to GENERAL HOSPITAL and I actually got pretty close. And I had also auditioned for the character of Kelly when SANTA BARBARA was starting. Isn’t that funny? Robin Wright ended up getting Kelly, of course, and Kristina [Wagner] got Felicia, and I remember thinking, ‘Okay, so they both have that long blonde hair, and I’m a brunette. Two long-haired blondes beat me out for these parts! Should I grow my hair out? Should I bleach it out at the beach? Come on!’ It’s so far-fetched and fun to think that it might have gone the other way, but of course, Kristina was just perfect for the part of Felicia, and I couldn’t be happier that I ended up getting to be Lucy!”
FAMILY MATTERS
Not surprisingly, Camryn Grimes (Mariah, Y&R) was thrilled when her TV brother Robert Adamson (Noah) recently reprised his character. “I just loved it,” says the actress. “He’s one of my best friends and I would like him back permanently, just for purely selfish reasons, because I would have somebody to hang out with and bug on a regular basis. But it was really incredible to have him back. I think Noah and Mariah’s relationship, although unexpected, became something really special and I think that’s partly due to my connection to Bob as super-close friends. We love working together so we were excited to do one-on-one scenes together just before Noah left town again.” Grimes reports that there’s much more to her and Adamson’s bond outside the studio. “We’re like brother and sister,” she shares. “My family has adopted him. Linsey [Godfrey, Sarah, DAYS; Adamson’s ex] and Aleda [Adamson’s daughter] live in my grandparents’ guesthouse. They come to dinners, barbecues and holidays, so they’re part of the family, too.”
CASTING COUPS
At the Day of DAYS event, Melissa Reeves (Jennifer) heard a recurring theme in fans’ comments. “Of course they love that Matt’s [Ashford, Jack] coming back,” she shared. “Somehow they know a lot but they don’t know details. They’re super-excited about that. Jack and Jennifer have a strong tie to history. We have our own THIS IS US! We have flashbacks that are really us and you can build a story around it. They can’t wait to have him on-screen and see what the writers have for us.” The actress also talked about Marci Miller’s exit as Abigail and Kate Mansi’s return to the role. “How blessed can I be to get Kate and Marci playing my daughters?” she marveled. “Marci is like our little movie star. I look in her eyes and I literally can see her soul. She’s the most beautiful actress, and there’s something so ethereal about her and so raw emotionally, and I was like, ‘Wow, that was so fun.’ And then I get my sweet little Katie back, who’s like my daughter. She and [Reeves’s real-life daughter] Emily were, like, separated at birth. She’s got this fierce stance and they’re both so different but both so great and so I was like, ‘Oh, I hate that Marci’s gone, but we get Katie.’ They’re both so special.”
HOLIDAY CHEER
Annika Noelle (Hope, B&B) had fun taping the soap’s Thanksgiving episode. “Thanksgiving was delicious,” she reports. “A few of us stayed for a good 30 minutes after we were done taping and continued to have the meal once we had wrapped for the day. That really was awesome, the fact that we got to eat the food! The meal was just yummy. Now, I can’t wait for the Christmas and New Year’s episodes!” Besides the food, the actress also appreciated the company. “It was honestly a really amazing experience, having everyone together like that. A lot of times you don’t get to see people when they’re not in your storyline because we’re all on different schedules, so I was very humbled by it and very appreciative of it. I loved getting the chance to see everyone together, and I was very grateful to be a part of it.”