Soap Opera Uncensored: Issue 20
Nelson Branco
SOAP OPERA UNCENSORED
Volume 02, Issue 10 (No. 20)
BY NELSON BRANCO
Copyright 2012 Nelson Branco
INSIDE — DIVA IN A BLUE DRESS: Exclusive Interview With GH’s Nancy Lee Grahn! The Emmy Winner Sounds Off On Cartini (“Frank Valentini Is The Best Producer I’ve Ever Worked For!”); Her Emmy Reel; The SAG/AFTRA Merger; A "Sexis" Reunion; ONE LIFE’s Cancellation; The Difference Between SANTA BARBARA VS. GH's Cancellation Threats; and Crying Garin Wolf! Plus: Is Grahn joining THE GROVE? And What She Really Thinks Of Crystal Chappell! Kristina Wagner GH-Bound! Inside The Emmy Pre-Nominations! Who Lost A Nod — And Why! Plus: The Glaring Snubs! Exclusive: Daytime Emmy Pre-Nom Emmy Reels! Exclusive: Y&R’s Michelle Stafford: Who is Phyllis’s True Love: Nick or Jack? Her Answer Will Shock You! Maxie Responsible for Robin’s Death on GH! Another GH Newbie Axed! Sean Young arrested! Exclusive: Sean Kanan on DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES! Plus: Last Week's Reviews, Unbelievable Blind Items, and Next Week's Cheat Sheet!
UNCENSORED MASTHEAD:
FOUNDER/EDITOR: Nelson Branco
EDITOR AT LARGE: Denette Wilford
Follow Soap Opera Uncensored at: @nelliebranco or @SoapUncensored
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PRE-ORDER BETWEEN HEAVEN & HELL: A ONE LIFE TO LIVE TRIBUTE
Hi, loyal soaper!
UNCENSORED QUOTES OF THE WEEK:
“Adam is just about the most humbled, earnest person in Genoa City. He knows he can’t go back in time and erase what he’s done, but for now, his determination to be a better person is real.”
—Y&R’s Michael Muhney in SOAP OPERA DIGEST
Translation: Adam has the best hair in Genoa City.
“The relationship with Bo is mostly going to stay platonic — and I think that’s a good choice.”
—Lisa Rinna to SOAPS IN DEPTH on her upcoming DAYS return
Translation: Because I value my job!
“Happiness. Oh, my God, I must not be dead. I’m still breathing. I love coming back to this show.”
—Phyllis Diller to SOAP OPERA DIGEST on her upcoming B&B appearance
Translation: If I do die, I pray Brad Bell brings me back from the dead.
“The last scene we had, I looked at him, and I kind of waved at him in a weird way, and he laughed, which I thought was interesting. I was looking at his eyes when I was working with him, and he has no fear. I like that. [We’re like Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds in the new film, SAFE HOUSE]. Denzel looks at the guy like, ‘I am your worst nightmare,’ and he did it with kind of a weird smile. I did that with Michael.”
—Maurice Benard on new GH co-star Michael Easton in SOAPS IN DEPTH
Translation: He’s so pretty. I’d go south on Easton any time; sorry, Steve!
AWARD SHOW CENTRAL
2012 PRE-EMMY NOMINATIONS REVEALED!
We’re one step closer to Emmy supremacy: The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences announced the Drama Performer Pre-Nominations for the 39th Annual Daytime Entertainment Emmy Awards. Scroll down to read UNCENSORED’s exclusive list of the pre, pre-nominees — and what each actor submitted.
If you’re an avid reader of UNCENSORED, then you’re not surprised with the majority of the pre-nominees. (However, UNCENSORED somehow missed Elizabeth Hendrickson as Supporting Actress and Hayley Pullos as Younger Actress on the pre, pre-nomination ballot. I’m investigating why they weren’t on my ballot.)
There are a few glaring omissions, of course. No award-show system is perfect — and there will always be a few casualties. With every revamped system, there is also a learning curve when it comes to outsmarting, outplaying and outlasting this ever-evolving game.
For example, two-time Emmy winner Michelle Stafford tells UNCENSORED that she didn’t realize the pre pre-nomination ballot was a competitive stage, which is why she submitted a subtler reel instead of the intense acting reels her peers handed in.
“I thought it was more about offering a quick snippet of your work,” she begins. “So the voter could see a bit of your work and see who they were voting for without the names on the ballot. When I saw all the other reels, I felt, ‘Oh, my reel is way too subtle to be nominated.” No worries: Stafford made it through to the pre-nomination stage, as I predicted.
Over the years, I’ve noticed a growing trend of voters picking subtler, “non-soapy” acting reels instead of the big, sweeping acting moments daytime is known for.
While that strategy didn’t work for the grossly underrated and overlooked Katherine Kelly Lang, who submitted one of the best and most subtle reel of the year, it did work for the majority. (Seriously, I’m becoming increasingly convinced that Susan Flannery pays voters not to vote for Lang!)
The Daytime Emmy Awards wouldn’t be the Daytime Emmys without controversy. While the new system got thumbs up from most members, a few actors are livid.
“Actors cheated,” fumes one actress, who did not get a pre-nom. “We were told to offer 2 minutes of our work or less — and actors on one show, in particular, handed in 3 minutes of work. That’s not fair.”
A NATAS spokesperson assures UNCENSORED that it will address all issues and criticisms of the revised system to a member meeting to see what can be done in the future.
Conversely, another actor, who did get a pre-nom, tells UNCENSORED it didn’t matter how long the reels were. “Most of us watched the first minute of a reel to get a sense of [the hopeful’s] acting and find out their name,” the soap vet points out.
Below, UNCENSORED offers our educated and informed opinions regarding the possible final nominees. At this stage, pre-noms now have to submit a full episode of their choosing — which could be different from the original pre, pre-nom reel, so anything can happen, but most pre-noms are sticking with the same show… but a longer reel could change the race. Here goes:
LEAD ACTRESS:
Crystal Chappell
Jeanne Cooper
Kassie DePaiva
Susan Flannery
Debbi Morgan
Erika Slezak
Michelle Stafford
Melody Thomas Scott
Heather Tom
Laura Wright
Early Predictions: Chappell, Morgan, Slezak, Tom, Wright
Unforgivable Omissions: Katherine Kelly Lang, Susan Lucci and Florencia Lozano (though, out of context, her reel was very over-the-top.)
LEAD ACTOR:
Maurice Benard
Steve Burton
Don Diamont
Anthony Geary
Vincent Irizarry
John McCook
Michael Muhney
Stephen Nichols
Jerry verDorn
Darnell Williams
Robert S. Woods
Early Predictions: Benard, Geary, Burton, Muhney, Williams
Unforgivable Omission: James Scott
SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Julie Marie Berman
Nadia Bjorlin
Melissa Claire Egan
Nancy Lee Grahn
Elizabeth Hendrickson
Rebecca Herbst
Debbi Morgan
Gina Tognoni
Arianne Zucker
Early Predictions: Berman, Egan, Grahn, Hendrickson, Herbst, Morgan
Unforgivable Omissions: Ilene Kristen, Kimberly McCullough, Bree Williamson
SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Matthew Ashford
Sean Blakemore
Scott Clifton
Jonathan Jackson
Michael E. Knight
Billy Miller
Greg Rikaart
Jason Thompson
John Wesley Shipp
Early Predictions: Ashford, Blakemore, Clifton, Jackson, Knight, Miller, Shipp
Unforgivable Omissions: Jacob Young, Mark Lawson
YOUNGER ACTRESS:
Lexi Ainsworth
Camila Banus
Molly Burnett
Natalie Hall
Shelley Hennig
Christel Khalil
Jacqueline MacInnes Wood
Kate Mansi
Kim Matula
Haley Pullos
Early Predictions: Ainsworth, Burnett, Hall, Khalil, Wood, Mansi
Unforgivable Omission: Shenell Edmonds
YOUNGER ACTOR:
Eddie Alderson
Casey Deidrick
Chad Duell
Adam Gregory
David Gregory
Bryton James
Chandler Massey
Nathan Parsons
Kevin Schmidt
Austin Williams
Early Predictions: Alderson, Deidrick, Duell, James, Massey
Unforgivable Omission: Patrick Gibbons Jr.
COVER STORY
DIVA IN A BLUE DRESS
Exclusive Interview With GH’s Nancy Lee Grahn on Cartini, Garin Wolf, Alexis, Her Emmy Reel, Gaining Weight, ABC, “Sexis,” Crystal Chappell, And Being Single!
If Bill Maher were a soap actress, he’d look a lot like Nancy Lee Grahn. Yeah, he wishes!
Politically active, fearlessly honest, super talented, and never one to shy away from expressing an opinion, it’s no surprise Grahn is producing a behind-the-scenes spoof of daytime talk shows, THE VIEW and THE TALK, called BACK TALK.
But it’s the do-or-die crossroads Grahn and her soap, GENERAL HOSPITAL, are staring down that is the topic on everyone’s minds. It’s the ultimate cliffhanger: Will ABC pull the plug on its lone soap? Or will the maligned network give new head writer Ron Carlivati and executive producer Frank Valentini time to pull a Gloria Monty?
Grahn sat down with UNCENSORED for an in-depth look at GH’s past, present and future. And no, no wine bottles were harmed or devoured during this interview.
I’m fascinated to hear your informed opinion about the SAG and AFTRA merger.
My biggest concern and hold out was I wanted to make sure we all get our pensions because, truthfully, the people running SAG in the previous regime were so awful. They created a lot of mistrust with me, but now that there are so many nighttime shows using AFTRA members, it is different now. I spoke to my lawyers and we did a lot of research — and legally, they can’t do anything. With that assurance, there is no reason not to vote for the merge. It’s beneficial in every way. We need a united union.
Ed Harris, who is opposing the merger, is a moron! This merger doesn’t affect anyone’s residuals —and it helps everyone with their health care. In other words, I would have had to make $20, 000 a year in AFTRA or SAG to get health benefits… but now with the merger, I can make $10, 000 in AFTRA and SAG — and I’m covered. My only concern was that I have access to my pension, which I already accrued. And according to the top lawyers, it can’t be touched.
[Joking] And maybe now SAG will have a daytime category at the SAG AWARDS! [Laughs]
[Laughs] Well, it’s the snobby people like Ed Harris and Ed Asner — everyone named Ed, I guess — who are going on a campaign now to stop it from happening because they don’t want broadcasters in their unions.
I want to thank you personally and professionally for being one of our fearless warriors! You’re always fighting the good fight!
Well, I will tell you who else has joined me in supporting this union merger: Susan Flannery, John McCook, Bradford Anderson… these are some of the people who showed up to the meetings. Very few actors from my show showed up but a lot of CBS actors did. I wish I could list a bunch of actors from GH, but there aren’t a lot to mention! We just got our ballots, so I hope our cast votes.
Speaking of ballots, tell me why you chose your Emmy pre, pre-nom reel.
[Giggles] Because I had nothing else to give! That was it! [Laughs] I have so little to offer…. It was not easy; I mean, it was easy….
I have to say I live to find out what savvy actresses like you, Kim Zimmer, Crystal Chappell and Michelle Stafford submit because you guys know how to play the game so well. You guys always hit the nail on the head… sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn’t, but it’s always a fun race with you guys competing.
If I had my druthers, I would submit something much more subtle. My taste is subtler. My personal taste is less “soap opera… “ Wait, that’s not fair: I didn’t mean to say that…. I meant “less heightened.”
I get you. I put you number two in my supporting actress predictions. I placed Becky Herbst as number one because how are you going to compete with a dead baby?
You can’t.
Let’s talk Cartini, Cartini, Cartini! What’s the mood on the GH set like these days? Last summer, you seemed overjoyed when Garin Wolf became the head writer. He made you a lot of promises but none of them came to fruition.
I wasn’t happy. That didn’t work out. Now, of course, fans are gong to say, “Well, you’re just saying that now because he’s gone…” But it’s the truth. With Ron, I haven’t really gotten anything yet because it’s only been two weeks and he’s cleaning up a lot right now. Yes, I’m working more, but Alexis is just facilitating. The ONE LIFE people came on today, which I think is critical and important. I haven’t quite seen what he’s going to do with me yet, but I have no reason to think that it won’t be a vast improvement from previous regimes! [Laughs]
It can’t be any worse! He loves writing for actresses of your caliber. You’ll be his Hillary B. Smith.
Listen, all I can do is judge Ron from what I saw on ONE LIFE. And what I saw on ONE LIFE were a bunch of actresses with a bunch of stuff to do. He wasn’t just writing for the same five people. He had a great sense of how to rotate a canvas with [A, B, and C] storylines. What inevitably happens is —no matter how good someone is — the more you put them on, an hour every day, the viewers become immune. You couldn’t see Meryl Streep on that much without going, “Oh, really; again?”
Um, I could! [Laughs]
Yes, I forgot about you! But normal viewers doze off. You literally become immune.
Ron is the best at writing an ensemble show, save for Crystal Chappell.
And don’t think I didn’t notice that! I’ve been watching ONE LIFE for a long time — not every day because I don’t even watch my show every day — but I certainly tried to watch every day towards the show’s end and I was very impressed. In fact, I was so impressed I wanted Alexis to cross over to Llanview because I would’ve had a lot more interesting things to do there.
And you do know Ron is also a former lawyer, right? He writes the best legal eagles and courtroom stories. He’s very THE GOOD WIFE.
Yes. I talked to Ron for an hour. I really liked him. I have great faith in him. Like I said, what I do know for certain is what I’ve seen working with Frank Valentini for a couple of months. Now he impresses me! I can’t even tell you how much.
At this juncture, all you can see from watching the show is the clipping and pasting Ron’s doing. But because Frank’s an environmentalist — which I love, by the way — we no longer get all the scripts, we just get scripts of the scenes we’re in. I don’t know what’s going on with the show other than watching it, so I don’t know what Ron has planned, but I like what I see. Right now, I’m just doing some lawyer stuff. I will find out what Ron plans on doing with me — especially if ABC picks us up.
I’m really excited and I have a really good feeling about it. What I have seen in
evidence is Frank. I’ve never seen a producer work this hard. He’s so on the ball… he’s intuitive…and he has an answer for everything! I’m pretty picky about the notes I get. I keep them to myself for a good portion of the time, especially if it’s something I would never do. I have very good actor instincts… and I can tell you, Frank gives very good notes. He has not suggested one thing yet that I didn’t agree with or didn’t improve a scene. He’s on that sword at 8:15 in the morning, during his lunch he edits, and he doesn’t leave until everyone has left for the day. He knows everyone’s lines by heart — more or less — and he’s already cut the budget by a significant amount. He’s ass kicking good. That’s what I’ve evidenced… with Ron, I only know what I watched on ONE LIFE
You’re in good hands.
I think so. Not that I can change anything even if I wanted to, but I have never felt the need to change anything in the scripts yet. Nothing is out of character. Ron hasn’t begun really writing for Alexis, but I have every belief he will.
Oh, he will. With Alexis especially, it’s going to have to be an organic build…
Oh, of course. Especially since I wasn’t doing anything for so long.
I bet you a million dollars one of your stories will revolve around Sam’s paternity. Ron loves writing about fathers; he has some kind of daddy issue he needs to work out on his shows, so I’d expect that.
Oh, that’s great.
And Tuc Watkins’ David will more than likely be Sam’s father because before ONE LIFE went off the airwaves, David admitted to siring a child. And Alexis is totally David’s type: older, smarter, sexy. Without naming names, why did certain members of the GH cast resist Frank and Ron before they even started? It was pretty selfish… considering the ship was sinking at warp speed.
I have no idea. And if I knew, I would find them and smack ‘em around! First of all, it’s not helpful. Second of all, it’s inaccurate. The whole energy of the show went from being flatlined — we weren’t dead yet, but we could hear the monitor beginning to flat line — to all of a sudden hearing a heartbeat. We’re in the E.R. and everyone is working to save this show. Everyone’s working, no one’s late and everybody knows his or her shit. I’m talking about the actors, the crew, wardrobe, hair, production, writers… everyone is doing every thing they can to avert the iceberg. That’s the big difference. The fact that Ron came in and gave each actor an hour to get to know us is unheard of. I haven’t spoken to a writer in 15 years. I’ve never, ever been asked what I thought on this show
