| "Reflections by Jill" - A Weekly Commentary on One Life to Live | |
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REFLECTIONS BY JILL….
WOW!!!!! If I only knew where to begin. This week’s article, of course, is going to be all about last week’s LIVE SHOWS, but there is no way that I can begin this article without taking a minute to talk about that wonderful surprise we got on Friday night. Can you believe that OLTL won the Emmy for Best Drama? My mouth is still hanging open. I only feel sorry for the many people I have spoken to who boycotted the show in anger over our actors getting no nominations….I hope someone gives them a tape of the event.
Personally, I never miss an Emmy show…nominations or not. I just don’t have it in me to stay away. I have to see all the stars, the ones I currently watch and the ones I have watched in the past…I love to see what everyone wears…I love to see the camera catch people with expressions on their faces they don’t think we see…I just love to see it all and if I get a glimpse of Mark Derwin in a tuxedo, well then, it’s worth the entire two hours. This girl is not that hard to please.
All I can say is that by the end of the show on Friday night, I was ready for it to be over. Does Peter Bergman have any room in his house for more Emmys? Shouldn’t Susan Flannery have gotten up there and said, “Thanks, but this award really belongs to Erika Slezak?” Ok, that was nasty…LOL…but I do mean it! I’m not going to get into that nominations subject again, but the choices left much to be desired.
Just as I saw Rosie O’Donnell walk on stage with the winning envelope, I got the same feeling I got last year at that very moment. I was thinking that someone, somewhere had come to their senses and would give us the award. Notice I say “us”…don’t we, as fans, work as hard and suffer as much as the cast and crew?…LOL…I think we do. So, when Rosie opened that envelope, I was saying, “Come on Rosie…say it…ONE…ONE…ONE LIFE….and then BOOM…she said it. My first reaction was to burst out laughing so hard that I almost fell off the couch. I was in utter shock. Then I saw the shocked faces of the OLTL group in the audience and I laughed some more. Then I cheered. It felt so good, especially after the week of live shows, to see our actors and crew rewarded so unexpectedly. I was sorry that more of the cast wasn’t present to accept the honor, but there was a good turnout nonetheless. I suppose some of the actors were exhausted from the week’s work…and some probably took a stand against the lack of nominations. In any case, it was wonderful, it was so well deserved and I hope this will eradicate some of the political aspects of the awards next year. Kudos to Gary Tomlin for a home run in the innovation department and for having the class to remember Erika Slezak in his acceptance speech as the person who has led the cast for 30 years. Good for you, Gary! CONGRATULATIONS TO THE ENTIRE CAST AND CREW…It was an award that was a long time in coming and respectably earned.
OK…on to Live Week. Remember last week when I challenged everyone to beat me in finding the bloopers? Well, I withdraw from that game…LOL. After the first show on Monday, I realized that finding bloopers was absolutely the smallest thing I could get out of these shows…so I stopped looking for them. If you counted more than two, you beat me. There were so few it was incredible.
From the opening, I was entertained and amused. I admit it, I love Regis and he made me laugh talking about all the convoluted storylines. I was most amazed that he got all the names of the characters right, since even with a teleprompter, he can never get names right on his own show. He was refreshing and a fun change.
All in all, I was amazed at the performances of all the actors. They did a tremendous job, as did the directors and technical people.
Two things blew me away on the first day and continued to blow me away for the entire week, so I will start with them.
Kassie DePaiva – How many incompetent Emmy voters are out there banging their heads in the wall for not giving this wonderful actress an Emmy last year and promising not to make the same mistake again? I was left speechless and crying at least 3 times in the first two live days. I kept reading that Kassie was so nervous and didn’t want to go on live and then we got the performance of a lifetime out of her. Her portrayal of the devastated Blair after finding out that Jack was really her son was poignant, sad, heartfelt, real and so totally believable. Kassie hit one out of the park last week and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it. Had I been at the studio watching her, they would have had to tie my hands behind my back to keep me from incessantly applauding. As far as dramatic performances go, Kassie shined brighter than anyone else last week and as you can see, I was so impressed, I could go on forever. And one more thing…LOL…when she threw Todd out, I cheered at Blair finally coming to her senses.
The other performance that blew me away was…who else?
Erika Slezak - Is there anything this woman can’t do? She amazes me every single day. Although I’m more than ready to be rid of Niki Smith (permanently), I have to say that when she’s not trashing Ben in a scene, I die laughing at everything she does. I could totally relate to Niki when she was thinking of how to get rid of Ben and said, “Oh, Benji, when he flashes that killer smile at me it’s like rapture comes over me. I just want to have him all over me.” I know Niki, I know. Oh, and I am still replaying and replaying her dance rendition of “It’s Raining Men” and I can never get enough. The thing that kills me is that Niki thinks she is the coolest chick around…from her tiger print shirt…to her fringed skirt…to her pink hub cap earrings and “stuck my finger in a socket” hairdo. She is so NOT COOL and so stuck in the year she last “came out.” The funniest proof of this was when she was up on the couch doing those Macarena hand movements…bahahahahaha…Niki, you kill me, girl!
The entire time Erika was doing her dance I was thinking about how great she is…alone on camera behaving like a lunatic while the rest of the cast had to be standing there watching the whole thing in awe of her talent. I’m in awe, too, Erika…even more than when you sang Karaoke at Crossroads. And on live tv….geez! What a woman!
We had so many great surprises last week, too. My favorite was the “dead guest” of the day. I just loved seeing Luna, Sloan, Megan, Michael Grande (ok, someone had to tell me who he was since I zoned out of the Eterna days) and of course, dear departed Colin McIver. I knew Colin would be one of the dead guests, but I was hoping they’d doll him up like they did when they dug him out of the ground…you know, all gray and covered in mud. In any case, Ty Treadway was a good sport to do that and to once again, bare the old 6-pack.
As usual, there were a couple of things I could have lived without. Most of us had guessed that the couple to make love would be Nora and Troy, but I am so sorry we were right. There’s too much of an icky factor going on between these two and I think Nora’s instincts were right the first time, when she felt Colin was with them. This is not a great pairing…and it needs to be nipped in the bud.
And what about the return of Tea? Did you expect her to be so drawn to Todd? I didn’t. I always liked Tea, but she needs to have come back for a good zinger of a storyline…not to mope about Todd.
Then there’s Carlotta…Geez, this woman was just learning to butt out from her mistake with Keri and she’s butting into Tea’s life. Stick a spoon of flan in it Mami…leave everyone alone.
Aside from those few things, I loved everything else….starting with….
Bo and Niki’s fantasy – Well, I am glad this didn’t take place for real and was only a fantasy of Niki’s, but these two sure do have the chemistry. It must come from all the years of knowing each other and working together. They were a hoot. And Bo, so attractive and sexy in his own very quiet way…especially with his “One of the Good Guys” coffee mug.
I was also very impressed with the scenes between Bo and Gabrielle. After Niki delivered her “home-baked muffins” and Bo got rid of her, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked the scene where Bo asked Gabrielle to stay. When he admitted that Melanie was right when she told him he was too good and expected too much from people, I wanted to shake him and tell him to go find Melanie and bring her back. Although I am very impressed with the change in Gabby lately, I have no doubt that when the next opportunity presents itself, she will cave in and take the easy, dishonest way out. I’m waiting for her to surprise me, but I fear Bo will be hurt yet again.
Chad – Chad…LOL…before last week he was just Chad the Cad to me…taking an easy buck from anyone who would offer one and dogging all the pretty girls…but when he walked in on Niki’s little rain dance, the expression on his face was worth 1,000 words. And when he said, “Mrs. Davidson, I don’t know you very well, but are you having a nervous breakdown?”…I died laughing. He did take “shut up” money from Niki, but at that point I think she had scared the heck out of him and he just wanted to get out of there. I think with the right material, Chad is going to be an asset to this show, if not Niki’s playmate.
On to my favorite couple….
Starr and Troy – How adorable are these two together? How cute was she asking him if she could move in? I’ll tell you one thing about little Kristen Alderson…she and her little brother Eddie (Matthew) can sure hold their own with the heavyweights on the show. Kristen didn’t show an ounce of nerves in her live scenes, nor did she flub a word. She continues to impress me and I love the way Troy doesn’t treat her like a little kid. I love these two together, especially when he gave her the spider stamps and then she didn’t think his hobby was so geeky any more.
Wow….I didn’t see this one coming….the nuptials of….
Max and Roxy – Now this is a comic pair made in heaven. Poor Max…that’s what you get for blowing on Roxy’s bones. She was a riot in that casino…especially with Al, the lunatic. She sure knows how to work everyone to get them to cough up money. I don’t think she can do anything bad that I would object to…she’s too cute and funny…I can’t help it. Now, if she messes with Viki and Jessica too much that will be another story, but in the scene where the waiter rolls in the breakfast cart and pops the cork on the champagne for the “newlyweds”…Max’s reaction to seeing the ring on his finger was priceless.
How much do we love Allison being sentenced and becoming Lindsay’s cellmate? I don’t know Linz…if I were you, I’d seriously consider asking them to bring back Big Tillie…you just might be safer. Linz better sleep with one eye open at all times.
And the big questions…Is Viki really back? And for how long? I couldn’t believe my eyes when she came out at the courthouse. Everyone I talked to was shocked. GT kept quite a little secret there. Some people are wondering if it’s really Viki. Some people are wondering how long she’ll “stay out” because we already know Niki is not going away so quickly. Any my biggest questions….how is this going to hurt poor Ben? I’m looking forward to seeing this all unfold in the coming weeks.
Well, I guess it’s obvious that I loved Live Week….from the angst of poor Blair to the comedy of Niki, Max and Roxy. It was a week to remember and I’m sure I will for a very long time. I think we should have a live week every sweeps period. I wonder how the actors and crew would feel about that. GT…you did good! I’m curious to see if any other shows will now have the guts to follow in the footsteps of our great pioneers!
See ya next week......
Jill Berry
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FAN FEEDBACK AND QUESTIONS
Todd writes: “Call me crazy, but I think Rex is
going to end up being Jessica's twin.
Maybe Niki got rid of the second kid and that is the big secret she is not
telling Viki. I do agree that Jess is going to end up being Viki's biological
daughter. Even though I hated that story line at first, but I have come to adore
Natalie (Melissa
Archer) and having her as part of the family. I actually was watching the show
when Viki gave birth, but for the life of me I can't remember everything that
was going on at the time. By the way, have you heard anything else about Tina
coming back.”
Dear Todd: I won’t call you crazy. I think
your theory about Jessica and Rex being twins is quite feasible. Anything could
happen and if it is truly a big secret that Niki is keeping, that would sure
qualify. It would be fine with me because at least Jess would still be Viki’s
biological daughter and I could live with that. Regarding Tina, I haven’t heard
a word about her coming back other than all the rumors that if she did, she
would be played by Sarah Buxton, who physically would be a good Tina if we
didn’t have the original.
______________
Kathy writes: “Thanks for another great column. I think you need to stand in line to go cruising with Ben, you could get caught in a stampede. Can I be rude and say that I'm glad to read that you are the same height as me, I hope that you aren't also horizontally endowed like me. Thanks again for the great column.”
Dear Kathy: Do you think for a minute that I
wouldn’t stand in line or fight a stampede to go cruising with Ben? Silly
girl! Oh and Kathy, you are not rude. Haven’t you ever heard that good things
come in small packages…or short packages? And is there something wrong with
being horizontally endowed? I think the only people who have a problem with the
“horizontally endowed” are the “educationally challenged.”
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Margaret writes: “Why is the person who plays Todd always coming and going? I love the character Todd…he puts spice in the storyline. As soon as he's there for a while, poof he's leaving. What's up?”
Dear Margaret: This is only my opinion, but
I believe it to be true. I believe that Roger Howarth is one of those actors who
has a strong desire to get out of daytime and make it in nighttime TV or on the
big screen and periodically has the itch to leave and give it another
shot. Obviously we can’t blame him for trying. I think it comes off to the fans
like he looks down on daytime and just uses it as a paycheck until he “makes it
big.” I’m one of those fans that feel that way. He has a very comfortable
situation because the character of Todd is so unique and RH knows there will
always be a place for him on the show.
______________
Lori writes: “Hi Jill, I just read a recap of the OLTL fan club luncheon and it sounded great. Can you tell me whom I might contact to go to next year's luncheon? Is it still Carol Dickson? I used to go to the luncheons but then I never got any mail from her. If you could let me know that would be great. Thanks!”
Dear Lori: Yes, Carol Dickson is still in charge of the luncheon and I have just heard from a friend that next year’s luncheon might be in March and that they might be taking reservations shortly. Stay tuned…as soon as I know more I will print it.
© Copyright by Katherine Thurston, 2002
