Nelson Branco's Soap Opera Uncensored: Issue 38 Read online

their mothers have joined! [Laughs]

  You know, in this business, you never want to predict the future because it’s bad luck… I don’t know.

  Are you watching GH?

  Oh, yeah. For sure!

  Isn’t it surreal seeing Starr on GH? I mean, ONE LIFE was originally titled BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HELL and, beautifully, Llanview still lives on even if it has to be in Port Charles.

  Omigod, yes! Totally surreal. Ever since Kristen came on GH, I really started watching it. It’s pretty crazy because sometimes I think I’m watching ONE LIFE… but it’s very cool. And Kristen is doing an amazing job.

  Personally, I think you should stay away from GH for the time being because you have what it takes to win an Oscar. You are the real deal, mister.

  Thank you!

  And you’re one of the snarkiest little bitches on Twitter, by the way!

  [Laughs hysterically] I try! I lose a lot of followers but I have fun. The people who think I am funny like it, so I’m good.

  And clearly now the Academy is a follower, too!

  COVER STORY

  ASHFORD’S LANDING

  Don’t cry for Matthew Ashford — he may have been fired from DAYS yet again but this Emmy-nominated star always lands on his two left feet!

  As the sixth of eight children, Matthew Ashford learned a long time that his myriad talents would sometimes be taken for granted and/or overlooked. And DAYS has never disappointed the Iowa native in that regard.

  But after NBC/Sony fired the popular actor for the umpteenth time, Ashford was finally rewarded with his first Daytime Emmy Award nomination after three decades on the daytime dial.

  Not a bad deal, huh?

  UNCENSORED ran into the handsome actor — who is only getting better and better looking with each passing year — on the Emmy red carpet to discuss his long overdue recognition from his peers and the next exciting chapter in The Adventures Of Matthew Ashford.

  Is it bittersweet being nominated after being recently fired yet again?

  Well, it’s interesting timing, that’s for sure! Listen, I’m a Buddhist and I believe in the cause-and-effect of things and the rhythm of life. You always need to expand and, sometimes, you need to let things go, to let other things come into your life. After hearing DAYS was letting me go, the day I shot these big-ass final scenes as Jack is the day I learned of my Emmy nomination! So it’s been really nice. It feels like the time when I was let go from ONE LIFE as Drew: Days after that [dismissal], I booked a nighttime series called THE HAMPTONS. It was the beginning of new things…. And I’m getting that feeling again.

  You’re very talented. I knew you’d be nominated this year after watching your pre, pre-Emmy reel. Very wise selection. You’re definitely a dark horse but beating Jackson will prove impossible! Don’t shoot the messenger! [Laughs]

  [Laughs] I know!

  Why do you think it’s so challenging and seemingly difficult to write for Jack? I would think he’d be easy to pen for. Shakespeare would love him on his canvas!

  I think you’re right because Jack isn’t a hero, but he’s not bad, either. For some writers, Jack isn’t archetypal enough. HBO and Showtime are writing for characters like Jack, which is the irony. Flawed characters only populate cable dramas and comedies. And that’s life. And soap opera.

  But you always manage to come back to DAYS! I mean, you and DAYS are the Liz and Richard Burton of daytime!

  [Laughs] I know. Listen, I love coming back to DAYS. I love Jack. He’s great fun. He’s a real human being — which is why I think so many people connect with Jack. Jack’s never had a brain chip implanted, had an evil twin because Jack is his own evil twin. Certain writers write certain ways.

  That’s a diplomatic way of describing a hack! My words! Daytime is lucky to have an actor of your calibre. You remind me of Kin Shriner a lot. You’re a character actor.

  Yes. Good comparison. Kin and I kind of look at things the same way.

  And you’ve never looked more handsome than you do now. You were kind of clumsy handsome before…. You’ve really blossomed into a stunning man — even if you are 105! [Laughs]

  [Laughs] Thank you!

  You must have been sad about AMC and ONE LIFE being cancelled….

  [Sighs] Yeah, I’m very sad about both those shows. Both those shows deserved to be given to a 20- or 30-year-old wonder kid to reinvent it and save it on another network. Something; anything!

  Did you ever think daytime would reach this suicidal point? I mean, you witnessed the glory days firsthand.

  I didn’t know it would get to this point, that’s for sure, but I know that when things get top heavy the lowest fruit is always sacrificed — not that daytime is low hanging in any way but it’s the easiest to pick. Soaps are like the marines…. They’re always in there first, like live TV, but they always somehow end up the casualties for the freedom of others.

  Very well said…!

  But now soaps are heading into battle into the web world. I’m producing THE BAY, a web series, and it’s the same dynamic.

  Congrats on THE BAY’s nomination, by the way. Big year for you.

  That’s what I like to focus on: the possibilities and triumphs of this past year — not the losses.

  You’ve never been on Y&R or B&B…

  No, I have not! [Smiles] I really, really enjoy watching Y&R and B&B. They do some really great stuff over there. Just watching their Emmy reels was an honour.

  Maybe you’ll be a part of that universe soon.

  SIDEBAR:

  Did You Know…

  … that Matthew Ashford obtained U.S./Canada dual citizenship? When he was on tour in Toronto in 2010, the actor applied since his father was born in Canada.

  SOAPILEAKS:

  This Week’s Hottest News, Gossip, and Reviews!

  THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, CBS/CTV — Day With A Zee, Bitches!

  • Repeat after me, Jennifer: No more pregnancies! Oh, I’m just joshing! Congrats are in order for Jennifer Gareis and her husband Bobby Ghassemieh who welcomed a daughter, Sophia Rose Gareis Ghassemieh, on June 29. "Mommy and baby are well and happy," says a spokesperson. The couple also has a son, Gavin, 2.

  • The Bell soaps haven’t met a nepotist it didn’t employ or like! Producer Ed Scott’s daughter, Elizabeth — with Y&R’s Melody Thomas Scott — walks the Forrester runway this week. I’m surprised Y&R didn’t cast Elizabeth as nuSummer as she resembles the actress playing the part.

  • Get this: Kristolyn Lloyd is getting two months of story this summer! The talented actress has been woefully wasted on the back burner since she broke out as a homeless young adult. Her reward? She was forced to star in an offensive, chemistry-free romance with Texas Battle’s Marcus. However, the newcomer tweeted that today Dayzee (that’s Day with a Zee, bitches!) begins a new chapter in her life. Can’t wait.

  • Ronn Moss, who used to be one of the most handsomest and sexiest men on the daytime dial, kind of lost his looks as he’s aged out (not his body, however, which keeps getting fiercer, leaner with each passing year), but I have to say Moss’s face has really blossomed into a stunning feature again. Losing his super-gay scarves hasn’t hurt, either!

    

  DAYS OF OUR LIVES, NBC/GLOBAL — Will Eric Win Nicole Back?

  • What do you guys think of the Nicole and Daniel pairing? At first, I wasn’t impressed. With all due respect, initially I thought Ari Zucker and Shawn Christian were working way too hard to nail their chemistry but I actually like them more and more. Though Shawn Christian told me that DAYS may not be planning to finish the Daniel and Nicole love story and switch gears. Shocker. Not. Are Jennifer and Daniel reuniting; and is Nicole going to swept off her feet by Eric? Bet on it.

   

  GENERAL HOSPITAL, ABC/CITY — Kristen Alderson Exclusive: Is Starr a Success or Failure on GH? The Jane Elliot Press Tour Continues!

  • Starr Light, Starr Bright? How is the transition been for Kristen Alderson since joining
GH as ONE LIFE’s Starr? “It’s definitely taken time because being new to any show, fans have to get used to your face and everything,” she tells me diplomatically. “For the most part, the fans have been very loving and sweet towards me. I adore working with Chad Duell. No, I love working with Chad. He and I do nothing but laugh.”

  Yes, Alderson agrees that Starr and Michael were probably thrown together too fast and too heavily but, “fans will see more chemistry in upcoming scenes,” she promises. “They wrote a lot of cute and fun stuff in the upcoming weeks. We’re less dramatic and goofier. We get to be our age soon.”

  The big question: Has she come to terms to ONE LIFE’s death? Does joining GH as Starr distract Alderson from dealing with her beloved show’s murder? “It’s definitely surreal, but it’s definitely distracting me from dealing with the death, for sure,” she answers. “But my whole life has changed from moving to L.A.. Also, because all my friends moved here from New York, I was lonely in New York so now I’m incredibly happy to be out here in L.A. Yes, I miss the cast and crew of ONE LIFE like crazy but, at the same time, I’m so happy so many ONE LIFE actors have joined GH. [Moreover,] it makes me happy that everyone from ONE LIFE is doing so well personally and has sort of moved on in beautiful, personal ways.”

  At this point, Alderson asks me if I like GH. “Sort of,” I answer. “I think Cartini are soap gods but