Table of contents for January 2, 2017 in ABC Soaps In Depth

The In Depth Story: The appearance marks Quinn’s first time on a daytime drama, but she says, “I’m a big soap fan and have been for years. Of course, it was a competitor [that I watched], but I heard great things about Y&R. I’m actually relieved that I didn’t watch this particular show, because I would have been overwhelmed!” The audition and casting was a bit of a whirlwind for Quinn. “I fit what they were looking for, and a week later, I was on set!” she smiles. “It reminded me a lot of theater, ver y fast and furious. There are a lot of lines thrown at you, and you have to keep moving. I was really impressed with how on top of it the cast was.” The actress/singer…

The In Depth Story: With Sonny’s marriage to Carly on the skids, now would be the perfect time for his old flame to reappear in Port Charles — and from Marcil’s recent social-media posts, it sure sounded like it was going to happen. “Big news coming,” she posted. “We are coming home!” While excited fans jumped to the conclusion that the Emmy winner was bringing Brenda back to GH, she appeared to validate their suspicions by subsequently sharing a shot of the supercouple, along with the caption, “Love is neverending.” But here’s the thing: Marcil actually did her posting only after a GH fan tweeted their devotion to Sonny and Brenda along with retro pics of the duo. And, at the time of her postings, Marcil’s police-officer fiancé had been…

IN With Hayden on her deathbed, Naomi is headed back to Port Charles this week. Robin Riker reprises the role on Wednesday, December 21, and a show rep confirms that the actress will stick around for the holidays. Should GH decide to keep Naomi in town in 2017, Riker i s g a m e . “ I would love for it to continue as long as they would like it to continue,” says the actress, formerly Beth on B&B. “It’s always nice to be invited somewhere to come play with people who are good players!”…

Sonny and Carly hit a rough spot following Morgan’s death, but they seemed to have been getting back on track in recent days. Unfortunately, his (supposed) dalliance with Nelle could ruin any chance they have of reconciling! On Monday, December 19, Sonny is pushed over the edge when new information comes to light. And on Friday, December 22, the lie Sonny told seems to be spiraling out of control! How will Carly react when on Monday, December 26, her estranged husband pleads his case? Meanwhile, Bobbie — who has been suspicious of Nelle pretty much from the get-go — has a chat with Carly’s oh-so-helpful assistant on Thursday, December 29. When cornered, will Nelle’s true colors come to light… as well as her “affair” with Sonny?…

Fearing that a friend is in grave danger, Katie compiles the evidence to prove it on Monday, December 19. Ridge and Rick worry that Steffy won’t be able to outmaneuver Quinn on Tuesday, December 20. On Wednesday, December 21, Ridge promises Brooke and R.J. a holiday they’ll never forget, while Liam talks Steffy into changing her Yuletide plans on Thursday, December 22. All Eric wants for Christmas on Friday, December 23, is to be able to sing a carol with his family. Will his simple holiday wish be fulfilled, or will family tensions prove too great an obstacle?…

… or are you feeling really, really bad for GH’s Charlotte? Every time the kid turns around, she has a new parent! First, she was being told every man on the canvas was her father, and now she’s traded Claudette for an odd combination of Lulu and Nina! In a weird way, it’s kind of appropriate that these two women would wind up fighting for a place in Charlotte’s life, given that both of them have thought about nothing but babies for years! Here’s hoping that, once this whole mess is behind Dante and Lulu, they finally get to have a story that involves something other than stolen, frozen, misplaced or misappropriated embryos!…

GENERAL HOSPITAL’s Kirsten Storms (Maxie) can’t say enough about on-screen boss Michelle Stafford (Nina). “She is like a god to me,” gushes the actress. “I wish you could see our blocking and rehearsals in the morning and what happens when we’re running our lines together. You never know how a person is going to say a line, so you make it up in your head when you’re preparing. But with Michelle, I can never guess what she’s going to do — which is pretty cool.” In addition to keeping Storms on her toes, Stafford often comes to set armed with some fun schtick for them to play. “Any time she tells the director, ‘I have a bit… ’ I know it’s going to be good,” Storms shares. “It’s usually one…

Daniel Goddard (Cane, Y&R) isn’t dreaming of a white Christmas — he’s dreaming of a relaxing one with his wife, Rachael, and their sons, Ford, 9, and Sebastian, 7. “We went to Australia and New York already this year, and Rachael has been so busy with work… and when you have two kids who have to get up at 6 a.m. to go to school, any chance that you have to just sleep or do what you want to do is a luxury!” declares the hunk. “So I really don’t want to travel over Christmas. I will do whatever the kids want to do, but I think we’ll be staying home.” Of course, there are the standard traditions, such as shopping for a Christmas tree and decorating it. And Goddard…

Christmas brings out the kid in everyone, but in the case of B&B’s Scott Clifton (Liam) and his wife, Nikki, it’s one particular kid — their seven-month-old son, Ford — who will end up bringing a lot more cheer to the holidays in 2016. “This year, there’s this whole new element in our lives,” says the actor with a grin. “It’s going to be so much fun to dress him up and give him presents. Christmas is a total sensory overload, so I’m sure he’s going to love smelling the pine and seeing all the lights. He loves lights.” In previous years, Clifton and his missus divided their time between his parents’ house on Christmas Eve and her family’s place on Christmas Day. Now that the focus is centered on…

THE BOLD & THE BEAUTIFUL’s Anthony Turpel wasn’t too familiar with the show — or any soap opera, really — when he was cast as Brooke and Ridge’s teenage son earlier this year. Fortunately, he’s a quick study! “I’ve become a soap fan since joining the show,” he explains. “I’ve seen THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS, DAYS OF OUR LIVES and, of course, B&B, and I’m starting to understand why so many people love soaps. It’s definitely drawing me in!” Turpel, likewise, wasn’t initially aware of B&B’s huge international following, nor did he truly understand how passionate fans could be! His alter ego has so far proven a spoiler to Brooke and Bill’s long-awaited romantic reunion, and the teen acknowledges that not all fans are happy with him about that!…

Murder, She Committed We’re not sure how we feel about the season finale of ABC’s SECRETS AND LIES. The revelation that Amanda did away with her sister-in-law made sense but didn’t have much of an impact. As the least likely suspect, many viewers had pegged her as the killer weeks earlier. Then there was the Warner clan’s patriarch having a secret second family. It was an interesting twist but didn’t really make much sense. Are we to believe that this rich, powerful guy’s poor wife and offspring, who lived relatively close to their wealthier counterparts, somehow never saw him in the news, even as he was caught up in scandals involving everything from owning a brothel to murder? Part of the problem with the season was that it fell into…

Lauren admitted to Michael that she was out of sorts because holiday sales were down at Fenmore’s. Later, Phyllis had her own confession to the legal eagle — that she was going to focus on her career, because it looked like her and Jack were finished for good! Lily was jealous of Cane’s rapport with his lovely physical therapist. Victor offered Nick a path to running Newman if he decided to return to the company. Alas, Nick declined his dad’s offer! Meanwhile, Jack gave Billy an eviction notice to remove Brash & Sassy from the Jabot building! Ashley confronted Jack about his ruthless behavior of late, prompting him to warn his sister that she was seeing the new Jack! Billy won’t let the family Grinch ruin his Christmas!…

As you recover from New Year’s Eve, spend a quiet evening in front of your television the next night and watch the new Lifetime movie Mommy, I Didn’t Do It, featuring four actors from daytime! Danica McKellar reprises Ellen Plainview in this sequel to the cabler’s 2013 hit The Wrong Woman, but this time, it’s her daughter, Julie (played by DAYS OF OUR LIVES’ Jade, Paige Searcy), wrongfully accused of murder. ALL MY CHILDREN alum Jonathan Bennett (JR) also returns as novelist Ben Saverin, while Jen Lilley (ex-Theresa, DAYS; ex-Maxie, GENERAL HOSPITAL) plays the D.A. prosecuting Julie’s case and Heather Tom (Katie, THE BOLD & THE BEAUTIFUL) makes a small appearance as the mother of Julie’s best friend. Mommy, I Didn’t Do It premieres on Sunday, January 1, at 8…

IN Two new faces appeared on GH last week, and they’re already shaking up Port Charles. South African actor David S. Lee — who may be familiar to viewers from his recurring roles on THE LIBRARIANS and NCIS: LOS ANGELES — is playing Rudge, a baddie who seems to have a connection to Julian’s car bombing/Morgan’s death. (For details, turn to News, page 4.) Then there’s Michael Rodrick, who besides appearing on GREENLEAF and HAWAII FIVE-O romanced Sandra Ferguson (ex-Felicia, GH) on ANOTHER WORLD, where she played Amanda, and he, Cameron. Rodrick made his GH debut as Tom’s brother, Seth, on December 16. A GH rep classifies both actors’ stints as short.…

Has Valentin gotten inside Anna’s head? It appears that way, as she struggles to understand the memories she’s having on Monday, December 19. Heather gets a most unexpected visitor on Tuesday, December 20, while decorating a Christmas tree could lead to an unexpected moment for an estranged couple on Thursday, December 22! Jordan and Andre have been on the outs, but they might find their way back together on Monday, December 26. Laura makes a promise that shouldn’t prove hard to keep on Tuesday, December 27. And on Wednesday, December 28, Kiki realizes that it’s impossible to fight fate. But will that be good or bad news where her future with Dillon is concerned?…

Nikki finds herself trying to mediate between Dylan and Nick on Tuesday, December 20. Christmas comes early for Michael and Kevin, but how will they react to the surprise they receive on Wednesday, December 21? In spite of everything that’s happened between Billy and Jack, one of the brothers vows not to let the holidays be ruined on Thursday, December 22. And on Friday, December 23, Victor sets out to remind his family the true meaning of the season!…

1 Luke’s exes. Here’s hoping we get many more scenes of Laura and Tracy bonding! 2 Franco’s dark side. Watching him try — and fail — to tame his inner beast is fascinating. 3 The faux hook-up. The fact that Nelle didn’t actually sleep with Sonny as claimed makes the story even more intriguing. 4 Carly’s take on the holidays. “For a season of love and good cheer,” she said, “people can be pretty intense!” 5 Jax. The second he left the canvas, we started jonesing for his return. Pretty please? Ava’s absence. Why has so vibrant a character been reduced to Julian and Kiki’s talk-to? ... And 1 Thing We Could Do Without...…

GENERAL HOSPITAL’s Laura has been having adventures since she was a teenager. After decades of popping in and out of Port Charles, the ingénue settled back into town in 2016 as a strong, sexy matriarch with a hot new romance — and that’s just as portrayer Genie Francis thinks it should be. Well, almost… A Little Older, A Lot Wiser For the most part, Francis is digging her character these days. “Laura is a complicated, interesting person — she’s totally someone I would hang out with,” says the GH vet. “She’s not as needy as she was as a young girl. “When I built that character, everything about her was my own personal need to be loved,” she continues. “My thing was coming completely undone — ‘Unhinged Laura’! Sometimes, GH…

Ryan Paevey (Nathan) thinks nothing of hitting the road without a plan and putting as much as 1,100 miles on his motorcycle before returning home — even if such a trip can be very hard on the body! “I had to get off the road twice the other day for hypothermia and actually got sun poisoning on my hands when I drove through Death Valley this summer,” he admits. Yet, no matter how harsh the elements, Paevey is always happy on two wheels. Driving a vehicle with four wheels, however, i s a whole other matter! When he was between bikes this fall, Paevey found himself reduced to commuting around Los Angeles in (gasp!) a car. “I hate drivi n g c a r s ! ” h e grumbles…

1 Last Issue: 1 Maxie Jones & Nathan West, GH 2 Last Issue: 9 Alexis Davis & Julian Jerome, GH 3 Last Issue: 3 Brooke Logan & Bill Spencer, B&B 4 Last Issue: 6 Hayden Barnes & Hamilton Finn, GH Last Issue: 5 5 Lily & Cane Ashby, Y&R Last Issue: 2 6 Sam & Jason Morgan, GH Last Issue: 7 7 Carly & Sonny Corinthos, GH Last Issue: 8 Hilary & Devon Hamilton, Y&R Last Issue: 4 Liz Webber & Franco Baldwin, GH Last Issue: 10 10 Lulu & Dante Falconeri, GH…

With his family back in Miami, DAYS’ Jordi Vilasuso (Dario) is hoping to bring one of his favorite Cuban traditions to the celebration that he’ll share this year with his wife, Kaitlin, and their daughters, Riley, 4, and Everly, five months old. “I’ve always had a roast pork or pig at my house during what we call Nochebuena, or Christmas Eve,” reveals the ALL MY CHILDREN alum (as Griffin). “Pork is my favorite type of meat. Last year, we had so much when we were visiting that it lasted the entire vacation!” When celebrating on the West Coast, Vilasuso gathers w i t h h i s wife’s family and participates in some of their holid a y t r a d i -tions, including buying each other pajamas to…

East Coast transplant Maura West (Ava, GH) still hasn’t quite adjusted to celebrating the holidays in Los Angeles. “I do like decorating the palm trees… but it really doesn’t feel like Christmas when you’re in the hot tub on Christmas Eve,” quips the mother of five. “We definitely have a great time, but living on the other coast from our families, it’s not quite the same. “And I always miss the snow,” she adds with a sigh, “so we put a lot of fake snow [on] our Christmas village inside. That helps a little bit.” It also helps that West, husband Scott DeFreitas (whom she met when they were playing Carly and Andy on AS THE WORLD TURNS) and the kids — Benjamin, 20; Joseph, 16; Katherine 14; Basil, 9;…

This Christmas will be completely different for Melissa Ordway (Y&R’s Abby) and hubby Justin Gaston (ex-Ben, DAYS) than all the previous Christmases that they’ve spent together, thanks to their family’s latest addition — eight-month-old daughter Olivia! “I’m so excited!” smiles the new mom. “I have it all planned out. I already know what I want to get her for Christmas, and I can’t wait to see what Santa brings her, even though she probably won’t really know what’s going on. She’ll like the [Christmas] paper and the tags. That’s her new thing. Every time I get her something, she looks for the tag on it!” Ordway’s planning goes beyond gifts. The blonde beauty is also setting up Christmas traditions that will last a lifetime. “We always had an Advent calendar…

A neophyte to the soap genre, Turpel admits that daytime veteran Thorsten Kaye (Ridge) has been a real life-saver. “I don’t know what I would have done without him,” he notes. “He was a huge help to me when I was starting out, when there was so much to take in. He’s taken me under his wing and has really been helping me.” Turpel also says he bases his own portrayal of R.J. on qualities he sees in Kaye’s portrayal of Ridge. “R.J. is a lot like Ridge in that he’s very forceful, and he doesn’t hide his opinion. So I take a little bit of how Thorsten acts in scenes and put that toward R.J. as well.”…

Emily Wilson (ex-Ellie, GENERAL HOSPITAL) has had one seriously hectic year. Not only was she planning her recent, Palm Springs, CA, wedding to actor Adhir Kalyan (RULES OF ENGAGEMENT), but she was traveling around the country to co-host episodes of her inspirational new program, THE HERO EFFECT. Wilson says that the OWN docuseries, which next airs Saturday, January 14, at 10 a.m., “is a show where we get to tell stories about ordinary people making an extraordinary difference in their communities.” Two For The Road Co-hosting with Super Bowl/DANCING WITH THE STARS champion and philanthropist Donald Driver was one of the best parts of the job for Wilson. “He’s one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met,” she relates. “He has this passion for people and for changing the…

The holiday season may be over, but these shows promise to be the gifts that keep on giving! LEMONY SNICKET’S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS Based on the dreadfully delightful children’s books of the same name and sporting a look reminiscent of the eye-popping PUSHING DAISIES, all eight episodes of the Netflix series’ first season will be released — appropriately enough — on Friday, January 13. THE YOUNG POPE Get ready to feel a little bit guilty as Jude Law brings sexy back to… the Catholic church? There’ll be a whole lot of shaking going on in the pews as the first American pope raises holy you-know-what on the HBO series that debuts Sunday, January 15, at 9 p.m. EST. RIVERDALE If you know anything about this show, it can…

Alison Sweeney (ex-Sami, DAYS OF OUR LIVES) “is returning to direct an episode” of GH, says a show rep. “We’re always happy to have her in Port Charles.” While the spokesperson remained mum about the air date for Sweeney’s show, she directed the episode that taped December 5, which means that it will air in January. “Spent an amazing day directing at GH,” she shared on Twitter, thanking executive producer Frank Valentini for the opportunity. “Loved the chance to direct your wonderful cast. #daytimerocks.”…

Chad and Gabi realize that their kiss wasn’t as private a moment as they may have hoped on Monday, December 19, while that same day finds JJ worrying that the secret he’s keeping will bite him in the butt! That might not be an issue after Wednesday, December 21, however. Why? Because Gabi picks that day to break things off with her beau! Apparently not one to let grass grow beneath her feet, Gabi is over at the Di-Mera mansion on Thursday, December 22, exchanging gifts with Chad!…

Love In The Afternoon The only thing better than Laura flashing Santa on GENERAL HOSPITAL? Her entire relationship with Kevin! Their romance has, from the start, represented everything we love about soaps. They began as friends and slowly became more while getting to know one another. They’ve gone on dates, they’ve flirted, and they’ve dealt with the baggage each has accumulated along the way. (Laura admitting to Tracy her fear of losing herself in a relationship the way she felt she did at times with Luke was a painful reminder that daytime’s most legendary couple was far from perfect.) It’s been more than a few years since we first watched a starry-eyed Laura fall in love with Scotty, so watching her find a new romance at this stage of her…

The moment Valentin starting staring at the old picture of Anna and uttering Latin phrases in her ear, we were intrigued. But more importantly, so was Anna. Watching the characters toy with one another, all the while smiling, has proven that there is more than one kind of chemistr y. Nobody expects these two to actually hook up, and yet sparks fly whenever they are in the same room, doing their delicious dance on that fine line separating love and hate. One thing we’re not loving about Valentin’s storyline, however, is the parade of characters who keep insisting there were no witnesses to his crimes. Ava saw him kill Nikolas. While she might be a lessthan-ideal witness, given her past, she’s a witness nonetheless. And what about all the people…

Francis “loved” that Helena’s will sent Laura back to the Campus Disco this year. “That’s going back to when I was 17,” she says. “The funny thing is, I didn’t remember anything about what the disco looks like. I kept saying, ‘This is not it,’ and then they’d show me pictures. So weird.” Well, not so weird, considering that was almost 40 years ago! “When I look back, I’m always surprised by how young I was… and how much older they made me look,” laughs the a c t r e s s , w h o joined GH as a teen in 1976. “I have pictures of me as Laura and then me at the same age, and you can’t tell it’s the same person. I look so much…

When James Patrick Stuart’s Valentin returned to Port Charles this fall, the comeback came complete with a swank new wardrobe. During Stuart’s first visit over the summer, his alter ego was mostly slumming it, disguised as a Greek fisherman. This time, Emmy-winning costume designer Shawn Reeves brought the actor in and got him suited up like a proper Cassadine. “I saw what Shawn had for me and I was like, ‘Damn!’” he recalls. In fact, the collection of outfits brought back memories of his days as ALL MY CHILDREN’s Will! “When I was on AMC, I used to stare at that side of the wardrobe and be like, ‘Wow!’ Between Walt Willey (Jackson), Larkin Malloy (Travis) and David Canar y (Adam/Stuart), there was some serious stuff over there. Now, it’s…

FYIFYIFYI Birthday: October 24. Like Family: “I got a text from Eric [Braeden, Victor] the other day that said, ‘Thumbs up on your stuff today; I really enjoyed it,’” reveals the actor. “When you think about how long you work with some of these people, that was pretty incredible. It goes beyond being colleagues. It really is kind of a family!” Learning Curve: Davidson says that he loves shooting outdoors but there has been a learning curve. “When [the show’s new EP] first brought up the idea of having a scene at a landing strip, [production] came back with an astronomical bill for landing lights. He was like, ‘Wait! I’m not actually going to land a plane — I just want it to look like I can!’ This stuff doesn’t…

Some people star t prepping for Christmas right after Thanksgiving. Well, those people have got nothin’ on Matt Cohen (Griffin, GH), wife Mandy and baby Macklin, who will be 2 years old in April! “We started unpacking decorations the day after Halloween,” Cohen says. “I also made an eight-foot-tall nutcracker, snowman and Christmas tree out of scrap wood, which Mandy’s going to paint. They’ll stand in the yard, where it will snow on Christmas morning… because I ordered a snow machine that makes baby snowflakes. It’s going down!” Cohen is Jewish, as his name reflects, but that doesn’t stop him from loving Christmas. “I was raised with a tree and totally believed a guy came down the chimney with presents when I was a kid,” he shares. “Once I was…

Remember when GH used to do a huge Christmas bash featuring all the players? Veteran cast members Jacklyn Zeman (Bobbie), Kin Shriner (Scotty) and L ynn Herring (Lucy) certainly do! “Those big Christmas shows were so fun,” Herring recalls. “We had that big cast that would all come in, so you got to see everyone, and then we’d all try to eat the holiday cookies — which you weren’t supposed to eat because they’re props. It was very festive.” The best part of all? “Our own kids could be in the show,” Zeman says. “They’d bring in their pajamas or dresses and play patients in the hospital. That was awesome!” “The most fun we had was trying to corral them… but it was also a nightmare,” Herring laughs. “I remember…

After months of being ridiculously helpful and skulking on the sidelines, GENERAL HOSPITAL’s Nelle finally put her plan in motion and pounced. As the schemer set a trap for Sonny and played innocent to keep the upper hand, Chloe Lanier also let her character’s true, conflicted emotions shine through, to win this week’s Gold Star. Making Sonny Her Pawn Showing up at Sonny’s unannounced, Nelle was like a cat with a mouse, batting him around by masterfully dropping bait… and then backpedaling. Lanier filled her character with a nervous “unwillingness,” allowing Nelle to come off less like a tattletale than a concerned friend — to Sonny, at least! She didn’t just tell him Carly and Jax had kissed, for example, she blurted it out in “exasperation” when he wouldn’t let…

As if the Universal CityWalk entertainment/dining/shopping complex wasn’t bright and beautiful enough, having the stars of DAYS OF OUR LIVES there made it even more so! On November 12, the annual Day Of DAYS event kicked off a surreal experience for those that lined up to meet their Salem favorites. Fans in attendance left with great photos, autographs, swag bags and smiles! They also left with a first glimpse of new cast members Vanessa Williams (Valerie) and Marci Miller ( A b i g a i l ) , w h o were greeted with welcoming cheers as they made their way down the red carpet.…

Q: Do you remember the first car you ever drove? Dominic Zamprogna (Dante, GH) “It was my dad’s Pontiac station wagon. He would let me sit in his lap and steer us down the main road to our house. Times have changed so much!” Dick Christie (Charlie, B&B) “It was a ’57 Ford ‘Rustmobile.’ It was all rust, the whole thing. The car weighed about 9,000 pounds, and it had a six-cylinder engine that could generate maybe 100 horsepower. So you’d stomp on the accelerator and the car would stand on its nose! I got my first kiss in that car.” Don Diamont (Bill, B&B) “My first car was a burgundy-colored Firebird. I was 16. It was badass. My friend and I meticulously pinstriped that car with gold pinstripes Carolyn…

THE BOLD & THE BEAUTIFUL Liam was stunned when Steffy decided to accept the CEO position at Forrester. He was certain that the job offer was another one of Quinn’s manipulative ploys, and Steffy was hurt by his lack of support. Ridge and Rick were miffed to be relegated to vice presidents, but their whining fell on Eric’s deaf ears. The patriarch later joined Quinn in a stratagem they hoped would salvage Steffy and Wyatt’s marriage. Liam accused Eric of being Quinn’s pawn. Eric immediately put him in his place and told him what (or rather, whom) he felt was truly best for Steffy’s future. Katie made it clear she didn’t want to hear Brooke moaning about her man problems. When Katie gets suspicious, is she right to fear there…