Interview GH: Jonathan Jackson's New Lucky Is a Familiar Face

In an unexpected — and well-received — move, General Hospital announced at the end of September that Jonathan Jackson, the actor who originated the role of Lucky Spencer and won multiple Emmys for his work, would be returning to the role at the end of October. While fans will miss Greg Vaughan, they are welcoming back Jonathan with open arms.

The $64 million question is, how did the folks at GH lure him back? According to Jonathan: “It was pretty standard. They contacted me and said that the role of Lucky was opening up again and asked me if I would be interested in coming back. It’s something that I had thought about vaguely over the years, as people do, but it never really seemed like the right time, for various reasons.

“But this time when it came up, it was really out of the blue for me. I thought about it, talked with my family, prayed about it and just kind of tried to get a sense of whether this would be a fun adventure to step back into.”

In order to enjoy the adventure, Jonathan had some major cramming sessions ahead of him. He hadn’t been watching the show regularly since he left almost 10 years ago, so he “had to have quite a few conversations to fill some of those gaps in.”

If Jonathan had any anxiety about returning to the GH set, all fears vanished within moments of stepping into the studio. “The first day was really smooth. Seeing a lot of people I hadn’t seen in years was fun — actors, people on the crew, the hair and makeup team — so there was a lot to take in on that level. But acting-wise, I was able to sink right back into things pretty much immediately.

“It was interesting, because it was like a lot had changed and nothing had changed — all at the same time. It was really familiar, and yet it felt like a whole new experience.”

Acting alongside old friends helped smooth the transition for Jonathan. “Working with Tony (Geary, Luke Spencer) was really awesome,” he reveals. “It was a fun dynamic having that history with him, and yet it’s been about 10 years since we’ve actually worked together. And yet everything was right there. The same goes for working with Becky (Herbst, Elizabeth Webber) — I was able to settle in really quickly.”

In respect to the Lucky/Elizabeth/Nikolas love triangle, Jonathan is eager to see where it all ends up. “I am jumping into a moving stream when it comes to all of that. There is definitely a lot of tension there to work with, and it’ll be interesting to see how the whole thing plays out.”

Jonathan is eager to get back to basics as far as Lucky’s family and love life are concerned. “There’s a lot available to work with. The relationship with Luke, there’s a lot that could happen there. And I am a big fan of the love story between Lucky and Elizabeth, so there’s a lot of potential there for tapping into some of those original elements we had going.”

As far as Jonathan’s extracurricular activities go, many fans already know that he is a talented musician. His song “Elizabeth” was featured on GH. He fronts a band called Enation, whose breakout single, “Feel This,” was heavily featured on One Tree Hill.

Jonathan tells me: “We just released an EP that went into the top 10 on CD Baby, which is the biggest independent CD distribution company in the country. We are still getting the music out there for the fans. We are mixing a live album that will probably be released around Christmastime. You can go to iTunes, CD Baby or our Web site, enationmusic.com, to check out our music.”

And don't forget to check out Jonathan's return to GH on Tuesday, Oct. 27.

Meet and Greet With Rebecca Herbst

WHAT:
A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for fans to meet one of daytime soap's hottest stars, Rebecca Herbst who plays Elizabeth on General Hospital.

Rebecca will be in Chino, CA as part of Soap Opera Digest magazine's "Shop Like a Soap Star" national tour. The star will be signing autographs and posing for pictures with her fans.

WHEN:
Saturday, October 24th from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

WHERE:
Wal-Mart Supercenter #3464
3943 Grand Ave
Chino, CA 91710

COST:
Free

Marla Sokoloff Remembers Her Full House Days

I recently spoke with Marla Sokoloff (The Practice and Desperate Housewives) about her new Hallmark Channel movie, Flower Girl (which premieres Nov. 14 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT), and she was reminiscing about her days on the ABC sitcom Full House.

• "I was a huge fan of Full House before I was on it, like most kids in the sixth and seventh grade. When I got on it, I thought I’d be the coolest kid in school, but it actually backfired on me and I got made fun of. My mom actually had to take me out of school and home school me."
• "I was such a huge fan of everyone, so I was really shy. I remember John Stamos being incredibly sweet."
• "A few years back I went to see Bob Saget at the Laugh Factory. It was just by chance because a few friends were going, and they asked me to come. I never thought in a million years that Bob Saget would have any recollection of who I was, and all of a sudden I see him and he’s like: ‘Marla?!? What are you doing here?’ And I was like: ‘What? You know who I am? You remember me?’ He’s still such a sweet guy and he totally remembered my name. I was so excited."

Bronson Pinchot: No Holds Barred

Bronson Pinchot recently gave an interview to AVClub.com to talk about his new movie Mr. Art Critic (among other things), and he spoke a bit about his recent role of Patrick Dalton on The Young And The Restless.

I forgot I even did that. I don’t know how many episodes I did. My character was supposed to be launching this magazine, and there were several episodes previous to the launch, and one or two after the launch, and I remember thinking, “I don’t know what the character’s going to do after the magazine’s launched, because then he has no identity anymore.” There was so much booze around that it occurred to me, and I got the okay to do it, that basically when the party was launched, it revealed that he was a lush. I would just lean on things and be inappropriate, and that was really fun. So what the hell do you do? I decided that he would just be a drunk.

Because it was a fashion magazine and he was somebody that was supposed to be well versed in high fashion, I had a few run-ins with the fashion department. They would put on the rack like a regular blazer and a tie, and I said, “If he’s in the eye of the hurricane of fashion, a jacket won’t pass, give me something else.” They would get mad, and I was like “Well, let me go through the costume racks and pick something weird and make it up, because a jacket and tie won’t do it.” They were not too thrilled with me, but what I ended up doing was, I took an opera scarf which was about seven inches wide and tied it into a tie, which meant that the knot was about eight inches tall, and everyone said, “Oh, that’s weird and new.” And so that’s what I ended up doing. Soap operas are a world where rich people always have chandeliers and hip people have striped hair and the language that they use doesn’t have any flexibility anymore. But I enjoyed it. I got to do everything in one take, and the people on it were very neat, and they’re very self-aware.

Read the whole, entertaining interview here. He even talks smack about Tom Cruise, Bette Midler and Denzel Washington. It's a juicy read!

Days: Such a Tease!

NEXT WEEK:

Mia vows to stop Chad from going after custody of Sydney.

Bo promises to help Carly if she tells him everything.

Arianna and Brady share a passionate night together.

Stephanie warns Philip (Jay Kenneth Johnson, pictured) not to get in between Melanie and Nathan.

Sami accuses Stefano of trying to turn her against Nicole.

Thursday – Nicole is served papers for a DNA test on Sydney by Chad.

Friday – Rafe explains to Arianna that Sydney is not Nicole’s baby!

Interview: Rena Sofer’s Second Chance at Love

Rena Sofer — who is most known for her roles on “Loving” and “Melrose Place,” as well as her comedic turns on “Coupling,” “Two and a Half Men” and “Monk” — is back on prime time to offer a story of love and second chances. She stars in the Hallmark Channel original movie, “Always and Forever,” which premieres Saturday, October 24 (9/8c).

“Always and Forever” is about a single mom and successful career woman, Grace, who begrudgingly attends her 20-year high-school reunion. Her angst turns to hope when she reconnects with her former high-school sweetheart, Michael, played by Dean McDermott.

Rena’s own 20-year reunion was nothing like Grace’s. Rena explains: “I wasn’t invited. It’s the funniest reason why: They couldn’t find me. You’d think out of everyone, they could have found me.”

But she wasn’t too keen on going to her reunion anyway. For her senior year, she was sent to public school because she “sort of had a fight with the rabbi, and they asked me not to come back. So I went to public high school for my senior year, and that’s the school I graduated from. I didn’t really know anybody. I was one of the newest kids in the school in my senior year, so I was friends with all the freshmen. I wouldn’t have gone even if they had found me.”

Rena’s decision to do this movie was all about the story. “It was the first movie where there was just no drama — running away from a murderer, covering up a vicious secret or somebody trying to kill me — it was just a lovely love story. I was excited to just have a nice time.”

Unlike Grace, Rena didn’t have a childhood sweetheart. “I didn’t experience the one-who-got-away kind of thing. I could empathize with her in the sense that she’s a woman who had a relationship that fell apart and her priority is her son and her career. All of a sudden this curve ball is thrown in of the possibility of opening your heart to something that could be crushing — or it could be wonderful.

“Do you take that risk when things are just fine? Are they great? Maybe not; they’re just fine. Is just fine what we expect in life, or do we look for greatness? She takes a great leap of faith.”

Working with Dean McDermott, aka Tori Spelling’s husband, was great. “We had a great time. We had a lot of fun. There were a few days where the cameras were following us for their reality show, which was not intrusive in any way. He wasn’t a big diva — he was really nice. I have no complaints.”

She also got to work with television legend Barbara Eden, who played her mom: “She is just lovely. What a lovely lady, really! She’s so sweet and so kind. We were all smiles every time she would come on set. I mean, here is this huge icon standing next to me playing my mom, and I was just like, ‘Wow!’”

A big theme of the movie is second chances, especially for Grace and Michael. So, does Rena believe in second chances? “Forgiveness is a great quality to have. When people take responsibility for their actions, then forgiveness should be given in most situations. I do believe in second chances.”

B&B: Such a Tease!

•Thorne (Winsor Harmon, pictured) is forced to keep a secret.
­
•Brooke has a change of heart about Bill.

•Katie makes the same promise to two people. Which one will she keep?

•A couple gets engaged.

•Owen and Jackie plan to make an addition to their family.

Y&R: Such a Tease!

•Billy makes Phyllis a stunning proposition.
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•Ashley and Nikki (Melody Thomas Scott, pictured) face off over Victor.

•Deacon learns who his next targets are, but will he continue to play the game that his mystery employer has started?

•When Sharon brings Ashley a few things for her baby, a twist of fate may bring her face-to-face with her daughter.

ATWT: Such a Tease!

•Jack (Michael Park, pictured) learns of Rosanna and Craig's affair.

•Katie goes into labor.

•Liberty is dealt a devastating blow.

•Henry tries to fix his mistakes.

Catch Up on Being Erica

Season 2 of Being Erica premieres January 20 on SOAPnet. But for those of you who missed Season 1 of the show, now's your chance to catch up. Believe me, you don't want to miss this smart, funny and touching comedy/drama.

Start by reading my interview with star Erin Karpluk. Then, catch up on encores of the show on SOAPnet, which will begin airing Saturdays beginning Oct. 17 at 5PM/4c and Sundays at 11PM/10c.

SOAPnet.com is also airing Being Erica webisodes. Every weekday leading to the 17th, you can catch two installments of the Web series here.

Vacation Like a Soap Star

We've all wanted to vacation like a soap star. Whether it's being treated to gorgeous scenery, amazing historical sites and astounding food, we all deserve a little extravagance and elegance. We've discovered you can get just that at hotel napoli.

Hotel Napoli is an elegant hotel and conference center in the center of Naples, Italy. It's positioned in a very strategic location close the train station and the major city attractions. It's the perfect place to visit Napoli (Naples), Pompei and Capri.

In Naples, visit the main city square, the Piazza del Plebiscito. Nearby is the Teatro di San Carlo, which is the oldest and largest opera house on the Italian peninsula. Directly across from San Carlo is Galleria Umberto, a shopping centre and active centre of Neapolitan social life in general. Naples is well-known for its historic castles, like the ancient Castel Nuovo. Naples also hosts a wealth of historical museums and some of the most important in the country.

Nearby is the city of Pompei, which is mainly famous for the ruins of the ancient city of Pompeii, located in the frazione of Pompei Scavi. The central basilica, dedicated to Madonna del Rosario di Pompei, has become a site for Catholic pilgrimages in recent years. It houses a canvas by Luca Giordano.

Don't forget to take a day trip to the resort town of Capri (remember, summers are usually the most crowded and touristy). The hotel napoli centro really is central to everything here.

You won't want for anything when you book here. You will feel right at home staying at the Ramada hotel naples italy. They have all the comforts you are used to with Ramada — professional and helpful staff, gorgeous and spacious rooms, and every amenity you could possibly need — with the added benefit of being situated right in the middle of all the activity.