Interview (OLTL): Crystal Hunt on Her Future, Part Two

Daytime Emmy-nominated actress Crystal Hunt (left, photo by Alex Kroke) recently left her role of Stacy Morasco on “One Life to Live,” but she hasn’t dipped below our radar. As a woman who always has something in the works, she’s got plenty to keep herself busy. When I caught up with her recently, she was thrilled to take me on a trip down memory lane, as well as keep me up-to-date on her future plans.


Daytime Dial: You received your first Daytime Emmy nomination as Lizzie on “Guiding Light.” Take me through the day of the Emmy ceremony.

Crystal Hunt: That day was crazy. I can’t imagine a wedding day being more nerve-wracking or crazy. You not only spend all day getting ready because you want to look perfect, but you’re going to a televised awards show, so you don’t want your stomach to stick out, but you don’t know how you should eat, or what you’re supposed to eat. Will I get sick if I eat because I am so nervous?


When you get to the ceremony, you are walking down one of the longest red carpets you will ever walk on. You stop at every single journalist to interview with them, answering a lot of the same questions over and over again. By the time the show starts, the last thing you want to hear is your category being announced, because you are so nervous.


There is that moment when they are reading your category, calling out the nominees, and there’s the camera right there in your face, waiting to see how you react, whether or not you win. That is the most stressful moment in your life. You feel your face getting hot, and you feel like a train is crashing into your chest. When they say someone else’s name as the winner, secretly you are relieved because you don’t have to go up onto the stage and take the chance of flubbing up a speech, but yet because you did want to win, you are hoping your face doesn’t look too disappointed for the person who did win.

DD: Tell me about some of the charities you are involved in.

CH: Recently I’ve been doing a lot for the breast cancer charities. I did the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, and I am getting ready to do the Revlon Walk. My mother survived breast cancer last year. It is incredible to be there walking next to my mother, and seeing all these people walking with these signs on their backs, these 5-year-old kids walking with their dads and wearing a sign that says “In Memory of Mommy.” There are a ton of “In Memory of” signs.


As you’re walking, you’re trying to hold back tears as you read people’s backs. I walked with some of my cast members from “GL” and from “OLTL,” and we were so proud to be walking with my mom, with our signs that said “In Honor Of” my mother. It was such a cool feeling.

DD: Do you get a lot of your co-stars to support your charities?

CH: Oh, I always rope people in. Especially for the Susan G. Komen Walk. Tom Pelphrey and Bree Williamson came with me and decided to run instead of walk, and they were waiting for us at the finish – they left us in the dust.

DD: What do have planned next for your fans, who are eager to see you onscreen again?

CH: Stay tuned. I am working on some stuff. I have a film coming out this year that I did a while ago called “Brooklyn to Manhattan.” It’s a suspense-thriller.

Interview (OLTL): Crystal Hunt on Leaving OLTL, Part One

Crystal Hunt (pictured left, photo by Robert Milazzo) was recently killed off “One Life to Live” after playing bad-girl Stacy Morasco for the past year. Love or hate Crystal’s character, Crystal herself is anything but the dastardly diva that Stacy was.

Crystal fully acknowledges that Stacy was quite the schemer, but admits: “She was a blast. I absolutely loved playing her. I got to do things I wouldn’t normally do. I wouldn’t withhold stem cells from my nephew; I wouldn’t be a stripper. And I definitely wouldn’t go after my sister’s man — that’s for sure.”

Some of her fondest memories are when she was scheming with Kim, played by Amanda Setton. “Everything that she did with Kim I love, because they were like the dynamic duo. We played off each other so well. Every scene with Stacy and Kim, the audience knew they were up to no good and that there’s going to be trouble. And that was so much fun to play, especially with two people working toward the same end, and you have an ally. We were each other’s wingman in bringing our schemes to fruition.”

With Stacy’s story line coming to its natural end and Crystal eager to start new acting projects, she knew it was time to move on from “OLTL.” But that doesn’t mean she’s left the fond memories behind.

“I miss Amanda, for sure,” Crystal reveals. “She and I used to work with each other almost every single day. There was never a day where I didn’t give her a huge hug when I saw her. It’s funny, because the first day we met, it was written into the scene that I had to grab her boob. And she was like: ‘It’s OK. I don’t care.’ So here I am, grabbing her boob. From that day on, it was like we had known each other for years.

“I also miss Bree Williamson like crazy; she was my dressing-room roommate. We used to hang out on set with each other and have lunch together all the time.”

Crystal also has fond memories of her years spend on “Guiding Light,” where she played Lizzie Spaulding from 2003 to 2006. “I grew up there. I got there when I was 17 and left when I was almost 21. I spent a lot of my teen years there, where you change from a teenager to an adult. It happened with them. That was the hardest show to leave, because I truly and genuinely loved them all very much.”

Because of her strong connection to “GL,” she was devastated when she learned of its cancellation in 2009. “I was so upset. I got teary-eyed. I found out on my way to the studio. There’s an area where fans hang out outside the studio, and I was there signing some autographs, and they asked me how I felt about ‘GL’ being canceled. I thought they must be mistaken. I was distraught, especially to find out that way.”

Tune in next week when Crystal discusses the anxiety of being nominated for an Emmy, and the special charity that is near and dear to her heart.