Today's Soap Star Birthdays

Jennifer Bassey (Marion, ALL MY CHILDREN; ex-Abby, THE EDGE OF NIGHT; ex-Dorothy, SOMERSET; ex-Jennifer, LOVE OF LIFE) - 66 Terrell Tilford (Bob, DAYS OF OUR LIVES; ex-David, GUIDING LIGHT) - 39 Christopher Tavani (ex-Luke, AS THE WORLD TURNS) - 15

Evening News

Deep Soap: Antonio Sabato Jr. and Tristan Rogers Preview General Hospital Night Shift Rogers: "We’re shot more as a primetime show. We’re structured more as a primetime show. I won’t say that the storylines are more primetimeish but the rhythm of the show is different and there’s a lot more storylines going on and we have a beginning, a middle and an end which is what a normal daytime show doesn’t have." Sabato: "It’s 13 years later and he’s got a little boy that’s going to have to deal with some health issues throughout the 13 shows. He’s an FBI agent. He’s got a lot more responsibilities than he’s ever had before. Hopefully he’s grown a bit. He’s going to have to deal with Robin and Robert Scorpio." 1 TCA scoop: A gay doctor on NIGHT SHIFT? Per AfterElton, SOAPnet is teasing that in Tuesday's premiere of the second season of its original GENERAL HOSPITAL: NIGHT SHIFT series, one of its doctors will be coming out as gay. Most of the speculation is around Dr. Kyle Julian (played by Adam Grimes). AMC's Jacob Young to become a dad Jacob Young (JR, AMC; ex-Lucky, GH) and wife Christen are due to become first-time parents on November 19. "It's a boy," reports Young. "We're going to name him Luke Wayne Young — Wayne is my middle name, and Luke we chose because we wanted something biblical. It's not after Tony [Geary, Luke, GH, his former on-screen father]!" LYNN LICCARDO: What we have here is a failure to communicate "When General Hospital's Executive Producer, Gloria Monty, asked Anthony Geary to join the cast as Luke Spenser in 1978, he famously said, 'I hate soap opera.' To which Monty replied, 'Honey, so do I. I want you to help me change all that.' The exchange raises two obvious questions: What did they both hate about soap opera, and exactly what did Monty want to change? Since neither Geary nor Money ever elaborated on their famous exchange, what they really meant when they said they hated soap opera and wanted to change it is open to speculation: Were they being funny? Ironic? Maybe a little hyperbolic? Did they literally mean what they said? I expect some combination of the above. But words matter, and whatever Geary and Monty may or may not have meant by "I hate soap opera," over the past 30 years, the idea that soap opera somehow needed to become something else in order not to be hated has become deeply imbedded in daytime's collective psyche, and, I believe, this is what lies at the heart of why soaps are in their current sorry state." How former HOLLOAKS star Hannah Tointon refused to slim down for the teen soap Former HOLLYOAKS actress Hannah Tointon admits she felt huge pressure to stay slim on the teen soap. The slim 20-year-old joined the Chester-set drama in April 2007 as the little sister of HOLLYOAKS bad boy Warren Fox (Jamie Lomas). After leaving the Channel 4 show three months ago after just under a year on screen, Tointon is moving on to pastures new. Referring to her time on Hollyoaks, where many of the cast are former models, Tointon admitted she battled with body insecurity. She said: "I did feel pressure to look a certain way on Hollyoaks. But I just had to stay strong and not let myself get into a state of mind that isn't healthy." PASSIONS to end on August 7th PASSIONS, which was originally scheduled to end on August 11 on DIRECTV, will be ending its run on August 7 instead. DIRECTV will also be running a marathon of the final four episodes on August 8. Don Diamont happy at home on Y&R "When you get a soap opera you sink or you swim, you have to be very committed to learning your craft and I was lucky enough to work with some wonderful people who helped me along in those early days." PASSIONS' Liza Huber is expecting second child Susan Lucci (Erica, AMC) confirms that daughter Liza Huber (Gwen, PASSIONS) and her hubby, Alex Hesterberg, are expecting baby No. 2. "We're so thrilled," Lucci gushes. "[One-year-old] Royce is going to be an adorable big brother!" SCRIPTS & SCRUPLES: Episode #831 Henry finds an unexpected visitor at the loft.

News Brief

ABC Campaign Gives Washed-Up Soaps New Image ALL MY CHILDREN, ONE LIFE TO LIVE and GENERAL HOSPITAL have run on ABC since 1970, 1968 and 1963, respectively. That's why the Walt Disney network is sexing up the soaps with a promotion geared to get Millennials to watch. The effort will portray the shows as having more of the glitz, dalliances and delightful tension viewers expect in prime-time dramas. In the spots, which will appear on cable, in celebrity-oriented magazines and websites, and, of course, on ABC and SoapNet, actress Elizabeth Berkley spotlights the strong women of "One Life to Live," fashion designer Randolph Duke points to the style of "All My Children" and country- music singer Billy Currington calls attention to the romance on "General Hospital." Other well-known faces that are part of the effort include Spice Girl Mel B and "Sopranos" actor Vincent Pastore. These people traditionally have very little to do with soap operas, but that's part of the plan: surprising would-be viewers and getting them to tune in. In 2003, advertisers spent about $967.9 million on the eight big network soaps. In 2007, they spent about $870.6 million, according to TNS Media Intelligence. While some of the programs, such as THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS have remained relatively stable, NBC's DAYS OF OUR LIVES -- the only soap the network runs -- has seen ad dollars tumble to about $97.5 million in 2007 from nearly $130 million in 2003. Brier, Bonner and de los Reyes will be part of Obama Fundraiser, "Spare Some Change" "Spare Some Change: NYC Artists for Barack Obama" is the title of an upcoming concert to benefit Senator Barack Obama's presidential campaign. The Aug. 11 concert will be held in Manhattan at New World Stages. The 8pm performance is scheduled to include an original song penned by Henry Krieger and Bill Russell performed by Tony winner Lillias White; appearances from ONE LIFE TO LIVE stars Kathy Brier, BethAnn Bonner and Kamar de los Reyes; songs from Andrew Lippa, Sarah Schlesinger, Mike Reid, Georgia Stitt, Sean Keogh, Kirsten Guenther and Joy Sun; and performances from the casts of "Hair," the short-lived "Glory Days" as well as "Mamma Mia!'s" Carrie Manolakos, "Grease's" Lindsay Mendez and "Company's" Teri Ralston and musician-actor. de los Reyes grateful for OLTL role ABC's long running soap, ONE LIFE TO LIVE just celebrated its 40th anniversary. Soaps often mark the springboard to other things and "One Life" has boasted its share of soon-to-be-famous actors including Tommy Lee Jones, Laurence Fishburne, Marcia Cross, Ryan Philippe, Tom Berenger, Joe Lando. Kamar de Los Reyes has been on the show for almost 12 years. He says he was thrilled to arrive in the imaginary town of Llanville. "I became a part of the first _ of one of the only Latino families on daytime television, on all of network television. And I'm not talking about just Latino families portrayed in sitcoms. I'm talking about a real Latino, a real Puerto Rican family who dealt with real-life issues. And it was _ I was extremely and continue to be extremely proud of that. I always felt extremely lucky and blessed and to this day am very grateful for that opportunity as a Latino, considering, you know, one tenth of a percent of Latino actors get that opportunity. And I was one of them." 1 Photo Flash: "Paper Dolls" at the Fringe Festival Lively Productions and Métropole Ink are proud to present the world premiere of "Paper Dolls" as part of the 12th annual New York International Fringe Festival - FringeNYC. In his New York debut, New York Daily News columnist and playwright Patrick Huguenin goes behind the scenes of celebrity scandal. Performances begin Wednesday August 13th at the Players Theatre (115 MacDougal Street). Gaye Taylor Upchurch directs a cast that features Allison Goldberg, Jen Jamula, Billy Magnussen (AS THE WORLD TURNS), and Ashley Morris ("Die Mommie Die!" with Van Hansis). Magnussen made his Broadway debut in The Ritz and currently stars as Casey Hughes in the daytime drama As the World Turns. David Newell will serve as costume and scenic designer, with lighting design by Lucrecia Briceno and Julia Meinwald composing original music. WHERE ARE THEY NOW: Former TEXAS and GL star Mary Pat Gleason Mary Pat Gleason plays the Middleman’s cranky android assistant on ABC Family’s THE MIDDLEMAN. Ida is patty cranky because somehow her morphing appearance abilities have malfunctioned and she’s stuck in the form of a middle aged school marm. The only link to the Middlemen who have gone before, Ida is not convinced that Wendy Watson (Natalie Morales) is there for the right reasons, and rides her on a regular basis. Two Perth actors on GL Two Perth actors have found themselves acting opposite each other on "a popular US TV series." Kane Manera played a hit man on the long-running CBS series GUIDING LIGHT, but came home at Christmas time to appear in Crush, the feature film being made in Perth. While he was away GUIDING LIGHT executives hired another Perth actor, Murray Bartlett, to play the part of his on-screen brother. Neither actor knew each other before meeting on the set. Leann Hunley goes golfing The Hilton Head Island Celebrity Golf Tournament has announced the list of celebrities that plan to attend this year's event, to be held Aug. 29 through 31. Included is Leann Hunley, known to soap fans as Anna on DAYS OF OUR LIVES. Sweeney expecting baby girl Alison Sweeney is expecting a baby girl. The 31-year-old DAYS OF OUR LIVES star and host of the hit TV show THE BIGGEST LOSER is due to give birth in January. Sweeney announced last month she was expecting her second child with husband Dave Sanov and she is delighted at discovering the baby's sex. She says, "The whole experience of having a little girl, I'd love that. I am feeling fantastic. I have moments of extreme morning sickness, but I get through it. Hopefully, I will be past it soon." The couple has one son, three-year-old Ben. NYC welcomes 'BETTY' with fiesta Crowds gathered at Jackson Heights on Thursday to welcome the cast of UGLY BETTY and hear Deputy Mayor Robert Lieber's efforts to bring more diversity to the entertainment biz. The speech was part of a Mexican-themed block party in the Queens area welcoming back the ABC skein to its roots in Gotham, after filming in Los Angeles for two seasons. UGLY BETTY thesps America Ferrera, teary-eyed and fresh off her second Emmy nod, and Tony Plana gave gracias to the Queens residents and offered some Spanish salutations to the predominantly Hispanic crowd. Lieber and his "Made in NY" Task Force have introduced new programs to promote diversifying employment within the film and tv industry. TOM CASIELLO: Llanview turns 40 - Part One "I get it. I understand what they're going for [with Mendorra]. And honestly? I can't put my finger on exactly what it is that didn't work for me. I loved that there was a reference to Cristian's brainwashing. As silly and Days-ish as that story was, I was writing for the show when it first aired, and I appreciated the fact that Ron and Co never EVER sweep history under the rug... even not-so-memorable history. And I loved Andrea Evans in this episode... for the first time since she's been back! Mainly because she was less Rebecca on Passions, and a lot more human. So what went wrong? I don't know. Maybe it was Cristian standing there the whole time, like a statue. (I know the guards were armed, but this is CRISTIAN VEGA we're talking about. He'd still TRY and stop them!) Or maybe it was the way Sarah never tried to make a run for it through the woods, while Carlo and Tina were facing AWAY from Cris and Sarah. Whatever it was, that's the only part of this that feels forced."

GH: NIGHT SHIFT Premieres Tonight

It's a good week for soaps in the evenings as the second season of GENERAL HOSPITAL: NIGHT SHIFT premieres tonight on SOAPnet and SORDID LIVES: THE SERIES premieres tomorrow night on Logo. Here's the ABC press release on tonight's episode. A CAR CRASH INJURES ROBIN AND KILLS ANOTHER ON THE SEASON TWO PREMIERE EPISODE OF GENERAL HOSPITAL: NIGHT SHIFT AIRING TUESDAY, JULY 22 AT 11 PM ET/PT Jagger Cates Returns to Port Charles After 13 Years 1 Episode 201 ("Crash") – General Hospital turns to chaos when a car crashes through the ER, injuring a pregnant Dr. Robin Scorpio (Kimberly McCullough), and killing a member of the staff. Elsewhere, Jagger Cates (Antonio Sabato, Jr.) returns to town after a 13-year absence, with a surprise for Robin. Meanwhile, sparks fly between Touissant (Billy Dee Williams) and Epiphany (Sonya Eddy) after he returns to the hospital from being on tour with his musical group The Saints. In another corridor of the hospital, new interns Kyle (Adam Grimes) and Claire (Carrie Southworth) bond over their fear of their strict superiors, Dr. Leo Julian (Ethan Rains) and Dr. Saira Batra (Azita Ghanizada) on the season premiere of GENERAL HOSPITAL: NIGHT SHIFT, TUESDAY, JULY 22 (11:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m., ET/PT) on SOAPnet. GENERAL HOSPITAL: NIGHT SHIFT stars Antonio Sabato, Jr. as Jagger Cates, Tristan Rogers as Robert Scorpio, Kimberly McCullough as Dr. Robin Scorpio, Jason Thompson as Dr. Patrick Drake, Sonya Eddy as Epiphany Johnson, Billy Dee Williams as Touissant Dubois, Adam Grimes as Kyle, Carrie Southworth as Claire, Ethan Rains as Dr. Leo Julian and Azita Ghanizada as Dr. Saira Batra. "Crash" was written by Sri Rao and Yolanda Lawrence.