News Brief

Soap Opera Digest: "All My Children" has cast film actor and director Mario Van Peebles as Susan Lucci's (Erica) new love interest, Senatorial candidate Samuel Woods. He'll make his debut on January 29. Erica taps him to be a guest on NEW BEGINNINGS and, says a show rep, he "will soon become her worst nightmare that may turn into a romance."

Entertainment Weekly: NAACP Announces Image Awards Nominations.
Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series
• Kamar de los Reyes – “One Life to Live” (ABC)
• Kristoff St. John – “The Young And The Restless” (CBS)
• Bryton McClure – “The Young And The Restless” (CBS)
• Mykel Shannon Jenkins – “The Bold and the Beautiful” (CBS)
• Tobias Truvillion – “One Life to Live” (ABC)

Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Drama Series
• Nazanin Boniadi – “General Hospital” (ABC)
• Christel Khalil – “The Young And The Restless” (CBS)
• Brook Kerr – “Passions” (NBC)
• Tracey Ross – “Passions” (NBC)
• Tika Sumpter – “One Life to Live” (ABC)

Los Angeles Times: ANOTHER CORRECTION: In a Dec. 31 Calendar section article about how soap opera writers are coping with the Writers Guild of America strike, writer Rick Draughon was quoted as saying, "It's better for one of us to get a foot in the door [of new media] right now while it's an experiment than later when they've already hired a guild person." Actually, what he said at the end of the sentence was "when they've already hired a non-guild person."

TV Guide Canada: Nelson Branco's Top 10 issues that need fixin’ on soaps!

Knoxville News Sentinel: ABC Daytime dates to note.

BBC News: ITV's high concept soap gamble. What kind of salacious behaviour do you imagine takes place behind the scenes of a soap opera? Well, former "EastEnders" scribe Tony Jordan is about to spill the beans in "Moving Wallpaper" - an ITV sitcom about the backstage egos, affairs and in-fighting on soap series "Echo Beach."

PGP Classic Soaps: Fred Bartholomew directed "The Edge of Night" in the 1950s. He was the Executive Producer of "As The World Turns" 1971-1973 and again in the early 1980s, as well as the EP on "Search for Tomorrow" in 1982. But before he went behind the scenes, Fred Bartholomew was Freddie Bartholomew, one of the most successful child stars of his generation.

Tampa Tribune: Rumor Has It That Tampa Actress Dreama Walker Could Become Regular On "Gossip Girl."