News Brief

Nashville talk show host to appear on ATWT today
TALK OF THE TOWN's Meryll Rose appears on AS THE WORLD TURNS today at 2 p.m. on her home station, WTVF. She was among a select group of local TV reporters who were invited to spend a few days on the set about three weeks ago.

"They asked if I wanted to do a walk-on while I was there," she says. "It was a blast.

"I really had no idea how fast the pace was when they are producing these things. They look at their scripts, do a quick rehearsal and lay it down on tape."

She shot her scene as a mall shopper three different ways. The director "told me the instructions for all three scenes all in a row. I said, 'Wait, wait, I don't think I know what I'm supposed to do.'

"I was a little nervous because it was out of my comfort zone, but I had a great time. It may be a blink on the air."

FOX 411: Beth Ehlers
"Back in 1991 I wrote about actress Beth Ehlers in Entertainment Weekly as a young star to watch from the CBS soap GUIDING LIGHT. Seventeen years later, she’s leaving the show for a new role on ABC's ALL MY CHILDREN. It’s clear she’s been forced out by the producers from Procter & Gamble, who are determined to drive the 71 year old soap into the ground. Ousting Ehlers — who fits the perfect demo of young mother in her 30s — shows that P&G will be shuttering GL soon. What a disrespectful ending for everyone involved."

Former ATWT actress Lea Salonga to perform in Seoul
Lea Salonga, Tony-award winning star of "Miss Saigon," will hold her first solo concert in Seoul on June 16. Salonga was the second actress to play Lien Hughes on AS THE WORLD TURNS.

DAYS star dreams of pizza
DAYS OF OUR LIVES actor Jay Kenneth Johnson looks forward to the next couple of days. He's not in any of the scenes being shot for the NBC daytime drama. That means he doesn't have to work.

"I am going home and eating a pizza," Johnson says with a smile.

He's joking. Sort of. One of the biggest draws of daytime television are the attractive young men and women who go through daily angst for the pleasure of viewers. And since DAYS OF OUR LIVES is the last daytime drama on the network, the show needs to keep all the viewers it can.

"I had to have my shirt off earlier in the week, so I watched what I ate last week and this week," Johnson says during an interview earlier this month in a small lunch area just steps from the show's sets.

Like so many daytime actors, Johnson left the daily grind in hopes of landing a role in a big movie or long-running prime-time series. He found it difficult.

"At the time I made the decision to leave I was younger, and I think I was at the crossroads where I at least needed to try it and see what happened," Johnson says. "I am happy where I am now."

HOLLYOAKS targeted for diploma publicity
The Government has been ciriticised for trying to promote new diploma qualifications through HOLLYOAKS. The Daily Telegraph reports that ministers discussed using the Channel 4 soap to make the courses - which combine academic studies and vocational training - seem "glamorous".

C4 wants 'HOLLYOAKS MUSIC SHOW' series
Channel 4 has given a provisional go-ahead for two series of the HOLLYOAKS spinoff live music show. The broadcaster wants the program, a pilot of which aired earlier this year, for its Saturday morning T4 block.

GREEK Recap 1.19 "A Tale of Two Parties"
"Back at OC Calvin finally finds Michael, where we find out the problem isn’t about a frat party or homophobia, its about an age difference. Calvin comments something about going and talking in a quiet corner and… KISS KISS, we have a kiss! And another, in the middle of the OC party. The first and second gay kiss in ABC Family history!"