Sunday, September 20, 2009

News Round-up: Harrington, Battle, Winship, Heche

Anne Heche's Emmy win ignited her career
Heche, 40, won a Daytime Emmy in 1991 for her work on ANOTHER WORLD but couldn't accept the prestigious TV award because she was completing another acting job in the mid-west at the time.

She recalls, "I was in Nebraska in a Motel 6 shooting a Hallmark movie with Jessica Lange and so, I was actually sitting, eating a hamburger and fries on a skanky (dirty) bed, watching to see if I was going to win. And when they called my name, somebody came out and said, 'Well, Anne can't be here right now because she's in Nebraska.' Some weird, like, stiff person, 'She's not here...'" A stunned Heche couldn't believe she'd been named the winner - and needed her agent to convince her she was talented enough to proceed with her career.

She explains, "The phone rang and it was my agent and I said, 'Does this mean I'm an actress? Do I have to move to Hollywood or something?' And she said, 'Yeah, I think so.' And that was it. The Emmy made me move."

Westbrook to leave EASTENDERS
EASTENDERS star Danniella Westbrook is to leave the show by the end of the year, it emerged. A spokeswoman for the show denied a newspaper report, though, that she had been "ditched", saying she had been brought back for a third time for a specific storyline and a set amount of time only. Her character, Sam Mitchell, returned to the BBC soap after nine years on September 4. The spokeswoman for the show said: "Danniella was brought back to EastEnders for a specific storyline and a set amount of time only."

Michael Winship re-elected WGAE president
Michael Winship has been re-elected to a second term as president of the WGA East. Bob Schneider was re-elected to a second term as vp, and Gail Lee was re-elected to her seventh term as secretary-treasurer. Winship and Lee ran unopposed.

Texas Battle horror movie filming in Uncertain, Texas
Boggy Creek, which is expected to be released next summer, stars Texas Battle from THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, Stephanie Honore, Damon Lipari, Shavon Kirksey and Melissa Carnell.

"It's a thriller that centers around a story of five young kids who get caught out in a swamp in Boggy Creek, Texas," explained Brian T. Jaynes, director and producer. "They end up crossing paths with an ancient evil creature that lives in the swamp."

The movie is loosely based on the old Big Foot or Sasquatch legends.

Jack Bass Returning to GOSSIP GIRL
Desmond Harrington, who played scheming Jack Bass on GOSSIP GIRL, reveals to TV Guide that he'll be back on the show at some point this season.

"I will be back this year," says Harrington, who plays the character. "I think it's episode 15 or 16 where I show back up. It's fun playing Uncle Jack."

Old soap brought the past to life
"This is part of the power of our cultural images and artifacts. They have the capacity to transport us back in time. And it’s not always about the quality, the artistry or the social relevance. They still have the capacity to conjure up old experiences, old landscapes and even old relationships. They bring the dead to life. And maybe that’s why we take notice when aging artifacts like the GUIDING LIGHT finally fade to black — even if we thought they had gone dark years ago."

Former ATWT star a year after bilateral mastectomy surgery
"Today’s CT scan will be compared to the one I had right before my surgery, and will check for metastases. Last year, there was an aggravating spot on my liver, and despite my doctor’s assurance that “everyone has spots somewhere", I’m a trifle nervous. Breast cancer just loves to spread to the liver. So I wait for my test results and pretend this drama is all just make-believe."

3 comments:

  1. Great article link about Anne Heche; always wondered what she thought of winning that Daytime Emmy. That news about the movie with Texas Battle (why can't I take that name seriously??) sounds fitting--Caddo Lake is a great setting to film a spook/suspense movie, lots of twists, turns, and swamp there.

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  2. B&B is very accommodating with its actors. This is Battles second film. Ashley Jones did 3 to 5 episodes of True Blood. Lesli Kay is headed to ATWT.

    I think this is great because it puts money in the pockets of actors who might be backburnered, helps replace salary lost to pay cuts, boosts actors' careers, and helps promote B&B.

    I also read that Battle was a regular or recurring actor on Sheri Shepard's new show.

    I hope other shows allow or help their actors find outside gigs.

    I wish that Kristof St. John and Bryton James could find themselves a similar outside gig since Y&R has forced then into backburner hell (or recurring status).

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  3. Thank you for sharing Yvonne Perry's blog post about her surviving breast cancer. I remember her fondly as the original Rosanna on ATWT. She's a good actress.

    Best wishes to her and her family.

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