We’re still losing so many beloved soap opera actors as 2022 comes to a close. Now comes word that former As the World Turns alum, Rita Walter (nee McLaughlin) passed away at the age of 71.  Walter had been diagnosed with Multifocal Glioblastoma, an extremely aggressive form of terminal brain cancer.

Rita had an 11-year-run as Oakdale’s Carol Deming Hughes Stallings Andropoulos Frazier.

The former actress-turned-optician, died on Christmas.  Rita’s brother, David McLaughlin revealed the news on the 26th which also happened to be the anniversary of Walter’s exit from the defunct CBS soap opera in 1981.

In his posting on Facebook, McLaughlin shared: “My sweet, loving sister Rita was called to Jesus today on Christmas day, his birthday. She was a well known actress as well as dedicated server of the Lord Jesus. May you rest in peace Sis, I love you forever. You’ve taken my heart with you.”

Photo: SOD

Before playing good girl, Carol Deming, who always found herself in distress as only a good heroine could do, Rita started her career as Patty Duke’s double on The Patty Duke Show, before getting her first foray into soaps with a role on The Secret Storm as Wendy Phillips.

We clearly remember when on ATWT, Carol was married to Jay Stallings, but Jay was having an affair behind her back. Carol also had failed relationships and marriages to Tom Hughes and Steve Andropolous.  Eventually, Carol left Oakdale after falling in love and marrying Reverend Norman Frazier.  In a case of life imitating art, Rita married Reverend Normal Walter in 1976.

Walter is survived by her three children, Brian, Jill, and Amy, and her husband, Reverend Norman.

Share your condolences and remembrances for ATWT’s Rita Walter in the comment section below.

Great news! Fans who have missed Michael Park (ex-Jack, As the World Turns) on the small screen will get a chance to see him once again in the new psychological drama series, Saint X.

The series will stream on Hulu and in it the two-time Daytime Emmy-winning actor will play the part of Bill Thomas, in the eight-episode series adapted from Alexis Schaitkin’s novel.

In story, Bill and his wife Mia Thomas (Betsy Brandt) are upper middle class parents of two, enjoying a family vacation in a Caribbean resort until one of their daughters goes missing.

According to Deadline, the series is told via multiple timelines and perspectives, explores and upends the girl-gone-missing genre as it explains how a young woman’s mysterious death during an idyllic Caribbean vacation creates a traumatic ripple effect that eventually pulls her surviving sister into a dangerous pursuit of the truth.

No further details have been been made available as to when the show will premiere on the streamer, but stay tuned for more updates.

So, excited to see Michael in Saint X? Comment below.

In casting news, Academy Award-winner and As the World Turns alum, Julianne Moore (Ex-Frannie and Sabrina Hughes) will star in a new period-piece drama for Sky and AMC.

Moore, who won a Daytime Emmy for her work on the beloved CBS soap back in 1988, will play Mary Villiers, Countess of Buckingham, in Mary & George.

Villers in 17th Century England moulded her  son, George, to seduce King James I and become his all-powerful lover. Through outrageous scheming, the pair rose from humble beginnings to become one of the richest, most titled, and influential mother and sons England had ever seen.

According to Deadline, the series is due to begin filming in early 2023 and is slated for an 8-episode run.

Mary & George will mark only the second time, Moore has starred in a TV drama, after her appearance in the 2021 Apple mini-series Lisey’s Story.

Julianne won her Oscar for Lead Actress back in 2014 for Still Alice, where she played a woman battling Alzheimer’s disease.

Intrigued to see Julianne in Mary & George? Comment below.