All My Children
Cady McClain speaks on Dixie's return, Michael E. Knight, and AMC's network TV axing!
Courtesy/ABC
On-Air On-Soaps caught up with Daytime Emmy winner, Cady McClain (Dixie) over the weekend at the All My Children Fan Club Gathering to ask her about the shocking turn of events that led to dead-as-a-doorknob Dixie being risen from the ashes and given new life as the 40-year-old soap prepares to end its network television run on ABC Daytime on September 23rd.
With not-to-be missed episodes, Tad and Dixie fans will see major moments beginning to play out on-screen this week, with a key episode on Monday August 8th. McClain, a savvy soap veteran opens up about how her return as Dixie came to pass, her unbelievable on-screen chemistry with Michael E. Knight (Tad), the upcoming Tad and Dixie reunion scenes, and how she handled the news that both AMC and OLTL were to be to shipped off of network television. We found Cady to be witty, funny, smart as a whip, and filled with deep emotion on the subjects we bantered about.
Cady, did you want to come back to All My Children and revive Dixie one more time after the poison pancake debacle, or were you just done?
CADY: I think I had really let it go, I had just decided, they were not calling. It’s dead. She’s dead. She ate the poison pancakes. She was a ghost twice! Maybe I would come and talk to Tad as the ghost; you know I thought I was going the way of Jenny Gardner! (Laughs) First, I had heard that Lorraine Broderick was hired as head writer, and I thought, “Hmmm. What is going on here? Lorraine has always liked me and been very supportive of me.” And then like in a second, I got a text from Julie Carruthers, the executive producer of All My Children, and I literally had to sit down. I almost fell off my chair.
At the time you got the text, did you for a moment think, Dixie might turn out be alive this time?
CADY: No! It was just, “You want to meet for coffee? Are you in New York still? What is going on?” And I am like. “You tell me?” (Laughs). So we had sat down and had some coffee and they informed me they wanted to bring me back for a year and that was before the show was canceled. So, we were talking and in negotiations and then I got a call from my agent who said, “Ah, sit back down. The show has been canceled.”
Courtesy/ABC
Now we have amped up sped up version of what would happen if Dixie came back to her loved ones very much alive due to the network television conclusion of All My Children which is upon us. Did it feel sped up in the storytelling to you?
CADY: Yeah and I suppose that is kind of what we have. And in a way, I am kind of glad. I mean, there are times when it feels like, “Whoa. This is happening so fast!”
And there are times, if you had the luxury to tell the story over a year arc; it could also feel drawn out into infinity!
CADY: Right, exactly and especially for the fans who are like, “Would you please exit the crypt!” (Laughs)
When you first heard the news that AMC was canceled, as someone who has consistently worked in the daytime genre and has been an actress associated with playing a beloved character on this show, were you shocked by the news?
CADY: I was in frozen shock for a couple of days, especially announcing both One Life to Live and All My Children being canceled at the same time. And then, I got very depressed. I had to lie down and really feel sad about it. It is a genre that works really hard. Everyone in the business knows no one works harder than those in the soaps. It is five shows a week, fifty two weeks a year. We kill ourselves to put on programming like that. It is very dramatic, emotional, and relevant programming, and not everyday do you hit it out of the ballpark. But you have to keep the story going and sometimes when soaps do it well, it is amazing. It felt like soaps were misunderstood, not being wanted, not being liked, all those painful feelings that rejection brings, and then it felt like an opportunity of: let’s show them how good we can be. Let’s do the very best job we can do and keep continuing on to the very end and see what happens.
Photo Credit: JPI Studios
Michael E. Knight and you have this undeniable on-screen chemistry. Tad and Dixie are one of the all time favorite couples in the history of AMC. The big reunion scenes are set to air on Monday August 8th. Were you good with it and how they wrote it?
CADY: The reunion is really good! I am very good with it and Michael and I were talking about this. There is nowhere else in our lives where we have this experience of true love that has lasted over our entire lives. And in the world we live today, not many people have that with their partners. Not many people have that anymore with one person. Whether Tad and Dixie have fallen apart or cheated on one another, certainly, there is something about them that they just love about each other and they know each other and they are family. That has great value; having that one person who has always fought for you and stood by you and wanted for you. I am getting emotional just talking about it. Michael and I because of our friendship have some of that, but it really blossoms on-camera. It is this fantasy world we get to go to and it’s this very precious thing that is available to find in real life, but very hard to find.
Over the years, Michael E. Knight has turned Tad into this extremely relatable, everyman type of guy with his sweet and sincere performances. I believe he has grown as an actor, and he is just amazing to watch.
CADY: It is sweet. Michael has had an amazing journey as a person and as an actor in his career. It is funny; I see acting just like some people see painting. It is sort of this thing that it is outside of yourself, but you and your craft keep growing at the same rate… as you grown in your craft, you grow as a person. So, as he has grown as a person his acting has just expanded into this other rich facility and that is really hard to get. I remember in my first acting class they said, “You will be an actor in twenty years. So just stick with it. Everything you do up till then will be about learning how to do this.” And that is where I feel where we are both at now. I can do this and I get it, and it’s become wide and rich inside both of us.
When you found out the reason Dixie was back and very much alive, thanks to Dr, David Hayward’s machinations, (although viewers don’t know and have not learned the whole story yet) where you like, “Oh my God! This is so far-fetched!”
Photo Credit: Steven Bergman
CADY: I loved it! I thought it was “camp” and I think the element of “camp” in soaps makes it so much fun. It’s silly and larger than life, and why not? It’s like where anything can happen. It’s almost like being in Wizard of Oz land. You have your real characters and then you have these fantasies. So, I was fine with it. (Laughs)
When you film your final episode of AMC, and you have to leave the studio and say goodbye to everyone for the final time (even though the show will be moving to the web, and we don’t know if you will be with it at that point) what will be your takeaway and fondest moments with the series?
CADY: We have four or so more weeks to shoot, so I am not done yet. I will definitely remember what I shot most recently that is coming up to air. I remember that very deeply and fondly already. I also think I remember and will take away living on set the most over the years I have been on All My Children. I have talked about this before with Michael, that there is this wonderful world we get to live in and have happy families and Christmas time and miracles, and that has been a wonderful place for me to escape my own life, and for all the people that watch All My Children too. We all escape there. So I will miss that escape, I truly will.
Cady, I’m just about to BURST!! I’m SO excited about your return in the form of being “ALIVE” and not a ghost! At this time, we have gotten to see you in a few episodes already, and of course, we have that constant anticipation for when Tad and Dixie are finally face-to-face once again. I truly hope you will continue on with AMC for many more years to come!
Much love, from just ONE of SO MANY “Soap Savers” across the nation who have never given up hope that our shows will live on…much like “Dixie”…(hahahahaha!)!
Kim Anderzak
When will we get more information from Prospect Park about how the online thing will work and who will be offered to stay? I just can’t take the suspense any longer. I love how the show is getting so much better and I know it will continue to be great online too.
Now THIS… Is something I’ve been waiting for. No ghost, the real, the Sunshine Song singer.. Dixie Cooney Martin… back again 😀 I watched ALL of the old episodes from 1988 til’ this day, and I’m 15. Dixie coming back, get’s me excited for next weeks Monday, When I’m NOT really a fan of Mondays Lol. Cady McClain, is the BEST at acting. I just really admire her. So the reunion and the reviving of Dixie? Officially made the year. I love Happy Endings, I just don’t want AMC to end when Dixie comes back, it’s been 5 years since she’s been alive and she only gets a couple of months? She deserves more, but I’m extremely in awe, and CAN’T WAIT TO SEE IT!
i am so waiting for the dixie/tad reunion!
i hope she can get jr straightened out while she is in pine valley.
I am also a HUGE fan of the whole genre. I also am anxious to see how its going to work with the soaps on-line, but we have to have patience and let prospect park do what they have to do to make deals with the crews unions as well as the cast/actors & actresses on both shows. These contracts and deals take time. Hopefully, they will have it together soon!!
THANK YOU, PROSPECT PARK, INC. I am so very THANKFUL TO YOU FOR KEEPING OUR SOAP FAMILIES ALIVE AND HAPPY!! WHATEVER YOU NEED TO HELP, IF I CAN ASSIST YOU IN ANY WAY, PLEASE LET ME KNOW!! Robin Zarzana
I have watched AMC and OLTL since my grandmother introduced them to me when they first began — I wonder if it will still be on soap net — or what I need to do – as I am a career person – and I record them every day – and watch on the weekends — and I just hate those nasty reality shows — who wants reality when the economy is horrible and people are losing homes and jobs — and I really don’t want ANY MORE REALITY — thank you very much — I’m a social worker – and I DO reality every day — 10 to 12 hours a day — and when I’m done – I AM DONE and want to watch something entertaining — that I can keep up with — and ENJOY!!! SO — if I have to see about hooking my tv up to the internet — I guess I will – unless it will be on Direct TV — but I sure hope I can continue to record it — as I don’t have time for tv during the week at all… and yet – I AM AN AVID watcher…
Is it just me or does anyone else feel like this Tad/Dixie Reunion was the absolute worse? Tad didn’t really even act like he was that excited to see her…… No tears, just a brief moment of acting as if he was stunned then that was it. The he goes to Cara and says he’s not for sure what’s going to happen with him and Dixie, and he feels more than a sense of obligation for Cara. Ok…..Tad has been moping around PV, looking at the sky while trying to reach out to Dixie’s spirit….constantly talking about Dixie and remembering her….Now he gets her back and he acts like he’s lost that special spark. This has just not been what I thought it was going to be. But I will try to remain hopeful for better scenes.
Alan Dysert, who played Sean Cudahy on ABC’s All My Children has died. He was 75-years-old. The news of his passing came from his wife Michele who shared via a Facebook post that Dysert died back on October 23.
“My heart is broken as I share that my beloved husband, Alan, passed away on October 23, 2026. While I am struggling to imagine life without him, I am forever grateful to have experienced what so many people spend their lives searching for — the love of a lifetime,” Michele expressed.
While a cause of death was not made public at this time, Michele admitted that Alan, “faced more than his share of health challenges over the years, yet he continued to approach life with determination, humor, and gratitude.”
Photo: ABC
Dysert wrote about his battle with a rare, aggressive and incurable cancer in his 2023 autobiography, Lights, Camera, Cancer! He spoke of having undergone four major cancer-related surgeries, and many rounds of chemotherapy and CT scans.
SEAN CUDAHY WAS ‘BAD GUY’ PERSONFIED
On All My Children, Dysert played Sean Cudahy, the con man villain to his brother, good guy, Tom Cudahy played by Richard Shoberg. Dysert played the role between 1980 and 1990 returning for multiple story arcs, which included being revealed to be the murderer of Sybil Thorne. He was also involved in several affairs including with the impressionable Devon McFadden (Tricia Pursley).
THE LIVES HE TOUCHED
Alan’s longtime agent Melinda Eisnagule told PEOPLE his death is a “loss to our community and to the acting community at large. He touched so many lives and made the industry and the world a better place every day with his positive energy and kindness.”
Dysert leaves behind his wife, Michele and his two sons Cody and Cooper and will be remembered by those who knew him for a career that spanned the theatre, film, TV and performance coaching, and of course being a part of the legacy of All My Children.
Share your remembrances and condolences on the passing of Alan Dysert, All My Children’s Sean Cudahy, via the comment section below.
All My Children
Mark Consuelos Celebrates Kelly Ripa’s 56th Birthday on ‘Live,’ But Remember When Wendy Williams Outed the Couple as Married Before Anyone at ‘All My Children’ Knew?
On the Friday, October 2 episode of Live with Kelly and Mark, the morning talk show marked the 56th birthday of Kelly Ripa (ex-Hayley Vaughan Santos, All My Children).
During the opening segment, Mark Consuelos (ex-Mateo Santos, All My Children) humorously comparing his wife to both Gandhi and Groucho Marx, reflecting on both her comedic ability and peaceful ways.
Later, they went on to discuss the origins of her name and the most popular picks to name babies back in the year she was born, 1970. They were Kimberly, Lisa, and Jennifer for girls and Michael, David, and James for the boys.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Ripa recalled that she learned she was almost named Kim. However, their neighbors at the time had two daughters Kelly and Kim, which is what her parents wanted to call them, but they settled on Kelly and and her younger sister, Linda.
At the conclusion of the episode, Mark rolled out a huge cake for his wife. It was, “Happy birthday from all of us here at Live and at home.” Next, he cut the cake, and Ripa grabbed his face and gave him a “thank you” kiss.
Photo: JPI
KELLY AND MARK TRIED TO KEEP THEIR VEGAS WEDDING ON THE DOWN LOW
All of this brings back memories of how Kelly and Mark’s Las Vegas wedding ceremony went public in 1996 while the two were still on All My Children playing Mateo Santos and Hayley Vaughan. In essence, they were outed by then radio host Wendy Williams! They discussed it on the talk show back in 2024.
In fact, the duo hid their marriage from their All My Children castmates for months, until they found out Williams got wind of the nuptials and spread the intel on the airwaves.
The two recalled their secret wedding on a 2024 episode of Live! “We’d eloped. It’d been a few months at that point. We’d been married for three months, nobody at All My Children knew we were even dating, much less married to each other. We’re brushing our teeth and we’ve got Wendy Williams’ radio show on. We’re listening, and she’s like, ‘I’ve got celebrity dish!”
EYEWITNESS
Next Ripa continued, “The celebrities,’ I guess they had a broad use of the term back then, was the fact that ‘two soap stars from All My Children, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos eloped in Las Vegas.’ There was this eyewitness that worked in the Clark County courthouse that said we eloped, and the news broke, and we had to tell everybody we were married.”
Live With Kelly and Mark airs weekdays in syndication. Check your local listings for times in your area.
Share your birthday wishes for Kelly in the comment section, and let us know your thoughts on how Wendy Williams broadcast the news, unbeknownst to the All My Children newlyweds, that they tied the knot in Vegas? Check out Mark and the ‘Live’ studio audience singing ‘happy birthday’ to Kelly in the post below.
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All My Children
‘All My Children’ Movie Writers for Lifetime Revealed: Ron Carlivati, Jamey Giddens and Leo Richardson
This week began and as reported with a spotlight article on Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos and how their production entity, Milojo, has been teeing up the All My Children reboot with Lifetime.
The L.A. Times featured the married couple, co-hosts of Live with Kelly and Mark, and former All My Children cast members (where they met and fell in love) about their plans to bring two All My Children movies to Lifetime and how they are working with the Agnes Nixon estate to make it come to fruition,
On Wednesday, it was revealed by Daytime Confidential, that All My Children reboot producer, Andrew Stearn handpicked none other than Ron Carlivati (ex-head writer, One Life to Live, General Hospital and Days of our Lives) and Jamey Giddens (who is the new co-head writer of The Young and the Restless, following his tenures on the writing teams of Beyond the Gates and Days of Our Lives), as the two scribes who will bring the first of two of Kelly and Mark’s All My Children movies to the page.
Photo: IMDb
RON CARLIVATI AND JAMEY GIDDENS CONFIRM THEIR BOARDING THE ALL MY CHILDREN MOVIE PROJECT
The second installment is said to be written by primetime writer Leo Richardson whose credits include: Star, Katy Keene and more recently the Penn Badgley (ex-Phillip Chancellor IV, The Young and the Restless) starring series, You.
Richardson also wrote for three years on the U.K.’s long-running soap, EastEnders. All My Children revival fans will recall Richardson’s name was attached as the writer for the first incarnation of the All My Children movies, entitled, Pine Valley.
Ron Carlivati took to X and confirmed he is indeed boarding the All My Children movie project. Carlivati shared, “So excited to share this news! Thanks to Andrew Stearn, Kelly Ripa, Mark Consuelos, Albert Bianchini and the Agnes Nixon estate for entrusting Jamey Giddens and me with the first of two planned All My Children movies for Lifetime! Stay tuned!”
Photo: Jeremy Smith/imageSPACE
Jamey Giddens confirmed DC’s announcement by taking to his account on X and expressing, “I’ve been booked and busy in 2026. Thanks to Andrew Stearn, the Agnes Nixon estate, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos for entrusting Ron Carlivati, and me with the first of two planned All My Children movies for Lifetime!”
Some fans seemed to question how Giddens could be writing for the first All My Children movie at Lifetime, when he is the new co-head writer at The Young and the Restless with Dan O’Connor. Jamey answered that head on via X and explained, “We turned in our All My Children script months ago. My sole focus as of this past Monday, is Genoa City, Wisconsin! #YR”
ERICA KANE, MARIA SANTOS AND HAYLEY AND MATEO SANTOS TO APPEAR IN THE ALL MY CHILDREN MOVIE REVIVAL?
In the planned stories, Susan Lucci’s Erica Kane and Eva LaRue’s Maria Santos will be two characters whose lives we will get to see for the first time since the series was canceled by ABC back in 2011 after 41 years on the air. As well, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos confirmed they will make brief appearances on-screen; one could assume as Hayley and Mateo Santos.
“It’d be wonderful to give the fans something that they’ve been yearning for so many years,” shared Mark Consuelos to the LA Times. “All My Children gave me my family. I met my wife there. It gave me my start in the business. It gave us so much. It would be a dream to be able to give back.”
So, what do you think of Ron Carlivati and Jamey Giddens getting nod to write the All My Children movie #1 script and Leo Richardson #2? Weigh-in via the comment section below.
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