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Celebrate Llanview Chicago Style – A Tribute Party Honoring the Finale of OLTL!

By Michael Fairman

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Courtesy/ABC

Courtesy/ABC

Following the success of Celebrate Pine Valley! in September, “soap opera socialite” Jason Spitzer will welcome past and present actors from ABC’s One Life to Live  for Celebrate Llanview! A Tribute Party Honoring the Finale of One Life to Live Benefitting Season of Concern”  to Chicago to watch the ABC finale with fans of the show on January 13, 2012, once again being held at Sidetrack Video Bar.

Scheduled to appear are : Ilene Kristen (Roxy Balsom), David Gregory (Robert Ford), Nic Robuck (James Ford), Lenny Platt (Nate Salinger), Josh Kelly (Cutter Wentworth), Tonja Walker Davidson (Alex Olanov Buchanan), Mark Dobies (Daniel Colson), & Don Jeffcoat (Joey Buchanan).  Many more actors and special guests will be announced over the next several weeks. (Talent is subjected to change without notice.)

Festivities begin at 11AM CST when the actors make an appearance on ABC 7 Chicago’s 11AM Newscast with meteorologist Tracy Butler broadcasting live from the Sidetrack Video Bar interviewing the actors. At 12PM, it’s the “Live from Ultra Violet” talk show where Jason will interview the actors about their time on the show and take questions from the fans. After the OLTL finale, stay for the live auction and the Meet & Greet session.

Tickets are available for purchase online at www.seasonofconcern.org General Admission tickets are $35 and at this time, all VIP packages are sold out. All ticket proceeds benefit Season of Concern. For more information, please visit their website. Doors open at 11AM and you must be 21 and over to attend. Mark your calendar to “Celebrate Llanview!” in Chicago on January 13th!

 

 

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Matt Walton (ex-Elijah Clarke) is also scheduled to be there, too!

Not anymore. “(Talent is subjected to change without notice.)”

It just does not seem right to be having a “celebration” that day. A funeral would be more appropriate.

Haha…I’m upset too, but this comment made me chuckle. This show is getting SO good….I am dying to see today’s when Gigi comes face to face with that little sh*t, Jack.

you have a point there.I dont know what I am going to do when one life to live ends, I know one thing I wont be happy,and I wont celebrate ,I will have a headache from crying,my heart will be broken ,just because abc wants to go cheep,my afternoons will never be the same.

Wait until January 16th when you turn on your television set on ABC at 2:00pm and you realize that there’s no One Life to Live on the air.

I never watched Guiding Light, As the World Turns or All My Children. But I’m about the find out what the fans of these shows went through when their soap was cancelled.

I was never a regular viewer of OLTL or AMC but watched ATWT for years. I can tell you it is NO fun watching “your” soap go off the air for good. I still feel there is a hole during the day when ATWT was on the air.

It really is a shame that all of these shows are leaving the air. Frankly, I do not pull all of the blame on the networks. The producers and the writers have some blood on their hands as well. While OLTL may be the exception as it sounds like the quality might still be there, the rest of them had horrific writing and production decisions in their final years.

Sadly, I am almost certain that another of “my” shows, Y&R, will be joining these shows in the “scrap heap” in the next couple of years. The writing for Y&R has been godawful for a while and shows no signs of improvement.

Actually I think they’ll all be gone by 2020 in that respective order 1) GH 2) DAYS 3) B&B and 4)Y&R

I wont be turning my tv set on at 2 oclock on january 16 I am well aware that one llife to live wont be on .OK, it will be on but not on abc,I will watch gh then the channel will get changed again ,and that is the way it will be from now on,and if gh goes, I wont ever turn on abc again I dont care whats ,the only way I will ever watch abc is if they admit to there mistake and put the soaps back on ,and I know that is never going to happen.

Same here!!!!!!!!!! ABC SUCKS!!!!!!!And don’t care much for Brian Frons either!!!!!!!! THE SOAP KILLER!!!!!!!!! OLTL is on line already with full episodes!! And prospect Park has a show on USA called Royal Pains!!!!!!!! Why couldn’t they do this for OLTl!!!!!! Benedict Arnold!!!!!!!! No one wants to lift a finger to save OLTL!!!!!!!! So GODDBYE to ABC DAYTIME for ME!!!!!!!!!

ABC WILL NOT SEE ME ON THERE FROM 12:30 TO 3:00 I will watch GH then change again you have lost many poeple because of this change in our day time we have to many other channels to watch anything else if we want crap to watch so why watch you from 1-to 3 if you put our soaps back on you have us back ..UP TO YOU

I want to throw a question out there to all my OLTL fans…just to see if I’m the only one that believes this. With the finale of OLTL looming, who else thinks that it was a bad decision for Ron Carlivati to leave the show with a big cliffhanger? Now, I realize that this was all decided when everyone was under the belief that Prospect Park was going to pick up where the network left off, but I believe that it would have been a better decision to go ahead and write the finale as if the show wasn’t coming back. This way the fans aren’t left wondering what was supposed to happen next. I mean, if you are a writer, you should be able to pick the story up, no matter where you left off. So, the decision to do this BIG cliffhanger, just to keep the viewer on the edge of their seat, will be a decision that I’m sure that will be regretted. Don’t get me wrong, I believe that Ron is a spectacular writer, and I have been entertained for many years….but I’m just hoping that this finale doesn’t leave a bitter taste in my mouth, like the AMC finale did. Just curious as to what other people think.

General Hospital

‘General Hospital’s’ Dominic Zamprogna Shares He Was ‘Happy to Hear’ of The Triangle Storyline Developing Between Dante/Elizabeth/Ric

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Dominic Zamprogna

General Hospital’s Dominic Zamprogna (Dante Falconeri) opened up about the burgeoning love triangle forming between his Port Charles alter-go, Elizabeth Webber (Rebecca Herbst) and Ric Lansing (Rick Hearst) after recently aired scenes, plus his hopes for the future of a Dante and Liz pairing, during his appearance on the Sunday, April 23 edition of the That’s Awesome podcast with Steve Burton (Jason Morgan) and Bradford Anderson (Spinelli).

On last week’s episodes of GH, Ric has made the decision that he wanted to propose to his ex-wife, only when he showed up at Elizabeth’s front door, he misread the scenario he walked in with Liz tending to Dante’s injured leg from the softball game. From there, the legal eagle’s jealous streak is reemerging which may cause him to act out and do something unforgivable, or will he take the high road? Stay tuned.

Speaking with Steve Burton and Bradford Anderson about where Elizabeth stands in the annals of the long-running soap, Zamprogna said, “She’s up there with Steve and Maurice (Maurice Benard) as one of the most legacy-filled people on the show.”

Courtesy/ABC

HOW DANTE AND ELIZABETH CAME ABOUT

Dominic jokes it’s a far cry for where Dante and Elizabeth previously, recalling, “We had some scenes together years ago and we were both laughing. Becky’s like, ‘Well, I guess we’re not going be paired up anytime soon.’ I remember we laughed immediately after they yelled ‘cut,”‘and said to each other, ‘Well, so much for that!'”

Fast-forward to early 2025 and as Zamprogna remembered it, “Elizabeth Korte (co-head writer, GH) came up to me at the General Hospital Christmas party, and I think it was a year and a half ago and she said, ‘We’re going to have you in scenes with Elizabeth,’ My internal monologue is going, ‘I’m not with Lulu (Alexa Havins) anymore and Sam’s (Kelly Monaco) gone, so maybe they want to see if this works.’ I didn’t want to get scenes with Becky and try to find the chemistry. I just wanted to play whatever honestly was written and came across for both of us and hope it was what people liked, and I don’t know if it is … or not.”

Knowing how beloved Elizabeth is to the GH faithfuls, Zamprogna added, “She got a big fan base with Ric … and a big fan base with with Jason … and you know, you’re going to piss somebody off. But, didn’t Ric drug Elizabeth and put Carly in a panic room?”

Dom and Liz

Photo: ABC

DANTE AND ELIZABETH PAIRING COULD STIR UP STORY FOR OTHERS IN PORT CHARLES

In closing, Dominic felt that the wide-reaching tentacles of a Dante and Elizabeth relationship is something he is 100% down for. “The triangle thing; I was happy to hear it was with Ric and her, because I felt it’s important to have her the top of it as opposed to Dante, Lulu and Elizabeth.”

Zamprogna added, “When you get into relationships on a soap, things seem to fizzle out a little bit, The buildup is what’s the fun part, and the getting to know each other, and the people who are affected by this coming together. When with this case it’s going to affect: Ric, Sonny, Lulu. There’s so much more story here. To me, it’s going to be a fun story to play.”

You can check out Dominic’s visit to That’s Awesome with Steve and Bradford below.

Now weigh-in: Are you rooting for Dante and Liz, or Dante and Ric at this juncture of the story, or neither guy  for Elizabeth? Let us know your thoughts and picks via the comment section.

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Beyond the Gates

‘Beyond the Gates’ Star Mike Manning Lands Role in Indie Horror Feature ‘Deify’

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Mike Manning

While Smitty tries to hold the fort down in his marriage to congressman Martin Richardson (Brandon Claybon)  and their two teenaged children, Samantha (Najah Jackson) and Tyrell (Jaden Lucas Miller) on Beyond the Gates, Emmy-winner Mike Manning has also landed another feature film role.

According to Deadline, Manning has joined the cast of Deify with 6 other new cast members for the indie psychological horror film starring Neal McDonough and Skeet Ulrich, which was previously announced last week.

Joining Manning as the latest cast addition are: Dennis Haysbert, Ashley Greene,  Casey Harnett, Kirk Avecdo, Anji White, anf Nicholas Chimera who’s directing the pic also has a part in the film.

WHAT’S THE STORY OF DEIFY?

Taking to his Instagram with the news of his casting, Manning shared, “A movie about a cult? What could possibly go wrong? Come for the enlightenment. Stay because they won’t let you leave. DEIFY is coming…”

The movie is currently shooting in Chicago and in story, “a cult leader is put on trial after causing his devoted followers to be burned alive. The film is inspired in part by events surrounding the 1993 Waco, Texas, standoff between members of the Branch Davidians church and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, one of the largest civilian firefights ever recorded on American soil.”

MIKE MANNING IS A DAYTIME EMMY NOMINEE

In addition, the multi-talented Manning is a producer on the feature. Previously, Mike was nominated last month in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for the upcoming 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards. He previously won an Emmy for his role on The Bay and for being a producer on the digital drama.

Mike’s previous credits include the role of Charlie Dale on Days of Our Lives and the Manny on This Is Us, plus various primetime and screen credits.

So intrigued to find what role Mike will play in the upcoming horror/cult film, Deify? Enjoying him as Smitty on Beyond the Gates? Share your thoughts via the comment section below.

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General Hospital

GH and OLTL Alum Patrick J. Gibbons Reveals the Story Behind Writing Trina’s Song on ‘General Hospital’ (Exclusive)

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Patrick J. Gibbons

At the conclusion of today’s August 21 episode of General Hospital, Trina Robinson (Tabyana Ali) sings a lullaby to baby Dez, that went into a montage to close out the episode as her father Curtis Ashford (Donnell Turner) reports to Pentonville and winds up in his jail cell.

However, in a fun fact, the song entitled, “A Lonely Heart To Give” was actually written by none other than former One Life to Live and General Hospital actor, Patrick J. Gibbons.

Daytime fans first met Gibbons as Sam Manning on One Life to Live. At the time, when he started on the soap, he was just 5-years-old. Gibbons played the part from 2010-2013 on ABC and Prospect Park’s editions of the show. Fast-forward to 2018, Gibbons shows up on General Hospital as Wyatt Hoover, the scout who seemed always be injured, but in the thick of the drama. Patrick had appeared on GH multiple times as Wyatt including: 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023.

Photo: ABC

FROM HIS GRANDMOTHER’S DEATH CAME THE INSPIRATION FOR HIS SONG

Now in 2026, General Hospital fans are getting to learn about another side of Gibbons’ talent as a songwriter and guitar player after “A Lonely Heart to Give” debuted today! Michael Fairman TV caught up with Patrick, who is now a senior at Penn State entering his final year as a finance major, to get the back-story of how his song wound up on GH!

Gibbons explained he wrote the song in honor of his grandmother who passed away a few years ago with whom he was, very, very close with. “Randomly, my grandmother had a downfall and passed away during the second semester of my sophomore year. I was in my dorm a lot and I was just playing with my guitar. And at the time, I was really into finger-style playing. I wrote the lyric and music to it (with a little help from my guitar teacher Lou), and my mom showed the rough demo to Frank Valentini (EP, General Hospital). He’s like an uncle to me. Frank loved it so much he said, “Finish that up. I want to hear the whole thing, and I want it on the show.”

MAKING MUSIC FOR GENERAL HOSPITAL

Gibbons and his parents took the next steps! “So now, all we needed was a female voice, because I thought that would fit the song well,” Patrick shared. “At the golf club we go to my parents were at a dinner. They liked the singer that was performing and spoke to her about the song, and she says she would like to bring it to her ‘boss’ who ended up being Eric Bazilian of the Hooters fame!” (Bazilian also wrote the smash hit song “One of Us” for Joan Osborne).

Next, “We went in the studio and recorded it and the song came together and it was beautiful. We loved it. They loved it at General Hospital and now they’re putting it the show and they are coming in with a piano, instead of a guitar. Paul Glass, the GH musical director, has been keeping us updated over the last six months of how it was coming along, and when it would air, and how GH put their own arrangement to it. I can’t wait to see and hear what they did with it.”

Photo: JPI

PATRICK’S ONE LIFE TO LIVE FAMILY

Everyone knows that the One Life to Live extended family share a very tight bond, and Patrick said he does stay in touch with a few of his former One Life to Live co-stars, especially those from the Manning family! “I stayed in touch with Kassie DePaiva (ex-Blair) and sent her little videos here and there. She was like my second mom for five years. We keep in contact with Kristen Alderson (ex-Starr) over X the most, and she can’t believe how big I’ve gotten. Like, none of them can! (laughs). I also loved working with Roger Howarth (ex-Todd) and Trevor St. John (ex-Todd and Victor Jr.), and to me since I was so young, they were just my friends, ‘Roger and Trevor,’ not Todd Manning or Victor Jr.”

It was a trip to California and a visit to Port Charles that ultimately led to Gibbons second soap role of Wyatt Hoover. Patrick explains, “In 2016, Frank Valentini invited us out to Los Angeles to visit the set of General Hospital. I think he heard me say, ‘This is so much fun. I miss being on the set.’ He goes, ‘You should come out. I’ll bring you on the show. We can make you a character.'”

A few years later, Patrick’s dream became a reality! “Then, by the summer of 2018, I was playing Wyatt, the scout, and shared scenes with Wes Ramsey (Peter August), and the best was when I shared a scene with Roger Howarth and Michael Easton (ex-John, OLTL and ex-Silas, Finn et al, GH), it was like chemistry from the old days.”

Photo: PGibbons

IT’S ALL IN THE NUMBERS

As to his future aspirations, it’s a career in the finance game that has piqued Gibbons’ real-life interest. But never say never to a return to acting. Patrick explained, “I’ve always enjoyed numbers. And on top of that, one of the biggest parts of finance is being personable and outgoing.”

He continued, “That’s one of the greatest skills I developed growing up. I really love the markets. I’m super interested. I’m never going to close the door to acting. I’m always open to that because I just love it so much. It’s such a great art.”

Take note! If there are any investment bankers or private equity folks among the GH faithful looking for a young analyst next year, Patrick’s DMs are open. You can find him on X at @PatrickJGibbons.

So, what did you think of the song sung by Trina on today’s GH that was written by Patrick J. Gibbons? Did you enjoy Patrick’s performances as One Life’s Sam and GH’s Wyatt? Would you like to see him back on GH at some point? Let us know via the comment section.

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Jonathan Bennett joins the cast of GH as Joe Fitzpatrick. Catch the latest promo! Leave a comment.Leave A Comment

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