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UPDATE: A Mark Lawson "Imposter" posted comments in response to journo that OLTL was recently homophobic in its humor!

By Michael Fairman

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Photo Credit: JPI Studios

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

UPDATED from earlier today!  This evening On-Air On-Soaps heard directly from One Life to Live’s, Mark Lawson (Brody Lovett) who let us know that it was NOT the talented young actor who posted a comment on Advocate.com’s site about an item from Deep Soap’s, Sara Bibel, about an influx of what Bibel perceived as homophobic humorous lines over the last week of airshows,  but that of an imposter, posing as the actor. 

The real Lawson stated to us and on his facebook page, “I just want everyone to know that was NOT me! I appreciate whoever it was for attempting to back up the show, but they blamed it on the writers and that was a cheap shot. We have an excellent writing team as you can see from the last two incredible weeks on the show.”

It all came to light because Deep Soap’s journalist, Sara Bibel of Fancast.com had written an opinion piece that she felt after One Life to Live had trail-blazed last year with so many gay-inclusive storylines, including the incredible Kish romance and the en masse same-sex wedding ceremony, that last week’s new episodes of the ABC soap featured a plethora of homophobic humorous lines in the script that came across to her as insensitive, as said by various member of the cast in different on-screen scenarios.

One of those lines in question featured Lawson. In it, a shirtless Brody opens the door to the cousin of his bride-to-be, Starr, having just spent the night with his friend John, who is also getting married. Upon opening the door, he says, “No, no, it’s not what you think. We’re getting married … to Jessica and Natalie, not to each other.”

The leading LGBT news and entertainment site, Advocate.com has  also ran an item on the piece.  And, as in all of their online posts, visitors to their site can leave  their comments.  One of the names that jumped out of the comments area was that of a Mark Lawson!  But now we have learned it clearly was a fake.  On-Air On-Soaps has been in touch with the editor-in-chief of Advocate.com and informed him to delete the comments from the faux Lawson, as it is a misrepresentation, and we have received confirmation late this evening that the imposter’s comments were taken down from the website.

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Utterly Ridiculous!!!!! I’m gay and laughed at the scene in question. Isn’t it just like the media to try and get some nonsense started to justify their very own existence. My opinion is that the scene was perfectly performed and gave a light note to the situation at hand. Ms Bibel, get real and please stop with the homophobic garbage. There certainly is enough homophobia out there without you inflicting these types of false allegations.

Same here Toscanti, it didnt even dawn on me that it could be perceived as homophobic. Everyone needs to lighten up!!

Wow, I appreciate that Mark Lawson wanted to clarify – but his response is very one sided and I think it really misrepresented Sara’s piece.

Sara says in her post that the scenes were meant to be funny and were, in her own words “innocuous.” But I thought she had a valid point in questioning that so many mentions (this was more than just the Brody scene) in a short time was worth pondering.

I’m sorry but that’s how straight guys joke..they are idiots, doesn’t make them “homophobic” God, people can’t joke about ANYTHING anymore

I have not watched the scene in question (as I refuse to watch OLTL until they bring back Kish, have another LGBT s/l or Jean Passante is no longer writing for the show), however from the description of the scene, the remark does not feel even remotely homophobic. I wasn’t offended by the remark.

In these times of misunderstood statements and comments, people indeed should think twice about what they say and how they say it. However, I’m hoping that openly-gay OLTL head writer Ron Carlivati thought about the intended humor that was needed for the scene and proceeded appropriately with the scene that I thought worked out quite beautifully!

I have a gay son who I love and support 100%. I did not see anything wrong with the scene at all. The writers did an excellent job. I thought the scene was quite funny! In all, this is America, and these watchdog companies have their right to add their two cents worth just as I am doing, but they can not expect the good people of country to support micro censorship. If you are offended, do not watch it. This is why we are free to choose what we watch. I think Mark Lawson had a very wise idea to go on the defense because all it takes is one act of ignorance such as this and careers are ruined. Kudos to you Mark Lawson, I’ll keep watching!!! One more thing, good luck to the bloggers who find it necessary to gain five more minutes of fame one soap at a time!

There were a few other homophobic jokes in the scripts as well. I am a loyal fan that happens to be gay and I felt weird a few times at last weeks shows. There was a joke between John and Brody about wearing a dress, and I can’t remember the 3rd one cuz it was really bad. It wasn’t bad enough to get me angry, but I thought it was in poor taste. Oliver Fish should be at the bachelor party. He was friends with John. Just a year ago such insensitive jokes would not be taking place. I was more offended by how dumb the jokes were, than by how homophobic they were. I thought the writers were better than that, but whoever wrote that particular script should not be there. It really cheapened the characters and the show. I know it seems like no big because everyone jokes like that, but OLTL should know better. I thought OLTL was smarter than people who need to make jokes like that.

If you want to hear a line from the show this week that is REALLY UPSETTING. Thursday the bartender in the biker bar said to John McBain: “I hope you have insurance because I hear “Obamacare” doesn’t cover plastic surgery!” INAPPROPRIATE first off! Secondly, real life political statements do NOT belong on this soap. I wrote the show a letter and if they don’t rectify this somehow, I am starting a campaign AGAINST Carlivati. Frankly, I have been watching for 30 years and was shocked by the line. IT IS NOT OBAMACARE! It is HEALTHCARE. It was disgusting and totally tasteless and classless.

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 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 they were previously, “We had some scenes together years ago and we were both laughing. And 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 2025, and “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, Zamprongna 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 down 100% to play. “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 and 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? 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 of them 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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