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Michael E. Knight Remembers His ‘All My Children’ Parents and the Moments He’ll Never Forget with Jill Larson and Ray MacDonnell (Exclusive)

By Michael Fairman

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Photos: JPI and ABC

Before Michael E. Knight became General Hospital’s Martin Grey back in 2019, he had a long and enduring run as one of soap’s most beloved and treasured characters on All My Children as Tad Martin.

Along the way, Knight won three Daytime Emmys for the role, and was given the now classic speech in All My Children’s final ABC episode where Tad toasts to all with whom he loved. He previously had told Michael Fairman TV, he knew the minute he read that monologue it was written by the iconic creator of the series, the late Agnes Nixon.

Michael appeared on All My Children from 1982–1986, 1988–1990, 1992–2011, and made his last appearance in the role in 2013 in Prospect Park’s online revival of the series in its first and only shortened season.

Photo: ABC

Throughout his journey in Pine Valley, Michael worked with so many towering icons that came out of the ABC soap opera, but during the Michael Fairman Channel’s recent interview with him, Knight spoke on all of his TV parents, Mary Fickett (Ruth #1), Ray MacDonnell (Joe), Jill Larson (Opal) and Lee Meriwether (Ruth #2).

MARY FICKETT

Mary Fickett was the first actress to win a Daytime Emmy as an individual performer on a daytime drama series back in 1973, She won for her impassioned speech as the mother of a young man who was drafted to fight in the Vietnam War.

“Mary Fickett was was something: very first Daytime Emmy winner ever. She won when the Daytime Emmy ceremonies truly didn’t even exist,” recalled Knight. “She was amazing. Talk about heart, and Erika Slezak (Ronnie, GH and ex-Viki, OLTL) has the same thing where it’s just this heart radiating out out of her. You can believe you can hang any kind of family drama on top of that character and it would, because the Martins, were a great little solar system.”

RAY MACDONNELL

Dr. Joe was everything to All My Children, the moral center, but in real-life, MacDonnell was quite the jokester. “I just loved Ray because he had sort of a face like Mount Rushmore. He was always saying (as Joe), ‘Well, we’ve got to do more tests at the hospital.’ But, he was literally one of the funniest people,” recalled Michael.

Photo: JPI

“I think it was my second day and Tad was being picked up. Joe and grandma Kate (Kay Campbell) picked me up at the police station in Central City, after Tad had been arrested. We were doing dress rehearsal and I didn’t know these people at all at this point. I’m in the backseat, and Joe and Kate are sitting in the front of the car. Kate looks at Joe and says, ‘Give the boy a break, Joe.’ Ray turns around in the middle of the scene and says, ‘Shut up, you old bag.’ I started laughing until I was just crying.”

Ray’s impact on Michael was far-reaching, in fact, because of his TV father, there is a connection to this day with Knight’s real-life dad. “It’s so easy to play love for somebody when they make you laugh like that. To this day, because of Ray, I call my father “Pop” because Tad used to call Joe, “Pop”.

JILL LARSON

While Jill Larson and Michael Knight together could find the comedy in any scenes given to them, Opal and Tad loved each other and so did the two actors, who faced the heartbreaking cancellation of All My Children together.

Michael explained, “Jill was the very first person I saw after they announced that All My Children was canceled.  It always makes me tear up to this day. She and I were crossing each other on the set. Brian Frons (ex-ABC exec, Daytime) had just made the announcement on the screen, because he didn’t come to the studio, and told us they were going to call it a day for our show.”

Photo: JPI

In a emotional moment, Knight shared, “We just looked at each other. Jill had tears streaming down her face. It was like losing a piece of your family, because you do it for so long, you think, it’s like the weather. The sun’s always going to come up again. You realize that this family, this thing, this emotional investment is never going to be there again. It just really kicks you in the gut. But to go back to her work, Jill could make you laugh and make you cry, you kno and in the same scene.”

LEE MERIWETHER

Having to connect with another actress as your beloved mother on a soap can be difficult, but as Michael explains when motion picture and TV actress, Lee Meriwether took over the role beginning in 1996, Knight was a bit starstruck having loved her as Catwoman in the motion picture. Batman (1966),

“Lee was great. She’s one of the easiest people in the world to be with,” shared Michael. “Absolutely stunning. I remember looking at her going, and I think she would’ve been her sixties. She is just one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever worked with inside and out.”

When talked turned to how do you replace Mary Fickett the heart and soul of the Martins? Michael expressed, “Recasting Mary Fickett is like trying to replace Tony Geary (ex-Luke, GH). It’s like, if you get this wrong, you are screwed.  I think they just got lucky, lightning in a bottle, you know?  She made it her own. Lee never tried to imitate anybody. They were great with the characters on All My Children. All of the Martins were very, very well scripted, but I think they got really got lucky with Lee. Anybody else that could have been a disaster.”

Watch our full conversation with Michael where he remembers his days as Tad on All My Children, plus his evolution as GH’s Martin Grey below.

Now, let us know, did you love All My Children’s Mary Fickett, Ray MacDonnell, Jill Larson and Lee Meriwether as Tad’s parents through the years? Share your thoughts via the comment section below.

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I love All My Children and its characters so much. I miss it everyday! Please bring it back in some way! Please!

You are not alone, Ellen.

All My Children

‘All My Children’ Alum Alan Dysert, Ex-Sean Cudahy, Passes Away at 75

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Alan Dysert

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.”

Sean Cudahy

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.

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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?

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Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos

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.

Mark and Kelly

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’ Movie Writers for Lifetime Revealed: Ron Carlivati, Jamey Giddens and Leo Richardson

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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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