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OLTL's Erika Slezak chats on her 40th Anniversary homage episode & more!
Courtesy/ABC
It is hard to believe, but come this March 17th Erika Slezak will have played the indomitable Viki Lord Gordon Riley Burke Riley Buchanan Buchanan Carpenter Davidson Banks for 40 years on One Life to Live. And, as the centerpiece of Llanview, the series is planning a very special homage to Erika and Viki on April 26th!
TV Guide spoke to Erika Slezak to get her thoughts on the upcoming episode, working on soaps for decades, OLTL’s cancellations rumors, the addition of Kim Zimmer to the mix in Llanview, and the men in Viki’s life. Here are a few excerpts below:
Slezak on the scoop on the 40th Anniversary episode: “I haven’t seen the script yet but I think it’s going to include a lot of me. [Laughs] No flashbacks or anything. I think they’re going to dredge up a lot of what’s going on in Viki’s life right now and how she’s dealing with it. When Frank said, “We’re writing a show for you,” I was so touched I started to cry. It’s so sweet. But I was kind of hoping it would all go by unnoticed.”
Slezak on the men in Viki’s life: “I’ve been fortunate in that they’ve given me partners who were willing to share. Not every actor is unselfish. A lot of them are very selfish indeed and it’s always all about them. Fortunately, I’ve never had that kind of guy. Even Clint Ritchie (Clint), who wasn’t necessarily the best actor in the world, was so wonderfully natural and pure and touching that we made a great pair. They used to call us The Cowboy and the Lady. I’m not saying Clint was a bad actor. He was a real-life cowboy. He wasn’t used to acting, and television. But we found something that worked. Viki brought out a sweetness in him.”
Slezak on if it was true that Robin Strasser was indeed freaked that Kim Zimmer was rejoining OLTL: “Kim coming back to the show was a freakin’ brilliant opportunity. Robin was indeed concerned. She came to me and said, “Erika, I just don’t know about this.” But I told her this could only be good for our characters and the show. Bringing back Echo delved into our history and brought up all that old animosity. It’s just fabulous! And Kim is such a joy.”
So now we ask, “What is your favorite Viki moment from the past 40 years?” Let us know.
Beyond the Gates
‘Beyond the Gates’ Emmy Winner Ambyr Michelle Wants to Compete on ‘Dancing with the Stars’: ‘Pick Me’ (Exclusive)
Soap opera fans are always clamoring for when Dancing with the Stars reveals their cast each season, that they would include a familiar face from daytime drama, but it rarely happens, if ever, anymore.
Over the last several years, the series has leaned heavily into casting celebrities with massive TikTok or Instagram followers, which in turn, have helped this season and last have their best ratings numbers in years.
But, how about for next season’s cast of Dancing with the Stars, that it could include newly-awarded Daytime Emmy winner, Ambyr Michelle (Eva Thomas) of Beyond the Gates?
Photo: CBS
LOVE OF DANCE TO LOVE OF ACTING
Michael Fairman TV spoke to Michelle about her dance background and if she would love a shot at lifting the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy during Wednesday’s November 11, livestream chat on the Michael Fairman Channel.
Ambyr explained to fans (who joined in on the live chat), how she began her show business career. “I started off as a dancer, first and foremost. Acting wasn’t really something I wanted to go after. I did plays when I was younger, but it was just something we did in school, but I really wanted to be a dancer. I moved out to LA to dance, and I fell out of love with dance, which was so weird.”
This year’s Emerging Talent in a Daytime Drama Series winner, added, “I was like, ‘What is going on?’ I moved all the way out here for dance. I found I was forcing myself to go to dance class, and I just didn’t have the passion for it. I was working at this restaurant at the time, and one of my coworker was like, ‘What about taking an acting class out here?'”
Next, Ambyr took the coworker up on the idea. “So, I took an acting class and I fell in love with it that day,” shared Michelle. “I was like, ‘I want to do this for the rest of my life.’ I thought, I would love to book a role, of course, as a dancer, but I think acting has a little bit more longevity.”
Photo: ABC
A SHOT AT THE LEN GOODMAN MIRRORBALL TROPHY
When the talked turned to if Ambyr would consider or be interested in appearing on the ballroom dance competition series, she piped up with, “I would love to do Dancing with the Stars! Pick me!”
As those in the live chat rallied around this idea, it made us think, Ambyr could be the first contestant from Beyond the Gates, and someone representing the soaps. It checks off so many boxes! To which Ambyr replied, “That would be beautiful.”
You can check out the full conversation with Ambyr below.
So, what do you think soap fans? Can we make sure Ambyr’s name gets in front of the producers and casting director for next season’s Dancing with the Stars? Would you like to see her in the competition? If so, who would be your dream pro professional dance partner for her? Let us know in the comment section.
The latest ratings are out for the week of October 26-30, 2026 and the big takeaways include: that CBS daytime’s Beyond the Gates was separated by only 23,000 viewers behind third place (of the soaps) General Hospital! For the last several weeks, Beyond the Gates has been closing the gap on this year’s winner for Outstanding Daytime Drama Series, and continuing to best GH in the key demos.
According to the latest Nielsen ratings breakdown from Soap Opera Network, the final week of October brought Beyond the Gates 1.790 million on average tuning-in and the show set a season high in total viewers. Meanwhile, General Hospital hit a new season low! The long-running ABC soap had 1.813 million for the week, and once again the series did not go over the 2 million mark.
Meanwhile, in the key Women 18-49 demo, Beyond the Gates was firmly ahead of GH with a rating share of 0.21, while General Hospital had 0.17 rating share.Then, in the key Women 25-54 demo, Beyond the Gates was once again ahead of the ABC soap with a ratings share for that demo at 0.30 while GH came in with 0.26.
Photo: CBS
MORE BY THE NUMBERS
In addition and comparatively, Beyond the Gates +22,000 viewers week-to-week, and had the largest gains in viewership year-to-year in daytime TV with +267,000 from this in 2025.. However, General Hospital seems to be going in reverse. The show was down -56,000 viewers week-over-week and down -22,000 year-over-year .
BEYOND THE GATES
Let’s take a look at some of the storylines that had people tuning-in to Beyond the Gates during the ratings week:
Hayley (Marquita Goings) attempted a massive shocker regarding her pregnancy and tried to use it to extract money from Bill Hamilton (Timon Kyle Durrett). Although, Bill saw right through her game, he demanded a paternity test, and made it clear he has no intention of raising the child—planning instead to pay her off to take the baby and leave. Meanwhile, Hayley confided her plan to her cousin Randy (Maurice P. Kerry).
Jacob Hawthorne (Jibre Hordges) and Naomi Hamilton (Arielle Prepetit) clashed over Jacob’s ongoing investigation into The Impaler, causing significant strain in their marriage. At the same time, Smitty (Mike Manning) considered taking matters into his own hands—including potentially heading to Mexico for evidence—while Martin Richardson (Brandon Claybon) worried about what comes next.
Photo: ABC
GENERAL HOSPITAL
Over at General Hospital for the ratings period, the story served up included:
Carly (Laura Wright) and Valentin (James Patrick Stuart) teamed up to investigate what really happened to Jack Brennan (Chris McKenna). Later, Danny (Asher Antonyzyn) leads them to Jack’s dead body.
Jude (Wil Traval) dropped a bombshell claim to Alexis (Nancy Lee Grahn); that he is Phoebe’s father, while Brook Lynn (Amanda Setton) and Chase (Josh Swickard) signed their divorce papers.
Then, Danny caught Rocco (Finn Carr) and Scout (Kayden Brenna Tokarski) sharing a kiss, plus the shocking return of Heather Webber (Alley Mills) capped the week.
Now the questions become; without having much promotional synergy in the ABC day-part to draw more eyeballs it is not helping but hurting General Hospital. It seems Beyond the Gates is also a benefactor of a one-two-three punch of CBS soaps (Y&R, B&B and BTG) and promotion.
However, that still doesn’t take away the fact that Beyond the Gates is close to besting GH in all ratings category as they go head-to-head in some markets across the country.
So, are you excited to see Beyond the Gates climb in the ratings? Are you concerned for General Hospital? Do you think they can stave off Beyond the Gates in total viewers or will the upstart soap overtake them in the next ratings report? Share your thoughts in the comment section.
Antonio Sabáto Jr., the former Jagger Cates of General Hospital and GH: Night Shift, and the former Dante Damiano of The Bold and the Beautiful has issued his first public statement since the incident involving his son, Jack’s arrest in Alaska for a fatal hit-and-run.
Jack is the son of Sabáto Jr. and Oscar-nominated actress Virginia Madsen, and according to court documents obtained by KTUU Jack, was allegedly driving a white Chevy Tahoe when he hit and killed Carl Simmonds, 42, near an intersection in Anchorage around 5:35 a.m. on Monday, November 9.
The reports indicated that Jack fled the scene — but later decided to called the cops to say he hit “something” that “suddenly appeared in the road” while he was “doing late-night DoorDashing.”
Photo: NBC
Now, Antonio has taken to his Instagram breaking his silence on the situation, sharing, “At this time, my family and I are navigating an extremely sensitive and deeply personal matter.”
He added, “As a father, my love for my children remains unconditional, and my priority is the well-being of my family. We ask that the public and members of the media honor our privacy during this difficult time and keep us all in your thoughts and prayers.”
The soap alum concluded, “I also wish to extend my heartfelt condolences to the family and loved ones of the gentleman who tragically lost his life. My thoughts and prayers are with them as well. We sincerely appreciate your compassion, understanding, and respect for the privacy of everyone affected.”
Jack Sabáto was arraigned in court on Tuesday, November 10 with bail set at $5,000, and a no-driving order and the potential of $5,000 penalty fees if he fails to attend future court appearances.
Antonio is the father to Jack, 34, daughter, Mina Sabato, 24 and son, Antonio Sabáto III, 15.
This is a developing story. You can check out Antonio’s official statement below.
So, let us know your thoughts on this tragic hit-and-run, which claimed the life of another man, and Antonio’s statement, via the comment section below.
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‘Beyond the Gates’ Emmy Winner Ambyr Michelle Wants to Compete on ‘Dancing with the Stars’: ‘Pick Me’ (Exclusive)
THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL: Katie Kicks Bill to the Curb … for Now
RATINGS: ‘Beyond the Gates’ Inches Closer to ‘General Hospital’ in Total Viewers
B&B’s Sydney Bullock Weighs In on Future of Dylan and Will: ‘I Think She Can Hold on to Him for Awhile’ (Exclusive)
Antonio Sabáto Jr. Breaks Silence on His Son’s Arrest for Fatal Hit-and-Run
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‘Days of our Lives’ Kyle Pryor Debuts as Dominic Marino and Says of Alleged TV Mom, “Deidre Hall is the Absolute OG, Amazing” (Exclusive)
‘Beyond the Gates’ Emmy Winner Ambyr Michelle Wants to Compete on ‘Dancing with the Stars’: ‘Pick Me’ (Exclusive)
THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL: Katie Kicks Bill to the Curb … for Now
B&B’s Sydney Bullock Weighs In on Future of Dylan and Will: ‘I Think She Can Hold on to Him for Awhile’ (Exclusive)
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I am happy they are doing an episode for her. She is the heart of the show. My neice used to say at 2:00 every day…”it is time for the Viki show”.
Ms. Slezak is a class act…a gracious lady and a brilliant actress. Happy anniversary to her! I hope she and OLTL enjoy 40 more years of success!
Miss Erika is the greatest! 🙂
I liked it when she told Clint that Cord Roberts was his son. Not to mention that Natalie was Jessica’s twin sister and also her daughter. Plus the way that she stood up to Roxy when she started to trash Natalie . That was completely awesome. But then riding into save Natalie’s life against her own father. Now that says something about a mother’s love. Natalie’s and Viki’s love has truly evolved. Plus , the way that she adores Rex . Even though , she didn’t know anything about him. Now, finding out that Rex is actually biologically Clint’s and Echo’s son , she doesn’t seem to care. Natalie is still protective of him. And loves him . All and all, Viki will do anything to protect and be there for her children.
Favorite Viki moment? Gosh, there are too many to even begin to count! LOL One of my first memories of Viki actually was back in 1985 when she turned into Niki Smith on the witness stand at Tina’s trial for the murder of Harry O’ Neill. I remember just being mesmerized by the whole thing!! And shouting at the TV “Leave her alone! She’s not Viki. She’s Niki!” LOL From that moment on I was a HUGE Viki and Erika Slezak fan. Viki going to heaven, Gabrielle Medina leading Viki into Eterna and Viki remembering more about Eterna, Viki going back to 1888 in time to stop Clint’s wedding to Miss Ginny, and the stroke storyline are also all favorites of mine. And of course anytime she is Niki Smith or pretending to be Niki it is freakin’ hilarious!! And I love all of her alters! So, congratulations Ms. Slezak on 40 years! Here’s to 40 more (and more Emmy’s)!! You deserve it all!