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OLTL's Erika Slezak Never-Before-Seen Photos From Her Private Collection!

By Michael Fairman

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Courtesy/TOLN.com & archives Walter Miller, Jr.

Courtesy/TOLN.com & archives Walter Miller, Jr.

This week, Radar Online teamed with TOLN.com to share some very exclusive photos directly from the personal collection of six-time Daytime Emmy winner, Erika Slezak (Viki) of One Life to Live via her long time fan club president, Walter Miller!

The 12 photo gallery has photos of Erika through the years including: some images as her as Viki’s alter Niki Smith, the first time she played her, with Allan Miller who played lawyer, Dave Siegel, a picture of Erika at the Daytime Emmy where  one afternoon the ceremony was held outside on a boat in which her hair is ruffled up. and a beautiful picture of Erika shortly after she joined OLTL in which she writes, “Boy, was I young!”

In addition to the photos in that gallery, TOLN.com has even more photos with Erika from her collection from her early courtroom scenes on One Life, to photos with her on-screen then love interest Lee Patterson (Joe Riley), to some of her soap magazine covers, to Erika’s second Emmy win in 1986, and more!

Take a look at the galleries, and then let us know which one of the images was your favorite, and what is your favorite memory of Erika as Viki on One Life to Live?

 

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She’s so beautiful and talented. Heartbroken that I am not getting my daytime dose of Viki, and the marvelous Erika.

Tali(not Smith)

Read my post.

Who the hell cares. about erika. she was yesterdays news. time to move on. one life to live will not be back. erika needs to retire now. the reboot honestly sucked. time to move on. lets support days of our lives bold and the beautiful’ young and the restless. forget about general hospital that soap will be. cancelled soone.r than later

while i will agree to an extent somewhat , with you about the reboot (some of it was good, some of it i wasnt too happy with BUT still supported it) i will completely disagree with you that shes yesterdays news; she is a very talented woman; why does she need to retire? because of her age, or because oltl is temporarily shelved for the moment? either way, that wouldnt be right; shes so loyal to her show that shes jumped on board both times when the reboot was attempted and is still patiently waiting for things to get straightened out between PP and abc so she can go back to work. you say lets support those three soaps (but exclude gh? not quite; actually liking that one more then the others right now myself but still wish the other shows well and for their fans, hopefully they never get cancelled ), well how about also supporting the oltl actors who jumped at the opportunity to keep their show going only to get screwed over at least three times now and despite that, are STILL being loyal and waiting for this situation to get solved so they can go back to work. erika is NOT yesterdays news; she is more talented then half these so called movie stars; and definitely some of the other soap actors; theres a reason she has six emmys.

And Maybe it wont be cancelled. You are a rude disrespectful person to fans and to Erika Slezak. I am not a fan of OLTL but know Erika is a legion and is one of the most talented actresses to grace our screens. When she wants to she will retire but if she still loves acting, why should she. General Hospital has the highest ratings in the most important demo 18-39 and the improvement that Frank & Ron keep brining on. I have never cared for the CBS soaps but I do watch Y&R when Tristan is on. All for soaps should be supported because they are the last ones on to bless our lives.

Read my original post.

I agree with anna’s comment one life to live sucks big time. erika go retire with robin strasser.

whoa Anna! you need a happy pill 🙂 just sayin’. Long live #oltl #amc and #gh ~!!!

Erika is a daytime legend…whether or not OLTL returns she’ll never be forgotten by millions of fans who love and adore her…she’ll always be remembered while a few will ask ‘Anna who?’…nobody cares! I dont mean to sound a little harsh but the truth is Erika has a lot of fans and followers who like her which i know out number the rare few who dont!!! OLTL wasnt as good as it couldve been but it still was a good effort. You have a right to your opinion as i do as well!!!

Look at my post.

Have some respect for those of us who love and respect our beloved one life to live. The fans were teased with bringing it back only to have it taken away again. The pictures are beautiful.

…and your point..lol

oh… was very saddened to read your post. no rude comment back, but hope that one day you will be able to look back on your life with as many memorable moments as Erika has.

Anna I totally disagree on every thing you said. Very harsh comments. If OLTL comes back on after settling the dispute. Maybe you shouldn’t watch it since you have such a low opinion of it… OLTL will always be my #1 favorite soap and Erika Slezak will always be my #1 favorite on OLTL! Erika is a sweet person and one classy lady ! I liked all the pictures of Erika. I remember those scenes that go with each picture. She is a beautiful woman inside and out. When I think of OLTL what comes to mind is that it is heart-warming…When and if it comes back, need to get back to those kind of stories. Erika Slezak forever more!

Something for you.

WTF is your problem u must work for ABC ANN u are vey RUDE u may not like ES but u don’t have to be so damn rude . I feel sorry for u that u so much animosity against someone you don’t even know . Life is to short to have so much animosity it’s not healthy.

There is no “Anna” – it’s the same jackass that’s always on here making brainless comments – I wish this person would kindly croak and do the rest of us a gigantic favor – you can tell it’s always the same person because she/he/it cannot construct one single sentence that makes any kind of sense.
Erika Slezak is a great actress and person, very classy in every way, and I do hope the One Life can return at some point in the not too distant future.

We’ll care what “Anna” thinks when she can write one sentence that isn’t a fragment of a brainless thought.

Always the class Diva on ABC daytime. It will never be the same!

Erika is a daytime legend… over 40 years of giving us the very best of everything. Her record breaking 6 daytime emmys for outstanding lead actress is daytime proves it. OLTL will be back and I believe will be stronger than ever.

I’m not a OLTL fan. I do think Erica Slezak is rather commanding, as was
her father.

I thought I should tell anyone who may care, ES’s father was Walter Slezak,
whom starred in one of my favorite movies; LIFEBOAT. He played the
geman captain. To me, he was brilliant and the apple does not fall far from
the tree!

If you want to be entertained and see part of her acting gene pool, then watch
Alfred Hitchcock’s Lifeboat. The film was released in 1944.

I hope you all enjoy the movie and long live Erica Slezak!!!

Ive seen Lifeboat…one of my favorites…Walter…Erikas father made an appearance on OLTL in the early 1970s…both father and daughter…great actors! And speaking of Lifeboat…there was a young actress who costarred in the movie named Mary Anderson which is the same name of a character that was on Days Of Our Lives for many years until murdered by the Salem Strangler in the early 1980s…actress Mary Anderson…imo…kinda resembled Barbara Stanger, one of the several actress who played the character of Mary Anderson on Days ( Barbara played the role during the late 70s to early 80s b4 the role was recast one last time)…hope i didnt bore u with this…lol

4got to mention…Mary Anderson who played nurse Alice in ‘Lifeboat’ appeared in the 1960s primetime soap ‘Peyton Place’ as Catherine Peyton Harrington(i believe Mary is still with us and in her 90s now)…and the late Tallulah Bankhead from ‘Lifeboat’ was a big fan of the daytimes crime/mystery soap ‘Edge Of Night’…i once read an article that she once called Edges studious suggesting one of the female characters should shoot her bastard husband for cheating on her… soooo funny!!! i didnt know if you knew of these two Lifeboat actors soap opera connections!!!

That did not bore me at all!!! The more info, the better. Thank you
for the heads up. Tallulah was a riot, but I did not know about her
EON connection. I did hear of the character named Mary Anderson
on DOOL. As for actress Mary Anderson, she played sweet very well!
And maybe I will find the father/daughter duo on youtube! Thanks !!!

I did not know about Mary Anderson starring in Peyton Place either!
You are a wealth of information! Thank you!!!

Ironically, i watched Lifeboat again earlier today on Turner Classics Movies…

Those are wonderful photos. Erika Slezak is and always be a class act. Thank you Michael for sharing this link.

I can’t wait for more OLTL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

These are fun pictures. Thanks for sharing them. I hope OLTL comes back as there is still is an audience for it.

Anna sounds suspiciously like nancy.

Scott what voices do you hear in your head. lol

Beyond the Gates

RATINGS: ‘Beyond the Gates’ Inches Closer to ‘General Hospital’ in Total Viewers

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Beyond the Gates and General Hospital

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.

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General Hospital

Antonio Sabáto Jr. Breaks Silence on His Son’s Arrest for Fatal Hit-and-Run

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Antonio Sabato Jr.

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.”

Jack Sabato

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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A post shared by Antonio Sabato Jr (@antoniosabatojr)

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Breaking News

‘Days of our Lives’ Veteran James Reynolds Reveals Parkinson’s Diagnosis

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James Reynolds

Days of our Lives long-running cast member James Reynolds revealed on the November 10 edition of Entertainment Tonight that he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and his character of Abe Carver will now be going through an on-screen Parkinson’s battle as well.

Speaking with ET’s Nischelle Turner, the 80-year-old actor and Daytime Emmy winner shared how he attempted to hide the warning signs dating back to 15-20 years ago when he would have, “What they call the hallucinations. My wife (Lissa) would say, ‘You were hitting me last night in bed,’ and I would say, ‘What?!’ I was having these really horrible dreams.” Reynolds also added that he realized falling out of bed was an early symptom of Parkinson’s too.

Discussing the on-going tremors that have become more noticeable over time especially in hands, James shared that when he finally told the Days of our Lives cast they were nothing but “extraordinarily helpful and supportive.”

Photo: ET

SCREEN LIFE TO MIRROR REAL LIFE

Now with DAYS about to launch into Abe’s Parkinson’s storyline, Reynolds hopes that he can turn his experience into something positive by encouraging others facing the disease to keep fighting. During the sit-down, Reynolds co-star Jackée Harry (Paulina Price) recalls her reaction to learning of Reynolds’ real-life diagnosis and how she has continued to search for new treatments to inform James about.

Although Parkinson’s disease currently has no cure, there are medications and treatments can help those manage symptoms and improve quality of life. The condition progresses at a different pace from individual to individual.

As discussed in his conversation with ET, Reynolds cited Michael J. Fox and Alan Alda as two high-profile celebrities who have brought awareness to the disease.

Abe

Photo: JPI

In story on DAYS, Abe in recent weeks had been experiencing tremors which led to seek help and a diagnosis Dr. Kayla Johnson (Mary Beth Evans). Soon Abe and others will find out of his battle with Parkinson’s. Although on the promo for this week’s DAYS, Abe is seen telling Kayla, that he will do something, “when the time is right.”

James Reynolds is one of the most prolific performers, being the longest-running Black Actor in a role on a television series, not to mention his aforementioned Lead Actor Daytime Emmy win in 2018, and being inducted in 2025 into the Daytime Emmy Gold and Silver Society of honorees.

You can check out James’ in-depth conversation on his Parkinson’s diagnosis below.

Share your thoughts for James after learning of his health battle, and what do you think of Days of our Lives incorporating the disease into Abe Carver’s Salem storyline? Let us know in 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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