Connect with us

News

OLTL's Ilene Kristen on Upcoming Special Episode, Fraternity Row & Prospect Park!

Courtesy/ABC

Courtesy/ABC

Ilene Kristen is proving once again why she is one of the most valuable player in soaps! Currently, Kristen is knocking it out of the park during the final weeks of One Life to Live, as her Roxy Balsom is spearheading the campaign to save Llanview’s favorite soap opera “Fraternity Row” which has just been canceled.

However, in real life Kristen is trying to deal with the cancellation of the 43-year-old One Life to Live which air its final episode on January 13th on ABC and Prospect Park’s failure to resurrect the show online.

And, in this new interview with TV Guide, Kristen discusses this coming Monday, December 19th’s very special episode in which Roxy faints while visiting the set of “Fraternity Row” and then wakes up as Lorraine, the leading character on the soap!

Here are some excerpts!

Kristen on her special episode: “I think the fans are gonna love it. This whole cancellation of Fraternity Row is a really brilliant way for our writers to comment on all the hell we’re going through at OLTL. It’s really great because I totally represent the fan base, all the wonderful fans who fought so hard to keep OLTL on the air. I represent the fans who showed up at the ABC upfront last May and booed (former ABC Daytime chief) Brian Frons when he walked into the building. And I’m proud to do so! They’re a fervent group of people. In the episode, Roxy falls unconscious and the next thing she knows she’s the star. And everyone else in Llanview is in the show, too. Lorraine is married to David Vickers. Viki and Clint are her maid and butler.  It’s hysterical and a real valentine to our audience.”

Kristen on Prospect Park’s failure to bring OLTL online:  “Who knows what really went on there with Prospect Park? I’d like to know the real story someday. I was a little concerned when I heard the name of their (web platform) was going to be the Online Network. I thought, that’s a little… dry. They needed a dazzling, great name. I don’t know what was going on in their hearts and minds. I’d like to think they had good intentions, but a lot of people think it was all a ruse to keep the fans from being upset. Their reputation as a company is a little soiled at the moment. Our union, AFTRA, was only too anxious to speak with them, and the same goes for the Writers Guild. They cancelled a lot of appointments with the unions and I don’t think that’s been represented correctly in the press. The fans need to know the unions wanted to make this happen. I was on the AFTRA committee for this whole project and we did a lot of work — meetings, lots of correspondence — and it never really ever got down to the particulars. It’s like they weren’t serious. Prospect Park hardly went to any of the cast members at AMC, and yet they were claiming that the actors there were demanding this and that. And that was so not true. It’s very enigmatic.”

Kristen on her sadness over OLTL coming to its conclusion: “Not that I ever wanted Ryan’s Hope to be over, but I’m sadder about OLTL going away. I had left Ryan’s two different times and had such a strange history with them, but my last four or five years there were great. But I also knew I wouldn’t get to play another great character if that show didn’t go off the air. Roxy has been the most fun you can have doing something legal. I’ve been able to do some amazing things on this show. Why would I look for another part when Prospect Park said we were continuing? If you can still play Roxy, you don’t look elsewhere.”

What do you think about what Ilene had to say? And, are you enjoying Roxy getting the chance to take center stage with this ingenious storyline that mirrors all OLTL and soap fans sentiments?

Click to comment

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Ilene said, “If only I could get my goddammed set from Foxy Roxy’s Hair Haven and set it up somewhere and start my own show — Ask Roxy! We could do it real cheap like the old-time Soupy Sales Show. We could bring on all the stars of OLTL. It could be, like, OLTL 2012: After the Apocalypse!”

Even with a poor imitation of Foxy Roxy’s Hair Haven set, I would watch. Ilene, you and Roxy are irresistible.

So funny-wouldn’t it be great?

Love it – absolutely love it !!!

I would definitely watch it!!!!! May even help tie up the loose ends we would have when OLTL is off the air! Awesome idea. Who knows, maybe some visits from the rest of the crew! What an awesome idea! I just love Roxy!!!! She is definitely a star in many ways!!! xx You GO GIRL!!!!

she’s hoot.

You funny!

I love that she is the VOICE behind the scenes for all the actors who were looking forwrd to PP.
I also love her honesty about PP. Without actually bashing them, she spoke the truth. PP was really never going to happen. At least not in reality.

Awesome interview. Ilene’s Roxy is an amazing character and part of what makes OLTL OLTL. She mentions RH–ironic that both soaps will share the same end date (January 13)–RH in 1989 and OLTL in 2012

Prospect Park has turned the legacy of OLTL into a big farce. If no cable network is gonna pick up OLTL, then let it rest in peace. But either way, don’t let Prospect Park approach this jewel.

She’ll always be Delia Reid Ryan to me. I bumped into Ilene outside the Riveria Cafe on 7th a couple of years ago, she is fabulous.

Love her! I’d love the show to continue especially for more Roxy! They didn’t show her much the past few years but now there’s a lot of her towards the end thank goodness!

When you think of Roxy when she first started, ugh, remember how awful she was? Drunk & lying all the time-it took forever to get to bottom of Natalie & Rex’s parentage but I have always loved how they kept her around & acknowledged that she raised Nat & Rex. The scene on the staircase at Llanview with Rox & Viki when Liam was missing just about killed me-classic OLTL moment-every day I get laughs & tears from this show. I love the boarding house thing she runs and the scenes at her beauty shop. Just great. I also loved Roxy & Echo-they were really funny together trying to protect Rex & hiding the gun etc., what great things they could do if we had the time.

I didn’t care for Roxie at all for a long time!

OMG!
Franco James from Southwest Hospital???
Could you die over this storyline right now??>

I was falling off my chair laughing at this! This storyline is right on, I think or have said to someone everything Roxie says/does!

i died ( laughing ) when i heard that…think gh is next to go.

GH: Not So Fast!
Posted by ghhshirley on Friday, December 16, 2011
Rumorville: Carolyn Hinsey, longtime soap opera editor/columnist and author, had the following to say on her facebook page:

“WARNING: Anyone who posts here that another soap is being cancelled will be blocked. Trust me: Frank [Valentini] and Ron [Carvilati] are not uprooting their lives to move to LA without a long term promise and the time they need to fix General Hospital. I know a LOT more than you do. So save it, losers.”

I am NOT giving up anymore! lol

And then (I forgot) her references to past storylines with Karen & Marco!! Oyyyyyyy is this show a JEWEL.

This too was hilarious. What about when Nigel said “oh the irony” and Roxie said “Forget about the ironing, we gotta save our show!” Why does this show have to get better every day when the Black Friday is so near? I wish it was horrible & I wouldn’t care if it was gone but that’s not the case. I am sick every minute over this.

Roxie is better than reality TV! She is the ‘real thing’.
I am a big ‘fast forward’ person. For me to sit thru a show, and then hit the rewind button like I have been lately, says alot for this show.

Did you see that new petition that was started? I doln’t know what good it could do at this point, but there is a group of people taking petitions to networks about these shows. Let me know if you want the link. All it takes is 5 seconds of your time……..

Yes, I want the link! I haven’t seen the newest petition but I have been obsessed since April 14 with saving this show. Thought we were safe in early July with the PP news, then the horrible news Nov. 23-ruined Thanksgiving for me. Up & down. I definitely feel like Roxie-I am emotionally exhausted from this but don’t want to let go.

I just posted it! Let me know if you have any problems accessing it

Where is it???

I Love You, Ilene–Yay!! 😀 😀

I have loved Roxy from day one….and I am so glad that she is in the spotlight, as OLTL comes to an end.

When I was about 14, I wrote a fan letter to Ilene when she was on Ryan’s Hope. And she answered me with the longest, sweetest letter I’ve ever received! While I loved her as Delia, she’ll always be Roxy to me! And I love what she is doing for the fans and for the show. She is just the best! I am still praying for a miracle….

I loved to hate Delia on Ryan’s Hope and I adore Roxy. And that’s all because of Ilene Kristen’s amazing gift. I’m going to miss Roxy and OLTL more than I can say. An era is ending…never thought I’d see the day.

they are going on line., watch

I hope you’re right!

Wow! Ilene has just hit it out of the park. She is one of the most creative actors ever to grace our screens. The writers have done a fantastic job with this story line. I just want it to go on and on. When Roxy fainted and came to as Lorraine with David mustache and all, I couldn’t stop laughing. That is as good as it gets. Tuc is irrepressable. He is no slouch when hamming it up. Loved it! Can’t wait for tomorrow….

Can’t wait for Monday’s show…it’s gonna be great !!
I remember Ilene as Delia Reid Ryan Ryan Colridge .
Another show I lamented with disbelief when it went off the air.

I love Ilene Kristen!! She is really getting my dander up about Frat Row. Thank you for representing the fans. I know you feel our pain. We feel your pain too. You truly are a treasure and “That’s the dog’s honest truth” 🙂

when ryans hope went off the air everyone seemed to get over it. watching it on soapnet reruns it seems justified. also watch amc for 35 years but don’t miss it. it ended and that’s it. (will never watch the chew however). oltl was much better in recent years but they are tired of overpaying all these actors apparently. viewership has dropped dramatically and i see their point. finally i will be able to get a day job after 35 years and not feel i’m missing something. you will all recover from this believe me. it is not healthy to get hooked on a soap opera. entertaining as they are, you will be better off.

Gee Bob: You have a point. Gosh, do you. Anyway, I am surprised to find that a man has been watching for this long. No judgement. BC the truth you have spoken so clearly as the soaps have interferred with my ambitions as well at times. Once they went on line, that helped more so.

OMG. That was fabulous. I can’t believe they put Niles in drag! What an homage to Dorian!!! That ending was so sad. This was our real final episode. So sad.

Robert, what are you talking about? What homage to Dorian? What ending was so sad? I must of missed something that you saw. This was not our real final episode, what it was, was an irony of how the actor’s would feel on their last day, and what we wouldn’t see in terms of their emotions on the last day. I dont get what U means when U say, that was our real final episode.

Oh, this is your likewise Jersey City friend.

This is a fabulous effort. I am warmed by how hard people are fighting to save THESE soaps! All the ABC soaps, but esp….OLTL. When the other soaps where cancelled, (from different networks) THIS KIND OF FUSS WAS NOT MADE. But, OLTL caught everyone by surprise. Everyone thought it would be AMC, (the one that would cause all the Rukus over the two soaps) MAINLY bc of Lucci, and Agnes Nixons visual ties to the show and to Lucci. But no, OLTL and the fans, are putting up a Hellava Fight, and I am proud of the fans. Let’s keep fighting. I have driven people to THIS website at abc.com, WHO didn’t know about it (plus told others of it), This is a great site, and everyone doesn’t know about it, bc I just found it myself. So wherever U log on and talk about what’s happening to OLTL, mention this site. This site is “What’s happening” and very upto date.

God Bless the Actor’s (and the fans) and let’s keep fighting.

“When the other soaps where cancelled, (from different networks) THIS KIND OF FUSS WAS NOT MADE”

That’s because OLTL and AMC had higher ratings than the soaps that were cancelled before. That has absolutely nothing to do because they are ABC soaps. I can guarantee you that if CBS decide to cancel The Young and The Restless, the protests it will generate from fans will make the fuss over OLTL’s cancellation look like a picnic.

No doubt Heather, I cant argue with you about that where Young and Reckless is concerned. But I will add AMC took people by surprise because of…. the Name Brands on the show. Lucci, Cameron, and Rebecca.

What I found sad is all this competition that exist among soap opera fans. Everybody thinks about its own little soap and could care less if the soap next door dies. Sure, that formula was the way to go in the 70s, 80, and 90s. But this can no longer be the case in 2012, not with the way the genre is dying. As Cady McClain (Dixie from AMC) pointed out, the only way the save the four last soap operas is for ALL soap opera fans to unify and support them ALL. Solidarity within the whole soap opera community is now essential to prevent the genre from going into extinction.

Because once the axe falls on a soap opera, it is not coming back (no matter how OLTL fans wants to believe that their soap will somehow ressurect in some form or shape).

Bottom Line. I don’t want them to take this show off!!!!!!!!. I love this soap. Started watching it after they took GL and ATWT off. And I fell in love with it. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE keep it on.

News

Robin Strasser Meets Kristen Alderson’s Baby Kiera in a One Life to Live Reunion

For years, Robin Strasser (ex-Dorian) and Kristen Alderson (ex-Starr) have been the best of friends and the best of co-stars. On One Life to Live, Kristen was only six-years-old when she began her journey as Todd and Blair’s daughter and met the iconic Strasser.

Now in 2024, Kristen is a new mom to her baby girl, Kiera. Strasser, who lives in New York, along with her best friend, John, traveled to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, just a few days ago to visit the Alderson family and spend the day with Kiera.

Taking to her Instagram a very happy Kristen shared, “Look at who came to visit today! Robin & her bestie John! Robin and I got all misty eyed when she met Kiera today!”

Photo: JPI

In a very touching part of her post, Alderson expressed, “Robin is such a special person in my life, it means so much to me that we’re as close as we are. She’s just the best❤️ A great day of laughs & a great brunch spread😍”

Robin added, “I’ve been smiling since I met her. I’m a big softie for babies, but what a doll Kiera is!” The Daytime Emmy-winning star, also shared, “I’m so grateful for my ongoing friendship with Kris and Kathy. Amazing women and loyal friends!”

What do you think about Kristen and Robin’s enduring friendship and recalling their time on One Life to Live? Comment below.

Continue Reading

General Hospital

Nancy Lee Grahn’s Star-Studded ALS Fundraiser Reveals “I’ll Be There” Video Featuring Soap Opera Notables

Talk about your impressive line-up! It’s a soap fans dream and for a great cause. General Hospital’s Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis Davis) is prepping her one-night only ALS fundraiser which will feature many of her friends and co-stars.

The benefit is set for May 4th in Glendale, California. Slated to participate are Genie Francis, Jane Elliot, Peter Bergman, Maurice Benard, Eileen Davidson, Thorsten Kaye, Michelle Stafford, Stephen Nichols, Rena Sofer, Jason Thompson, Kelly Monaco, Melissa Claire Egan, Maura West, Kristina Wagner, Gregory Harrison, Trevor St. John, Kate Mansi, Kirsten Storms, Cynthia Watros, and many others.

On Wednesday, Grahn took to her social media and released an “I’ll be there” video shout-out featuring, Monaco, Elliot, Bergman, Bernard, West, Harrison, St. John and more. In a touching and important moment in the new video, Michelle Strogny, who is battling ALS, is featured.

Photo: ABC

Previously, in speaking with Soap Opera Digest on the impetus of the event, Grahn recalled, “I was actually doing Zoom events during Covid and I met this woman that I just fell in love with, Michelle Strojny. At the time, Michelle had been living with ALS for four years. Now, it’s five years. She is a mom of a teenage son, she has the most wonderful husband, and she has been dealing with this [disease] for quite a while. And obviously, there isn’t a cure yet. It’s not survivable yet. But as she says, it’s not incurable. Nothing is; it’s underfunded. But anyway, I just really dug this woman. She is so grounded and filled with grace, and she spends all of her time working to raise money for the cause. We did a fundraiser for her last year and then I thought, ‘You know what? The soaps don’t ever get together to do something for charity.’ Collectively, we have this amazing community and we don’t collectively use it for a good cause, and I think it’s such an easy thing for us to do and we could potentially really make a difference.”

As GH viewers know, Gregory Harrison is playing the character of Gregory Chase, who is also battling ALS in a touching storyline that is currently playing out shedding a light on this disease.

For information on Nancy’s event, including the stars who are s scheduled to participate click here. To purchase tickets to the event click here.

Check out the video featuring Nancy’s friends and co-stars below.  Now let us know, your thought son the line-up for the benefit and helping raise awareness and funds for ALS research via the comment section.

Continue Reading

General Hospital

‘General Hospital’ Writer Shannon Peace Let Go, and Shares on Sprina: “One of My Only Regrets is to Not Have the Opportunity to Develop That ‘Ship’ Further”

As General Hospital’s new head writing team of Elizabeth Korte and Patrick Mulcahy gets off the ground and running, there are still changes a foot on the writing team.

Now comes word via breakdown writer Shannon Peace that she is no longer on contract with the long-running ABC soap heading into its 61st season. Peace shared a heartfelt message on her Instagram, thanking the fans, and the show for the opportunity and the importance of diversity in the writers room.

Peace began, “After almost 3 years on staff and 106 episodes penned, I am no longer on contract with General Hospital. Writing for this country’s longest running television serial drama has been an education of epic proportions; I will forever be grateful that I earned my WGA card on a daytime fixture that holds memories for so many.” (Peace pictured below with GH EP Frank Valentini and script writer, Charlotte Gibson from about ten months ago).

Photo: SPeaceIG

Shannon added “Even more importantly, as the sole Black breakdown writer (and only POC in the writers room) during my tenure, I pushed for vital interactions and discussions that prioritized inclusion, visibility, and representation”

The writer pointed to the example of vital interaction when in story, “Stella and Portia’s frank July 2022 conversation about the role race played in Esme’s framing of Trina is just one example of the impact I’m gratified to have had.”

Acknowledging former GH co-head writers was also part of Peace’s farewell expressing, “Appreciation to my former bosses, Chris Van Etten and Dan O’Connor – not only taking a chance on me, but for valuing my opinion and championing my voice.”

Courtesy/ABC

Many GH fans know that Peace was key to the development of the love story between Trina Robinson and Spencer Cassadine as played by Tabyana Ali and Nicholas Chavez. Shannon gave a special shout-out to ‘Sprina’ fans, “I also want to thank fans who were supportive of my work, especially the recognition of my love for ‘Sprina’. One of my only regrets is not having to develop that ‘ship’ further.”

She concludes her statement with,”In the aftermath of a historic writer’s strike that shed new light on the troubling ways writers are regarded in daytime, my sincere hope is that General Hospital recommits to valuing staff writer efforts and input, with a more intentional focus on diverse viewpoints — and thrives for another 60 years.”

Accompanying her post, Shannon added, “Thank you all for the love and support these last few years. I hope GH fans get all they hope for and more!”

So, what do you think about GH not renewing Shannon’s contract? Will there be more continued changes afoot? What do you think is the future of ‘Sprina’ anyway at this point as viewers wait to see if Nicholas Chavez officially returns to the show?  Comment below.

Continue Reading

Video Du Jour

Peter Reckell returns for a second visit with Michael Fairman following the wrap-up of his recent run as Bo Brady on Days of our Lives.Leave A Comment

Recent Comments

Power Performance

Kim Coles as Whitley

Days of our Lives

Airdate: 7-24- 2023

Popular