Y&R fans received a recent blast from the past when J. Eddie Peck returned to all-new episode of the CBS daytime drama series, reprising his role of Cole Howard.

The last time J. Eddie was in Genoa City was during his initial run with the show from 1993-1999.  A few years later, Peck ventured Pine Valley and All My Children, and took on the role of Jake Martin from 2000-2003.

Now, in 2023, Cole is back when he is lured to Aunt Jordan’s (Colleen Zenk) house in Oregon only to be blindsided by her plot against the Newmans, along with his now supposed previously dead daughter, “Claire/Eve” (Hayley Erin).

Sharing his appreciation for the opportunity to come back and play Cole on the top-rated soap opera, J. Eddie took to his Instagram with a very heartfelt message to those who consistently let the show know they would love to see his return.

Photo: JPI

Peck expressed: “I just wanted to take a minute to thank those of you who have commented and supported my recent return as Cole Howard on CBS’ The Young and Restless.”

He went on to share: “I just want you to know that I’m having a great time. It’s wonderful to be back working with my Y&R family, and really this would not have been possible if I hadn’t had those of you that have supported me so much over the years and reminding the show of just how much you would like to see Cole’s returns  So, I truly want to thank you from the bottom of my heart. I want you to know I’m having a great time, and I hope you and your family have a wonderful weekend. All the best.”

What did you think about J. Eddie Peck’s ‘thank you’ to the fans for willing Cole back onto the canvas? Have you enjoyed seeing his return thus far on Y&R? Comment below.

 

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Get ready for the feuding soap opera divas, when five actresses known for their signature primetime and daytime roles are brought together in Lifetime’s new holiday film, Ladies of the ’80s: A Divas Christmas.

Saturday night, December 2nd on Lifetime (8pm ET/7PM CT) marks the highly-anticipated holiday movie premiere featuring: Donna Mills (ex-Knots Landing), Nicolette Sheridan (ex-Knots Landing), Morgan Fairchild (ex-Falcon Crest et al), Linda Gray (ex-Dallas) and Loni Anderson (ex-WKRP in Cincinnati).

Here’s what we do know! In story, five alums from the long-running soap, The Great Lakes reunite for a live Christmas finale. Uh-oh!  Now take a look at the backstory of the colorful cast of characters (pay special attention to the clever twists on the actresses names!)

Photo: Lifetime

DANA CUNNINGHAM (Donna Mills) Now a sitcom mom, she’s yet to make amends to ex-bestie Juliette after abruptly leaving the soap back in the day. Not that she hasn’t tried: “When I thought the world was going to end in Y2K,” Dana says, “I reached out to her, and she never called me back.”

LILY MARLOWE (Loni Anderson) After replacing Dana on ‘Great Lakes’, Lily never again found a role to win her acclaim. “What do I have to show for (my career)? An arc on  For the People – Shonda Rhimes’ only flop!”

JULIETTE MATHESON (Nicollette Sheridan) “She left me for L.A.,” the party girl turned fashion mogul recalls of Dana’s betrayal. Will their feud derail the entire event?

MARGEAUX ROBERTS (Morgan Fairchild) “Fasten your face-lifts, ladies, it’s gonna be a bumpy weekend!” The sassy grande dame of ‘Great Lakes’ sees the Juliette-Dana beef as the perfect escape from her own domestic drama.

Photo: Lifetime

Now, making this all the more hysterical is the director of The Great Lakes reunion special, which makes the five women live under the same roof, is its former child star Alex, who has gotten his ex-girlfriend, Nell to direct the finale. Meanwhile, in the subplot. the ‘Ladies of the ’80s’ come up with a plan to get Alex and Nell back together.

As with any good soap opera, there is a major food fight. Linda Gray shared with USA Today ,”The food fight was one take. And it was fabulous.” And of course, their is a bitch-fest slap-fest. Morgan Fairchild revealed, “Oh honey, we all got ours in. Mine was a simple, ‘How dare you?’ with a slap. But I was hoping for a punch.”

Photo: Lauren Dukoff/Lifetime

The movie’s EP, Larry Thompson, who is a Hollywood manager and has Donna Mills as a client, said that the entire scene peaks with the”slapfest coup de grâce.” What is that exactly? That is when Donna Mills pushes Nicollette Sheridan into a pool in a nod to Dynasty’s Lily bond battle between Dynasty’s Alexis (Joan Collins) and Krystle (Linda Evans).

In case you missed it previously, check out the trailer for Ladies of the ’80s: A Divas Christmas below, also starring Patrika Darbo, Alec Mapa, Mills real-life daughter, Chloe Mills, and Christopher Atkins with theme song by Tiffany.

Now let us know, will you be tuning in to the movie for a premise that should delight many a longtime soap fan? Share your thoughts in the comment section.

The emergence of Aunt Jordan played by As the World Turns favorite Colleen Zenk, and Claire’s (Hayley Erin) machinations against Nikki Newman (Melody Thomas Scott), gave CBS daytime’s The Young and the Restless a ratings spike.

For the week of November 13-17, 2023, (the 17th being the episode which featured Aunt Jordan’s first appearance in the cliffhanger) gave Y&R a total of 3.343 million viewers.

According to SON, the series celebrating their 50th anniversary season, added +168,000 week-to-week and all in all their highest number of viewers since the week of June 26-30, 2023.

Photo: JPI

One can only expect next week’s ratings which would be for the week of November 20-24th and the numbers for the following ratings week of November 27-December 1, to also bring in some hefty numbers for the top-rated soap opera, as viewers witnessed the drama that unfolded between the entire Newman family vs. Aunt Jordan and Claire’s vengeful plot.

Photo: JPI

In addition, Y&R’s sister soap, The Bold and the Beautiful also had a strong week averaging 2.862 million viewers. B&B had a net gain of +66,000 viewers compared to the week prior.  The series continues to play up the story that has Eric Forrester (John McCook) trying to cope with the fact he has been told he only has a short time left to live.

Photo: JPI

So, what do you think about the ratings performance of The Young and the Restless? Were you tuning-in to see what went down when Nikki (Melody Thomas Scott) was stabbed with a hypodermic needle than put on an IV-drip of alcohol? Let us know in the comment section below, and make sure to check out our brand new livestream interview replay with Y&R’s Hayley Erin below.