Connect with us

Interviews

THE JEANNE COOPER INTERVIEW – THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS

By Michael Fairman

Published

18 years ago

on

Jeann CooperBy Michael Fairman

Listen to the audio:

[display_podcast]TV SOAP:

Where were you when the 5.4 Southern California earthquake hit?

JEANNE:

I was sitting in the courthouse on the witness stand in Santa Monica. Seriously, it’s a long story. It was absolutely amazing! The court clerk dove underneath the desk, the two councils and the plaintiff got under their desk, and the judge got under his desk, and I am sitting there, and I go, “It’s just an earthquake, you guys!” Well, the court recorder started laughing and said, “Are you still testifying?” I said, “No. I am just looking at the great leveler… fear!” I looked at the ceiling to make sure nothing was coming down. After the shaking, everyone was crawling out from underneath the tables, and the judge was walking back up to his chair and said, “I think we will recess for about an hour and half.” It’s amazing how frightened people can be during earthquakes, especially when you see damages, when we see the quakes around the world, and when 1,000 get killed. That’s an earthquake!


TV SOAP:

I want to go back to the night of the Emmys. You’re sitting in the audience. Your name is called, and then what happened?

JEANNE:

The name I heard barely, but I was thinking, “That is the way my name sounds?” I am not kidding. First of all, I was not going to go to the Emmys. I’ve gone, gone, gone. It’s always a 110 degrees heat, and I have gone many times. Like Meryl Streep, you just sit there and somebody else’s name is called and you go, “OK, they won.” So, I did not bother to look for anything to wear, and then Gino Colombo, my dear friend, told me about this gown and was insistent I go look at it. So I did, and it was pretty and cool and different. I tried it on, and looked at it and went, “OK, I will go.”


TV SOAP:

So, when your name is called you hear, kind of, “Jeanne Cooper”…..?

JEANNE:

My knees were so weak. I could not move, and my son, Colin who sat in front of me, and my son, Corbin Bernsen who sat in back of me, were all excited to be there with me. All of a sudden there is a seat filler in Colin’s seat and I was going to say to him, “Help me!” I turned to look for Colin, but I saw Doug Davidson (Paul) and I flew to him, and hugged and kissed him, and I was looking at Crystal Chappell (Olivia, “GL”) and she was rooting for me all the way. It was so sweet and kind. There was Michelle Stafford (Phyllis) and Christian LeBlanc (Michael) and Peter Bergman (Jack) at the table screaming and happy, and everyone was on their feet. Gina Tognoni (Dinah, “GL”) who had just won Supporting Actress was sitting at the table directly across from us. I said, “Help me up the bloody stairs!” And she said, “Yes, m’am!”

TV SOAP:

To set the record straight, this was your 10th nomination.

JEANNE:

I was nominated ten times in daytime, and two times in primetime.

TV SOAP:

This year, all the soap experts felt that you had your best two back-to-back episodes you have ever had in competition. Did you feel that way?

JEANNE:

Absolutely! Everyone who saw it said the same thing. After awhile everything seems to run together. But, basically these showed two elements of Katherine, and several people who voted said, “They were the best they had seen!”


TV SOAP:

Then I remembered in the pressroom, you acknowledging that you did this for “everybody who wanted this for me,” which I thought was so touching and so moving. Is that how you still feel about it at this point?

JEANNE:

Absolutely! Everybody who wanted it for me, and the press always wanted it for me for such a long time. So, the gratification was disbelief, and one thing that was totally amazing was Susan Lucci (Erica, “AMC”) was there…. and she had the greatest smile on her face. I said to her, “I am the only one who knows exactly how you felt!”

TV SOAP:

I kept thinking to myself the same thing… does anyone realize or know that you had been nominated this many times? With Susan, there were 19 times, but I said to my constituents she has been up ten times. They said, “No!”

JEANNE:

Most people thought I had won 5 or 6 times, like Tony Geary (Luke, “GH”)…. and Tony Geary who is a good friend of mine, said in the winners circle in the press room, “OK. Let’s show ‘em what the vets are like, baby!” He was so cute and I adore him! Everybody was so pleased for me. That’s what was touching. So many people had wanted this for me for so long, and frankly, I just did not really think I would get it. I will say that I was the coolest one in the heat at the Emmys though, in my dress.

TV SOAP:

In the pressroom, what did your son, Corbin, say to you upon your winning the Outstanding Lead Actress award?

JEANNE:

Corbin had tears in his eyes. He said, “I lived to see it,” and I said, “You lived to see it? I lived to see it!” Corbin flew in for the ceremonies, and that was a complete surprise. There was a pat on my shoulder, and I turned around and I said, “Hi. Corbin!” His brother was going to be my escort that night, and he said, “I am going to fly in and be her other escort!”

TV SOAP:

Where is the Emmy?

JEANNE:

I went and put it next to my Lifetime Achievement award, and now I felt I had come full circle. I got so many flowers, candy and gifts throughout the house, and coming from as far as Canada and England. The response was marvelous. The gift giving was a bit awkward, but people wanted to personalize something. I think everyone reacted, like, “Jesus! She finally made it!” Career wise, it probably was one of the most rewarding evenings, because it wasn’t just going there and planning it.

TV SOAP:

How was the annual Lead Actress nominee luncheon? Did you have a good time?

JEANNE:

It was fun. Michelle Stafford always makes those things fun, which means she is always nominated. (She laughs) It’s the third luncheon we have gone together, and Maura West (Carly, “ATWT”) and Nicole Forrester (Cassie, “GL”) were so delightful, too. I actually thought the Emmy might go to Nicole.

TV SOAP:

Did you like the roundtable Emmy table seating, as a throwback to the telecasts of year’s past?

JEANNE:

I loved the surrounding of the tables, and I have said forever, “Can’t we have a humongous luncheon at the Waldorf like it used to be?” It was glamorous and fun and it said, “This is a daytime event,” and at nighttime you are dressed to the hilt and hot in the jungles! It just has no chic to it, as far as I am concerned!


TV SOAP:

With “Y&R”, what do you think we can expect to see from Katherine in the coming months? And, do you have new writers on board now?

JEANNE:

Oh-ho…restoring the tapestry of the show! Katherine has big storyline coming up in two weeks that will carry on ‘till the end of the year… easily… Thank God! It is front-burner stuff! It will deal with Jill and Katherine, and many offshoots of that relationship.

TV SOAP:

In the past, you have been vocal in your opinion, and unhappy that Jill was made your daughter, and were hoping for a reversal. Will that be addressed?

JEANNE:

That will be approached. There is another character coming back that everybody loves and has been missed for a long time, so I am looking forward to that.

TV SOAP:

Will you get a romance?

JEANNE:

No, but I probably will at some point. But the thing of it is, it’s a character coming back that I love and the audience loved, and was dispensed with! In fact, the man that participated in that storyline called me from New York (an actor, who participated in that storyline). You know who I am talking about? Isn’t that exciting?

TV SOAP:

So, that will happen in a couple months?

JEANNE:

I think so, because Katherine needs a real friend.

TV SOAP:

Is Katherine still writing her autobiography, or was that dropped for good?

JEANNE:

They are so busy with “Restless Style” that I don’t know what happened to Katherine’s book. What do you think has been wrong with the numbers on the show for a while? The audience knows about work-place stuff. But we are also changing gears now, so things will be back on the upswing.

TV SOAP:

Have you seen a difference in the scripts with Hogan Sheffer and the new team at the helm?

JEANNE:

This last week, absolutely! The tapestry of what “Y&R” used to be is there, but hands are tied and false egos are involved. You are pulling for artistic achievement, but you have to protect the numbers and that’s what corporate does. We almost have a full page of writers now who are dealing with a few issues. I think, through the corporate side and the production side, they will make sure everything is right on board and we will be full steam ahead.

TV SOAP:

What would you still love to see happen to Katherine, that you have never gotten the opportunity to play?

JEANNE:

I always wanted Katherine to go into politics… sort of like the Anne Richards of Texas, who was the Governor of Texas and who was very blatant. She was so fantastic! She was one of the most dynamic and forward in her thinking. I think politically, Katherine would be great, but that became a Jack Abbott story on our show.

TV SOAP:

Was the sudden departure of Raya Meddine (Sabrina) a bit of a shock to the cast, or to you, as it had been made out to be by Internet rumors and reports? Do you think it’s just to get Victor and Nikki back together?

JEANNE:

I think Victor and Nikki days are over, because there are a lot of people who are star-crossed lovers, and as they become older, the general reaction is “They will never be parted.” You will always want Victor and Nikki back together, and they probably will from time to time, but you cannot at this point have Victor going off and impregnating another woman. The audience at home, at some point, will not like what happens. The wives will turn to their husbands and say, “Can’t you ever settle down?” And that’s who Victor is, unless you make him settle down. I don’t know if Eric Braeden (Victor) is willing to give up that part of the character at this point. He always wants that challenge, which is part of life and he does it very, very, well. And so does Melody Thomas Scott (Nikki). They are superb and accepting of these types of situations.

TV SOAP:

If you were to say a few words to describe working with Melody Thomas Scott, what would they be? In storyline, Nikki and Katherine are best friends. Is Nikki about to go off the deep end?

JEANNE:

Melody is delicious, and extremely talented. We have things coming up in tapings tomorrow that you have not seen this girl do in years. It’s called: “Study All Night Long” because it will blow you right through the roof. I wish I could tell you what she is doing, but I can’t. I have her on the telephone line, and I have Nicholas on the phone, and it’s boom, boom, boom, with all directions towards Nikki! It just reeks of the Bill Bell (creator and former head writer of “Y&R”) and it’s written by Janice Ferrari, who of course, was one of the prime writers for the show back in his heyday.

TV SOAP:

What about a few words to describe Dan Goddard (Cane), your on-screen grandson?

JEANNE:

He is such an “Aussie”. He is a pure delight, and absolute candy. He is kind and a deadly serious actor, and wanting to know more. He is very curious about everything, and it’s always a pleasure to do scenes with him. To do scenes, where he is all prepared and you attack it in a different vein, and he looks at you, and his talent really comes out because he rises to the occasion, which is great!


Jess WaltonTV SOAP:

And finally, a few words about Jess Walton (Jill)? “She is _ _ _”

JEANNE:

Delightful… neurotic… talented and neurotic… and talented and fun… and neurotic and talented! And, she has two new dogs!

TV SOAP:

And my last question is, when you won the Emmy what did Jess say to you?

JEANNE:

Jess said before I left, “Tonight is going to be your night, and I am not going to be there!” So, if Jess had come, I wouldn’t have won! (She laughs)

Related Topics:
Click to comment

0 Comments
oldest
newest
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Interviews

WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus Talks Humble Beginnings, Test and Albert, WrestleMania 22 with Mickie James, Current Women’s Roster (Exclusive)

Published

6 days ago

on

April 30, 2026

By

WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus has had an incredible in-ring career, on and off for over 25 years. Having debuted as a heel back in 2000, she held the then WWE Women’s Championship for a record 445 days back in 2005 and into 2006, before dropping the title to her nemesis, Mickie James at WrestleMania 22, and is considered one of the best to ever to it by many in the women’s locker room, then and now. When it was her turn to be inducted into the Hall of Fame Class of 2013, she chose Stephanie McMahon (this year’s Hall of Fame class 2026) to do the honors at the ceremony.

Fast forward and April’s WrestleMania 42 week in Las Vegas, Michael Fairman TV had a reunion with Trish for this very special interview. For when Trish started in the WWE, Fairman was working as a writer/producer for ‘Raw’ and ‘SmackDown’ and as told in their discussion, recalled how he worked with an upstart Stratus to help her learn her lines for her promos and more. Now two and half decades later, we caught up at Trish’s WrestleMania 42 pop up at Flankers at Mandalay Bay entitled First Crush by Trish Stratus. Trish had created an immersive experience for wrestling fans, Trish fans, and offered on stage Q&A’s with special guests and much more.

Backstage, she sat down with us to take a trip down memory lane, share her picks for WrestleMania 42 in the top women’s bouts (see if she predicted, correctly!) and talked some of her greatest moments. opponents. and friendships in the ring and out, plus what keeps getting her to come back when she has already accomplished so much in her iconic career.

Photo: WWE

TO SINK OR SWIM IN THE WWE

Trish shared on being a rookie in WWE with little to no experience, explaining, “I was thrown right into it. I was a fan of wrestling, watching it, enjoying it. Started to dabble into fitness modeling. So suddenly, I was kind of a public figure all of a sudden. Modeling is very different than actually speaking. They (WWE) literally threw me into the water and it was like sink or swim. The wrestling was one thing and they threw me out there for my first couple matches. Most people come up in the independent wrestling circuits. I had done some wrestling, but it was foundational kind of stuff. It wasn’t like performance yet and they gave me my first promo and I was the green one.

In the world of pro wrestling its all about getting the moment to prove yourself and making something out of it, Trish did just that when she became the beautiful manager/wrestler of the late Test and Albert, and suddenly they were known as .. yup … you remember … ‘T and A.”

BAD GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN

Photo; WWE

Stratus recalled, “I was sitting backstage waiting for them to find the storyline. I remember just chilling actually with Lilian Garcia (then the ring announcer.) We bonded right away. She was my little bestie. I was on the road for a couple weeks in a row and, and then finally they came to me like, ‘Today’s the day. … we’re putting you out there.’ So, there I was with Test and Albert, otherwise known as T-and-A … get it! Those were the days of the double entendres. We were told we were bad guys, and we had to flesh out our characters.   had to get people to boo me right off the bat.”

“I love being a heel” Stratus said passionately. However, when she comes out of retirement or makes special appearances, or comes back for a lengthy storyline she prefaces it with, “The thing for me to come back to the business for a little while means leaving my kids. I have to make sure that it checks all the boxes, right? I want be challenged as a performer, number one. I want to make sure I’m coming back and giving back to the businesses. Not just being self-serving.  So, when I can check those boxes, it’s exciting, and makes it fun to come back.”

BECKY LYNCH AND MICKIE JAMES

Photo: WWE

Trish revealed her favorite WrestleMania moments through the years and her perfect opponents; the women she feels she created magic with in the ring. “When I returned in 2023, we had done the babyface come back. I’ve come back and they’re cheered me and they’re excited to see me. Nobody expected that, and that’s what I love doing. I love the unexpected. I was working with Becky Lynch.  I knew she was the perfect babyface to be a bitch to and to turn on; bringing in the bestie so that I could turn on her with all those years of history, that’s juicy to me. I love it.”

As to her WrestleMania match resume, it was an easy pick fo Stratus, “I’m going to do with Mickie James WrestleMania 22. We like to call us the hashtag ‘longest rivalry in history.’ Becky Lynch and I might have rivaled that rivalry just because we did have a lot. But, I’m all about the stories, and to make sure there’s a meaning behind it. I want to foreshadow a little. I want to understand what my character’s thinking when I go into this. We had the fans captivated. I think at WrestleMania 22, with the way the crowd reacted and the way they were so invested in our storyline, I feel like we got them.”

Proud of what she and Mickie accomplished, Trish added, “They were like, ‘the women can hold a crowd, like the men can.’ I think that was like the moment we kind of had arrived. I have to say the Jazz/Trish stuff, the Victoria/Trish stuff, this is all stuff that planted the seeds. Mickie James and I, right there at WrestleMania, and we’re talking about a WrestleMania moment. I’m also going to give a shout out to WrestleMania 19 with Jazz and Victoria and Steven Richards … who took the best Stratusfaction I’ve ever seen!”

THE STACKED WWE CURRENT WOMEN’S ROSTER

Photo: WWE

While WrestleMania 42 is in the record books, we asked the Hall of Famer, her picks for the key women’s championship title match-upsbetween: Stephanie Vaquer vs. Liv Morgan, AJ Lee vs. Becky Lee, and Jade Cargill vs. Rhea Ripley as you will see below in our video chat.

Trish went three for three and had nothing but high praise for all six of the women who laid it all on the line less than two weeks ago at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Now below, watch this exclusive conversation with Trish Stratus. For more WrestleMania 42 week interviews, make sure to check them out on You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel.

Let us know, have you been a fan of Trish through her years in the WWE? Do you agree with her favorite WrestleMania moment with Mickie James? What has been your favorite match and story in Trish’s in-ring career? Share your thoughts via the comment section.

Continue Reading

Interviews

Y&R’s Christel Khalil Talks the Emotional Winters Family Turns of Events; Shemar Moore, and Lily and Cane’s Future (Exclusive)

Published

4 weeks ago

on

April 9, 2026

By

This week on The Young and the Restless, viewers have been served up an emotional series of scenes and episodes centering around the return of Malcolm Winters played by Shemar Moore, who returns to Genoa City to ask his daughter, Lily for her help (Christel Khalil). 

In story, Malcolm has aplastic anemia and needs a bone marrow transplant and his best option is a family member. However, things turn bleak when they both learn that she cannot be his donor because Lily previously had cancer. Enter Dr. Stephanie Johnson, the also returning Vivica A. Fox, who tells her son, Holden (Nathan Owens) and Malcolm, that Holden is his biological son! This admission gives Malcolm a chance at a donor match to save his life.

Now, Christel Khalil, who recently came back to the CBS soap opera following her maternity leave, and the birth of her third child, chatted all about the new complex family dynamics, working with Billy Flynn as her new Cane, and Lily being in cahoots with Victor Newman, and more in a new conversation on the Michael Fairman Channel. Here are some of the takeaways below!

Courtesy/CBS

Working with Shemar Moore again and their touching scenes in front of Neil Winters’ portrait

CHRISTEL: “It’s always amazing to have anyone come back that’s been away for a while, but especially, Shemar. It’s all the history with him being Lily’s dad. For me, it’s been 20 years of knowing him. Obviously, I don’t get to talk to him or hang out with him and that kind of thing. So it was just nice just to see him again and have that moment around Neil’s portrait, and to be able to share that together and even talk about that off-camera. It’s just special and feels like family, which is nice.”

The emotional scenes with Malcolm and learning Lily has a brother

CHRISTEL: “It’ a great story. I love when anything is grounded in reality where people who have maybe gone through the same thing can relate and it can help people I feel like that happened when Lily had cancer on the show. It’s nice to see something really heart-based, really family-based. I feel like we haven’t been able to see that with Lily in a long time. Then, finding out that she has a brother, I thought that was really amazing.”

Photo: CBS

Working with Nathan Owens

CHRISTEL: “I love Nathan. We have so much fun together. We’re already teasing and joking each other on set like brother and sister, so it’s really nice. I was really excited to find out that he was part of the family, which is I think more interesting.”

Shemar Moore returning to tape more episodes

CHRISTEL: “I haven’t read that far ahead, but there must be something happening because when Shemar returns, I know a lot of people are involved in something. So we’ll see!”

Photo: CBS

Lily’s involvement in faking her own abduction

CHRISTEL: “When I first read it I was like, ‘Yikes, that’s really bad. It’s very not like Lily.’ It seemed very out of character for her. But then, as I started reading more and learning more about the reasons behind doing it, I actually really liked it. I see what some of what the fans say and they’re like, ‘Lily’s always on her high horse and she’s always, little ‘Miss Goodie Two Shoes.'”

Lily with an edge

CHRISTEL:“Oh yeah, she can definitely be bitchy for sure. I think when she’s bitchy, it’s because she’s usually judging someone else. I think this was a nice thing to kind of temper the judgment that she’s always giving where it’s like, ‘Ok, you do some things wrong too, so let’s just relax.'”

Photo: JPI

Billy Flynn

CHRISTEL: “I love Billy. He’s such a sweet, amazing guy, and an amazing actor and very professional. We have a great time together.  I like how they’ve really switched up the Cain character completely. He’s not trying to be the old cane. It’s a completely new cane and you know, I think we have good chemistry together. So, t’s been really fun to play with him and there’s some exciting stuff coming up. Hopefully, everyone likes it.”

Phyllis and Lily’s history

CHRISTEL: “Lily’s always annoyed with Phyllis, right? Michelle Stafford and I always have  conversations where I’m like, ‘You killed my mom.’ She’s like, ‘No! I didn’t. She let go! ‘(in reference to Dru falling off a cliff) To know that Phyllis and Cane had a thing, is very disturbing to Lily.”

Now below, check out our full conversation with Christel on the homecomings of Shemar Moore, Vivica A. Fox and welcoming Nathan Owens to the Winters clan, plus the drama ahead for Lily.

So, have you enjoyed the Lily and Malcolm scenes thus far? What do you think will happen when Shemar returns for another set of scenes taping this month as teased by Christel? Are you down for Lily and Cane, as played by Billy Flynn? Weigh-in via the comment section.

Continue Reading

Interviews

‘The Bold and the Beautiful’s’ Jacqueline MacInnes Wood Talks What’s Next for Steffy Forrester (Exclusive)

Published

4 weeks ago

on

April 6, 2026

By

Three-time Daytime Emmy winner, Jacqueline MacInnes Wood is celebrating nearly two decades as Steffy Forrester on The Bold and the Beautiful. Last September, she returned to the CBS daytime drama after her most recent maternity and giving birth to her 5th son.

Now back at the soap opera and a mom of five, Michael Fairman TV caught up with Jacqui at the recent launch party for the BBTV global streaming app which also served as a gathering for the series 39th anniversary.

Wood gave us the lowdown of what may lie ahead for the often in-your-face Forrester dynamo who has no problem snarking a comment or two to Hope (Annika Noelle), and who definitely wants her mother, Taylor Hayes (Rebecca Budig), and all her loved ones to stay away from Sheila Carter (Kimberlin Brown)!

Photo: JPI

‘It’s been fun what we’ve been filming, we’ve been non-stop,” shared Wood. “The other day I was doing four episodes back to back, and we were just in it. It’s fun to play Steffy right now. Love her or hate her. I have fun playing her.”

FROM LEADING ROLE TO SUPER MOM

Jacqui also weighed-in on; if throughout her run on the show, she has changed dialog or  something in a script to help out her performance. “Sometimes, but not all the time. I let Brad Bell (executive producer and head writer) write. I try to execute the best way I can,” reflected Wood. “There are times where I see it and I go, ‘Let me take the reins here. I got this.’  They’ll kind of let me go. If it works, it works. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t. I’m OK for critique. We can’t work scenes over and over again. We’re not on that kind of medium or set. You kind of have to know what you’re bringing, but I’m always open.”

Being supermom to sons: Rise Harlen, Lenix, Brando Elion, Valor James and Talon, wife to husband Elan Ruspoli, and a leading actress on The Bold and the Beautiful is a lot to juggle, but Wood has found the way to do it all. “Honestly, I just truly live intentionally, ” explained Jacqui. “I know what we have here, and it makes me truly grateful to have my kids and to be able to still be a mom. I still see myself as a full-time mom. I’ll film episodes back to back, and then I go and I be a mom. I get to bring my kids to set. So. it’s cool.”

Photo: JPI

THE YOUNG AND THE BOLD

Wood is very impressed by B&B’s “new kids on the block,” Crew Morrow (Will), Sydney Bullock (Dylan), Brayan Nicoletti  (R.J.) and Laneya Grace (Electra) and shared she likes where Steffy is at in 2026, “I like the steady right now. I don’t want to like hit my cortisol levels yet. The younger generation can do that right now. I love the younger generation. I think they’re doing such a fantastic job, I just want to lean in and let them go and let them do their thing. If Steffy needs to chime in she will do that, and if she needs to slap some people, she can do that too!”

As to what man is in Steffy’s future, if it’s remaining happily married to Finn (Tanner Novlan), rekindling a romance with her ex-Liam (Scott Clifton ) for the umpteenth time, or a new man enters Steffy’s life, Wood would not say the way things may go down the line.

Photo: JPI

When talked turned to Steffy’s former pain killer addiction, Jacqui did say that. “It’s always a possibility” for the show to bring that back when it makes sense for Steffy and to service the story.

You can check out the full conversation below, and all the BBTV launch party interview with the cast, now on the Michael Fairman Channel.

So, do you think Steffy will be giving everyone trouble at Forrester? Do you think she will stay with Finn for years to come? What story would you like to see Wood be given at this point on the daytime drama series? Weigh-in via the comment section.

Continue Reading

Video Du Jour

CBS unveils Beyond the Gates season 2 promo and Jordi Vilasuso joins the cast. Leave A Comment

Recent Comments

Power Performance

Genie

Giovanni Mazza as Gio

General Hospital

Airdate: 12-8-2025

Popular

0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x