most demanding part I ever
played. I don’t think I could
do that much these days, but
it didn’t bother me at all to do
this at Y&R.”
Thomson had previously
appeared on Y&R in 1997
as legal eagle Patrick Baker.
“I worked with Christian
LeBlanc [Michael] and
Lauralee Bell [Christine]
and we were all lawyers,” he
recalls. “Christian and I had a
very funny time together andLauralee was really sweet. I
remembered we all laughed
a lot. I got to see Christian
this time and it was really
nice. He’s a very funny and
talented man.”
Thomson encoun-
tered other familiar faces
at Y&R. “I worked with
[Head Writer] Josh Griffith
on SANTA BARBARA,
as well as [Executive
Producer] Tony Morina and
[Supervising Producer] LisaDe Cazotte and some people
in wardrobe,” he explains.
“It was very nice. Daytime is
really a wonderful commu-
nity and I’d forgotten what
it’s like to be part of that
family.”
Although his visit was
for three episodes, Thomson
says he’s ready for more.
“I hope Daryl returns,” he
smiles. “I’ve gotten my feet
a little wet and I’d like to
come back to do it again.”n Robert is putting roots back
down in Port Charles as the town’s
new DA, and Tristan Rogers, who
is once again portraying the iconic
character he created back in 1980,
declares, “I’m delighted.”
The actor says that he never
had a formal conversation with
Executive Producer Frank Val-
entini about how long the show
intended for Robert to be back this
time around. “I’ve never actually
sat down and asked Frank for information,”
he explains. “I told him, ‘Don’t tell me too
much. I’d rather be surprised than sit down
and try to get involved with what you’re telling
me for the future because I know that it could
change.’ And it has changed.”
For the better, to hear him tell it. “The one
part that I kind of wasn’t too happy about was
when Scorpio came back [for short stints,
which Rogers has been doing periodically
since 2012] and he was like this appendage; I
was never actually a part of one thing or anoth-
er. There was never any real significance and
that bothered me because I’d always been used
to being a significant character on the show.
But things this time around started to change;
you can always tell when the weather’s
changing there when you start to appear with
various different characters. And I mean, everyTRISTAN ROGERS ON GH COMEBACK
time I’mon nowis different.”
Scorpio’s interactionwitha
wide range of characters reminds
Rogers of his early days on the
show. “This is what I used to do,”
he says. “I would flit in and out of
everyone’s storyline. Of course,
I always had my own, but I’d
always make an appearance in
someone else’s storyline, and
that’s kind of what I’m doing now.
I haven’t been with everyone, but
it’s just a matter of time. For me, it’s good.”
With the character back in action, Rogers
is focused on making sure that his dialogue
rings true. “My biggest challenge is that when
I pick up the script, I’m looking for ways to
‘Scorpio-ize’ it, to say it in the style he would
say it in. Scorpio’s a slick smart-mouth, no
question about it. Putting that back into it gives
the character entertainment value, and that is
really what I strive for, to give the character
entertainment value, so that people want to
look at him again tomorrow and the day after
that. That’s when you’ve done your job!”
The actor is gratified by the warm fan
reaction to Scorpio’s return. “At the end of the
day, you hope that what you’re doing is good,
and when you get a positive reaction to it, that
is even better. I think there’s some interesting
stuff coming, and I hope everyone enjoys it.”K
d SOAP OPERA DIGEST
JIM WARREN