Celebrating its 45th anniversary and summer premiere on the OWN Television Network on July 15, TOLN/Prospect Park conducted a call with longtime “One Life to Live” residents, Erika Slezak (Victoria Lord) and Kassie DePaiva (Blair Cramer). Each outlet had the chance to talk with both actresses, and discuss the return of the show not just online, but now back on television once again, favorite storylines, and more.
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Erika Slezak
Slezak mentioned to about.com’s Paulette Cohan about how she felt when the ABC announced its cancellation in April 2011:
“When the show was canceled, I think we were all terribly sad because our ratings were so high, the stories were wonderful, and it seemed pointless to cancel it just because it wasn’t making the money it was 40 years ago. No one is making that same kind of money. Then to replace us with a show that was weak, which was canceled immediately, it just seemed very sad.”
She continued on with her excitement that Prospect Park came in to revive the show:
“When PP came in and picked us up, it was like a shot in the arm. We thought, ‘Yes, we can go on.’ The amount of work and energy that was put into this show has been remarkable, and I think it has been rewarded by our fans turning out in droves to watch us now. This has been my family for 41 years, and I am glad to not have lost them.”
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Kassie DePaiva/Photo Credit: Donna Svennevik/ABC
While we may have lost “OLTL” for a year and three months, some it got to live on in Port Charles when the characters of Todd Manning, John McBain, and Starr Manning migrated to “General Hospital.” Helping also with the transition was Kassie’s Blair, and I got to ask her about her several stints on the ABC soap:
“It was great to keep Blair in the mix not knowing if this was ever going to happen again. However, it was hard because I’m so used to feeling like I am making a contribution. I never had that experience in my life where I just come in part time. Personally, it was difficult because I knew it was going to be short term and Blair was not going to come out with the winning hand as she was just visiting. That being said, I had this short arc that Bond wrote where Blair tells Todd she will always love him, but she can’t be with him. Of course, I got to work with Roger (Howarth) again, so that was wonderful.”
Omar Nobles of TVSource Magazine asked DePaiva what makes the Todd/Blair relationship stand out and how it survived for so many years. While Slezak commented that it is because both are simply, “magic,” Depaiva offered her opinions on it:
“I think they are relatable. They want the two lost souls to find happiness because they both came from such sad places. When Todd and Blair found each other, they became one person and one entity. You hope that they will finally come together and be happy. Of course, that never happens, but you never give up that hope, which makes it exciting for people to watch. They are also fun and we can laugh with and at them.”
Fans can watch new episodes of “One Life to Live” anytime online at http://www.hulu.com/onelifetolive, or on iTunes, both of which are free. Beginning on Monday, July 15, 2013 at 3 PM, “OLTL” will be seen on the OWN Network, as well as “All My Children” at 1 PM. Make sure to visit http://www.oprah.com/own to find the channel in your area.
To listen to the audio snippet featuring my questions with both Kassie DePaiva and Erika Slezak, you can click the following link: KASSIE DEPAIVA & ERIKA SLEZAK
