11.29.08
No thanks to ABC News this Thanksgiving.
Much of the last several days has been spent watching coverage of the absolutely horrific hostage situation in Mumbai, India. Every hour, it seems, we switched over to one news channel or another to see what was new, or just watch the same thing be hashed and rehashed.
But for me, all of the coverage, all of the footage, was already a hazy buzz of violence and noise after watching the initial announcement from ABC news cut into afternoon programming on Wednesday. George Stephanopoulos, with his serious mien, reported the terror attacks in Mumbai, centralized around places like The Oberoi and Taj hotels, where “westerners” are most likely to be found. Where those holding British and American passports might be in danger. He said this, meaning without really saying it, that the West was the real target…while the body of an Indian man was being dragged off the street in the footage that played behind him. The sightless eyes of the victim still open, a more haunting indication of a target than any open passport.
11.26.08
They (don’t) like to move it move it.
Sometimes, it really seems like navigating a New York sidewalk should be an Olympic sport. It’s like an obstacle course, where your obstacles are actual people. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to step away at the last second lest someone barreling down the sidewalk run right into me. NO ONE moves out of the way. It’s always me! What is that about? There’s been at least three instances where people actually walked over me like I was nothing more than a speed bump… and it’s something that I don’t understand at all.
I mean, I adhere to your basic sidewalk rules. I stay to the right as I walk, I try to maintain a steady pace and trajectory, etc. So why don’t the people around me? How can you be in such a freakin’ hurry that you completely disregard there are other people walking from the opposite direction?
Soap Opera Weekly: Blogging With Mala
I spend a lot of time kvetching and carrying on about what I don’t like. Probably TOO much. So, in the spirit of the season, I’m going to share some things that I’m thankful for — both in daytime and in my life!
1. Much of NYC’s population has poor enough vision to keep mistaking me for a 24 year old.
2. GH: NIGHT SHIFT had a successful second season, proving that there’s still hope for good soap yet!
3. My unfortunate coffee spillage incident this morning did not impact any important papers on my desk.
4. AMC’s Jesse and Angie came back to the show this year, and so did Bianca — complete with a girlfriend in tow.
5. GH’s Jerry may be gone, but he’s only “mostly dead,” which means he’s “slightly alive.” (Five points to anyone who gets that movie reference!)
6. There have been many, many adorable children to squee over in soapdom this year (GH’s Emma, Jake, and Cameron, ONE TREE HILL’s Jamie, B&B’s Jack, etc.) — often with the bonus of interaction with a good-looking guy. It’s a genius recipe for soap success where I’m concerned. Cute kid + cute guy. You can’t go wrong!
7. ATWT’s Luke has had kisses, storylines, and a fetching hair cut — and he’s lost most of the striped shirts!
8. Coleman! GH’s scruffy barkeep has made much of this year tolerable. If only Jake’s served turkey, I’d be there tomorrow!
9. The posters on our forums. Y’all keep me on my toes and help me keep my finger on the pulse of what fans are feeling.
10. VERBOTENE LIEBE. I’m totally hooked on the German soap and it’s introduced me to a lot of cool new people.
11. DAYS’ Philip. ‘Nuff said.
Happy Thanksgiving! 
originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com
11.20.08
Soap Opera Weekly: Blogging With Mala
:::bangs gavel::: I hereby call this meeting of Pearl Clutchers Anonymous to order! Just kidding. I know there was a lot of gasping and perhaps some rending of clothes and tearing of hair, but I really don’t think the Nov. 19 liplock between AS THE WORLD TURNS Brian and Luke was as traumatic as some people were thinking it would be. I actually found the scenes touching and sad. Poor, heartbroken Luke just wanting someone to open up to, Brian trying to comfort him…and it then it all taking a very “Hi, this is my mouth introducing itself to your mouth!” surprise turn. I mean, I have no objection whatsoever to an older man falling for Luke. (In fact, the posters on our ATWT forum know I have a running joke about Dusty moving in on Luke since he’s already gone through all the Snyder-Walsh women.) My objection is that Brian is married to his grandmother and once said badass grandmother finds out where her new hubby’s mouth has been, I don’t think Brian will live very long. Alas, Laurence Lau, we hardly knew ye!
Seriously. I thought Noah was repressed, but Brian’s repression puts his to shame. He is so tightly controlled and courtly, and he dotes on Lucinda. Seeing him kiss Luke was mindblowing — and yet also made a LOT of sense. I don’t know about anyone else, but the whole time he was protesting the Nuke PDA and cautioning Luke against the Foundation supporting the Big Gay Film Festival, I got a distinct tinge of “the gentleman doth protest too much.”
As for me? I’m not protesting! I know “Lion” isn’t going anywhere as a couple (see above observation re: Brian’s lifespan, LOL!), but it effectively confirms that Luke is allowed to have more than one person interested in him. It doesn’t make him promiscuous; it’s natural and normal for a young gay male like Luke to draw more than just Noah’s eye. It’s important to put that out into the universe. Now if I could just put that Dusty/Luke thing into the universe…
Okay, I’m kidding again. 
.
originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com
11.18.08
Soap Opera Weekly: Blogging With Mala
The 13th and final ABC Super Soap Weekend — and my second — has come and gone and I still can’t believe it’s over. It was such a fun whirlwind that I want to share some of the highlights with you, our readers.
FRIDAY
10:17 AM: My cab driver to New York’s JFK airport tells me I look like the Virgin Mary and even holds up an illustrated calendar for proof. (Note: I did not see the resemblance.)
11:36 AM: I spot Cameron Mathison (Ryan, AMC), his wife Vanessa, and their lovely children Lucas and Leila near our departure lounge. (Yes, they were on the same flight.)
12ish: I run into my SOD colleague and weekend companion, Lauren Flynn, and we go off on a search for snacks to take on the plane.
4:30 PM: We disembark in sunny Orlando and head down to the Disney Magical Express, spotting the Mathison clan by the baggage carousel. I can’t help but crack up seeing a playful Lucas go sliding across the carpet.
5:05 PM: We pass a party for Super Soap contest winners on the fake beach outside the Yacht Club resort hotel. We see AMC’s Aiden Turner (Aidan) at the bash and then continue to the hotel so we can check in to our rooms.
7:15 PM: We eat dinner at Morocco’s Tangerine Café in Epcot Center’s World Showcase. Mmmmmmm couscous.
7:35 PM: Lauren and I get caught in a freak thunderstorm and are forced to take refuge inside the Mexican pyramid.
SATURDAY
7:28 am: I’m passed by Aiden running down the path that connects our hotel to the Boardwalk. He says a polite “Good morning,” as he goes by.
8 AM: Various actors are brought in for a press junket, during which I admire Rebecca Herbst’s (Elizabeth, GH) shoes and talk to Michael Easton (John, OLTL) about his graphic novel and the upcoming NY Comic Con (I LOVE comics). GH’s Greg Vaughan (Lucky) comes over to hug his “favorite Canadian” (besides Jason Thompson) Bree Williamson (Jessica/Tess/Bess, OLTL) while I’m talking to her.
1:45 PM: I hit the AMC talk show at the Premiere Theater in Hollywood Studios, hosted by TV’s Bob Guiney. I text message Lauren so she can find where we’re sitting. When asked how he feels about both Cameron and Aidan making out with wife Rebecca Budig (Greenlee), Guiney cracks, “A brother gotta eat!”
3 PM: Lauren and I watch our first Casting Call hosted by Cameron and promptly wheeze ourselves to death laughing as he pretends to be OLTL’s Cole and offers to “make out behind the dunes” with the three lucky contestants. Actual Cole, Brandon Buddy, and Kristen Alderson (Starr) show up to finish up the program.
4 PM: We stick around for the GH talk show, once again hosted by Bob Guiney. GH’s Kelly Monaco (Sam) more or less steals the hour by saying hilarious and scandalous things. Go find it on YouTube! One of her milder observations is that “Sam does not steal, she borrows” men.
6:30ish PM: Lauren and I go back to our hotel to change clothes and chill for a bit.
8 PM: We make it back to the park for the Colgate Total Street Jam. We’re then totally impressed by the rock stylings of Bradford Anderson (Spinelli, GH), Jason Tam (Markko, OLTL), and Brandon Barash (Johnny, GH) and AMC’s Bobbie Eakes and Melissa Claire Egan (Krystal and Annie) doing a Bob Fosse number. Am also amused that Kristen Alderson reprises a number from the non-Disney movie ANASTASIA that she sang at her very first SSW.
Somewhere around 9:30 PM: Lauren and I head over to the afterparty (sorry you couldn’t come, guys), where we grab some food and sit with Lauren’s OLTL pals, John-Paul Lavoisier (Rex) and Farah Fath (Gigi), Farah’s sister, and Jason Cook (Matt, GH).
9:45 PM: Pirate Mickey and Donald appear. An adorable little moppet in a purple dress makes a wobbly beeline towards Mickey…and is followed by daddy Thorsten Kaye (Zach, AMC). (It’s safe to say that Marlowe Kaye is probably the only female at SSW who ran AWAY from Thorsten Kaye. LOL.)
10ish PM: I spot AMC’s Darnell Williams (Jesse). Lauren urges me to go say hi. I can’t. Am suddenly struck shy. (Yes, I had an attack of shyness. I can’t believe it either.) Rebecca Herbst and Michael Saucedo’s (ex-Juan, GH) son, Ethan, rocks the house by singing “Life is a Highway” by Tom Cochrane with the party’s awesome pirate cover band. Susan Haskell (Marty, OLTL) takes pics of Marlowe getting into the groove.
10:30ish PM: I finally get up the nerve to talk to Darnell, who proves to be awesome and gracious as I admit how important Jesse and Angie are to me and how wonderful it is to have him back on AMC.
10:45ish PM: GH’s Braden Walkes (Cameron) dances his little heart out. The onlookers, including yours truly, are floored at his fresh moves. Lauren and I congratulate Brandon Barash on his rockin’ Street Jam performance and also catch up with Jason Cook.
11:00 PM: Lauren and I are dancing and spy James DePaiva (ex-Max, OLTL) peering at us over the rims of his glasses. LOL!
11:15 PM: We spot GH’s Tyler Christopher (Nikolas) and grab a few minutes with the truly sweet Greg Vaughan and his gorgeous wife Touriya. Hugs from Vaughan render us temporarily speechless.
SUNDAY
7:25 AM: We arrive for the second press junket of the weekend and soon get time with AMC’s Vincent Irizarry (David), Cameron Mathison, my new friend Darnell, and various other folks from GH and OLTL. (Sorry for not naming everyone! Rest assured, everybody was great!)
11:15 AM: We settle in for the “Schemers,” panel, consisting of Vincent, Melissa Claire Egan and Thorsten; OLTL’s Kassie DePaiva (Blair) and Bree Williamson and GH’s Kelly Monaco and Kirsten Storms (Maxie). They all try to figure out exactly how their characters qualify for that designation…and just how fertile Kaye’s various ABC characters have been!
12:15 PM: We go over to the giant Sorcerer’s Hat stage, where Erika Slezak (Viki, OLTL) has a candid chat with THE VIEW’s Sherri Shepherd. She’s totally hilarious.
1:45 PM: Yet MORE Erika Slezak time, with Bob Guiney, where she reveals her deep and abiding love for Donald Duck. Then, the OLTL teen scene plus Farah Fath is brought on. Fath is surprised by Jason Cook pretending to be a fan. He runs up to the stage and hugs her.
3:00 PM: Cameron hosts a Casting Call with John-Paul and Farah. Wackiness and much laughter ensues. No making out behind sand dunes this time!
9:30 PM: We arrive at the end-of-Super-Soap afterparty, noticing that there is a table reserved for Susan Lucci (Erica, AMC), completely with a chilling bottle of champagne.
9:45 PM: Making it three days in a row of official sightings, I spy Aidan dressed to kill in a natty suit and compliment him. He smiles and says, “I always wear my Sunday best.”
10:00 PM: We catch up with Bree Williamson, Kimberly McCullough (Robin, GH) and McCullough’s adorable godchildren and soon notice that Ethan Saucedo and his sister Ella are on the dance floor again! Cue a reprise of “Life is a Highway.”
MONDAY
3:30ish PM: Upon returning to JFK airport, I head for home, but Lauren has to pick up bags. She spots Susan Lucci and husband Helmut Huber at the malfunctioning baggage carousel, patiently waiting for their things!
originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com
11.06.08
Soap Opera Weekly: Blogging With Mala
In an effort to not spew forth my myriad feelings on Todd and Marty’s UTTERLY REPULSIVE AND OFFENSIVE SEX SCENE on today’s ONE LIFE TO LIVE, I’m blogging about something else entirely. Something frivolous!
See, the last page in our magazine is always this feature called Just Asking (formerly known as the FYI), and if there’s one thing that I’ve found a lot of actors agree on, it’s that the questions are tough to answer when posed on the fly. And I’m always like, “Come on. It can’t be that bad. Just say whatever comes to mind.”
Well, it’s time for me to eat crow. I give, I give. I decided to try my hand at answering the very same questions I often turn on the cast members. It took me my entire commute into the city (25 minutes) and then an extra twenty sitting at my desk. Yup, this is NOT easy.
Everybody I’ve ever made do this? Y’all have my sympathy.
……………
JUST ASKING!
My first celebrity crush: Bo Duke, from THE DUKES OF HAZZARD.
Earliest childhood memory: crying because I wanted another little kid’s music box.
Fear I would like to conquer: watching OLTL when Todd and Marty are on.
Most embarrassing moment: not being able to work our video camera while trying to interview an actor/actress at ABC Super Soap Weekend last year. He/she was really sweet about it.
If I weren’t an actor/actress, I’d be: If I wasn’t a writer, I’d probably be an English professor.
Biggest mistake I ever made: not spending more time talking to my grandparents during childhood trips to India; they’ve all since passed away.
Something you’d be surprised to know about me: I can speak 5 languages, in varying degrees of fluency (from perfectly to ‘where’s the bathroom?’).
Question most often asked of me: “Where are you?” (My mom asks because I only have a cell phone, so I could very well be anywhere when she calls.)
Question I wish somebody would ask me: “How in the world did you steal Johnny Depp away from Vanessa and the kids, you homewrecker?!”
I would like to swap lives with: Angelina Jolie. Just for a day, because who wouldn’t want to hang out with Zahara? That kid is fierce!
Strangest fan encounter: Haven’t had one yet. Let’s get on that, people! Recognize me!
One thing I want to do before I die: learn five more languages.
Most fascinating person I ever met was: my grandfather, a former British Army doctor who had a great story about yeti sightings in the Himalayas.
Famous event I would like to have witnessed: Mahatma Gandhi’s 1930 “Salt March,” to the coast in protest of the British Salt Tax.
Person on my show I’d call if I needed bail money: Technically, I should answer this with a Weekly staffer — and I’d say our Copy Chief. Just for fun, I could tell you what B&B and ATWT actors I might call, but I wouldn’t want to make the uncalled ones feel left out.
My epitaph: (Yes, I cheated and Googled.)
“The stars are not wanted now; put out every one,
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun,
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods;
For nothing now can ever come to any good.”
— W.H. Auden
originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com
11.04.08
November 4, 2008. Remember it.
I stood in the polling booth this morning and had a serious moment of zen, a moment that made my throat clog with emotion and my eyes grow damp and one that I will likely never forget.
No matter what the outcome of today’s presidential election is, it is a day for the history books. One where a biracial man’s name was on the ballot for U.S. President, printed in simple black type, as plain as day.
Yes. We can.
