Three to get ready
B&B´s Susan Flannery, Justin Torkildsen And Jennifer Finnigan Are Chasing Emmy, But They´re Doing It Together.
This year, a trio from BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL is in contention for Emmys. Lead Actress nominee Susan Flannery (Stephanie) has twice taken home the trophy in that category (in 1975 for her role as Laura on DAYS OF OUR LIVES and in 2000 for B&B). The next generation is proudly represented by Younger Actor nominee Justin Torkildsen (Rick), who won last year, and first-time nominee Jennifer Finnigan (Bridget), up for Younger Actress. During a recent photo shoot, there was clearly no generation gap between the tight-knit group.
Digest: In one word, how would you describe Susan?
Justin Torkildsen: Mentor, I´ve learned a lot from her, but I´m proud to say that she´s also become a very close friend.
Jennifer Finnigan: Wonderful. She is definitely an inspiration. She´s incredibly intelligent and strong. She has an enormous amount of confidence, but it´s not cocky. People just respect her and her opinions.
Susan Flannery: Thank you. Those are very lovely compliments.
Digest: Were you intimidated by Susan at first?
Torkildsen: Oh, yeah. The two people I was most afraid of when I started the show were Susan Flannery and Ronn Moss (Ridge). I mean, I was scared to death of them! My only impressions of them at first were what I got from their characters. But she was just so friendly, and Ronn turned out to be such a nice guy.
Finnigan: Susan exudes a certain amount of power, and I think if you´re new or green, that can be intimidating. But she´s also warm, and that comes through when you get to know her. When I started, I wasn´t completely myself. I was more Bridget than Jennifer around everyone. It was only when I came out of my shell that we really formed a bond.
Digest: Susan, did you know that you struck such a fear in them?
Flannery: And I like it that way! Please don´t ruin my reputation.
Digest: Let’s give these whippersnappers a history lesson. What do you recall about winning your first Emmy, in 1975?
Flannery: That was one of the very first times they were actually celebrating it. Lin Bolen was the first female vice president of daytime on any network, and she really wanted to promote daytime. She wanted to make the Daytime Emmys into something special. Everyone at the networks fought her. This was the second broadcast, and she wanted to make it an event. So, we broadcast live from a boat that circled the Statue of Liberty. It was fabulous. Susan Seaforth Hayes (DAYS´s Julie) was nominated that year, too, and she was sitting right in front of me. When my name was called, I gave her a big kiss and hug.
Digest: Where do you keep your Emmys?
Flannery: For years, I used one as a doorstop (laughs). That sounds so disrespectful, I know, but I did! I just built this new house, so now that I have the second one, they´re on either side of a bookcase. I feel very pretentious having them out like that.
Digest: What would you do with a third one?
Flannery: The old one will go back to being a doorstep. It´s much heavier than the new one. They´re both the exact same dimensions, but the metal on the first one is different; it´s become oxidized over the years. My secretary suggested sending it back to have it replaced, but I´ve said no, because it´s just like me, old and oxidized.
Digest: What plans do you have when you’re in New York for the Emmys?
Torkildsen: I´ve had some amazing times in New York because of B&B, beginning with my first year when Susan won. I distinctly remember climbing a water tower and hearing Susan say, “Honey, get down from there.” Apparently, it was a good party.
Finnigan: She loves Broadway as much as I do, so we´re going to try to see at least one show together.
Susan: Ian Buchanan (ex-James) is coming with me, so we´re going to have a cocktail party Thursday night. Someone told me, “But we´re having a cocktail party Thursday, too.” And I said, “Guess whose party they´ll come to? Ours!”
Digest: Besides knowing which party you´d better show up at, what else have you learned from Susan?
Torkildsen: Professionally, just keep it simple. When Susan has emotional scenes, it´s so much more interesting because it´s not heavy drama. All of a sudden, you see this burst of anger, hurt or passion come out of her, and it´s so interesting to watch. I learn something new from her every day.
Finnigan: I couldn´t agree more. She´s proof positive of why you shouldn´t go over the top in a scene, no matter what emotion you´re playing.
Flannery: I´ve always thought less is more. Even anger and rage of any kind, the tighter you keep it, the more powerful it is, and the audience really gets pulled in. So, if you finally do something that´s big, they´re just blown away.
Torkildsen: And she´s shown me that the fun of acting is finding new things. You´ve got to mix it up and keep it interesting. Right now, I´m trying to master what to do with my hands. Susan is so good with the physical aspect of acting, too.
Flannery: He´s a fast learner because he has done some stage work before. If you have no stage training, then you don´t know how to use your body or what to do with props. Many, many times I´ve yelled at an actor, “Don´t act from the neck up!”
Digest: How did you start directing at B&B?
Flannery: They actually wanted me to direct on DAYS years ago, but I didn´t want to do it. Then, the first year B&B was on the air, there was going to be a directors´ strike, but for several reasons I couldn´t do it. One day, Joanna Johnson (ex-Caroline) said to me, “You better do it before they rescind the offer!” So, I went up to exec Bill Bell and said I´d like to try it. He was very supportive. I don´t direct as much because I´m in so many shows.
Digest: You´re known to be quite the taskmaster when directing.
Flannery: To be a good actor, you have to be an intelligent actor. I do believe they have to be able to think things through. When I direct, I don´t hesitate to yell, “Think! Think!” Michelle Stafford (Phyllis, YOUNG AND RESTLESS), who I think is such a wonderful actress, once said to me, “You know, sometimes actors don´t become actors because they want to act.” I just adore her for saying that to me. Sometimes when you´re so completely devoted and tuned into this passion that you have – whether it´s being an architect, a cinematographer, a doctor, a lawyer – you can´t understand why, when someone else is in your career, that they´re not at the same level of passion.
Digest: Do you like it when Susan directs you?
Torkildsen: Man, I love it. Her style of directing is geared very much from an actor´s point of view. I´m not talking down the other directors work because they´re very good at communicating with us, too. But Susan is so much fun to work with.
Finnigan: I´m always excited whenever I´m involved in any scene with her, whether we´re playing opposite each other or she´s directing.
Flannery: I actually directed Jennifer in one of her best scenes. She was just wonderful. What I liked about it is the fact that she didn´t have a lot of dialogue and I kept the camera on her. She tried to use that for her Emmy reel, but the next show didn´t hold up as well, and you have to use consecutive episodes.
Digest: If B&B were to become a movie, who should play Stephanie?
Torkildsen: Susan. If they´re going to make B&B a movie, I could not see anyone else playing Stephanie. Rick, yes. Bridget, yes. But Susan is Stephanie.
By Devin Owens, Soap Opera Digest. May 7th, 2002.
