# Good soap opera performances? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 26, 2007, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-soap-opera-performances/420501 "2007-09-26T01:08:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shayna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shayna/32/17976_2.png) [@Shayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shayna)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2007, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-soap-opera-performances/420501/21 "2007-09-27T16:56:34Z")
Right up there at the top of the heap with Michael Zaslow is Larry Bryggman (John, from _As The World Turns_). Brilliant actor. We had the pleasure of seeing him perform at the Taper Theater in David Mamet’s _Romance_ a couple of years ago, and he was amazing. > [@](#): > > [Larry Bryggman - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Bryggman) > > In 2005, Bryggman starred as the Judge in the Atlantic Theater Company’s off-Broadway and Los Angeles productions of the David Mamet farce “Romance,” for which he has received universal rave reviews and a nomination for the 2005 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play. James C. Taylor for the Los Angeles Times calls Bryggman’s performance “one of the finest comedic performances seen on an American stage this decade”.[4] > > Bryggman has twice been nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play; in 1994 for Picnic,[5] and in 2001 for Proof.[6] I’m also a huge fan of Scott Bryce as Craig Montgomery on ATWT, and Christopher Bernau as Alan Spaulding on GL, as well. Soaps have been the starting ground for some very successful actors in both film and television. Some names have already been mentioned, but just picking two Soaps, _As the World Turns_ and _Guiding Light_, a short list includes: Meg Ryan, Martin Sheen, James Earl Jones, Swoosie Kurtz, Marisa Tomei, Steven Weber, Julianne Moore, Ming Na, Thomas Gibson, James Van Der Beek, Kerr Smith, William Fichtner, Tamara Tunie, Parker Posey, Hayden Panettiere, Cynthia Watros, Billy Dee Williams, JoBeth Williams, Melina Kanakaredes, Kevin Bacon, Ian Ziering, Nia Long and Taye Diggs. I don’t think these guys got where they are by sucking in their Soap roles. So yes, there are some consistently good performances in Soap Operas. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2007, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-soap-opera-performances/420501/22 "2007-09-27T17:03:20Z")
I became a fan of [Michael Easton](http://www.michael-easton.com/bio.html) when he played Tanner Schofield on Days of Our Lives. He was marvelous as Caleb the vampire on Port Charles, and currently plays John McBain on One Life to Live. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2007, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-soap-opera-performances/420501/23 "2007-09-27T17:14:37Z")
[QUOTE=Annie-Xmas] I became a fan of [Michael Easton](http://www.michael-easton.com/bio.html) when he played Tanner Schofield on Days of Our Lives. He was marvelous as Caleb the vampire on Port Charles, and currently plays John McBain on One Life to Live. [/QUOTE] Yeah, he was interesting as Caleb but now as McBain he overdoes the brooding so much that you want to punch him with a big bag of happy and yell “get over it! it’s not cute anymore!”. ---
**Author:** ![Camelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f17d59/32.png) [@Camelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Camelot)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2007, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-soap-opera-performances/420501/24 "2007-09-27T17:25:05Z")
Oh, I forgot to mention the wonderful Erika Slezak, whose work was excellent even before the DID storyline. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2007, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-soap-opera-performances/420501/25 "2007-09-27T21:04:46Z")
I must respectfully disagree with you, **Annie-Xmas** , about Michael Easton as Tanner on DOOL. Oh God, how I loathed his attempts at being a ‘bad boy’ via speaking in a constant husky voice and looking pouty. Probably worked better as a vampire in that execrable storyline from PC. > [@Wile E](#): > > Maybe I am being a little harsh on Jackie Hell no, that’s not possible. Yeah, I detest her ‘acting’ style too. So cloying and hammy and overall _wet_. But definite props to Brad Maule, though, who portrayed her husband and the father of the little girl who died in that justifiably praised storyline. It’s usually the women who get to shine during such angsty tearfests, but Maule was heartbreaking throughout. His character was always criminally underused. Speaking of GH, Kimberley McCullough was excellent as young Robin Scorpio during her first run, back in the storyline when her boyfriend Stone was diagnosed with (and eventually died from) AIDS. And even more powerful when Robin herself found out she was HIV+. Man, GH sure knew how to come up with some great storylines back before it became the Sonny Corinthos Mafia Hour! ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2007, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-soap-opera-performances/420501/26 "2007-09-28T04:29:13Z")
[QUOTE=choie] … Hell no, that’s not possible. Yeah, I detest her ‘acting’ style too. So cloying and hammy and overall _wet_. But definite props to Brad Maule, though, who portrayed her husband and the father of the little girl who died in that justifiably praised storyline. It’s usually the women who get to shine during such angsty tearfests, but Maule was heartbreaking throughout. His character was always criminally underused. Speaking of GH, Kimberley McCullough was excellent as young Robin Scorpio during her first run, back in the storyline when her boyfriend Stone was diagnosed with (and eventually died from) AIDS. And even more powerful when Robin herself found out she was HIV+. Man, GH sure knew how to come up with some great storylines back before it became the Sonny Corinthos Mafia Hour! [/QUOTE] Yeah, preach it! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-soap-opera-performances/420501.md?page=1)