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Soap Opera Weekly
February 27, 2007
Four More Years!
“I was fully expecting to
leave,” admits ONE LIFE TO LIVE’s Hillary B. Smith (Nora) about nearing the end
of her contract late last year. “My dressing room was pretty much packed up, but
then I got a phone call saying that they’d like to offer me a four-year deal.
And I was like, ‘What? Are you alright? You should see a doctor, because I don’t
think you’re feeling well.’”
Down For The Count
Questions about Smith’s future
on the show first began when Nora needed to see a doctor in 2005. Sure enough, a
brain aneurysm would soon plunge the district attorney into a full-fledged coma.
And because the actress’ contract was set to expire at the end of that year, it
really looked like Smith was on her way out. “I was disappointed,” she recalls.
“I thought they missed some opportunity there and could have done a much better
send-off.”
But even though Smith assumed
that an exit was near, with Nora being exiled to a place like “Switzerland,
where some other people had gone,” OLTL surprised many by offering her a
one-year contract extension. This wasn’t done, though, just to give Nora a
proper goodbye. “It was to give them the opportunity to write and come up with
something that would satisfy the fans,” she points out, “either a departure or a
story – anything. And if they couldn’t come up with something interesting, then
I’d leave…That’s sort of the way it was left.”
Back On Her Feet
So as 2006 unfolded, Nora
finally emerged from her deep sleep. And her resulting paralysis even allowed
Smith to draw from an incident in her own life. “I had a parotid tumor on the
right side of my face in 1981,” she reveals. “It was removed the first time, but
they didn’t get it all. Then I went to Sloan-Kettering [Cancer Center] to get it
removed, and my face was paralyzed on the right side for about two months. So I
did a lot of physical therapy and worked my muscles to get it back. But in the
meantime, I learned to deaden the other side of my face to match the right side,
and I started working.”
Smith didn’t realize, though,
that she could “do paralysis” until she told OLTL about her experiences. “That’s
when they decided to write it,” she says, “and since I only knew how to deaden
the left side, Nora was paralyzed on the left side. I did enjoy it, because I’m
a very technical actress and need to have a lot going on so I can stop worrying
about the acting!”
But as the year wore on, the
Emmy winner continued to be seen only sporadically; even worse, Nora’s heroic
struggle to relearn how to do the simple things, like walk and talk, was barely
touched upon. So, but late 2006, Smith was all set to move on. “Then they came
to me at the end of October [with the new contract], but it was a long,
thoughtful process: I had issues that I needed to have addressed, and if they
weren’t going to be addressed, then I thought it would be best for both of us if
I moved on.”
Ready To Fight
Although she was initially
wary, Smith was eventually won over by the show’s offer. “The biggest hook for
me,” she admits, “was that instead of sweet-talking or making promises, they
offered a story that I thought was interesting and worthwhile, with people that
I admire and respect.”
And what exactly is this
story? “I’m going to work with Catherine [Hickland, Lindsay],” she enthuses,
“and they are going to revive the rivalry but with a slightly different twist.
I’m not going to go into [details], but it’s going to be about the distrust that
these two women have for each other, the competitive nature that Lindsay always
has for Nora and Nora’s desire to protect herself and her family.”
Through it all, Smith remains
grateful to be playing the popular character that she created 15 years ago. “I
love her,” she confesses. “I really do. Hopefully, I’ll get to try some new
things, entertain and, of course, take on Lindsay!”
…On Working With Ty
Treadway (ex-Troy/Colin): “He’s just so good,” gushes Smith. “It was just
heaven to look into that face. Catherine [Hickland, Lindsay] and I would both
say, ‘God, we get paid for this – isn’t this fabulous?’”
…On Her Chemistry With
Catherine Hickland: “We started cracking each other up,” shares the actress.
“I probably was the only person laughing at her jokes, and I know she was the
only person laughing at mine…So we just became the same person!”
…On Her Time On As The
World Turns: “I thought I would stay on it forever,” she recalls. “It was
such a great gig, but I got burned out, because I had two little kids and wasn’t
seeing them.”
…On Whether Bo And Nora
Have Anymore Mileage: “I do [think so],” the star admits, “because there’s
so much history that needs to be addressed, and they have this child together.
There’s still a lot that can be dealt with, even if it’s not romantic.”
FYIFYIFYIFYIFYIFYI
Birthday: May 25.
Birthplace: Boston, MA.
Lesson Learned: Due to ventricular tachycardia, Smith’s daughter, Courtney, who
turns 21 this year, needed heart surgery in December to have a defibrillator put
in. “She is protected now and has been great,” shares Smith. “I talk about this,
because people should know that symptoms are symptoms because something’s wrong,
and you should pay attention to them and plug along until you get answers. They
may not be the answers that you want, but answers are easier to deal with than
the unknown.”
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