Lauren:
Hello to everyone! Pocahontas_145
asks: What is your most memorable/favorite
scene? ashleychs
asks: If you could play any other character on
the show how would it be? Kristen_Black
asks: Why should Kate be ashamed of being a
prostitute when half of Salem has a criminal
Past? Booger_Barbie_Doll
asks: Hi Lauren! Do fans ever tell you that you,
Austin, Krista and Bryan really look like you're
related? I think you guys do. silverbells_1217
asks: Lauren, call me crazy, but one of my
favorite things on the show is the fights betweem
Kate & Vivian. Can you tell me when they will
have a MAJOR cat fight? Juniper_24740
asks: Do you feel that you are anything like
Kate in real life Booger_Barbie_Doll
asks: Sally Sussman-Morina and Tom Langan said
that in May, Days would be having it's biggest
storyline ever. Is that true? If so can you give us
details? Pocahontas_145
asks: Does your work leave you with a lot of
time for your family? suelibertymoon
asks: Kate how do you like playing the vixen in
Days? etherspice
asks: LAUREN, YOU ARE THE BEST ACTRESS ON THE
SHOW, HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN ACTING???? RooRooKat
asks: Who are your favorite co-stars, and
why? lulu1199
asks: What is it like being on tv with all of
those hunks?? extremedude11
asks: what would you like to see next for
Kate? VoodooChild23
asks: What is your typical day like? I mean, how
many hours a day do you put into each
episode? Frizz203
asks: What is your favorite T.V. show besides
Days? Pocahontas_145
asks: What do you prefer.... Y&R or
Days? patsycline123
asks: Days is my favorite soap, you seem to be
turning into the badgirl, do you like the change in
your character? hottie3_98
asks: HAS ANYTHING EVER GONE REALLY BAD IN A
TAPING? Booger_Barbie_Doll
asks: Is there going to be a triangle between
Kate, Roman and Billie? Krystall_22
asks: Kate is a very snazzy dresser--do you have
input as to the clothing you wear? rina607
asks: Do you think Kate and Sami will be enemies
forever? MelissaL02
asks: How do your children feel about you being
a Soap Opera Star? rina607
asks: You are my favorite actress on days
because you have the most presence - even when you
aren't speaking. You really seem to be able to
adapt to Kate's personality. How much leeway do the
writers give you interms of devloping Kate's
personality and character? tamara_98_99_98
asks: Do u enjoy working with ALison
Sweeney? beetle15946
asks: Katie why the new hairdo today? ItalianGrl_99
asks: How and where did you start out in the
industry? Doodles56
asks: you look so young to be playing the mother
of three grown children - how do you feel about
that?? rina607
asks: Will there ever be any romance between
Kate and Stephano? There always seems to be some
chemistry between them when they're
together. Thug4_98
asks: does your real life husband get mad when
you kiss other men. Climber_21_m
asks: Did you always want to be an
actress?.....any other childhood goals come
true? Bud1679
asks: What are your plans for the future,
looking at any movies? Arkansasgirl_99
asks: If there is anything you would change
about your character what would it be? jasonn19
asks: You are the most beautiful on the show
also,how often do you work out? sunflower17980
asks: Lauren who is your favorite
actress? suelibertymoon
asks: How do you feel about situations on Days
that seem to never end? Kristen_Black
asks: What will you be wearing to the Soap Opera
awards? Krystall_22
asks: If Kate had a dream to act opposite any
man, who would that MAN be? ashleychs
asks: How do you react to the popularity of the
show? tinababy143
asks: Is Sami as mean as she is on the soap?
WNNZelda
asks: What made you want to become an
actor? goodmans4
asks: Lauren, how much time do you get off in a
year? Blondebabydolls
asks: If you weren't an actress what would you
be doing instead? ashleychs
asks: How much longer to you plan to be on the
show? cinnamon52_98
asks: Will you be doing any live theatre in the
near future? MelissaL02
asks: What is in store for Austin and
Sami? NikitaMacLeod
asks: When will we find out everything about
Kate's past? RooRooKat
asks: What has been your all-time favorite Kate
storyline? extremedude11
asks: What do you like to do in your spare
time? DracualMoon
asks: Where do you see yourself ten years from
now?? BrandonLeeFan
asks: What direction do you see your character
taking in the future...do you think she will ever
become nicer toward people? Mr_P42s_girl
asks: Are you friends with all the cast
members? callmeamanda
asks: Can you give us any spoilers about what's
coming up? RooRooKat
asks: If you could write Kate's storyline, what
would happen? With whom would she be paired
romantically? Krystall_22
asks: What advice do you give to your children
if they want want to go into acting? butterfly16r
asks: who is the funniest person on the
set?? Sk8ergrl16_98
asks: WHO S YOUR FAVORITE FEMALE SOAP
STAR Lady_mage_0_
asks: do you find being a mom in real life help
you to play one on the show KatieSM4
asks: does the cast of Days do anything together
off of the set MollyLovesDaysOfOurLives
asks: do you every watch Days??
February 17, 1999
Lauren:
All to those DOOL fans. I'm very excited to talk to
everyone, so bring on the questions!
Lauren:The
one I had the most fun with recently was the whole
Franco murder scene, the day of the wedding
Lauren:
It had been so long in the planning, and we did it
pretty much in one take
Lauren:
When Franco attacks Kate, he turns around, Lucas
shoots him, Sami comes in. It was such a crucial
turning point for Kate.
Lauren:
There's no other character I'd want to play -- I'm
perfectly happy playing Kate!
Lauren:
(laughs) Very good question!
Lauren:
I'm not sure that Kate's really ashamed of it...
I'm not sure that's the reason she doesn't want it
revealed. I think it has more to do with revealing
her connections with Stefano
Lauren:
I think that she doesn't want to disappoint her
children any more than she already has
Lauren:
but I think Kate's very pragmatic and she views it
in the way that she had to do what she had to do to
survive, and she always has. That's the key to
Kate. She does what she has to do to survive and to
get ahead.
Lauren:
Yes, they do. And I can see it too. It's great
casting
Lauren:
It's funny -- there have been times I've been
watching a scene with my husband, one I'd be doing
with Krista, and there are times we've had the same
mannerisms. It turned out wonderfully.
Lauren:
We did a cover recently with Austin and Bryan and
me -- the resemblence was all there.
Lauren:
Oh, you're not the only one! They're classic and
fun for a lot of people
Lauren:
We've kind of moved away from that story for a
while, but I think we'll be heading back soon. If
that happens, we're bound to have another
fight.
Lauren:
Sometimes actors don't like to do them, but I think
it's fun for the viewers, I really do!
Lauren:
I think to be in this business as long as I have,
you have to be a survivor... I'm like that
Lauren:
I've learned to do that
Lauren:
I think I learned form my mistakes better than Kate
does.
Lauren:
You can never give details about stories! I
wouldn't have those. I can tell from the scripts
we're getting we're gearing up to something
big.
Lauren:
What that's going to be, I don't know, and if I did
I couldn't tell you!
Lauren:
Comparatively, yes... there will be times when I go
there every day, depending on the story, so it's
five days a week
Lauren:
Depending where I am in a script, sometimes I'm
there for half the day, so I can take my children
to school and be with them, and maybe I'll even get
out in time to pick them up
Lauren:
As opposed to some nighttime shows where they have
some longer hours. I think it's a perfect job for
having a family
Lauren:
Well, I didn't know I was a vixen! But thank
you
Lauren:
If that's true -- I have to say I'm having a great
time. I love where the story has gone.
Lauren:
Kate has a lot of gusto. I guess she is a bit of a
vixen, isn't she?
Lauren:
Thank you very much
Lauren:
I guess I've been acting since college, I majored
in theater in college. Costume design, actually.
After I graduated, I got a job as a costume
designer and also acted in a show.
Lauren:
I started in the theater, came out to Los Angeles.
I was here a year when I got cast on Y&R.
Lauren:
I've been acting ever since
Lauren:
That's so hard!
Lauren:
I would have to say my family members. We've all
developed a rapport with each other. We have fun
working together
Lauren:
I've really enjoyed recently working with Bryan,
who plays Lucas, because when I first came on the
show Kate and he were fairly estranged, always at
each other.
Lauren:
But we have great fun now, because even with
everything we're going through we really have fun
working together.
Lauren:
We have a lot of laughs together.
Lauren:
(laughs)
Lauren:
The show is really remarkably free of that kind of
ego. I think they have the best looking guys. We
have so many guys who are good looking but also
funny and sweet
Lauren:
I guess I'm a cheerleader for them all, aren't
I?
Lauren:
We've been given so many hints about her past --
I'd really like to find out more about her past and
how that's going to influence the present and
future
Lauren:
I'd like to find out what happened between her and
Stefano. Their relationship is very mysterious. It
would be very interesting to explore that.
Lauren:
And I think it would be great if Kate found a love
interest.
Lauren:
Because I'm not sure -- it's been difficult for
her, the situation with Victor. I think the lack of
a romantic life has affected her.
Lauren:
If you write in about a love interest... I think we
have little tidbits that have been dropped here and
there. We're probably going to find out.
Lauren:
Kate does get into so much trouble... She wants to
make things right. She still believes she can.
Lauren:
Typical day, I probably get up around 5:30 or 6,
get the kids ready for school
Lauren:
If I have to be in early, I'll leave the house at
6:30. We start on our hair, makeup, do blocking at
8:00
Lauren:
We go on stage, the director gives you the physical
moves you'll be making during the scene
Lauren:
Then you go back to your room. I do my own makeup,
so I finish that, and we start taping at 9.
Lauren:
We tape straight through -- the order isn't the
exact order of the script. We do all the scenes on
one set at once.
Lauren:
A lot of times the scene are in one take. We'll go
normally from 9 to 12:30, break for lunch. The
afternoon people come in, do more blocking. If I
have more scenes, we start around 2
Lauren:
That goes from 2 to 6 on a good day. Sometimes 7,
sometimes 8... it all depends
Lauren:
I really don't watch a lot of tv... my must see TV
is "The Sopranos"
Lauren:
It's so good! You have to watch
Lauren:
DAYS!!! Absolutely. Much more fufilling role for
me.
Lauren:
I love the atmosphere at Days -- the whole group,
Ken, Tom Langan made me feel so welcome from the
beginning
Lauren:
They gave me the chance to do what I wanted to do
as an actress.
Lauren:
It's fun playing a bad girl
Lauren:
When I first came on the show, it was very new for
me to play someone like Kate. I saw her as this
good woman. It was a challenge becaus I was used to
bad girls, but she has evolved.
Lauren:
I'm so close to her I can't really call her a bad
girl, but she does do what she has to do to get
what she wants. It's a challenge playing a
character like that.
Lauren:
Not that I can really remember...
Lauren:
It's usually silly things, like you have a very
dramatic scene, you grab the door to go out with a
flourish and the door won't open, and everyone
collapses into laughter
Lauren:
That, or tripping.
Lauren:
Gee, I don't know! What does everybody think?
Lauren:
There's hints of it
Lauren:
I really don't know. I don't have that information.
Certainly Kate is savvy to the fact something is
going on between Roman and Billie
Lauren:
and of course Kate's very on to Roman, and I think
she enjoys playing with him and using him as best
she can. I'm not sure where that's going to go.
Lauren:
We have great fun in the wardrobe room! That's
another thing you do when you first come to
work
Lauren:
Richard Bloore, our costume designer, finds the
most wonderful clothes. You get to try things on
and pick what you want to wear for the day. It's
glorious!
Lauren:
We talk about the scene, what would be good for it.
We talked a lot about what I was going to wear the
day I planted the gun on Sami -- I wanted something
that would seem soft.
Lauren:
He finds great suits. They're all great designer
things.
Lauren:
It's a great wardrobe. He does a wonderful job
Lauren:
(laughs)
Lauren:
It's like oil and water!
Lauren:
It would be very hard to see them ever not being
enemies. There's so much bad blood between
them.
Lauren:
I think they come the closest to not being when it
concerns Will, but even that was blown apart when
Sami accused Lucas of abusing Will.
Lauren:
That was just beyond the pale. That was really
horrific. I don't know if any of the wounds can
ever be mended.
Lauren:
We'll keep having a lot of great fights.
Lauren:
I used to be able to say they weren't really aware
of it, but they are now, because some of their
friends actually watch the show.
Lauren:
My daughter thinks it's fun. She kind of enjoys
it.
Lauren:
She thinks it's fun to see me on tv, she'll talk
about the clothes. My son isn't as crazy about
it.
Lauren:
The son always wants his mother's attention on
him!
Lauren:
Thank you very much!
Lauren:
It's interesting -- this is why this type of work
is so fascinating. You do a show a day, so
everything is very fast. In the long run a lot of
it comes to the personality of a performer. You'll
see that when roles are recast and a new actor
brings something different.
Lauren:
Since you have to work so fast, you really do have
to use a lot of yourself. Perhaps that's what
you're seeing/
Lauren:
This is a role I really enjoy doing. I really enjoy
her.
Lauren:
Oh, yes! She's great.
Lauren:
We play these great enemies, but we have a lot of
laughs
Lauren:
We particularly love it when we have a scene where
we really go at it. Like the time I had to attack
her, it was like, "If I grab you by the
hair..."
Lauren:
There's always the laughing and the slaps
Lauren:
She's great, very professional. She really enjoys
what she does, and it's a joy to work with someone
who feels that way.
Lauren:
We've decided to let my hair grow out a little, so
I might have a slightly longer hairdo.
Lauren:
I don't know how long it will last...
Lauren:
When I moved out to L.A., I think my very first gig
was in a movie called "Hard to Hold" with Rick
Springfield.
Lauren:
I think I played the guitarist's girlfriend or
something. Keith Richard's wife was in the movie,
and I was hoping the Rolling Stones would visit the
set.
Lauren:
That was my first job out here
Lauren:
I was in an acting class also, and one of the
producers of Y&R saw me and asked me to come in and
read for the role of Lindsay Wells. That was my
break into daytime.
Lauren:
Well, I feel fine about it. Thank you for the
compliment. As far as I'm concerned, it's fun
playing a matriarch.
Lauren:
I think there's a lot of chemistry. That's what I
was talking about before. I think it would be
really exciting to see where that came from.
Lauren:
Joe Mascolo and I talk about it a lot. We have a
great time working together. We've each created our
ideas of what went on in the past between them and
what it could lead to in the future.
Lauren:
It would be fun for everyone to see what could
happen, I think
Lauren:
(laughs)
Lauren:
Well, no
Lauren:
Not anymore
Lauren:
There was a time when he did, which is surprising,
since he's a makeup artist and he's on the set
every day and sees it every day
Lauren:
But when it came to his own wife, it used to bother
him. But he's much better about it now
Lauren:
Yes, I always did want to be an actress, but I also
wanted to be an artist, a professional horseback
rider, and a writer.
Lauren:
In some ways I've tied alot of them together --
being an actress I do have time to do some of the
artwork I had let drop.
Lauren:
I've also recently started riding again. I'm kind
of doing everything I wanted to do.
Lauren:
I'm laughing because it's so impossible.. I have a
very full schedule with the show, my children, the
four horses...
Lauren:
Our time is really limited
Lauren:
I'm very happy with what I'm doing right now. Not
to say if the right thing didn't come up... but I
have a very good role right now.
Lauren:
Hmm... I'm not sure I would change anything right
now
Lauren:
I just want her to keep evolving. I think that's
important, that she stays multi-faceted and that we
see a lot of sides to her
Lauren:
That seems to be happening -- we are finding out
more about Kate, and as long as it goes in that
direction...
Lauren:
Alright, mabye she could stop nagging her kids so
much!
Lauren:
Oh, thank you! There's so many beautiful ladies on
that show. I don't work out as much as I should.
What I do now is horseback riding a lot, that's my
main form of exercise.
Lauren:
I also lift weights. I'm on a vegetarian diet.
Lauren:
I was thinking about that recently...
Lauren:
I'm not sure if I really have a favorite. There are
quite a few I enjoy watching -- Meryl Streep, Judi
Densch... Gwyneth Paltrow is really charming
Lauren:
Well, with daytime, since it's a continuing story,
we see it everyday, so sometimes it seems like
situations are never ending, but it's really the
way the medium works
Lauren:
Not everyone watches it every day, so there's a
certain amount of repetition necessary. We notice
it too, but that's just the way it's done
Lauren:
Also with new viewers, you're always thinking about
that. You'll notice we say people's names quite a
bit.
Lauren:
Sometimes I suppose that can be a pain for someone
who's been watching for a long time. It's just
trying to keep it viewer friendly, I think.
Lauren:
That's just my feeling about it.
Lauren:
Oh, I'm not sure! I haven't picked it out yet. I'm
always last minute.
Lauren:
Some kind of gown...
Lauren:
I looked at 3 today, so I'm going to have to make a
choice soon.
Lauren:
Right now, it think Billy Bob Thorton
Lauren:
Acting-wise, I think he's a great actor
Lauren:
You gasped!
Lauren:
Acting-wise you're always looking for someone who
can really challenge you.
Lauren:
I enjoy it. I really like it. The Days fans are
very loyal. They're so excited about the show, they
know so much about the show
Lauren:
It's fun. It's an extended family. We all enjoy
this thing called Days of Our Lives. We're acting,
they're watching and involved. I enjoy it
Lauren:
(laughs)No! She's acting!
Lauren:
Not at all.
Lauren:
We get all that stuff out -- we get to go there and
act like this, and then we can go be nicer human
beings in real life
Lauren:
I think I used to love watching old black and white
movies, thinking everyone lived like Katherine
Hepburn, Jimmy Stewart...
Lauren:
It just was that fantasy
Lauren:
My mother also was involved in theater, community
theater. I would go with her and watch all the
grown-ups put on their makeup and go on stage and I
was dying to do it, but I was deadly shy.
Lauren:
I really wanted to be able to do it. It was
probably wanting to communicate, express myself,
thinking that if I put on a costume I could be
freer to do that. Perhaps.
Lauren:
I get a certain amount of weeks of vacation that
I'll plan ahead for. And then during a week --
there might be some weeks I don't work every
day
Lauren:
I take those little extra days, take little
vacations. We tape all year. We take time off at
Christmas, we usually go dark around the 20th and
come back the week after
Lauren:
It's very hectic at that time, because that's when
we double up our schedule to get ahead. We're
usually only 2 weeks ahead of air.
Lauren:
Let's see.. there's billions of things I'd consider
-- geologist, forest ranger I considered at one
time...
Lauren:
I re-signed for another 3 years
Lauren:
I'll possibly be doing a play with Jim Reynolds,
doing dates across the country.
Lauren:
He's performing it right now with his wife
Lauren:
It's quite an endeavor!
Lauren:
Oh, if only I knew!
Lauren:
Then I could do something about it...
Lauren:
I don't know. I can't answer that.
Lauren:
I don't think we'll ever find out everything about
Kate's past
Lauren:
But certainly getting back to the thing with
Stefano, I think a lot is tied up with him and what
hpapened back then
Lauren:
Depending on if that's pursued or not, I think
that's where we'd find out of the most. I think so
much must fuel why she acts the way she does -- the
disappointments, the pain, the things she had to do
to get by
Lauren:
It would be fascinating to find out more of that.
We'd understand more about her now.
Lauren:
Hmm... I don't know if I really have a favorite
Lauren:
Probably one of the high points was getting revenge
on Sami. That was fun!
Lauren:
Kate really had to eat it for a while, she really
did
Lauren:
When things finally start to turn around, Kate got
the upper hand -- it felt really good!
Lauren:
I also had a lot of fun when I first came on the
show, on the fishing boat, the quest to get home to
Victor. We were doing a kind of little action
adventure movie, being washed up on a desert
island...
Lauren:
I like to do things outdoors. I like to hike. I
have a young horse I'm riding -- we spend a lot of
time at the barn.
Lauren:
I love to travel. I like to paint, read. I like to
rest, but then I feel guilty!
Lauren:
I don't know. That's a very hard question to
answer. I tend not to look where I'll be in 10
years. I'm kind of relaxed into a place of going
day by day, being more in the moment, enjoying my
work and my family
Lauren:
I'm sure I'll still be working - I want to keep
working. We have some other things -- my husband
has a business he's starting. That would be the
thing I hope has flourished and grown enormously in
ten years.
Lauren:
Yes, I do...
Lauren:
I feel that basically Kate is a good person. At
times she goes overboard. I think she's a very
impulsive person, as you can see with the shooting
of Franco. She relaly acted on impulse, and look
what happened.
Lauren:
I think we'll see the good side again. We haven't
seen it as much. We see a Kate who has been backed
into a corner, and she will never back down. She's
always going to be strong
Lauren:
I think you'll see her tender side maybe in a
relationship with a man she truly feels is her
equal.
Lauren:
We're talking about a strong woman here! :)
Lauren:
It's a very friendly cast. Honestly, I have to say
that yes, everyone gets along.
Lauren:
It's a really good atmosphere. I have fun when I go
to work, and that's a joy.
Lauren:
No! :)
Lauren:
You don't really want to know! I have to say that
my kids are really giving me a hard time. A REALLY
hard time.
Lauren:
I think that's it.
Lauren:
Honestly, I don't know. We did tape those scenes
that aired around Christmas. It was great seeing
John Aniston again
Lauren:
I don't know if he's coming back or not.
Lauren:
Obviously Victor's speaking now, so he's
conscious
Lauren:
But I don't know if he'll be in the story
Lauren:
I think a stranger might come into town, and
discover Kate's vulnerability. She must have
one!
Lauren:
Without her being aware that it's happening.
Lauren:
I think she would have to be surprised into a
romance. She wouldn't really see it coming until it
was there.
Lauren:
Get a good day job!
Lauren:
I would want them to finish their education. I
would want them to go to college, have some of the
best times in a university situation.
Lauren:
You really have to want to, want to do it, and be
in it for the long haul
Lauren:
and be prepared for rejection, because that's
mostly what it's about!
Lauren:
Oh, boy... Yikes! there are a lot of contenders
Lauren:
Right now because I'm working with Bryan so much I
have to say Bryan Datillo, Lucas.
Lauren:
I don't know if I can answer that! I'm not sure I
have one, because there are so many.
Lauren:
Oh, absolutely it does
Lauren:
Because sometimes as obsessive as Kate gets in her
dealings with her children -- and even I want to
tell her to let them go -- as a mother you can
understand -- it's primitive, almost, a mother and
her child, wanting everything to be okay for that
child
Lauren:
Make it right, protect them... Kate is like a
mother lion. My children are much younger, but it
does help me, and I have used it at times, thinking
about my own children and how I feel about them
Lauren:
And if they were ever in a dangerous situation, how
would I deal with it. You certainly draw on those
maternal feelings.
Lauren:
Besides going to events, there's a softball
team.
Lauren:
And the fan club events, everyone will get
togheter. There's personal friendships between
people, where they do things together.
Lauren:
I watch Days every day!
Lauren:
First of all, I tape my scenes when I do them, so I
can see the work as it happens and also because I
do my makeup, for continuity
Lauren:
Also I can pull the scene up to see where we are
emotionally.
Lauren:
I don't get to see the whole show every day, but I
do watch it.
Lauren:
It's great hearing from you and hearing what you're
thinking. I hope I answered your questions.
Lauren:
I want to thank you, thank you, thank you everyone
for the questions and for watching Days and for
being fans of the show.
Lauren:
Stay tuned -- there are some really good things
coming up on Days, especially as we get closer to
who really murdered Franco...
Lauren:
And Roman I think is going to get very close to the
truth.
