Intervjusidan
Intervjuer med ๖vriga
By: Miki Turner
Soap Opera Weekly Magazine. Dated: April 7, 1998
Although she's not the bitch she plays on Sunset, Dominique Jennings can handle herself in any situation
At first glance the thin and perfectly coiffed woman with the "I don't knowwho I'm supposed to be meeting" expression looks like just another one of the beautiful people seen daily in West Hollywood's trendy Sunset Plaza. But the ringlet curls, steely glare and flawless complexion could belong to only one person.
Yes, Virigina, you are in the right place.
Coming off a somewhat harrowing day, which started with a 5am call to the set, Dominique Jennings, who plays Sunset Beach's scheming Virginia Harrison, greets this stranger with a smile and a sigh. Then comes a rather rapid staccato about a wild-goose chase on which her friend, who has recently given birth, sent her that day. It included nursing bras and baby formula - the stuff that great monologues are made of. And this was one of them. Telling the stroy, Jennings is characteristically animated, punctuating key points with head shakes and hand gestures. While passerby might have thought she was ranting, in reality she is simply cleansing.
This is a woman who prefers the simple life. But it appears simplicity is something has has to work at. Her life has been a series of adventures - beginning in Stockholm, Sweden, where she was born. "I remember some things abou it, like and amusement park I used to go to, and that it was always light out when I went to bed. And, oh yes, I remember it could get a little chilly."
Jenning's memories about her homeland are a bit vague because she left Sweden and moved to Los Angeles with her father, acclaimed artist and musician, Prophet, when she was 6. It was nearly three years after her mother had died. "I have one memory of her - it's cute," she says before you can say "aw." "I remember my mom and my dad tickling me as I ran back and forth between them."
These days Jennings spends most of her time dashing back and forth between her West Hollywood digs and the Sunset set in Burbank. Since her arrival, Jennings, who was initially hired for only 10 episodes but was offered a three-year contract after her first day, has been igniting the screen - not to mention the cabin of on-screen love Michael, the man who is trying to get away.
"I actually went in and auditioned for another role, and then I didn't heart anything," says Jennings, who's road to the Beach was paved with roles in such films as Seven and Die Hard 2, guest spots on plethora of sitcoms and the voice of Wanda on HBO's animated adult series, Spawn. She can currently be seen in the "Got Milk?" ads. "I thought I wasn't right for the part. I found out I was working two days later. It's always when you're not expecting it that things happen."
And Jennings currently wasn't expecting to become "the bitch of the beach," but enjoys the fact that Virginia has an edge - something she feels is a rarity for black characters in daytime.
"She has depth," she says of Virigina, a single mother from South Central L.A., who is trying to make a better life for her son while making life miserable for Michael and Vanessa. "It's been an interesting ride because Virginia didn't start out like that. I can't really think of any black woman playing this kind of role in daytime right now. It's fun, but sometimes I have to just snap out of it."
A an undercover comedian, Jennings gets a kick out of donning a padded body suit and "whacked-out" wig when Virginia's pretending to be a nurse and Vanessa's mother's hospital. "The suit is a trip," the actress says of her Nurse Jones getup, which adds 30 pounds to her reed-thin frame. "It's really old and itchy, and it's hard to tell I have it on with the nurse's uniform, because the costume is so boxy. It's not so much heavy as it is hot. And the wig is just kind of out there."
Even without the wig and the fat suit it's easy to see the differences between Jennings and Virginia. Jennings is more a renaissance woman that girl from da "hood" thanks to an early exposure to the arts. She loves her craft, painting, movies, music, and making jewelry. And her creativity knows no limits. She once substituted her sock for tissue when she and a friend got misty-eyed watching Good Will Hunting.
"I knew somehow I would end up involved in the arts because they always surrounded me," says Jennings, who at 7 was a guest artist in one of her father's shows (she sold three paintings). "If it wasn't music, it was my father's friends. It was a different world, kind of wild. It gave me an insight into a lot of stuff as a child. I learned things that a lot of children at my age didn't.
Jenning's notes that her father is her biggest fan. "He sits there and screams at the TV now," she says with a laugh. "It's very scary. He watches every single day. He's hooked."
Hooked is the opposite of Jennings' initial feelings for the dramatic arts. "I was an introverted kid and I really didn't like acting," says the actress who made her first TV appearance at age 9 with Richard Pryor on Sesame Street. "After I did that Sesame Street, this agent came out of the sky and I started going out on things. I was once up for something that was like the black Waltons, but it was never made. I remember I wasn't sad at all. I did some commercials and then I stopped. I didn't get back into it until high school."
Recently Jennings has reacquainted herself with another passion - music. "I'm working on some things and trying to make the right connections," the aspiring singer says. "I love music. One of the things I really splurged on was a serious system with speakers built into the walls and whole thing. I'm writing it off as R&D - research and development. I gotta have my sounds."
After our quick bite and some loose chat off the record about friends who demand too much and the downside of fame, it seemed a good time to share a confession of my own. Heck, I wouldn't be offended if someone thought I looked like Shari Belafonte. But you never know.
"That's so weird that you would say tha," Jennings says. "I used to get that alot. Her husband works on the show!" Does Sam Behrens (Gregory) ever get confused? "No, not even. But the other day the makeup guy said, 'Oh girl, you are Whitney!' I was like: I just gotta be me today, OK?"
What can I say - she's a woman of many talents and faces.
By: Keith Loria
Soap Opera Digest Magazine
Dominique Jennings Spins a Web of Deceit as SUNSET BEACH's Villianous Virginia
JUST THE FACTS
Birthday: October 30
Favorite Bad Girl: Alexis Colby (Joan Collins) from DYNASTY
Listening Pleasure: Chaka Khan, Stevie Wonder, Sade
Swede Sensation: "I was born in Stockhom, Sweden, and I lived there until I was 6. I remember going to the park in my red clogs."
On Co-Star Russell Curry: "We've worked together before. I played his girlfriend on a court tv show."
"Black widows of the world unite!." Virginia howled, as she stroked the tarantula on her arm. Ah, yes, another successful attempt at destroying a loving embarce between Michael and Vanessa.
When Sunset Beach's Virginia was introduced last March, she seemed like a caring, down-to-earth, widowed mom, who happened to have the teeniest crush on Michael. "Oh, how things changed," laughs her portrayer, Dominique Jennings. "I started off so nice. I had no idea I'd be evil. But characters become interesting when they're kind of tart."
To put it midly. Ove the past year, Virginia has tried every trick in the book to break up Michael and Vanessa, and she keeps sinking lower and lower. TVGuide lauded Jennings for her successful portrayal of daytime's only black villianess ("an awesome honor," says Jennings). All this for a part that was only suppose to be short-term. "Initially, I was only signed for 10 episodes," says Jennings, "but they made my character bad to build a rivalry with Vanessa. That was the best thing that could have happened. Sometimes, I read the lines and go, 'My God, I have to say this today?"
Of course, Virginia rationalizes her actions by telling herself that she's just a single parent doing what she has to for her son. And that's something Jennings can relate to. "My mother was killed when I was very young (3 1/2)," the actress says softly. "My dad took it upon himself and said, 'I'm going to raise her. 'You don't hear a lot of stories about a single father raising a daughter, and I think he did a great job. I didn't realize until later in life how hard it must have been for him."
Jenning's dad, who goes by the professional name Prophet, is a painter, writer, musician and filmmaker. "He's the most important person in my life, " the actress says. "We are extremely close. I walk over to his place all the time and we just make each other laugh so much."
Jenning's lone recollection of her mom is a "good memory," she shares. "I was in the living room with my father and my mother was in the bathroom, and I was running back and forth telling them to tickle me."
These days, it tickles Jennings that Prophet is her No. 1 fan. "He tapes the show everyday, mo matter what he's doing," the actress says. "He's really into it. He'll stop working to watch!"
And no wonder, considering that Dad was instrumental in getting her acting career started when they moved to LA from Sweden. "When I was 11, I did an episode of Sesame Street," she recalls. "It was with Richard Pryor and his daughter, and we made sounds playing with cars."
Jennings soon landed an agent, but hated going out on calls for roles that never materialized. "I was up for what was going to be the black Waltons, but it never happened," the actress sighs. As she got older, though, things began to happen, including a guest spot on The Wayans Bros. ("I fell out of a balloon," she laughs) and an episode of Baywatch Nights, which involved a tricky - and scary - underwater scene with David Hasselhoff. "I thought they were going to use a stuntwoman, and I only found out two minutes before I had to do it that they weren't, and I didn't want to do it," Jennings says with a shiver.
Eventually, she moved to a less treacherous wave-wise, at least - Beach. " I had gone in for Vanessa originally, and it went fine but I never heard anything," Jennings explains. "Then I got a callled out of the blue last February, adn they said they were interested in me - and I had to get down there that day.
While Virginia plots to win her man, the single Jennings has other things on her mind. "I'm not looking for anyone at the moment," she reports. "I'm so busy. I have a ton of interests." Including cartoons - Jennings is the voice of Wanda on HBO's adult animated show, SPAWN. "It's kind of seedy and dark," she says. It's drawn really interestingly, and the characters are cool." Jennings spends her spare time helping to sell a pal's handmade jewelry, and she recently became interested in designing furniture.
"One of my good friends, my cousin, is a furniture designer," she explains. "I have so many ideas about design. I need to find that pet rock and make people think they need it. Hopefully they do need it!"
Rounding out her agenda is singing. "I kind of got involved in the music industry, but it's very different from acting," she states. "It's harder, much harder. It's really about connections."
So will Virginia be crooning any tunes anytime soon? "I'd love that," exclaims the Jennings. "She could sing at the Waffle Shop and lure Michael in that way."
And her signature song would have to be "The Itsy, Bitsy Spider."
By: Janet DeLauro
Soap Opera Magazine. Dated: February 9, 1999
SUN's Dominique Jennings has practically grown up in front of a television camera.
Dominique Jennings (Virginia, SUN) has only been on daytime for two years, but her face has been appearing on television and in magazines since she was a child. She made her TV debut at age 9 on Sesame Street and has compiled a resume filled with appearances in hit movies and sitcoms.
Born and raised in Stockholm, Sweden, Jennings traveled quite a bit as a child thanks to her mother's job as a Scandinavian Airlines employee. She visited Africa when she was a year old, and remembers visiting Italy at the age of 3.
During her travels, Jennings' mother, Ann-Charlotte, met her father, an artist known as Prophet, in New York. After they were introduced by a mutual friend, they discovered that they were both jazz lovers. It took a while, but the couple started dating. Shortly after they married, they moved to Sweden.
"It was definitely love," says Jennings, "because my dad really hates cold weather."
Jennings' mom died when the future SUN star was still a child. Raised by her father, who never remarried, Jennings shares a strong and supportive relationship with him. By the time father and daughter moved to Los Angeles in the early '70s, Jennings was 7 and a guest artist at one of her father's shows. Her oil paintings sold for as much as $15.
"They were abstract," says Jennings. "They were tiny. Three-inches by five-inches, six -by-eight maybe. My dad made sure I signed a contract too."
By the time she reached 7, Jennings and her father were in Jet magazine as Picture of the Week. When she made her Sesame Street appearance, her co-star was Richard Pryor, a friend of her dad's, as well as Pryor's daughter. It was an ad-lib segment that was sheer fun."
"I was surrounded by artists, actors, musicians," says Jennings. "When I was very young, I was surrounded by jazz musicians. Even now I fall asleep when I listen to jazz. It's really relaxing. I've gone to hear Dad's friends, and I've actually, as an adult, been asleep in the front row."
The soap star admits that had acting not taken off, she would likely be involved in some aspect of music, though not as a musician. "Likely behind the scenes," she says. "I played a cowbell in a show one time. That's the extent of my playing talent. I took a few piano lessons, but the teachers were always too hard on me."
When she decided to pursue acting, Jennings landed in a popular Got Milk campaign, which helped her land some music videos. The ad also reminds her of a tragedy that hit her life. Her friend, Keith Amos, who was in the milk spot with her, recently died of an asthma attack. "At the memorial, at a dance club, everyone had the greatest stories about him," says Jennings. "He was a larger-than-life individual, able to do whatever he wanted. [He] had a lot of spontaneous get-up-and-go. He was a special, giving individual."
The actress is quick to point to her relationships with friends and her father, who lives within walking distance from her home, as "what keeps me grounded. I really appreciate them. I'm grateful for so much in my life."
Her feelings for her father and her friends may explain Jennings' reputation for being the opposite of her manipulative character.
As Jennings made her way into the movies, she landed roles in Die Hard 2 and Seven. Playing a soap star in Low Down Dirt Shame foreshadowed her future career. Her other television credits includes Spawn, HBO's racy animated series for adults, in which Jennings provides a regular voice-over. She's also had parts on Martin, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Living Single, and Baywatch Nights.
SUN has become a wonderfully satisfying "regular job" for Jennings, and she loves the camaraderie of her screen family. but she's quick to point out that she doesn't bring Virginia home with her.
Virginia's kinder, gentler side does exist, and it's especially evident with her son, Jimmy, and in her caring for Michael. Her tactics, however, are "pretty out there, but she manages to find ways of justifying it all."
Scenes between Virginia and Vanessa during the earthquake this past summer and those tender scenes with her onscreen son are among the actress' favorite. Virginia's turkey-baster insemination of Vanessa was, "over the top. As an actress, I did the job and didn't think about it much."
Even though Jennings enjoys her part, she wants to see some changes in Virginia's love life. "[Virginia] can still have feelings for Michael but needs to realize there are other options out there. She needs to realize that she is worthy."
By: Jonathan Reiner
TVGuide. Dated: May 1998
The Vanessa/Michael/Virginia triangle was typical soap fodder until Sunset Beach's writers spiced up Virginia and made her a bitch. She immediately vowed to learn more about Vanessa's long-lost mother and use the information to snare Michael. Viewers (and Virginia) were shocked to learn that Vanessa's mother suffers from Martin's syndrome, a fictional disease that disfigures its victims and leads to dementia.
Armed with this knowledge, Virginia embarked on a reign of terror that is alternately hot and humorous, terrifying and tragic. Her portrayer, Dominique Jennings, defends the character and offers personal insight into Virginia's psyche.
Virginia was only a recurring character when you debuted last year. What were you initially told about the character?
The show was developing her as they went along. I initially knew that she was a young single mother from South Central Los Angeles with a child who is approximately 13 years old. Michael had killed her husband, Jackson - and the details of that still haven't been cleared up. Michael killed him during gang warfare, and it was unintentional. Afterward, Michael fled Sunset Beach, but returned years later. Then he found out where Jimmy and Virginia were living and hung around the basketball courts and became a surrogate father to Jimmy.
When did you first get the hint that they were turning Virginia into something different, something special?
God, I've been on about a year, so I don't remember, really. I think I just heard someone say, "What if Virginia had a secret and she was evil?" And I thought it sounded interesting. So at that point I remember thinking to myself, "Something is going to be going on with Virginia," and it unfolded from there.
Do you like how the character has changed?
Oh, I love it. It's interesting, because so many of my friends say to me, "You're such a nice person." So it means that I'm doing a good job if I can pull off something like this.
It's a really sharp turn - all of a sudden she went on the offensive.
Yeah, but her love for her son, Jimmy, is still the basis for everything she does. Her actions may seem twisted, but everything makes perfect sense to her.
But she did put him in danger that one time when he found Mrs. Moreau's [Joyce Guy] potion.
You're right, and that freaked her out. She may be out to get Vanessa, but she genuinely cares for her son.
What's your take on all this Martin's syndrome stuff?
As Virginia? OK, when Virginia posed as nurse Selita Jones in the hospital she only wanted to get information on Vanessa's mom. She just wanted to run Vanessa out of town. She didn't want to kill her or hurt her. Then, when she found out that Vanessa's mom had the disease, she just wanted it to appear that Vanessa has Martin's syndrome. There are times when Virginia says, "Forgive me," and she feels like she is redeemed, and there are times when she's touched when she sees this woman. But Virginia is doing this for her son..
And to get Michael!
Right. Martin's syndrome is just a means to an end.
One of the things that I like about this storyline is that even though the three characters are black, the storyline isn't about them being black. That's rare on soaps. Do you guys ever talk about that?
We do. There are times when writers will want to try things like throw "ebonics" into the script, or put in words they think are hip and cool, and that's something that I think should be left up to the actors. In different circumstances a character is going to speak differently, and there are different facets to our personalities, so slang is bound to come out sometimes - but not all the time.
Now you're from South Central yourself, so you know your slang, right?
Yes, but that doesn't mean I go around saying, "Yo, yo, yo!" all the time. I say "girl" on the show sometimes, but I say "girl" in real life - not because I'm trying to be cool or ethnic, but because it's the way I talk.
What have the black fans said?
When you don't get comments about it I guess it's going OK. I don't get feedback about that aspect of the storyline. If I did a lot of neck-twirling, it might come into play. But Virginia is not like that.
I've heard people criticize the show for making one of the few black characters on the canvas a bitch.
But the thing is, she's not a black bitch. She's a bitch who happens to be black. I have heard people mention that, and she's not a bitch because she's black or from South Central. She just wants what she wants. And I guess that makes her a bitch. But she doesn't think she's a bitch, and that's how I play it.
If Vanessa really does leave town, would Virginia ever tell Michael the truth?
The only time I ever thought Virginia was going to break down is when Jimmy spilled some of the potion on himself. But getting Vanessa out of town is Virginia's whole purpose, so she wouldn't feel guilty or anything.
Really? No pangs of guilt?
Well... there is something coming up where Virginia will show some guilt. Definitely. I was surprised when it happened, because it caught me off guard.
Is all of this hard to play, because you seem like such a nice person.
Yes, because I get along so well with Jason and Sherry. And it's not that Virginia doesn't like Vanessa - she just wants to get her out of the way. That said, sometimes when we're doing scenes I find myself thinking like the character, because Virginia does have feelings. It's not like she's completely cold and doesn't care.
You could see that when she was dressing up as Selita. Sometimes the anguish and pain in her face was heartbreaking. Was it fun dressing up?
Oh, yeah! My father loves her! When I first heard about the Selita character I knew that I had to make her different. I knew that I really had to make her a character - even before they told me Selita would be wearing a fat suit.
I have never seen a more incompetent nurse.
I know, but she always smiled whenever she did something wrong. I made sure she always smiled. People were calling her Nurse Ratched. I think she's a little worse than that because she doesn't know what the heck she's doing.
When this storyline is over, what sort of things would you like to see happen to Virginia?
I want a man - regardless of whether it's Michael! You know what, I have no idea what I'd like to see happen, because the scripts surprise me all the time. I want Vanessa to be OK, but I would like Virginia to get Michael.
Have you given any thought to the idea that Virginia could get Martin's syndrome?
Oh, yeah! I was scared to death of reading the scripts. I was thinking, "please don't let the potion spill on her." Then, when Mrs. Moreau kept saying, "You're bad to the bone, girl," I kept thinking Virginia was going to get it and be laid up in the hospital like Vanessa's mom.
Do you guys have the crew cracking up when you do scenes with Joyce Guy?
Yes, but they really go crazy for the Selita stuff.
Can we talk about your personal life? I understand that your mother died in an airplane accident when you were very young. Did you get to know her? Do you ever think about her?
I was so young, so I don't think about it on a daily basis. I definitely think about it when I'm flying. I'm probably lucky that it happened so young. But my father has movies and pictures of my mother, so she's always here. And I think I'm a constant reminder of who she was. I'm very much like my father, but I have her mannerisms and qualities. And that's interesting, because I was so young when she was killed. But you seem to inherit things - and these are things I wouldn't even know. But I do them.
What do you do when you're not working?
I'm a complete movie buff, so if I'm not at home studying movies then I'm out going to films. I love to see new, raw talent. And I love music, I love to eat and I love to shop.
Do you want to do film?
I've done film, and it's just a whole other realm. To see yourself that large is amazing. The slightest movement means so much. You can't be as large as you are on television or you'll look like a complete imbecile. I would love to be behind the scenes, too - as a producer and writer. There are a lot of things I want to delve into, and some of them have nothing to do with the business.
Like what?
I just love fashion.
Do you design?
In my head. I wish I could draw. Hey, what I draw looks good to me. I also love music.
So, have a musical fashion show, with Nurse Selita Jones as the host.
Oh, god! Selita could do her dance. Did you see the day she did her little dance in the hospital? It was like my Solid Gold imitation combined with the Cabbage Patch [a break-dancing move]. I thought it was hilarious. I was so pleased with myself for coming up with something that funny.
