| BLAZE OF GLORY |
| It May Be An Honor Just To Be Nominated, But Winning An Emmy Is Another Story By Melissa Scardaville Soap Opera Digest Since 1973, when Mary Fickett (Ruth, AMC) became the first daytime performer to win an Emmy, many actors have dreamed about the night that they'd get to hold their acceptance speech in one hand and a gold-plated statuette in the other. Emmy winners, after all, are the stars of the telecast, the men and women of the hour around whom photographers swarm and reporters scramble. But flashbulbs and instant accolades aside, what does it really mean to win an Emmy? "I have never heard any evidence that it really matters in the ways you think it might-- more money, more perks, bigger dressing rooms," shares TV Guide columnist Michael Logan. "In the long run, it doesn't mean a whole heck of a lot. It's lovely to have it happen, but most of the time--like with any awards--you can't remember a couple of months later who won. If you said to anyone, 'Who was last year's Best Actor?' it would take a few minutes to think, 'Oh, it was David Canary [Adam/Stuart, AMC], who has al- ready won 52 of them.' " Many Emmy-winning actors acknowledge that the aftermath is completely different from the experience of the actual ceremony. "It was a special night," shares Martha Byrne (Lily/Rose, AS ,THE WORLD TURNS) about her two Emmy wins, one for Outstanding Younger Actress in 1987, the other for Lead Actress in 2001. "Then the next day, we went back to what we were doing before. Nothing changes. You've got to get up at 4:30 a.m. to be [at work] at 7. Life goes on. It doesn't change." "Just to sit there in a New York theater and to have my name called, that was fabulous," recalls Suzanne Rogers (Maggie, DAYS OF OUR LIVES) about her 1979 win for Supporting Actress. "But once I won, it was like, 'Okay, we're going to concentrate on other people who haven't had as much of a story.' I never felt that I had another stab at ever winning another Emmy because of it." Judi Evans Luciano, who won for Supporting Actress in 1984 as GUIDING LIGHT's Beth, agrees that the evening she took home the trophy was memorable; the days that followed, less so. "It was an exciting night. I had never won anything like that before, so it was really special," smiles the actress. Once she had the preface "Emmy winner" by her name, however, the magic soon faded. "Oddly enough, after winning it, I felt like I had to prove myself more," she confesses. One reason for that self-applied pressure, ac- cording to Luciano, was that she had little soap experience before her win. "I was pretty young and working all the time, and working at all at that age in this career is pretty lucky. I was overwhelmed by the fact that I was able to work and had great story." Kimberly McCulIough (ex-Robin, GENERAL HOSPITAL), who won in 1989 and again in 1996 for Younger Actress, also notes that timing is everything. "[In 1996], I considered myself an actor, whereas the one when I was younger, I didn't, really. I was doing it because it was fun," she explains. "But in 1996, I felt like, not necessarily that I wanted to win, but that the [Robin/Stone] storyline deserved recognition--not me. So, when I did win, it was very satisfying because people were recognizing the work that we did with the story." Byrne concurs that age affected her take on winning. "When you're 17 and you're going to the 'prom' and you win an Emmy, it's a big deal. And it still is a big deal [when you win as an adult]. It's just a different kind of accomplishment. You're much more focused on the work. The work seems to be more important than anything else. I know it sounds cliche, but I would rather have a year's worth of quality work than an Emmy any day." Adds Logan, "An Emmy can be highly deserved if it comes at the right time -- and very often, it doesn't." Other people's perceptions of the validity of the win can shape how the Emmy winner frames his or her triumph. "People weren't as nice to me," reveals Luciano about her co-stars' reactions. "It was unfortunate, but what are you going to do?" Of course, not all colleagues have axes to grind. Shares Rogers about her fellow actors, "They were genuinely happy. I think one person said, 'Well, I'm going to win next year,' and I said, 'Yeah, sure.' But I do think it was [well-received]." Even if the mood on the set is positive, once said Emmy-winning actor leaves the daytime sphere, any weight that title may carry seems to dissipate. McCullough, who has been working in prime-time and film since leaving GH in 1998, observes, "People don't consider the Daytime Emmys to be Emmys. They don't recognize them as anything at all." Logan agrees: "If you win a prime-time Emmy or an Oscar, your price shoots up, and more offers come pouring in. Most of the people who win [Daytime] Emmys already have a job, and the outside entertainment world isn't paying that much attention to the Daytime Emmys, anyway. So, I don't think it's a big career-maker." Logan argues that one reason that Daytime Emmys may not have the impact they should is the constant controversy that surrounds them. "[The controversy] has a lot of people feeling that [the ballot] isn't representative of great work and therefore diminishes the importance of winning," he states. "We all go to the Emmys every year and sit there with our jaws dropping open at the occasional name that is read. In a way, I think we all know the people who should be nominated and never are; the people who go through their entire careers and never win an Emmy. Beverlee McKinsey (ex-Alex, GL; ex-Iris, ANOTHER WORLD]--the greatest actor who was ever in daytime drama--has never won an Emmy, yet there are pretty-boy models who have one on their mantels." But when all is said and done, despite any eyebrows that may be raised or storylines that never materialize, those who have won an Emmy consider it to be a 16-inch version of a job well done. It may not buy a vacation home or respect from the industry at large, but it's a source of pride for its owners. Smiles Rogers, "You always have it. No one can take it away from you, and it was absolutely thrilling." # |
