Prince of Prime-Time
Daytime TV magazine
June 1991
The suave, debonair Charles Shaughnessy (Shane, Days of Our Lives) traded his ISA stripes for those of the British Royalty when he tackled the role of Lord Bertram Moseley on the new Fox Network hit Harry and the Hendersons, based on the motion picture of the same name. The role was much different than the “Mr. Nice Guy Shane Donovan” that Charles is used to playing. “This role is as far from Shane as you can expect it to be given the fact they’re both English,” he laughs.
The pace of a sitcom is quite a bit easier than the structured long hours of daytime. Unfortunately, Charles didn’t get to enjoy that aspect of it since he was juggling his tight Days schedule while rehearsing the Harry episode. When he was on stage 42 at the famous Universal Studios Hollywood, he found that “it’s interesting because it was a lot slower paced than Days, yet the day seemed very full. It’s amazing how your work expands.” Charles enjoys getting a break from daytime to do “quality television,” but at the end of the action-packed weekend admitted he was looking forward to getting back to the familiarity of the show he’s been on for the past seven years.
It’s always nice to see a daytime favorite shine on a prime-time show, but unfortunately some powers-that-be dismiss the enormous pool of daytime talent. “Why?” is a burning question that now appears to be increasingly replaced with, “Why not?” Were they aware of who they were casting when they chose this extremely popular actor? “Yes. We initially brought him in because he was a good actor and we knew he was a soap star. He was cast because he was British, funny, charming and a wonderful actor,” says Maryann Drake, the casting director for the show.
Charles was an integral part of the storyline and worked closely with the show’s mainstay stars, Bruce Davison (George Henderson) of the highly acclaimed movie Longtime Companion, Molly Cheek (Nancy Henderson) from It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, and of course, Kevin Peter Hall, the original Harry and the Predator. Of the cast, Charles admits, “It’s always unnerving coming into work with an established cast, but this group couldn’t have been more pleasant and professional to work with. By the end of the week I felt like I’d known them for a long time.” The feeling was quite mutual. As a matter of fact, Carol Ann Plante, who plays Sarah Henderson, happens to be a huge fan of not only Days, but of the handsome Salem agent. “It was great to meet him and find out he’s every bit as nice as he seems on Days. He was so personable. One day he brought in pictures of his baby (Jenny) and couldn’t stop talking about her, it was really sweet.
The pace of a sitcom is quite a bit easier than the structured long hours of daytime. Unfortunately, Charles didn’t get to enjoy that aspect of it since he was juggling his tight Days schedule while rehearsing the Harry episode. When he was on stage 42 at the famous Universal Studios Hollywood, he found that “it’s interesting because it was a lot slower paced than Days, yet the day seemed very full. It’s amazing how your work expands.” Charles enjoys getting a break from daytime to do “quality television,” but at the end of the action-packed weekend admitted he was looking forward to getting back to the familiarity of the show he’s been on for the past seven years.
It’s always nice to see a daytime favorite shine on a prime-time show, but unfortunately some powers-that-be dismiss the enormous pool of daytime talent. “Why?” is a burning question that now appears to be increasingly replaced with, “Why not?” Were they aware of who they were casting when they chose this extremely popular actor? “Yes. We initially brought him in because he was a good actor and we knew he was a soap star. He was cast because he was British, funny, charming and a wonderful actor,” says Maryann Drake, the casting director for the show.
Charles was an integral part of the storyline and worked closely with the show’s mainstay stars, Bruce Davison (George Henderson) of the highly acclaimed movie Longtime Companion, Molly Cheek (Nancy Henderson) from It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, and of course, Kevin Peter Hall, the original Harry and the Predator. Of the cast, Charles admits, “It’s always unnerving coming into work with an established cast, but this group couldn’t have been more pleasant and professional to work with. By the end of the week I felt like I’d known them for a long time.” The feeling was quite mutual. As a matter of fact, Carol Ann Plante, who plays Sarah Henderson, happens to be a huge fan of not only Days, but of the handsome Salem agent. “It was great to meet him and find out he’s every bit as nice as he seems on Days. He was so personable. One day he brought in pictures of his baby (Jenny) and couldn’t stop talking about her, it was really sweet.
