ESPRIT LIBRE // Press Archive

FORBES ON NASH

Forbes on the Character of Nash

"Nash is a devil-may-care kinda guy. He goes for it. He's good fun." (SoapNet "ABC Reveals Soap Secrets" 8/26/05)

(on what drew him to the character of Nash) "I really wanted to play something a little more 'wink, wink,' a little more devilish -- I had a good feeling [about him]." (SID 12/6/05)

"It's a good story, Nash is a really fun character. I get nice, snappy lines. I'm having a blast." (SOD 12/20/05)

(on his character's name) "I don't know what it means, but it gave me the whole inspiration for this kind of -- (he kind of shuffles off to Buffalo) -- as soon as I heard that I just kind of had that view for how this guy was gonna move. Come on, you got a name like Nash!" (Soapdom.com 9/13/06)

(on what plans Nash has for Jessica) "He doesn't have any plan right now. Nash is more of a fox than a wolf." (SOD 1/16/07)

(on whether he considers Nash his favorite of all his roles) "Yes, Nash really is the one that really resonates with me. I can really relate to him. Nashville, baby!" (TVG Canada 1/18/07)

(about Nash) "I think he always assumes that things will work out. It's just a matter of how." (SOD 5/29/07)

"Nash is a survivor. He is somebody who will find a way to make things work. He's not a stranger to adversity. He's like, 'How do we work through this now?'" (SOD 7/24/07)

"I have no problem wearing the hat of the hero or the bad guy. I prefer the bad guy because it's more interesting." (SID 9/25/07)

(on his most memorable fan encounter) "[When I was at] Home Depot, where I go to forget that I'm a city actor and indulge my fantasy as a country farmer, [a woman] showed me a picture of her son who she had named Nash. I felt really great about that and was beginning to take it personally until my father reminded me that she had named her son Nash, not Forbes, and after all, I don't even write the character, I just stand where I'm told and say my lines. Thank goodness Dad was there that day." (SID 11/20/07)

(describing Nash as a father) "Nash is overcompensating for the father he didn't have, and is absolutely head over heels smitten with his little girl. I think he's an amazing father in every way that he possibly can be. He's a good father." (SoapNet Promo 2008)

(on his firing from OLTL) "I'm so utterly baffled. ... I had so much fun playing Nash. I really thought it was going to have some longevity." (SOD 6/10/08)

(on his last days taping at OLTL) "I have one more day to tape as the Ghost of Nash Past. Can't wait! I've got carte blanche to do whatever I want. What are they gonna do? Hire me?" (SOD 6/10/08)

Forbes on Nash's Physical Appearance

(on the longish hair he wears as Nash) "I was thinking about cutting it but the show wants it long. And I agree that's best for Nash, but I personally like shorter hair for maintenance. There should always be an element to Nash that reminds me that he doesn't belong. He's like the Great Gatsby -- always an outsider." (TVG Canada 1/18/07)

(on Nash's scenes in the steam room) "There was a whole discussion on whether Nash should be in shape and I decided Nash should be in better shape than Forbes is without working out. I just don't get the feeling that Nash is a go-to-the-gym kinda guy. The writers actually picked up on that. They wrote a scene with Antonio and Nash at the gym, and the whole gag was Nash doesn't work out; he seems to spend a lot of time in the steam room. He's always in the steam room [laughs]! I questioned them about that, but apparently, everybody else seems to be okay with that." (SOD.com 3/28/07)

"I wrote up this petition [that I should get a haircut] and had the entire cast and crew sign it.... I handed it in to [Frank Valentini, executive producer], and he got really pissy at first, and then he felt bad because he got pissy, so he said I could!" (SOD 5/1/07)

(on why Nash should have long-ish hair) "Because you should always be aware of the fact that Nash just doesn't quite fit in." (SOD 5/1/07)

Forbes on Storyline Developments Involving Nash

(the dumbest thing Nash did in 2005) "Uh, not realizing that the woman he's in love with [Tess] isn't real. Should've figured that one out, don't ya' think?" (SOD 12/27/05)

(on Nash's drinking problem) "[The writers] are throwing Nash over the edge and don't know what they are going to do with him. And that kind of works, because Nash doesn't know what he's going to do with Nash, which makes it all kinds of interesting." (SID 10/24/06)

(on Nash having to stitch Antonio up after the hospital bomb) "It was actually my first career choice. Antonio had this prosthetic stomach Nash had to sew shut. I had all the proper tools. I used quite a good running stitch. It was awesome." (SOW 6/19/07)

Forbes on the Nash/Clint Relationship

(on Nash/Clint scenes) "I freaking love them. Jerry verDorn (Clint) should have more scenes with more characters like that. He's like the voice of the audience. Antonio and Nash have all these defensive layers of lies and deceit and ulterior motives. When you talk to Clint, he's like a therapist or an uncle. He can ask the questions that nobody else can ask. And you can answer him in a way that you never would answer anybody, including yourself. Almost every major turn in Nash's attitude toward anybody -- be it Viki, Jessica, Tess or Antonio -- has been guided by Clint's questions, which made Nash confront his own feelings." (SOW 3/6/07)

"There's been a lot of talk about whether Clint could be Nash's dad, but I love the fact that we have a father/son relationship without him being my father. We have been through similar circumstances. He's the voice of wisdom." (SOW 3/6/07)

(on whether or not Nash should turn out to be Clint's long-lost son) "There's been a lot of talk about that. I've actually talked to the producers and writers about that. But besides the fact that it would be really gross, I think it would take away from the relationship. ... I think it's really interesting that Nash and Clint have this father-son relationship without actually being father-son. The moment you make them father-son, it would lose what is interesting about that relationship. The fact that Clint is not Nash’s father, makes -- there's a constant line in there, a wall between them...so there's this -- a sense of they relate to each other, and yet they can't quite reach through that wall to each other. There's a formality to the closeness which makes our scenes -- for me -- very interesting. Because I'm always pushing the line, and trying to pull myself back at the same time. And if they made him my dad, it would lose all that. It would become too easy to say the things that Nash says." (Brokerage Event, 4/28/07)

"If you think back, Nash realized he was in love with Jessica because of Clint. Clint got that out of him. Until that moment -- we were in the vineyard ... and he came out with a glass of wine, and ... uh, started telling me not to pursue Jessica. Nash, until that moment, had no intention of pursuing Jessica, until Clint made him confront that." (Brokerage Event, 4/28/07)

Forbes on the Nash/Antonio Relationship

(on whether or not he considers Antonio and Nash to be friends) "Nash has consistently found himself in situations where he's had no other solution, and Antonio has come forward with an offer, which Nash has resentfully accepted. Maybe Antonio is doing this for his own self-centered reasons, and it's a power play. But at the end of the day, Nash needs the job. Nash has a begrudging respect for someone who has continually done good things for him. But [the word] 'friend,' I wouldn't use." (SID 1/16/07 E-mail Update)

"Nash and Antonio have a strange relationship. What does lie there is a sort of begrudging respect." (SOD 2/20/07)

"Nash feels bad because Antonio's being so kind to him. Which honestly, I've had a hard time playing. If I were Nash, I would be resentful of the good things that Antonio is doing for me. If a guy got my finacee, adopted my child, bought my vineyard, and then gave me a job tending bar, each one of those things would further my resentment. But I played it that I do actually begin to feel guilty. I mean, he did just burn off his fingertips and pull a stake out of his chest to save my life." (SOW 3/6/07)

(on Antonio confronting Nash about the affair) "Nash says, 'Look, I do feel bad for you and your family, but I have to think about my own family. This has gone on too long. Jessica has chosen. She's chosen me. So, back off.'" (SOW 5/29/07)

Forbes on the Nash/Jared Relationship

(on whether or not Nash and Jared could ever be friends) "They could be friends years down the line when this is like, 'Oh, that was so funny, what a misunderstanding that all was.' But not until this misunderstanding is all cleared up and Nash has come to understand why Jared has been getting away with these atrocious things. ... I think it would be really interesting for the two of them to come to terms with each other. I suspect that their backgrounds are strikingly similar." (SOW 3/11/08)