ESPRIT LIBRE // Press Archive

FORBES ON HIS JOB AT OLTL

Forbes on Working at "One Life to Live"

(on what he remembers about his audition for the role of Nash) "I was out in L.A. so I put my stuff on tape. But the very fact that they were willing to see me was a good sign. I had already worked for ABC, so if there were any interest at all, it would be a good interest. They weren't going to waste their time with me if I'd been blackballed." (SID 11/22/05)

(on what winning the role of Nash means to him) "For the first time in my life, I could take a job that I didn't need and just have some fun with it. I hope that doesn't come across as unappreciative, but it's nice." (SID 12/6/05)

(at the 2006 Daytime Emmys) "It's been a great experience. It's all rum balls and honey!" (SID 6/6/06)

(about the 2006 Daytime Emmys) "It's been a long night. But it's been unforgettable!" (SID 6/6/06)

(how he prepares for scenes on the show) "I fall down. I find it's a good icebreaker." (SOD 5/22/07)

(on what figure of speech he never wants to see in a script again) "'I love you.' We say it far too often and it loses its meaning." (SOD 4/24/07)

"I asked Frank (Valentini, One Life to Live's executive producer) if I could get a haircut and he said no, because I'm the long-haired guy. Just to drive Frank crazy, I got a petition that said, 'We believe the actor who plays the role of Nash should get a haircut,' and everybody [on the cast and crew] signed it. I had to lie and tell some of them that it was to save children in Darfur." (SOW 7/31/07)

"I have never experienced a period of my life like this. Things are balanced right now and really good. And if nothing changed, I would be a happy man." (SID 9/25/07)

"I like to rehearse to find stuff that hasn’t necessarily been found. You know, we'll rehearse just completely improv-ing the whole thing, then rehearse with the lines and then with alternate lines, just to find some nuances. It’s called exploring it." (SID E-mail Update 9/21/07)

(on TPTB backlash to the article SOW ran about Forbes wanting a hair cut) "They said, 'We are never ever going to cut your hair again. You are going to leave here looking like Jesus.' To be rebellious I thought I would wear it into a ponytail one day. So Frank (Valentini, executive producer) decided to go against my rebellion and said my ponytail looked really good and I should wear it. It has absolutely nothing to do with the character or the show. It's just simply a p-----g match between me and my executive producer." (SOW 3/11/08)

Forbes on His Firing From OLTL

(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 whether he knew he was going to be fired) "I started suspecting it last August and then starting in February, I was going up to Frank's [Valentini, executive producer] office, saying, 'Dude, if you're writing me out, give me the okay to start auditioning for other gigs.' It was clear as day to me, but Frank said, 'Oh, no, no. You're totally paranoid.' I'm at the point in my life where whenever somebody calls me paranoid now, I'm pretty sure that I'm on to something [laughs]." (SOD 6/10/08)

(on returning from vacation to learn that he'd been fired) "I went in there and said, 'Before I give you my pitch, do I still have a job here?' I hadn't worked in four weeks. And Frank's like, 'Yeah...no, you don't.' I was disappointed, but not shocked. I really thought they would come up with something. It's very disappointing. As far as I knew, Nash had a very strong following and I don't think I pissed anybody off enough to get fired. ... But I do respect Frank and I do like him a lot as a person. I don't mean for this to sound like a disclaimer, but I really enjoyed my time with him." (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 the Fans

(at meeting fans at Super Soap Weekend 2005) "It's so freaking awesome to see people smile." (SID 1/17/06)

(on attending Super Soap Weekend 2006) "I've been doing this for a while now. And in that time, there have been some times of great reward and sometimes it's been really hard and frustrating. This is one of the good times." (SID 1/16/07)

"There's a group of women on YouTube who make collages pretty much weekly. There's thousands; they're great. This one girl -- her screen name is Blondiegrrl -- is fantastic; she's probably got 100 up there. It makes me feel good when I'm feeling down." (SOD 8/7/07)

(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)

(after announcing his firing from OLTL) "If there's one thig I want to convey, it's how much pleasure I got from the fans' reaction. What a fantastic ride. I'm not sour, but I'm chagrined." (SOD 6/10/08)

Forbes on Other OLTL Characters

(on the character of Clint) "He's like the voice of the audience. ... 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." (SOW 3/6/07)

(on Antonio's injured hand) "If John can be burned to death so that his own mother can't recognize him and then come back with a full head of hair and nothing but a Phantom of the Opera mask, I suspect that Antonio will not be missing a finger." (SOW 3/6/07)

Forbes on Soap Operas

"I really didn't think I would ever come back [to soaps]. The trouble with daytime is, you never have a moment of relaxation." (SID 12/6/05)

(on the Emmy nomination process) "So much of it is story-dictated. S----y actors will get a great story and get a nom, and the really great actors won't get a great story and not get a nom. Or they'll not get as big a story and do an amazing job with it and won't get noticed because it wasn't as dramatic." (SOD 6/19/07)

Forbes on Acting

(on his interest in directing) "I think it's important as an actor to be aware of not just the actor side, but to be able to understand the greater scheme of things. It lets you know what battles to fight for; it lets you know what you're really going for." (SOD 12/20/05)

(on his time on the West Coast) "I wasn't enjoying it at all. It was everything I didn't like about the business. So much talk about 'You've got to have dinner with this person, do lunch with that person, make sure you say hi to so and so, try to look younger.' It was really distracting. I was really unhappy. I just wanted to get back in front of the camera." (SOD 12/20/05)

(on his decision to take comedy classes) "I have no background whatsoever in comedy, but I was getting a little bored with drama, and it started occurring to me that the best drama is somewhat funny all the time." (SOD 12/20/05)