Transcript of Yahoo! Chat
with As the World Turns' Lesli Kay (Molly) and Tom Eplin (Jake)

May 3, 2001

amyy0923: Are either one of you taping the Survivor finale right now?
Lesli: Hi -- thanks for coming! I'm watching it, not taping. Are you watching Survivor too?

pwrscarlet: This is SoapCity member PWRKayla. Jake and Molly and Jack and Carly are sometimes called the FAB FOUR on the net. Any chance we will see Jake and Molly mixing it up a little with Jack and Carly?
Lesli: You mean like a sick foursome? Just kidding. Seriously they like to keep Carly and Molly as a little diamond in the rough, they really don't like to overuse us together, they like to save it, like once a month give us ten page scenes. I think the audience would get sick of us if we were together all the time. At one point Maura and I asked Goutman if he would allow Molly and Carly to live together and he said "Never!" It would be too much.

rogeratwt: Lesli! I love Molly with Jake. Are you happy with the way the character has grown/changed over the years?
Lesli: Absolutely -- I'm really happy with the way Moll has grown. But I wish that in the land of daytime that growing and growing up didn't mean less work. Molly's got her shoot together now that can't find anything for her to do. When I was creating havoc, disheveled and messing up all the time I worked five days a week. So, you know, it's a trade off at the moment.

sm_cosper: Lesli, yesterday we saw Emily taking pics of Carly and Jack to publish in The Intruder, don't you think Molly and Carly should get together and kick Emily's ass?
Lesli: Absolutely, Keith and I came up with a very funny storyline. You remember the movie Weekend at Bernie's -- Molly digs up David and props him up all over the place to scare the shit out of Emily. He's dead but I just put a ton of makeup on him to get back at Emily.

qwiji081380: Lesli: Kristina spoke VERY highly of you, what do you say about her?
Lesli: Nothing but wonderful things. I've been blessed these past few years, 'cause Keith is in my life, we made Jackson and also Kristina is in my life. She's a pure gem. She's like my daughter in real life, I feel very nurturing toward her and I try to take care of her. She's a good egg.

amyy0923: Molly and Jake are like the best thing on ATWT these days, do you like playing respectable citizens or would you rather be the town's black sheep?
Lesli: I've done both -- I wouldn't care which as long as I'm working with Tom Eplin. I feel very fortunate to be working with him because we really bring out the best in each other, and he gets excited for every scene he's in. I'm blessed to be able to work with him. So I don't care if Molly was bad or good just as long as I'm working with Tom.

hermie302001: Lesli, Congrats on your Emmy nomination! Do you know what you are going to wear yet?
Lesli: I joke with Tom that I'm just gonna get a little Tommy Hilfiger g-string, that says Tommy on the front and that's it. Seriously, though I finally found a dress, but I'm not gonna comment on it.

adeema74: Lesli, Molly has matured since her coma, but do you think that she has lost her edge?
Lesli: No, she's just in love. People get a little different when they're so in love and everything's going great. So what's there to have an edge about?

RIKKI104: How is it working with the twins? The one who plays Bridget seems to be very talkative!
Lesli: They both are talkative. Bridget is a little more talkative, but you know what, Bridget could be Michelle any day of the week and you wouldn't know it. It is whoever is in the better mood that day is Bridget because we make Bridget the more talkative one, so it could be either of them. They love me and I love them. They do anything I ask them to do so they're both terrific.

qwiji081380: Lesli: Are you excited about the cruise?
Lesli: I can't believe I'm saying this, but I've been a very independent/carefree person my whole life and very much a free spirit, and now I have this little baby, it's hard for me to leave, I've got knots in my stomach. It's tearing me up. I have absolutely no fear for his safety, he's going to be with his grandparents but he's been with me for nine months on the inside and fourteen months out. He just supplies me with so much love, I'm going to miss him, but I'm sure we're going to have a great time.

pwrscarlet: Hi, this is SoapCity member PWRKayla. Lesli, your scenes with Terri Conn are always fabulous to watch. What is your favorite Molly/Katie moment?
Lesli: There's one on the Xmas reel, where we're fighting (as usual) at WOAK, and I throw some copy at her, and because she has such heavy lip gloss on, it stuck to her face! We had to stop the scene because we were both cracking up.

trstup: Is there anybody you don't work with much you would like to work with more
Lesli: I just want to work more, period. I've worked with almost everyone on the show. Now I'm working with Liz and Martha now, I always work with Maura and sometimes Jack on occasion, and with Kristina. I've worked with everybody and right now I'm working with the best so I'm pretty darn happy. I've been on the show 5 years, and I've always been in a main story and worked less than three days a week until now. But it's not so bad, I got a movie, which is great, which is the first thing I've done besides ATWT in 4½ years so it's nice to have a little down time. And I know it will pick up once we get married and start wreaking more havoc.

brianna_11756: Hi, I have to honestly say that you are one of the most beautiful women, any beauty secrets?
Lesli: First off all, God bless ya, that's so sweet. I feel so old and tired sometimes that's very nice to hear. I'm really terrible with compliments. If I'd say anything it's that laughing a lot helps lift your face, and also I don't wear make-up (except when I'm at work).

stargurl1129: Lesli, I hear Tom is quite the joker. Has he ever pulled anything on you?
Lesli: The way Tom jokes, I don't even know if I can talk about because in most businesses it would be considered sexual harassment!

brianna_11756: When do you think Jake and Molly's wedding will be? I am looking forward to it.
Lesli: I don't know -- the writers keep changing things. I think we're getting married at the end of the summer. But when it happens, I don't think there will be much cheating. I think Molly and Jake have had so much trouble in their lives that they really appreciate finding each other. It really wouldn't make much sense for either of them to go cheat, but I think there will be a lot of cool things outside of that which can create some adventures for them.

margarita0503: What do you value the most in your life?
Lesli: Because of the loss of the three most important people in my life, my father and my grandparents (my unconditional love source), the love I get from my family and the people I adore is what I love most - that feeling of love. I could be poor, go back to bartending, the career doesn't mean anything but Jackson and Keith, and my friends, the sources of love in my life.

brianna_11756: How do you get away from the hectic pace of soaplife?
Lesli: I don't really have a hectic pace -- I live on the beach, I work two days a week, my son goes to work with me. We work about five hours a days. I like to keep stress free as much as it is within my control so I moved really close to the studio, so that keeps stress away. For me sitting in a car in traffic all day is stressful. I love work. So really playing with Jackson and laughing with Keith is my stress relief.

jack_julia_fan: Lesli, congrats on the Emmy nomination. What did you think of the scenes where David terrorizes Julia? Keith and Annie had some pretty intense scenes...were those scenes hard to watch, along with the unforgettable scenes at David's funeral?
Lesli: No, they were great together -- we joke that another soap should pick them up as a big bad couple 'cause they look good together and they work great together.

ljsca: Do you get recognized a lot?
Lesli: No, it never makes me feel uncomfortable. I get recognized... sometimes all the time, sometimes not at all, it depends if people watch the show where I am. It's sweet when I do get recognized and it's great to know people are watching.

qwiji081380: Who is the best actor either of you have ever worked with?
Lesli: Keith and Tom. And Dean Stockwell.

hermie302001: There are several websites that honor you. Do you ever sneak in and see what the fans are saying?
Lesli: Only if someone sends it to me. I don't have the time to check the internet anymore but I do check my email so if someone sends me a link I will check it.

ShannonKK: Who do you like to hang out with from the show when you're not at work?
Lesli: I don't anymore because I don't live near anyone now but I used to love to hang out with and when I have the time I will drive out to her place, Martha Byrne a lot, she's my best friend. And Kristina, we hang out all the time.

brianna_11756: Hi, what was your first impression of Tom when you met him?
Lesli: I met him 4 years ago and I thought he was making fun of me for being a West Virginia redneck, but then I found out that he was from there too. We grew up in the same town, our parents went to the same highschool, Charleston High, they graduated the same year and his dad thought my Mom was a hottie.

amyy0923: When did you know you wanted to act and did how did you get into it?
Lesli: I was a dancer and realized that that wasn't a very secure career. Then I was going to go pre-med, and my dad said "Les, you dance, you act, you shouldn't be a doctor you should be an actress. You're good with rejection, you don't take no for an answer, I think you should act." And that's when I was in college.

ATrammell: On a family note, what is Keith up to these days?
Lesli: He's sitting downstairs watching Survivor!

Lesli: Stay tuned for the Jake and Molly wedding, it'll be a good one. Tom and I will be doing everything in our hearts and soul to keep it real and keep it entertaining. Thanks for tuning in. We love you all.

SoapCity_Rose: Lesli Kay, ladies and gentlemen! And now, here's Tom Eplin!!

sm_cosper: Tom, could you please describe the 'Big Gun' that Jake is always threatening to bring out?
Tom: Is this a porno network? That was a metaphor for the big lovemaking machine. I have a belief that if Lesli and I are acting with each other and we're having fun then the people watching will have fun. I have no idea other than a metaphor.

tommyfan28: First, Congrats Tom and Leslie on you Emmy noms!! Also, I wanted to thank Tom for signing my article at the luncheon, thanks, that was very nice! Now, for my question, is Jake EVER going to get a more relaxed wardrobe? I mean, how many pairs of black dress pants can one man own?!
Tom: Listen, when you're Tom Eplin and constantly fighting a weight problem, black is the best color for you.

amyy0923: Are there any shows that you are addicted to?
Tom: Absolutely none. Monday Night Football.

qwiji081380: Tom: Compare you working with Liz Hubbard & Charles Keating?
Tom: There's a lot of similiarites. Both people I respect a great deal and I've learned a great deal from both of them. Liz has a spontaneity that seems to work with my style and was very compatible. Liz was instrumental in my foundation of working on World Turns.

pwrscarlet: Hi, I'm SoapCity member PWRKayla. Tom, Jake is one of the most successful characters to cross over from one soap to another. What do you think is Jake's biggest appeal to ATWT fans who had never watched a day of Jake's life on AW?
Tom: The key actors on As the World Turns accepting Tom Eplin into the family.

adeema74: Tom, what scenes did you submit to the Emmy's?
Tom: I submitted the scene where Jake goes to the swingsets and talks to Vicky and for the first time acknowledges she is dead. Then, where he goes back to a different park and asks Vicky's acceptance of his falling in love again with Molly. The work I have done speaks for itself. I have put my best foot forward as far as that work is concerned. So I hope the people who judge that see the same qualities in it that I hoped to bring to it as an actor. Luck is not going to win this award. Nothing in my career means more to me than being nominated for this award and nothing would mean more than to win it. Everyone who is nominated is deserving. The person who walks away with the gold statute is the most deserving that night. It doesn't mean that any of the other four deserve any less accolades. But for that night, for one night, you are the best actor in this business.

brianna_11756: What cast members inspire you and why?
Tom: Lesli did work today that I thought was in the top five most inspiring pieces of work I've ever seen in my life. The fact that I've been in the business for 18 years and am still being surprised by somebody is amazing. I've learned a great deal from this cast. I've been welcomed by so many people in the cast. But today Lesli shocked me. It was an epiphany.

stargurl1129: Lesli, I saw your interview on SoapCity today. I’m sure the fans wouldn’t mind seeing Jake in a g-string. Tom do you have any objections?
Tom: The fans have already done the most by accepting me into their family. I have had sleepless nights transferring this character. So being nominated is such a big honor to me and I'm going to do nothing but be extremely respectful and formal. This is the biggest thing that's happened to me in my professional life. I get tears in my eyes when I see a mention of my nomination and I'm not going to joke about it. I'm going to wear the simplest tuxedo I can wear because the night means so much to me, I don't want anything to take away from it.

pwrscarlet: Hi Tom, this is SoapCity member PWRKayla. Besides marrying Molly, what else would you like to have happen to Jake in the future?
Tom: I don't give a flying f---. The fact that they have accepted this character and made a living/breathing character out of him is a testament to their acceptance and commitment. I don't care what anyone else thinks. I give 100% to playing Jake. It was very scary to walk away from a job that was pretty much guaranteed to give me a certain amount of a comfortable living to a place where I was vying for my own existence. I have a big family coming in to see the Emmys.

ATrammell: I heard you were a hoot at the fan club luncheon. Did you have a good time?
Tom: You can't fake that. I don't fake acting and I don't fake being a person. Five times the monitor of this chat has asked me if she should put this or that. I don't monitor myself. I don't monitor who I am with the fans, that's who I am. I enjoyed meeting each and every one of them. They don't pay me enough to fake it at a fan club luncheon. I was genuinely touched by the fans.

ducky_me140: Who has been the most influential person in your career/life?
Tom: My mother and father. We're extremely fortunate to be in this business. A lot of people make it seem like it is just about art and craft but when people don't want to talk to you, you don't have a job anymore. You have to present a product that is palatable that they want to watch. I tell Lesli all the time, if you and I think we get it, if you and I think we're moving each other then the fans will definitely get it.

brianna_11756: Tom, what was your first impression of Lesli?
Tom: I already knew her. I find her to be the same person now. It's like she's been exposed to radiation and gets stronger every day. She gets more grounded in her work and it constantly amazes me. It's been one of the best couplings I've ever had and I've been in this business a long time.

pklbcg2000: Tom do you miss just a little bit being not such a nice guy?
Tom: Not at all. Unfortunately, I've come from a sort of method actor school, so if Jake is not having a good life then Tom is not having a good life. When my life goes well on-screen my home life is always better.

justduckey75: Tom - love your scenes with the twins. Do you enjoy working with the little girls (who, btw are very cute)?
Tom: There's no acting involved you're responding to those little kids. You have to react to them. You can't force your will on those kids, you have to react to them.

ShannonKK: Tom, what's your favorite Jake/Molly moment?
Tom: Every f----- time we work together! That girl made me cry today. I was going to stop a scene because I thought she was having a personal trauma! She is a wonderful, beautiful actress and people should suck her up like honey out of a honeysuckle.

spoiledangel1975: Who would you like to work with on the show that you haven't had the opportunity to work with yet?
Tom: If they let me act with Lesli everyday, I'd be just fine. I love Liz Hubbard, I enjoy working with Larry Bryggman but if they stuck me in a room and let me work with Lesli everyday I'd be just fine.

kittykat850_2000: I know Tom and Ben Hendrickson are really good friends. Have you two been having any success with fishing thus far?
Tom: We haven't gone out yet! The season has not started yet but Benji and I are gonna slay em! The temperatures are hot in New York already and if it stays that way we're gonna kill more tuna than Bumblebee!

pklbcg2000: Tom, do you still have a plane, motorcycle, and a boat? and which one of all of these is your favorite.
Tom: I still have an airplane, twin engine Cessna. My Harley Davidson is in the garage, I've ridden it ten times this year already. I still have a boat that is being serviced. I wouldn't trade one for the other. I don't want a long life, just want a good one.

msc5012_515: Tom, will you be playing softball for the Hospice on June 9 in Brooklyn?
Tom: Probably.

kittykat850_2000: This is "TomEplinFan" from SoapCity. Tom, do you ever get a chance to read the soap boards on the internet?
Tom: I don't go on the Internet a lot, especially about me. I rarely look for affirmation.

qwiji081380: You act like a complex man...are you?
Tom: I'm as dumb as the rocks. I don't find myself complex at all.

amyy0923: What about you is most like Jake and the most different?
Tom: I think that Jake and Tom generally try to do the right thing. The difference is that Jake will pursue it into indifference, he doesn't always know what's best for other people. Tom will try to figure out what's best for all parties involved.

julie1852000: What type of rehearsal schedule do you have, and how many pages, do you have to learn in a day?
Tom: Everyone on our show learns a lot of lines each day. I suggest to people on the chat tonight that learning lines is no different than your workload in any other profession. Once you've been on daytime for a couple of years, that's the least of your problems. The actual words that you speak are less important than the quality that you speak them. If I've learned anything from daytime then it's that the words are the easiest part but to convey what the authors intent is the difficult part. Most people watching think that learning the lines is the most important part, but trying to convey the author's intent is. Lesli and I are given a great amount of freedom with what we come up with. We pretty much always say what's on the page but if we think of something that we think fits what the author's intent is we use that and a lot of times they'll embrace that. ATWT is a whole different environment than AW. Another World was a page driven show and Chris Goutman (executive producer at ATWT) wants quality. He wants the quality of the character and it makes it a whole lot easier for somebody like me to work. It's entirely more inspiring.

jack_julia_fan: Tom, congrats on the Emmy nom! Many of us still miss Jake and Julia together...do you wish the writers had remembered their friendship? And what was Anine like to work with?
Tom: She was the first person I worked with on that show with any regularity and I have fond memories. She has proved herself in other mediums, in nighttime already. She welcomed me with open arms and was great to work with. I was very nervous workin' with her, she's an extremely attractive woman who has wherewithal, it was very different for me.

qwiji081380: What type of scenes are the hardest to do...emotional....love....what?
Tom: None of them. You have to understand that I walk in there everyday, my metaphor for this thing is that I'm willing to bleed for the audience with all I can give. There is no hard scene for me. You've scene snot come out of my nose, how protected can I be. That's not fake snot! There's no scene that I'm uncomfortable sharing with these people privately. It's me and four million of my closest friends.

Tom: God bless everybody! You will never know individually how much you've meant to me. I was never more afraid as an actor to come over and recreate this character and I've never been so supported in my life. This is the time in this business when most people are looking for other jobs and this show and the fans who watch it have been very supportive. I will not joke about the Emmys 'cause it means so much to me. The fans embracing me knows more than you'll ever know. Thank you so much. God Bless!

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