New Entry on "Santa Barbara": EILEEN DAVIDSON

- Sun Sentinel. December 24, 1991 -

 

When Eileen Davidson left The Young and the Restless after playing Ashley Abbott for over five years, she didn`t expect to return to daytime. Nor did she think she would be involved with co-star Don Diamont, who plays Brad on the CBS soap. Both have happened for Davidson, who recently began portraying Kelly Capwell on NBC`s Santa Barbara.

According to Davidson, ``My reason for returning to daytime was due to the Santa Barbara offer -- a nice salary, time out to pursue other things, and really create a role. They offered to do just about anything if I would work with them. That`s an offer that would make any actress feel very good.``

Davidson said only one thing changed. ``They decided to refocus the role of Kelly and asked me to take over the part. They`ve told me Kelly is going to be a totally different character.``

Prior to Davidson, the role, created by Robin Wright, was played by Kimberly McArthur and most recently by Carrington Garland. ``What I`ve decided to do is look at one page of back story for Kelly, then talk with the actors my character has related with. I`ve really done a lot of research on Kelly.``

After leaving Y&R Davidson made a movie with Jon Voight, and dropped out of another movie. ``I left because I didn`t like the way the project was going,`` she says. Davidson also starred in a short-lived Stephen J. Cannell series, Broken Badges.

It was an offhand comment about her TV family, the Abbotts, that brought Davidson together with Diamont, who she has been seeing for more than a year. ``I was having lunch with one of the makeup men on the show and he mentioned the Abbotts hadn`t heard from me in a long time. I replied, `Well, they can call me.` I was stunned when the person who called was Donald.

``When I was on Young and Restless, I really couldn`t stand him,`` she said.

But time had changed things for both of them.

``After that phone call, we decided to go to dinner. Then we`d spend lots of time talking on the phone when I was out of town. It just grew. In the beginning, we`d kid each other about how we couldn`t get along at first.``

As for her return to daytime: ``Donald and I talked about it and thought, `Gee! Why not?!` I realized I couldn`t return to Young and Restless since Brenda Epperson had stepped in as Ashley. Then came Santa Barbara`s offer.``

Will it be just like being on Y&R?

``With the Young and Restless schedule work was a piece of cake. You came in, you did your scenes, you went home. Santa Barbara`s not like that. You are literally there the whole day. I discussed this with A. Martinez, who plays Cruz, and he assured me it isn`t really a horrible schedule. It really gives you a chance to tweak your character. You spend that time on the set, hopefully running lines, finding some qualities in the scene and bringing them about in the character. Sometimes on Young and Restless you got the feeling you just did it and you left. Although, when I see some of the work turned out in prime-time and movies, I can`t tell you how much quality I think is done on television between noon and 3 p.m. Young and Restless had so many innovative story lines ... and I know the same will be true of Santa Barbara.``