The Spin On The Ball Has Changed For Drake
As of 12/16/08, Drake is no longer playing the wonderful role of John Black that he played from 1/10/86 - 9/26/07 (22 years) or the new and exciting role of Jawn DiMera that he played from 12/26/07 - 12/16/08. In 2007, Drake was let go when John Black was senselessly killed in a hit and run accident. The fan outcry was enormous, with hundreds of DAYS fans from all fanbases writing and calling and faxing to demand that they bring Drake back. Drake and Deidre and Thaao and Ken were in Australia when the outcry reached its peak in the United States, and Ken finally decided to bring Drake back to the show. He first appeared on 12/26/07 with one gorgeous blue eye opening as he was lying on the slab in Rolf's laboratory, much to the delight of Drake's overjoyed fans. He had nearly a year of playing the "new" character of Jawn DiMera until that also came to a screeching halt on 11/14/08 when the-powers-that-be of Days of our Lives did the unthinkable and let Drake go again like they did in 2007! Drake received a phone call at home from Executive Producer, Ken Corday, and was told "his character is being taken off the canvas because they have other stories they want to tell." No other explanation was given as to why they would remove a man who is an icon on DAYS from the canvas. To say that this was a shock and a travesty and heart-wrenching to us and to Drake's entire legion of fans would be an understatement, but sadly it's true. After 23 years of love and dedication and loyalty to Days of our Lives on Drake's part (and 3,500 shows), they decided they no longer needed him and would be moving on to more of the younger actors and storylines. We feel it was definitely a case of age discrimination, not to mention an extremely stupid decision on the part of the-powers-that-be at DAYS, but they didn't deserve Drake's loyalty and talent anyway. He's moving on and not looking back, and we can't wait to join him at his next show. We, along with a lot of Drake fans, quit watching DAYS when his last show aired on 1/23/09. He's been on lots of auditions and has had a lot of interest expressed by various people about his availability, so we know it's only a matter of time until he's snatched-up by a new and exciting show full of possibilities and challenges for him to conquer. Congratulations, Drake, on your bright and exciting future where you'll be appreciated! We love you and are with you always and forever!
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