♥ Ongoing Days 1995 ♥ Note on soap magazine publication dates and content of articles/interviews regarding multiple soap stars: Many of the monthly or every other month (and sometimes quarterly) magazines back in the 1980's would be on the newsstands a long time before the date on the actual magazine. We've noticed, for instance, that DAYTIME TV magazine did an interview with Drake in late 1986 about his upcoming wedding, which was scheduled for December 1986, yet the interview didn't appear until the July 1987 issue several months later. Therefore, it might be a bit confusing to read about his "upcoming" wedding in an interview dated July 1987 when you happen to know he was married in December 1986. We've tried to date the articles to match the date on the magazine, regardless of when the events talked about took place. Hopefully it will make sense as you go along! We've also edited some of the articles/interviews to just include John's storyline, since this is a Drake/John website. We've left out comments and sections about other actors or storylines unless they're involved with John's storyline. This too should be very apparent and clear when we've done that so it makes sense and you don't have to skim through a long article to find the "John parts." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥ It's Who You Know Drake Hogestyn (John) has friends in the right places...including the FBI. And lucky for him. While he was at the Federal Building in Los Angeles to get passports for himself and four children for their holiday trip to Bora Bora, he found himself surrounded by 1,600 newly-naturalized citizens also lined up for their passports. (OOPS! This is wrong. They forgot to mention that Drake also was at the Federal Building in Los Angeles to get a passport for his wife, Victoria.) Although Drake's not usually one to look for favors, he did this time. He pulled out his little black book - actually a pocket computer - and found the name of a friend with the FBI on another floor. Within minutes, an FBI agent began to open some doors for Drake, and things got done in record time. Sort of like his ISA days! SOAP OPERA MAGAZINE, 1/31/95 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥ Will The Real John Please Stand Up? During Drake Hogestyn's career on DAYS, he's had the good fortune of being able to play notably different characters on the show. When Drake arrived in Salem over eight years ago, he was supposedly police detective Roman Brady who had been held captive and changed through cosmetic surgery. "I found instant family," says Drake (John). "A wife, twins Sami and Eric, and Carrie. And a career. Abe greets me at the police station with 'Hi, partner!'" During his absence from Salem, Roman hid about thirty-million-dollars worth of bonds but didn't remember where. The ISA kidnapped Marlena to force him to find the bonds. With Patch and Kayla involved, the trail led to Copenhagen and a cobblestone road where "I had a flashback of working as an agent with Orpheus. (OOPS! This is wrong. The trail led them to Stockholm not Copenhagen.) We were hiding the bonds when the KGB arrived and interrupted us. I mistakenly shot the first person who came into view, Orpheus' wife. So now he kidnapped Marlena from the ISA. Eventually, I had a showdown with Orpheus and killed him. Marlena, however, was on a plane that was mysteriously blown out of the sky enroute back to me. So she was gone." Eventually, Marlena mysteriously returned to Salem. "Where had she been? What was going on?" Drake recalls the story. "The detective work took me to the jungles of Mexico where I discovered Roman! So who am I?!" While living in a loft and trying to sort out who he was, a woman named Danielle came to Salem. "She told me I was John Stevens and that I had been married to her. We went to Switzerland to explore who I had been. It was during that time that I really felt a whole new character emerging. I felt something happening. John Stevens was quite different from Roman and even John Black," says Drake, adding, "John Stevens was very much a socialite, a man of the world, a ladies' man. He was such a chameleon. I would have liked to have seen him developed more, but for some reason they clipped that story short." Soon after, Forrest Alamain arrived. "That was a very confusing time here. We were going through so many writers in a short period of time," Drake recalls. "I came back from Switzerland and was investigating something at the Alamain mansion when Lawrence asked me about my escapades in Switzerland. I told him it had been very enlightening. I showed him a half locket I'd found there, and he turned white. Then there was the delivery of a child's coffin. He had his younger brother Forrest's body exhumed because, supposedly, half a locket was with Carly and the other half was buried with Forrest Alamain. Clearly, I must be Forrest." The Forrest Alamain storyline went nowhere. "Then a new Headwriter, James Reilly, came in and we took another direction. Now John Black has discovered he is a priest!" This after being a husband to Marlena, marrying Isabella and fathering Brady Black, then fathering Belle with Marlena and falling in love with Kristen. No wonder Drake could not imagine a more diverse character! Lorraine Zenka, SOAP OPERA MAGAZINE, 1/31/95 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥ The Days Of His Life Except for one hitch, his life could be a soap opera. An all-star Hoosier athlete is drafted by the New York Yankees, the team he idolized as a boy. Then his dreams of a pro baseball career are shattered by a freak injury. His adolescent sweetheart and senior prom date breaks off their relationship and marries someone else, but she can't help falling back in love when he calls on Valentine's Day. (OOPS! This is wrong. In our opinion it should've been clarified that when Drake graduated from North Side High School, Fort Wayne, Indiana, he didn't attend his senior prom with Victoria. However, several years later when Victoria graduated from South Side High School, Fort Wayne, Indiana, Drake was Victoria's date for HER senior prom.) Meanwhile, the former baseball player and would-be dentist changes his name from Don to Drake, enters a Hollywood talent contest as a joke and becomes a star of daytime television. Cue the organ, right? Not so fast with the music. Sure, there's melodrama in Drake Hogestyn's journey from Fort Wayne's North Side High School to the set of NBC's DAYS OF OUR LIVES and his designation at the Tenth Annual Soap Opera Awards as "Hottest Male Star." (OOPS! This is wrong. The correct name should be "THE TENTH ANNUAL SOAP OPERA DIGEST AWARDS" not "Tenth Annual Soap Opera Awards.") The hitch: Hogestyn's life can't compare to the torment endured by his soap character, who has been brainwashed, undergone half a dozen identity changes, suffered false memories, fathered an illegitimate child, been tossed in a dungeon and - stay tuned - returned to his former life as a priest. "Ever since Drake came on DAYS OF OUR LIVES ten years ago, the show blossomed," said Emmy Peck, an assistant professor of microbiology at Wayne State University in Detroit. Like many of the more than five hundred fans who turned out to videotape, touch, obtain autographs from or chat with Hogestyn during his recent appearance at the Indiana Convention Center, Peck drove several hours to see her favorite television personality. (OOPS! This is wrong. Typo alert! In our opinion it should be "Unlike many of the more than five hundred fans," not "Like many of the more than five hundred fans.") "What you see with Drake is what you get," Peck explained. She chatted as the darkly handsome, six-foot-one, forty-one-year-old actor greeted admirers with endless patience, handshakes and hugs. "He's genuine," Peck continued. "He's a great actor. He's a hard worker. He's caring and he loves children." Decked out in a black T-shirt, jeans, a tailored sports jacket and black cowboy boots, Hogestyn grinned, shook his head and explained that he is mystified by the intensity of his fans' devotion. "Honestly, I don't know where it comes from," Hogestyn said during a rare, relaxed moment. "But I'm very appreciative, and I don't take it for granted...I never set out to be an actor, you know." Donald Drake Hogestyn was the second of four children of Fort Wayne residents Bill and Shug Hogestyn. His father, a native New Yorker, was an executive for Phelps Dodge; his mother a homemaker. Don, as he was known in the Summit City, was a tailback on North Side's football team, but he truly excelled as a third baseman. A memorable day in the ballpark occurred when he was fifteen. He saw his future wife, twelve-year-old Victoria Post, whiz by on the handlebars of a bicycle steered by her girlfriend. The two made eye contact. "We were meant to be," Hogestyn said. "I had never even been to that end of town before - I went to North Side High School, and she would go to South Side High. But there I was. Our eyes met, and I was gone." He snapped his fingers, "She 'sent' me just like that...my buddy and I ran after her with our spikes on. I started banging on the door of her house. Her mother finally opened it and said, 'you leave my daughter alone.'" Hogestyn eventually charmed both his future mother-in-law and Victoria, whom he dated through high school and college. After winning a baseball scholarship to the University of South Florida in Tampa, he studied microbiology and prepared to become a dentist. Victoria enrolled in a dental hygiene program at Indiana University-Purdue University at Fort Wayne. "We had it all planned," Hogestyn explained. "We would open a dental practice together...but then George Steinbrenner and the Yankees intervened." Steinbrenner, the controversial Yankees owner, had a shipbuilding operation in Florida. He dropped by to see Hogestyn play ball and was so impressed he made Hogestyn a top draft pick in 1976. Ecstasy turned to agony when Don phoned Victoria. "I said, 'Honey, I'm heading to Oneonta, New York in two days to play ball,'" he recalled, referring to a Yankees farm program. "Are you ready to go? She said no. 'You left me for four years to get an education. Now you're going to forget about your education and our plans to play baseball somewhere in New York. (OOPS! This is wrong. Typo alert! In our opinion it should be "and our plans in order to play baseball," not "and our plans to play baseball" since we really don't think it was in the Hogestyn's game plan to play baseball together in Oneonta, New York. *snicker*) Forget it.'" Hogestyn is answering questions from a room jammed with about four hundred fans. Some sport "I Need a Hug" sweatshirts or "Drake Hogestyn Fan Club" buttons. "How does it feel to be the Hottest Male Star on Daytime Television?" asks Suzette Carter, an Indianapolis office manager. She is referring to a designation given to Hogestyn both by SOAP OPERA DIGEST magazine and the Television Soap Opera Awards. (OOPS! This is wrong. During the live telecast for THE TENTH ANNUAL SOAP OPERA DIGEST Awards as well as THE ELEVENTH ANNUAL SOAP OPERA DIGEST Awards, Drake won both times and was crowned SOAP OPERA DIGEST'S "Hottest Male Star," but contrary to what this paragraph says, these awards aren't called the "Television Soap Opera Awards.") Later, Carter explains she has watched DAYS OF OUR LIVES since she was a teen in the 1960's. Then she enjoyed the show with her mother; now she follows storylines with her daughter. Why is Hogestyn her favorite cast member? "First of all, look at him - he's gorgeous!" Carter replies. "He's also a terrific actor. And Drake is such a likable person. I can't wait to get his autograph." Lois Henderson, a secretary in Toronto, drove from Canada to enjoy his Indianapolis visit. "It's worth it," she says. "Drake treats everyone the same, whether you are famous or not. He just has a wonderful personality." An animated storyteller and witty conversationalist, Hogestyn leaps to his feet and points to his cowboy boots to re-enact the mishap that ended his baseball career. A line of spiked shoes was being introduced. "The manufacturers said, 'We'd like the minor leaguers to test them out,'" he recalled. "They were great, nice and light...but it was pouring rain, and the ballpark was soaking wet." Distracted by an idiosyncrasy of an opposing pitcher ("he kept gesturing with his tongue"), Hogestyn slipped on the wet surface and seriously injured his big toe. "I couldn't thrust anymore (to throw) because you lean on your toe," he said. "I had the joint replaced. Now it needs to be replaced again, this time with titanium." Strike three for baseball. Meantime, fellow minor leaguers had convinced Hogestyn to enter an essay and photo in a Columbia Pictures Television Talent Contest. Using his middle name of Drake, Hogestyn wrote an essay with, he recalls, a wisecracking style. Hollywood promptly beckoned. His first regular role was in SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS (1982-1983), a short-lived but critically praised primetime television series. Hogestyn played sibling number two, with future stars Richard Dean Anderson, Peter Horton and River Phoenix as three of his brothers. After SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS, Hogestyn competed with Anderson to play the lead in a pilot for a show called GENERATION. "It was being promoted as the hot television series, a futuristic program with action and sports," he recalled. "Rick really wanted to do it because hockey would be involved, and he's an avid player...but I got the part, so Rick had to take MACGYVER as a consolation." MACGYVER ended up a smash hit; GENERATION never evolved beyond the pilot episode. Meanwhile, Victoria married and had two children. Hogestyn said he had never forgotten her. "Even with baseball and the Columbia Pictures Television contest, I kept thinking 'She is going to have to see me every day on television,' he recalled, laughing. "I thought, 'If I can't marry her, I'm going to haunt her.'" In 1982, Hogestyn was in Fort Wayne as a hometown celebrity for a charitable appearance. Victoria showed up to see him. He had heard her marriage was failing. Then she called Hogestyn at his California home. "I was so stunned, I don't think I said anything during the whole conversation," he recalled. But he summoned the courage to call Victoria on Valentine's Day 1983. "I told her, 'I've got some fame, I've got fortune. But something is missing - it's you.'" The two married in 1984. Also that year, Hogestyn was cast in DAYS OF OUR LIVES. (OOPS! This is wrong. Typo alert! Drake and Victoria got married in Redding, Connecticut on New Year's Eve in 1986, not 1984. We'd love it if Drake had joined the DAYS canvas in 1984 because it would mean that we would've been given the enormous pleasure of enjoying two extra years of his extraordinary acting talent. Sadly, this gorgeous man didn't grace our screens until January 1986.) The Hogestyns live in Malibu with their two daughters (Whitney, nine, and Alexandra, six) and Victoria's children from her first marriage (Rachael, fifteen, and Ben, thirteen). All four have played small roles on DAYS OF OUR LIVES episodes. "In Indiana, I had the best childhood ever," Hogestyn said. "That's what I want to give my kids." Nelson Price, THE INDIANAPOLIS NEWS, 5/1/95 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Un-Authorized Biography Of Drake Hogestyn While the life he leads as John Black on DAYS OF OUR LIVES is full of intrigue and mystery, Drake Hogestyn finds peace and pleasure in the quieter things in life, such as his family, his work, and the love of baseball. It has been a long road for this Fort Wayne, Indiana native to the top of the daytime heap in the role fans long to have continue for years. Since 1986, Drake has been one of the stars of this leading daytime drama, and has garnered a fan following unlike any other actor on television. He is now considered the quintessential soap super hero, a title he does not take lightly. "I want my work to get to that woman in Kansas who is ironing the clothes and watching the show," states Drake. "In my scenes, love scenes in particular, I want her to burn a hole in her husband's shirt. I want her to be riveted to the scene." Donald Drake Hogestyn was born on September 29th as the second of four children born to manufacturing executive, Bill, and homemaker, Shug, and led what you would call a typical childhood. His dreams were that of any other boy, to be a success. First, his priorities lay with becoming a dentist, an interest that may surprise some, considering the path his life has followed. He then found that his love of baseball overrode all his other desires, and he pursued that dream wholeheartedly. A gifted athlete, Drake's early years were spent in the Midwest where he played the sport throughout his tenure at North Side High School and after graduation, was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals, but chose to attend college on a baseball scholarship. After graduating from the University of Southern Florida, Tampa in 1976 with a degree in microbiology, Drake was drafted by the New York Yankees, where he played on their farm team in Oneonta, New York. This aspiring third baseman had a promising career in the majors, until he was sidelined with a knee injury in 1978, thus ending his major league career. His love of the game continues to this day, and he has passed that passion on to his children, particularly son Ben. A passion he also, regrettably, left behind when he signed on with the Yanks was the love of his life, Victoria. The two met when he was fifteen and she was twelve, on a baseball diamond of course. She rode past on her bike, and he admits, "It was love at first sight for me. I knew then that there was only one woman for me." He admitted to leaving love notes for Victoria in her mailbox for her to find first thing in the morning, by using his pole-vaulting pole to sneak out of his window in the middle of the night. Their love has endured many obstacles and deterrents. The two were separated after high school and Victoria married another man, a union that did not last. Some five years later, the two reunited after Drake called her on Valentine's Day, 1983. They were married in 1986 and went on to form a family that consists of Rachael, Ben (Victoria's children from her first marriage), Whitney and Alexandra. Rachael, the oldest, is a straight-A student and excels in dance, where she and all her friends work just as hard as her daddy does, practicing about twenty-one hours a week! Next in line is Ben, the only male in the brood. Drake is proud that, although a preteen and at an age when grades tend to slip for boys, Ben has maintained a steady average, while continuing to be a 'ladies man,' just like dad's character on DAYS. Whitney, whom Drake lovingly calls 'the sweetest girl in school,' has a personality very much like his wife Victoria. Whitney also takes dance lessons, but it is acting that has this young girl all abuzz. She's already worked with dad on the annual DAYS Christmas episode and has designs on a future in the business. Finally, Alexandra, who is the youngest in the family, has a knack for a field that is unlike her brother and sisters' interests. This young girl loves animals and has taken horseback lessons for some time. With four children, a wife, a bustling career, and personal appearances to boot, Drake seems to be in the center of the storm, but it was a road he chose carefully, or rather, it chose him, after his baseball career came to an untimely end. Drake was discovered by Joshua Shelley, head of the Columbia Pictures Television National Talent Search program, and was among thirty (out of seventy-five-thousand) who were chosen to fly out to Los Angeles to participate in an intensive, three-month training program. After completing the course of study, Drake appeared in the CBS television show, SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS, as well as a pilot called GENERATION, which highlighted the adventures of a typical American family in the year 2000. Drake's character, Jack Breed, was one of the sons of the family, who would be a gladiator in a sport like Rollerball. Right after a stint as a waiter, Drake landed what he thought would be a short-term role on DAYS, beginning on January 10, 1986. Introduced to viewers as The Pawn, a mummified mystery man covered from head to toe in bandages, Drake quickly found an identity for his character, and DAYS viewers, as the elusive John Black. He then (and to this day) has undertaken an extensive search for his true identity that led him through the experience of living Roman Brady's life as well as the lives of Forrest Alamain and John Black, lover and father. Now, he is John Black, priest. To further investigate his past ("I don't think John has run his course yet", he explains), Drake has re-signed with the show until 1998. He explains his reasons. "I love it here! I enjoy the work. It's a lot like baseball. I can think of so many analogies to that crazy game! You might have a day where you are all over the place in your scene. But the next day, you always have a chance to be better. So that's the way I approach it all. I am a realist. Although I signed back to back four-year deals, I am not under the delusion that they are more than eight, twenty-six week contracts. So, at any time, they can tell me that I am outta here! I consider DAYS a book you can sit down with an hour each day, and it is a never-ending story. I've got a good working relationship with everyone on the show here. I'm lucky. I'm blessed." Lucille Giordano, INSIDE DAYS OF OUR LIVES, 7/95 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥ DAYS OF OUR LIVES Hot-Dogger Hogestyn Drake Hogestyn (John) and his thirteen-year-old son Ben have found a great way to bond with nature and each other at the same time - they go surfing! "We have friends in the area of Little Dume where you need a key to get onto the beach," says Drake. "It's got a pirate's cove beach, little breaks (in the surf) and no attitude." Attitude? "Vals (people from the San Fernando Valley) come out with a territorial attitude. They'll surf right over you if they think you're in their space. I'm too competitive, so I find places where we can just relax and do our thing." Drake says his favorite time to surf is around 7:30 in the evening, when "all the old surfers are out and the youngsters are gone. The old Malibu crowd, now in the work force, are out there with all the sea lions and pelicans. We talk about the way life used to be when we were single, we surf and enjoy the sunset." SOAP OPERA MAGAZINE, 9/5/95 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥ Scene Around The Set DAYS OF OUR LIVES The Great Escape As you've read on these pages many times before, soap weddings and parties take the longest amount of time to tape, sometimes stretching into the wee hours of the morning – good news for the union crews, not so good for the actors who get paid the same whether they work one hour or twenty-four. The taping of DAYS OF OUR LIVES' recent Gala Night of Magic benefit took two of those long days. About twenty regular cast members worked together for the taping, something that Melissa Reeves (Jennifer) enjoys. "I like the storylines where everyone is here at one time because it gives you a chance to work with people you usually don't," she says. The shoot started off as a mini-party with everyone catching up, gossiping, heading off to lunch together, but as time wore on (and on), the actors would find their own little corner of solitude to rest their eyes or read a book. The benefit's big finale was Houdini's Great Escape. Tony convinced Vivian to let John perform the underwater stunt…and rigged the gear so John would die. With the recent Houdini homage on THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, and the departure of Sheila, SOAP OPERA UPDATE thought what a trip it would be if, instead of John, Sheila herself emerged from the water tank. Alas, Austin and Lucas saved John from a perilous death – but not until hours of complicated water shots kept Drake Hogestyn (John) immersed for most of the evening. Drake, in good spirits, didn't seem to mind, though – he's a Malibu resident/beach bum/surfer and is used to the water. Still, the WATERWORLD references were running rampant, but we have it on good authority that the DAYS stunt was a lot cheaper to produce than the Kevin Costner film. Picture Captions: The Gala Night of Magic benefit aired over two days - which actually means that it took two days to tape. But the "perilous" water stunt was taped all at once to save time and money...and so the prop department didn't have to refill that big tank! Kristen (Eileen Davidson) worried about John (Drake Hogestyn) performing the trick successfully, but in real life, Davidson knew that the stunt was a piece of cake. Actual magicians trained Hogestyn on how to free himself from the tank. DAYS OF OUR LIVES rented the water tank from an actual magician – and Drake Hogestyn (John) became privy to Houdini's secret. But don't ask the actor to tell: A good magician never reveals how a trick is done. And there's no doubt that Hogestyn is now a good magician. Believe it or not, that really is Drake under all that water. Another actor might have asked for a stuntman for the underwater antics, but not our Drake! For the record, actors – even those as well paid as Hogestyn – get paid extra for stunts like this! SOAP OPERA UPDATE, 10/3/95 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥ SOAP OPERA UPDATE Exclusive Interviews The Descent Into Hell Drake Hogestyn (John, DAYS OF OUR LIVES): Sure, you thought you'd seen it all on DAYS OF OUR LIVES - and with good reason. But wait! There's more! Drake Hogestyn (John) tells SOAP OPERA UPDATE in our Feature Interview how and why he's bracing himself for yet another intense storyline that will surely keep viewers on the edge of their seats for weeks and months to come. If you thought fighting the Devil was hard work, wait until you read what's ahead for this daytime hero, as well as all of the beautiful women in his life...page twenty-four. To Hell And Back - John Changes From Saint To Sinner, But Will He Also Change Lovers? Drake Hogestyn may have taken pride in the recent possession storyline, but he's relieved that the story came to an end. Not because he had a problem with its content, but because it was the most grueling work he's ever done. And thankfully, with its conclusion came the end of John the priest. "As far as I'm concerned, I don't know how much more mileage there was to get out of the aspect of being a priest," he confides. "Being a leading man, I don't know where else they could have gone with it. Hey, come on, he's a leading man - and the situations that he must be in usually aren't found in the priesthood. I'm confident that they probably could have come up with some other ideas, but I believe the end result was Marlena's exorcism. I think that was the whole reason they made me a priest. Someone was going to have to exorcise Marlena, and I looked like the logical candidate. I'll tell ya: I don't know if I could survive another storyline like that. I finally wondered aloud, to (his wife) Victoria, 'Is this what they call burn-out?' I personally was glad to finish that storyline. It was very difficult, the hardest one that I've been involved with. It drained me emotionally and physically, and I am just now bouncing back." As maybe only Drake knows how. He's been doing it since he was released by the New York Yankees, putting the brakes on a baseball career. "That was a real love of mine, and I strove hard to be the best," he remembers. "It's a humbling experience. That was hard to face. But in reality, you're only as good as your last game. And the same thing here: You're only as good as your last show. My name on this door here slides on and off. And the day will come when that name will slide off. Until then, I'll just keep doing the best I can do. I never feel that I'm secure here. Never do. Maybe because I've watched things happen on the show; other actors that I believed were secure here are no longer with us. That tends to ground you, and it keeps your perspective that everything can change. My dad always said, 'Don't rock the boat and keep your nose clean,' and that is something that has always been very important to me." This from the first daytime performer ever to be signed to an unprecedented four-year contract. "Okay, you know what?" he asks with a smile. "Here's the way I look at it. Not that I'm insecure - I believe in myself and I know what my shortcomings are and I know what my strengths are, but you say a four-year contract, that's basically a twenty-six-week contract...and you have eight twenty-six-week contracts. Now if you're not pulling your load or if the audience shifts their interest to another area, then at any point in those twenty-six weeks they can say, 'Look, it's been nice,' and your name slides off the door. So I always keep that in mind, and approach each day as though my career depends upon these particular scenes." Like the scenes he faces in the coming weeks. Targeted for murder...but will the murder be his own? "From a survival standpoint, I hope it's not me. Guessing along with the writers, perhaps a scenario will play out that Tony is going to kill himself. He will do that in such a manner - in front of people, in front of Kristen at least - that she will have to be the material witness or whatever. It will look like (John's) the one who did it. It's his gun, fingerprints...and if she happens to pull away, well that would leave (John with) the one person who had always been there (for him): Marlena." Which obviously brings up the controversy surrounding who John Black should be romantically involved with. SOAP OPERA UPDATE will tell you it's split between Marlena and Kristen. Drake explains that he wins working with either leading lady: Kristen and John are creating history with their characters, where Marlena and John have already created history. But "there will always be this undeniable bond between John and Marlena - that's always going to be there. It is played in every scene that we play. It doesn't even matter what we're doing; there's just always an underlying current that is there, and there is an undeniable attraction. And I think that conflict is healthy for the fans - the ones that want us together. They see that and it teases them, and makes them more ardent to have us together." Bill Lieberman, SOAP OPERA UPDATE, 10/31/95 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥ Thank God For His Family Drake, wife Victoria, and their four children reside in Malibu. Daughter Rachael and son Ben recently appeared as day players on their dad's show, but do they plan to follow in his footsteps? "They have no desire," says Drake. "They were just there because it was summertime and they were bored. The only one I would have to worry about, I think, is Whitney. She's ten, and she's so sweet and tender and vulnerable and trusting, and she has kind of indicated that she may want to try it at some point. But it would be a very, very difficult decision. I wouldn't want to deny my children anything, but I don't think for young children that it's the healthiest environment to be in." Bill Lieberman, SOAP OPERA UPDATE, 10/31/95 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

♥ Take Five Drake Hogestyn (John, DAYS OF OUR LIVES) SOAP OPERA DIGEST: How has stardom affected your family life? Drake Hogestyn: Show biz is all my (four) children have ever known, so they don't understand what the big deal is when their friends and strangers act goofy around me. (My wife) Victoria would probably prefer that I was a dentist. SOAP OPERA DIGEST: Do you admit when you are wrong? Drake Hogestyn: Yes. It's amazing how often I'm not right. SOAP OPERA DIGEST: Who do you dream about? Drake Hogestyn: Pleasantly enough, my wife. SOAP OPERA DIGEST: What is your biggest vice? Drake Hogestyn: Eating ice cream before bed. SOAP OPERA DIGEST: What was your most embarrassing fan encounter? Drake Hogestyn: A lady was jumping up and down yelling for me to take my shirt off. Without thinking, I said, 'No, you take yours off.' And she did. SOAP OPERA DIGEST, 12/5/95