What do you do when you mix General Hospital's Stephen Nichols (Stephan), Guiding Light's Fiona Hutchison (Jenna), Another World's Joe Barbara (Joe) As the World Turn's Kelly Menighan (Emily) and All My Children's Walt Willey (Jackson)?

    You get the talented cast of the USA soap spoof, Dutch Elm Palm Heights.  This mini-movie will run during commercials throughout the cable channel's "Romance Week" -- Oct 6 through 10, at noon and 2 pm.

    Nichols plays the lead character, and amnesiac Nick Torso.  "he's all testosterone and not alot of brains," says Nichols.  "Torso lost his brother to the villain Burke Beacon (Willey).  He's not necessarily out for revenge, he just wants justice.

    "I wanted to do this because the script is one of the funniest I've ever read," says Nichols, and "I did Soapdish a few years ago.  I worry when people say 'soap spoof.'  I think, "Great, they want me to make fun of the genre I work in.'  But this is so cleverly written, i was laughing out loud as I was reading it.  I'm looking forward to working with everybody.  It's a good group."

    Hutchison, calls her character Della Beacon, a rich nymphomaniac," adding dryly that "It keeps her busy.  I think the script is very well done.  Obviously all these things have to be taken with a pinch of salt.  We hope to pull it off.  I know all the performers are giving it all they've got and A.C. (Weary, the director and Kim Zimmer's (Reva, GL) husband) has some great ideas.
 
 

.....

    The sex scene between Nichols and Hutchison is just as hot.  Nichol's chest ripples with muscles and Hutchison's figure is flawless.  To "impress" Nick, Della puts a piece of note paper in her mouth.  When she sticks out her tongue, there's a perfect little origami swan on it.  It's funny stuff.

    Some of the best lines are in the announcer's promotional pitch: "Will Nick Delta Burke?  Will Smith Carrie Fisher?  Find out next time on Dutch Elm Palm Heights," and "Stu's screws are too loose, Lautrec!" and "Stu thinks Della's spell is swell, but time will tell if he's really Della's fella". * 

Starting Monday, October 6, it's Romance Week on the USA NETWORK!    A soap spoof -- "Dutch Elm Palm Heights," a USA Original vignette -- wraps in and around the highlights of the week.

"Dutch Elm Palm Heights" stars:
** WALT WILLEY (Jackson, AMC) as petroleum jelly titan Burke Beacon
** JOE BARBARA (Joe, AW) as Stu McBrickning
** KELLEY MENIGHAN-HENSLEY (Emily, ATWT) as Detective K.C. McTaggerty
** STEPHEN NICHOLS (Stefan, GH) as bar owner and amnesiac Nick Torso
** FIONA HUTCHISON (Jenna, GL) as Della Beacon
A.C. WEARY, who's recently directed episodes of GL and ATWT (and btw is KIM ZIMMER's [Reva, GL] husband) directed the piece.

Soap Opera Digest Online went on location this summer when "Dutch Elm Palm Heights" was being filmed on a Saturday morning in midtown Manhattan. KPowersSOD and Fazzi SOD had the opportunity to share the cast and crew's enthusiasm about this project.

"I'm excited about this project that we're doing," FIONA HUTCHISON (Jenna Bradshaw, GUIDING LIGHT) shared. "It's kind of crazy and kind of fun."

"I like the concept," she explained.  "I think this genre has exploded as you can tell, I mean, there are many more magazines on the stand, and more soaps being created.  I had always felt this industry hadn't begun.  There was such room for merchandising, which they are now doing....  With the magazines, the spin-offs, and giving people ideas like this [soap spoof].  It's huge."

STEPHEN NICHOLS is no stranger to soap spoofs; he was in the 1991 flick "Soapdish." "That was a really good spoof," Nichols enthused of the film. "I thought it was really great.  It was over the top, but this [USA vignette] is even more over the top.  But it's also very, very funny.  It's just
well-written.  That's the reason I decided to go ahead and do it.  You never know what people are going to do with a soap spoof, you know, there might a lot of cheap shots.  But this is just so funny, it's irresistible.  You laugh out loud when you read the script."  Quite a change from his GH existence at Wyndemere.  "Yes, it's quite different," Nichols said. "It's nice to break out and do something a little crazy.  I always enjoy doing that."

"This is a lot of fun," WALT WILLEY admitted.  "I get to play a guy who is evil incarnate, which is pretty much diametrical opposite of what I've been doing for the last ten years.  You know, part of why I got into acting, never knowing that I was going to be on the same soap for ten years, was the variety of characters you get to play.  I haven't done anything but Jack,  except, of course, when I go out and do standup, so this is a lot of fun."

JOE BARBARA joked about his character Stu's transformation into what he named "Joe-bo."  (A jilted Stu goes over the edge a bit.) "I think Joe-bo should be Joe Carlino's alter ego," Barbara declared.  "He should be his evil twin brother."

"It's one of those cases where: you know when you go to a fancy party and you put on a nice [clothes]... you feel different, you know?" he explained.  "And you put jeans and t-shirt on and you feel a certain way?  Well, you put bullets on, and you know, you get that feeling... You suddenly feel--"

"You want to be on the cover of 'Guns & Ammo'?" KP suggested.

"That's right!" Barbara enthused.  "Damn it, I'm Rambo!  And you know, it's kinda cool.  It's a bit of a feeling of invincibility."

"I may start taking on more of Joe-bo's characteristics in real life.... cause really that's who I am," Barbara joked.  "[Joe Carlino] has a license to carry a gun.  And he owns a restaurant, so he has the license to carry a meat cleaver.  So, really, [Joe-bo] is just a combination of the darker side
of both professions."

A.C. WEARY, who has been directing episodes of both ATWT and GL recently, shared, "This kind of fell into my lap and it has been so much fun."  When asked if he was involved in the casting at all, Weary responded, "No, everything was kind of in place.  They asked me if I approved, and I certainly did.  I was thrilled."

"It's Emily gone bad," Kelley Menighan-Hensley said of her character, Detective T.C. McTaggerty.  "It's Emily if she were a cop -- on acid!" she laughed.  "It's not that far from the way Emily was two years ago -- juiced up a little bit."

In addition to stepping out of their usual roles and having some fun, there was added incentive for being involved in the project.  "I think one of the biggest bonuses is getting to work with [these] people," Walt Willey shared.  "We are all in the same business, but we very rarely even see each other other than maybe once or twice a year at the different award brouhaha's.  A.C. [Weary], the director, I've known for a long time.  I think the first time I met Stephen Nichols was at a post-Emmy party this year when he said, "Hey, I hear we're doing this USA thing together."  I mean, I don't think we'd ever met before.  That's part of the fun.  Fiona [Hutchison] I've known forever, but we've never gotten to work together.  Kelly [Menighan Hensley] I don't know, but I've known Jon [Hensley] for a long time.  That's, to me, part of the real fun of it, and also I'm a consulting producer on this, which is kind of fun, too.  I'm enjoying this very much."