SID March 6, 2001

This Year's Model

PORT CHARLES’ Julie Pinson (Eve) feels like a real soap opera star. After all, her character is not only and ex-hooker, but also an amnesiac car-wreck victim who was presumed dead, but really taken prisoner by an old enemy of her secret lover. “I need an evil twin!” the actress laughs. “The hooker thing was probably a given because they have to have an ex-hooker on every soap – in the movies. There are ex-hookers everywhere.”
Eve has come a long way since her call girl days, though: Now she’s a respected doctor and loving – if confused –wife. And thanks to Pinson, the whole transformation has been believable. But the character’s evolution is far from over.

The “Other” Man

With spouse Kevin out of the romantic picture and Ian in, Eve seems destined to make more big changes. “Eve was surprised about how well she and Ian work together,” Pinson observes.
“I don’t know how to put it into words because I’ve never had it myself,” she laughs. “Kevin was a safe place for her. He was her best friend, so why not go there and marry this guy? He was everything that Eve ever wanted.”
Now, however, the shrink is history. “But it’s not a one-sided deal,” Pinson notes somewhat defensively.“He still in love with Lucy. So eve isn’t leaving Kevin and breaking hi heart. He’s got his own things to deal with. They’ve grown apart and have different priorities now. Hen Kevin chose Livvie and chose to confide in Lucy over Eve, that hurt her a lot. [Because of that} she allowed herself to go into Ian’s camp a little more freely.”

Giving Thanks

Two months ago, Pinson was feeling anything but free. As the focus of the first big story arc in PC’s new format, the workload started to take its toll. She was working ever day, shooting three episodes a day as the show prepared for weeklong hiatus. Then she’s head off to another studio to the film the soap’s promos. The result: burnout.
But going home to family in Northern California for a week, away from the hustle and bustle of “the biz” seemed to what she saw as chaos into perspective. While dining with her father, she realized that she living out her dream of being a working actress. “I was far enough away to realize how lucky I am to have this job, and that it’s not so bad after all. I have such a great life. I could still be up there going, ‘Gee, I wish I was acting on a TV show,’ Whether I get burnt out or complain about this ever now and then, I have to step back and remember I’ve been very lucky. I came back to work fresh and ready to go.”

A Lucky Break

Upon returning with rejuvenated outlook, Pinson was immediately offered a guest spot on ABC’s popular sitcom DHARMA & GREG. “They just offered it to me,” she says in disbelief. “I was doing nothing, just sitting at home in my flannel pajamas, and I got a phone call saying, ‘ You’re doing DHARMA & GREG.’ I didn’t have to do a thing!”
After getting past the shock of not having to audition, Pinson next had to overcome her insecurity, wondering if, as a “soap actress,” she would be accepted by the “primetime” cast. “Soaps have a stigma in this business,” she sighs. “I felt like I was going to walk into this nighttime sitcom with people looking down their noses at me.
“It was so opposite of that,” she continues. “Those that didn’t know how hard we work, their eyes got huge after I told them how much dialogue we memorize every day. They were amazed. I think that they walked away with a newfound respect for soaps.”
Performing in front of a live audience was like being back on a theater stage for Pinson, whose energy level shot right up. “The audience was excited to see the stars. That made us excited,” she explains. “We were feeding off of their energy. It’s like a huge, massive, hug! I can’t wait to do it again.”
You can never tell. Both Eve and Pinson are on a roll. Anything can happen.

FYI
Birthday: November 7
Searching for Mr. Right: Who’s Eve’s perfect man? “It’s Ian,” says Pinson. “He’s a little more dangerous, and Eve is attracted to that.”
Fanfare: The first thing Pinson checks out on TV is American Movie Classics and Tuner Classic Movies. She is a lover of old movies, celebrity biographies and an Elizabeth Taylor fan.
Yin meets yang: This sexy leading lady has tow very different hobbies – collecting Barbies and target shooting!