The Wit and Wisdom: PRESS ARCHIVES

QUOTES ABOUT TUC WATKINS (David)
(Quotes in bold are new.)

From Robin Strasser (Dorian)

(on her friendship with Tuc) "We have tons in common. Fixing up houses is one of them. When he was finishing with the renovation of his place, we talked (and I said I wanted to see it). He said, 'Wait until it's complete.' I said, 'Come on, I'm your buddy, I can see it before it's all finished.' I was just in awe of how great it was." -- Robin Strasser (Dorian), SOW 9/28/04

(on what people might be surprised to know about Tuc) "They may be surprised from his character's persona that he has a spine, a backbone made up of the part of this country that he comes from (Kansas), and the fact that he does have a nuclear family made up of two loving parents. That translates into a really warm person. When Tuc walks into the studio people are more at ease. He's an extremely classy guy in the best sense of that." -- Robin Strasser (Dorian), SOW 9/28/04

(on Tuc's audition for the role of David) "He actually gave one of the best auditions I've ever seen. Tuc has this wonderful, unpredictable manner." -- Robin Strasser (Dorian), SID 2/13/05

(her favorite thing about Tuc and David) "Well, Tuc and David, I'm going to do two answers exactly the same for each category. Tuc for his sense of humor and unpredictability and the same for David." -- Robin Strasser (Dorian), SID 2/13/05

(about working with Tuc) "No, what I think you're picking up on is the times where I've pulled back from participating in what is, in fact, my joint fantasy with you that we are actually doing a sitcom. But he's so free and fun. There's always a nice surprise where we enjoy going with what happens on the set." -- Robin Strasser (Dorian), SID 2/13/05

(telling Tuc what her favorite memory is from the times they've worked together) "Well, I have many. But there's one when Blair and Dorian dressed up as Marilyn Monroe in that wonderful pink dress that she wore in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. We tied David up in bed and I still don't know what we were trying to accomplish, but I loved being dressed up and seeing you handcuffed, shirtless in bed. There, I said it." -- Robin Strasser (Dorian), SID 2/13/05

(on a scene in which Dorian was supposed to slap David) "I came in that morning and said, 'I can't. Dorian shouldn't slap him.' I was talked into it, and I should have done a stage slap. Except in the heat of the moment... [I hit him]. And his expression was priceless. So was mine, because I couldn't believe I had actually done that. [Executive producer] Frank Valentini has saved the tape because as they cut, I went, 'Oh, I'm not to be trusted.'" -- Robin Strasser (Dorian), SID 2/13/05

"Now, I was thinking when Tuc, in the performance moment, got carried away when he played Santa Claus with a huge padded belly. He came in, bent over and showed Blair and me his bottom and said, 'Does this outfit make my butt look big?' I luckily could, as Dorian, go, 'Oh, isn't he adorable?' But it may well have aired." -- Robin Strasser (Dorian), SID 2/13/05

(about Tuc) "I still look forward to working with him every day." -- Robin Straser (Dorian), SID 2/13/05

(on her first impression of Tuc) "I was thrilled. I said, 'Now that's what acting is about.' It's interesting, because actors see [in the script] 'Well, he kisses her passionately; she resists.' These guys were honestly trying to get the job by deep throating me. His choice was brilliant. I was so, 'I hope it's that guy.' And I now realize he was the wild card because he was a lot younger, handsomer, taller, and had a sense of humor." -- Robin Strasser (Dorian), SOD.com October 2005

(asked to comment on a picture of Tuc for the SOD "Very Hot Shot" feature) "I categorically refuse to be quoted about this picture of Tuc Watkins...not until an 11 by 14 copy of it (suitable for framing) is delivered to me." -- Robin Strasser (Dorian) SOD 7/29/08

From Kassie DePaiva (Blair)

"I opened the script and called [husband] Jimmy [DePaiva, ex-Max] over and said, 'Oh my God, look! I get to work with Tuc Watkins (David). I'm so excited!' ... Tuc is so much fun, and we've been good friends for a long time." -- Kassie DePaiva (Blair), SID 4/27/04

"I hang out with a lot of people from the show. Just this past Sunday night I had Hillary and her husband over for dinner and also Tuc Watkins. They've been to my house in the mountains. I'm very good friends with Renee Goldsberry because she's my dressing room mate. I hang out with anyone who wants to hang out with me." -- Kassie DePaiva (Blair), SoapNet Chat 10/28/04

(on whether she and Tuc Watkins [David] ad-lib) "He finds every opportunity he can to say, 'you look horrible.' He adds that to every scene no matter how I look. I adore that man and I just wish I could work with more often." -- Kassie DePaiva (Blair), SoapNet Chat 10/28/04

(on who in the OLTL cast would make a good James Bond) "I think Tuc [Watkins, ex-David] could pull it off. But he'd be a quirky one." -- Kassie DePaiva (Blair), SID 3/24/08

From Roger Howarth (ex-Todd)

(on whether or not he keeps up with OLTL now that he's gone) "No. Again, I didn't watch it when I was on it, but if I'm walking by and I see Tuc Watkins (David) on, I'll stop whatever I'm doing and watch him read the phone book. He's the best actor on television." Roger Howarth (ex-Todd), SOW 4/12/05

(on whether he keeps in touch with people from OLTL) "Tuc and I are still really close. There are definitely people I miss, but I haven't been lucky enough to spend a lot of time with them." -- Roger Howarth (ex-Todd), SOW 8/7/07

From Brian Kerwin (Charlie)

"Tuc Watkins [David] lived four, five doors down from me for a while and I was very envious of him. I'd see him walking to the studio and he was quite content. I thought, 'Why can't I get a job like that?' ... We're dear old friends since [working on Beggars and Choosers together] and whenever I'm in L.A., I always get together with him or when he's in New York, he'll come over to have dinner with the kids at my house. It's an open invitation -- whatever we're slopping up, Tuc can drop in." -- Brian Kerwin (Charlie), SOD 10/30/07

"Tuc Watkins (David) and I go way back. He and I did a series on Showtime called Beggars and Choosers, 1999 to 2000. We were both regulars on that show. Then, when Tuc moved back to New York to resume his work on One Life to Live, he moved about 10 doors down the street from us (wife Jeanne and their three kids), so we were neighbors there for a while. The whole Beggars and Choosers bunch, Tuc and my wife and her family, we all started hanging together. So Tuc's turned into a good old friend." -- Brian Kerwin (Charlie), SOW 12/11/07

(on his friendship with Tuc) "I worked with him on [the Showtime series] Beggars and Choosers, and he said soaps were a great job. So one time I said, 'Maybe I'll do it,' and he said, 'If you ever do, I'll put in a good word for you!'" -- Brian Kerwin (Charlie), SID 12/17/07

"I didn't even entertain the notion of doing soaps. But Tuc lived down the street from me, and I would always see him going to work and hanging out and talking about it, and it seemed like he was having a good old time. And I thought, 'Oh, maybe it's not as bad as it's cracked up to be!'" -- Brian Kerwin (Charlie), SID 12/15/08

From Bree Williamson (Jessica)

(on Tuc Watkins' last day on OLTL, which happened the day of filming for Jess and Antonio's wedding) "We were all there for it, which made it really, really nice. It was a special day, less because of the wedding and more because it was Tuc's last day. We were able to give him a proper goodbye." -- Bree Williamson (Jessica), SOW 11/7/06

(on her cell phone's ring-tone) "It's Tuc Watkins (ex-David) saying, 'Um, excuse me, Bree, it's Tuc, but you have a phone call.' Over and over again. And then if you listen very closely, you can hear me giggling in the background." -- Bree Williamson (Jessica), SID 3/13/07

(on what male OLTL character she would want to play) "Oh, David Vickers, obviously! Tuc Watkins can do whatever he wants and it's funny. It's just an awesome role." -- Bree Williamson (Jessica), SOD 10/23/07

From John-Paul Lavoisier (Rex)

"I think Rex and David could have an interesting relationship. And we have shared some scenes together, which were great. Tuc's a funny guy. I have a hard time keeping a straight face with him. I'm not used to acting with someone taller than me. I'm not used to arching my head up. So right there, I already feel weird. Then, the way he says his lines...it's like it's one-note, but has so many levels of humor to it. I don't know how he does it, but he's so funny. I don't know how he keeps a straight face. It's hard to make me break in a scene, but he comes very close." -- John Paul Lavoisier (Rex), SOD 6/1/04

(on the departure of Dan Gauthier [Kevin] and Tuc Watkins from OLTL) "Unfortunately, it was such a big, long, exhasting day, no one felt like doing anything, like going to a bar afterward. We shot the Jessica/Antonio wedding that day, so fortunately, everybody was in and everybody got to see them, but everybody was really tired because we didn't get done until like 10:30 at night. I was really sad to see them go." -- John-Paul Lavoisier (Rex), SOD 12/19/06

(on which cast member should write their autobiography) "Probably Tuc Watkins (David), because he'd have a really fun, interesting way of wording it. He should write it so I can read it and have a laugh!" -- John-Paul Lavoisier (Rex), SID 7/3/07

(on the casting of Tallulah, the female shih tzu who plays David Vickers the dog) "One Life finally found what can steal a scene from Tuc Watkins -- a dog named after him!" -- John-Paul Lavoisier (Rex), SOD 9/23/08

(on the possibility of David being Rex's dad) "I wouldn't mind being his son, because it would age [portrayer] Tuc Watkins! I'd like to see [what he'd say] if someone told him that he's got a 28-year-old son out there!" -- John-Paul Lavoisier (Rex), SID 11/17/08

From Michael Easton (John)

(on Tuc's departure from OLTL in 2006) "I think the door's always open for Tuc. He is a terrific guy and he brings so much to the show. He's one of my favorite people. I had so much fun working with him. His Gary Cooper was pretty good, too. The humor is not always there on the paper but people like him put it out there. That is an underappreciated talent on daytime." -- Michael Easton (John), SOW 10/10/06

(on what performance he thought was stand-out in 2006) "I'd have to say Tuc [Watkins, ex-David]. What he does on a daily basis is so effortless, and I don't think he gets the credit he deserves for it." -- Michael Easton (John), SID 12/19/06

"I think comedy is important in daytime. I’ve been fortunate in my career to work opposite very funny actors. For instance, on Days of our Lives, I worked with Robert Mailhouse [ex-Brian] and Matthew Ashford [ex-Jack]. And of course, Tuc Watkins [ex-David] here on One Life to Live." -- Michael Easton (John), TVGuide Canada 8/13/08

From Others

"David was originally supposed to be a boxer. The producer even put a speed bag up in the rehearsal hall so [Tuc] could go up there and practice, and they'd send him to Geraldo Rivera's gym to learn how to hit the speed bag and get the rhythm of it. But you look at the way he is now and it's not like that at all. With actors like Tuc and John-Paul [Lavoisier, Rex], it's that old thing where they take what they had for an idea originally and let the actor go with it, and it is a successful formula." -- Robert S. Woods (Bo), SOD 7/5/05

(on working with Tuc) "The chemistry we developed as on-screen siblings was great. The last thing he said to me before he left was, 'I hope you know I've really enjoyed this, and I really value our working relationship.' That means more to me than anything." -- Paul Satterfield (Spencer), SOW 1/23/07

(on actors missing from the Daytime Emmy nomination list) "I was also surprised not to see Tuc Watkins. He's the epitome of a supporting actor." -- Michael Bruno (casting agent), SID 4/10/07

(when asked if she'd like to see Tuc Watkins return to the show for good) "My answer is always yes. I consider him a friend and I want him to be happy in his personal life. But at the same time, if I had my druthers, we'd play him all the time." -- Dena Higley (OLTL headwriter), SID 6/5/07

"Tuc is one of the most delightful people that God has ever put on this earth -- one of the most charming and talented actors. It was so much fun playing those scenes with him because he is inventive, he is clever, an, as I said, he is so talented. He brings so much to EVER scene, and most of what you see on screen was created by the actors -- by Tuc. You know, it's there in the writing a little bit, but most of it is what Tuc brings to the scenes. I miss him, and I'm hoping he will come back frequently -- often, often, often!!!" -- Erika Slezak (Viki), Fanclub Newsletter 7/9/07

(on how he came back to OLTL for the 10,000th episode taping) "Tuc Watkins was coming back and gave my e-mail to [Executive Producer] Frank Valentini, who e-mailed me and said, 'Would you be interested?'" -- Nathan Fillion (ex-Joey), SOD 7/31/07

(on which cast member could be president one day) "Tuc Watkins (David) would be great -- he's diplomatic and he's charismatic." -- Tobias Truvillion (Vincent), SID 11/20/07

(on the most athletic person in the cast) "Tuc Watkins (David) has got a very athletic body!" -- Catherine Hickland (Lindsay), SID 12/17/07

"I'm glad [Tuc] got Desperate Housewives, because honestly, he is just marvelous." -- Tonja Walker (Alex), SOW 12/11/07

(describing the furniture in her dressing room) "The couch was Tuc Watkins's [ex-David] -- he had the room before we did. It was great when we moved in because he let us keep the couch, a lamp, a cool mirror, the TV and the TV stand. Basically, we kept everything he had in there and just added a girly touch." -- Kristen Alderson (Starr), SOD 11/11/08

(on which role on OLTL she could never play) "David Vickers. Period. Do I need to explain why? Well, aside from the obvious reason, [portrayer] Tuc Watkins is just one of a kind." -- Farah Fath (Gigi), SOD 11/18/08

"I worked with Tuc [Watkins] last week. He's a delightful guy. And he looks [great] in his saffron robes!" -- Peter Bartlett (Nigel), SOD.com December 2008