Deidre Hall
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Shocking news, Days of Our Lives fans:

Long-time stars Deidre Hall and Drake Hogestyn are the first casualties of the show's huge budget cuts

"The couple will be happily reunited after a long period of angst and separation and will be off-screen after January for an unknown period of time. It was a very tough decision to make," Executive Producer Ken Corday told Soap Opera Digest.

Deidre Hall isn't just voting for Barack Obama.

The Days of Our Lives star will be speaking at an event titled “Countdown for Barack Obama…America’s Next President."

This Political Awareness Evening will also feature keynote speaker, Steve Westly. He's the California Co-Chair of Obama for America; guest speakers and actors Alan Cumming and Esai Morales; along with musical guest, Shani Rigsbee.

The event kicks off at 5:30 p.m. on October 17. It takes place in Beverly Hills and is invitation-only.

In the clip below, Deidre Hall is interview by TV station KTLA. See what the Days of Our Lives star had to say now...

Deidre Hall (Marlena) told Sara A. Bibel of TV Guide Canada that she'll be recreating the role of Marlena's twin sister, Samantha on the soap opera in the near future.

"I'm going to play two parts coming up — my twin sister, Samantha returns and it will be fascinating and exciting. I've never played two parts before," Hall said of an upcoming Days of Our Lives story line.

"My sister played Samantha last time. It has my heart pounding! It's not just playing two characters, but learning the dialogue for both characters."

Fans may remember that Deidre’s sister, Andrea Hall, originated the role and also played Sam’s look-alike, Hattie.

Hall replaced her sister as Hattie during the Salem Serial Killer angle, when the actress played Samantha in a hallucination.

Here are a couple places where you can find Days of Our Lives stars over the next couple weeks:

Kristian Alfonso will be appearing at the Junior League Holiday Show in McAllen Texas in two weeks to exhibit her Hope Faith Miracles jewelry line. Here are details of the event:
When: Saturday, December 1
Where: McAllen Convention Center: 10 Convention Center Blvd
Time: 9:00 AM - 6:00 p.m. EST

Deidre Hall (Marlena) will be at the NBC Experience store at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York, signing autographs on Friday, Nov 23 from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. EST.

Deidre Hall recently spoke with TV Guide about current and future Days of Our Lives story lines. Here is the interview:

TV Guide: I know you were disappointed that your longtime co-star Drake Hogestyn [John] was fired, but you must be digging the great material John’s shocking death has provided you as an actor.
Deidre Hall: I love that we got to play something with substance, and most importantly, that John’s death was given the weight and respect it deserved.

TV Guide: Can you talk about Marlena’s big upcoming storyline?
DH: I’m not terribly clear myself, but I believe I’m playing Jodie Foster, à la The Brave One: I’m out for the man who killed my man. And, of course, any kind of revenge story is great to play as an actor. Marlena’s quietly and fiercely empowered — and since she has nothing to lose, she has enormous strength.

TV Guide: Days of Our Lives feels very different these days — is it because of new co-executive producer Ed Scott’s influence?
DH: I don’t know who exactly is responsible, but my suspicion is it’s all Ed Scott, who has come in with great ideas and enormous energy. His first great idea was to change the lighting on the show. While it may seem superficial — and maybe it is — when you know you look good, you have the courage to do more and try more and [concentrate on the acting instead of hitting all these marks so you are lit properly and don’t block someone else’s lighting].

Also, when you make a change in the look of the show, it gets the audience’s attention. In regards to storyline, the audience then can focus on what’s happening instead of how bad things look, [which distracts fans, in my opinion].

TV Guide: After years of not submitting yourself for Emmy consideration, will you this year — especially now that you have the material to win? Fans and critics are dying to know.
DH: You know I haven’t for years, and it’s not that I haven’t been nominated, I’ve kept myself out of the race for years. I’m completely flattered regarding the Emmy buzz, but it’s such an energy black hole. I’m happy and peaceful knowing that Days of Our Lives is the best show on daytime, and has the most beautiful and talented people on TV.

Unfortunately, it’s always tragically overlooked on Emmy nomination day because it’s a numbers game. And I want the audience to know that we’re slighted on Emmy day because the Academy is compromised of actors on each show, and actors on each soap vote for their network — and now NBC only has one soap opera, Days of Our Lives, so we don’t have a chance.

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