Amelia Heinle (Victoria Newman), who was up for her first nomination and won this year in the Supporting Actress category, also says that she’s not necessarily thinking about awards when she’s reading her “Y&R” scripts: “The scene I submitted [for the nomination], the day I did that script, I had memorized the wrong script: I was supposed to do that script on Monday, and I had memorized the one for Friday!” she says with a laugh. “That was probably why I started crying in the show!”
And the same belief about scripts and Emmys is true for Jessica Collins (Avery Clark, “Y&R”): “The scene that I was nominated for, I certainly did not think that day that it was Emmy material; I was just trying to get through!” she explains. “It was really hard work, and I wanted to do a good job and nail it. And sometimes you think you’ve got something really great, and then you watch it, and you think, ‘Well, that wasn’t that exciting.’ And then something you thought was a simple little scene, something happens in the moment [to make it Emmy worthy] and those surprises are my favorite.”
There’s differing opinion regarding how often the Emmys are thought of, as well as whether or not they serve as inspiration in the day-to-day work life, but what about winning Emmys? Is it something that affects one’s career?
“Winning an Emmy didn’t affect my career, but it affected me personally,” explains Hillary B. Smith (Guya, “Venice;” ex-Nora Buchanan, “One Life to Live”), who won for Lead Actress in 1994. “That was the most exciting thing, because my peers had nominated me, and I thought that was the greatest honor, that they had nominated me. But even winning it, I went off on the back burner for a while!” she says with a laugh. “So you know, it didn’t change that much for me, per se, except it is the highest honor in the soap world for us, and I was so bowled over that I won.”
“Y&R’s” Christian LeBlanc (Michael Baldwin) agrees with Smith: “I have to say, the reputation is more important [than winning an Emmy]. Susan Lucci [ex-Erica Kane, “All My Children] was nominated a billion times. She was there always. Her name was on people’s lips because of her work on the show, not because she had awards. Her name kept coming up because of her fame and the buzz she created from this crazy, nutty character she created of Erica. So I like the fact that the good work will bring it to you, and that should be your priority. But we think about it all the time, when you go up there and accept an award, it’s one of the most wonderful moments. But the main thing that comes for me, and I’ve talked to other people, is your gratitude for the people you’re standing on to get it. It really is a humbling experience.”