Bold & Beautiful Exclusive: As the Show Turns 35, Its Stars Divulge Their Best-Kept Backstage Secrets
Wednesday, March 23rd, 2022
“I really didn’t want to do the show!”
It’s not every day a show turns 35 years old, so we’re going to cut The Bold and the Beautiful a little bit of slack. You see, while March 23 is their actual anniversary, the very special episode marking that occasion won’t be airing until March 24 thanks to an earlier pre-emption which threw things out of whack. But hey, it seems to us that if Aunt Mary can lay claim to a “birthday month,” the soap should be given at least a week, right?
“It’s incredible when you think about not only the longevity, but what it means,” original cast member John McCook (Eric) told us recently. “There’s no other medium in which you can say, ‘I have been a part of the same story for over three decades.”
One creates an awful lot of memories over that many years… although McCook nearly missed out on all of them! “I really didn’t want to do the show,” he admits. “I wasn’t sure I wanted to make that kind of commitment.”
Even when finally he realized this was an opportunity he didn’t want to pass up, he did so with a bit of a mental caveat. “I thought it would run a good long time, which in my mind was 10, maybe 15 years. I never imagined it would still be going strong 35 years later!”
More: Remembering Bold & Beautiful’s most iconic character
An early secret to the show’s success? Eric and Stephanie’s often-contentious relationship. “Susan Flannery was a very strong believer that every single scene on the show had to be about conflict on some level,” McCook says of his longtime on-screen wife’s portrayer. “Even if Eric and Stephanie were sipping martinis and talking about the grandchildren, Susan would say, ‘Where’s the conflict? Without that, we’re boring.’ And she was right.”
One character who wouldn’t know how to be boring if she tried is Steffy, and Jacqueline MacInnes Wood admits she enjoys the periodic shakeups in her alter ego’s life. “I’ve been on for over 13 years, and the majority of that time focused on her relationship with Liam,” she reflects. “So when they brought in Finn, it was kind of cool getting to paint with a different brush, so to speak. Finn brought out her softer, flirtatious side where as with Liam, things are usually a little more dark and twisted.”
Like, perhaps, when a fight with Liam drove Steffy into his dad’s bed? “Ever since they first got together, there have been fans crying out for a ‘Still’ reunion,” she marvels of the connection she and Don Diamont (Bill) forged. “And that was years ago! Where else but on a soap can you get that kind of long-lasting loyalty, whether to the show or to a couple who hasn’t been an actual couple for ages.”
More: Steffy/Bill reunion ‘could happen’ again
For Diamont, everything about his Bold & Beautiful experience springs from headwriter/executive producer Brad Bell’s decision to bring him on almost immediately after his Young & Restless character died. “It was a bold move,” the actor says, no pun intended. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Brad got some pushback from the network. I mean, I’d been Brad for 23 years and then, only a couple months after his death, bringing me over to play Bill? Credit where credit’s due, he believed that I could create an entirely different character and, hey, I guess he was right!”
Perhaps the biggest surprise to hit the show in recent years was the return of Kimberlin Brown’s Sheila, whom fans believed to be dead. “They never killed me on Bold & Beautiful,” reminds the actress who has played the soap-hopping she-devil for nearly three decades. “They never caught me, either. That all happened on Young and Restless, and it happened to someone who had my face on someone else’s body!”
With a laugh that’s much gentler than the one her notorious character often lets loose, Brown adds, “Given Sheila’s background, that could have been anybody. So I was thrilled when Bold & Beautiful gave me a chance to step back into this legendary character’s shoes again.”
Meanwhile, even the soap’s newest castmember, Krista Allen (Taylor), is keenly aware of the legacy of which she’s now a part. “I mean, it’s such an honor,” she told us, her sense of humor on full display. “It’s not everyone who gets cast on a show set in the fashion world and gets to make her debut in a bad wig that has everyone talking for weeks. I feel like I can say I’ve left my mark!”
Check out the photo gallery below celebrating the biggest moments in Bold & Beautiful‘s history!
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>When <em>The Bold and the Beautiful</em> debuted on March 23, 1987, heading up the cast were daytime MVPs Susan Flannery (ex-Laura, <em>Days of Our Lives</em>) and John McCook (ex-Lance, <em>The Young and the Restless</em>) as Stephanie and Eric Forrester, the heads of a design dynasty and parents of Thorne (Clayton Norcross), Ridge (then Ross Moss) and Kristen (Teri Ann Linn). Or so they <em>thought</em>…</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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<p>Yes, yes, we’ll get to more recent storylines, like the brilliantly bonkers one that found Thomas Forrester (Matthew Atkinson) going to second base with an inaminate object that resembled the object of his obsession. But first…</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
3/59
<p>Initially, the soap focused on the love triangle of sibling rivals Ridge and Thorne, and the virginal Caroline (Joanna Johnson), the daughter of Spencer Publications honcho Bill Spencer Sr. — and, we’d later learn, the twin sister of Faith Roberts, whom we know better as Karen. But not <em>that</em> Karen, thankfully.</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
4/59
<p>Sure, in this photo, it looks like butter wouldn’t melt in the mouth of Forrester matriarch Stephanie. But that’s mainly because butter would be too freakin’ scared to get anywhere near her, much less her mouth. That sharp tongue of hers was painful; her right hook, downright debilitating!</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
5/59
<p>Stephanie’s disapproval of Ridge’s infatuation with cater waiter-turned-chemist Brooke Logan (Katherine Kelly Lang) is the stuff of legend. And not for nothing, the blonde bombshell worked hard to earn from the older woman the nickname the Slut From the Valley. Not only did she have her way with Ridge — <em>and</em> marry Eric out from under Stephanie — she also… well, keep scrolling. You’ll see.</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>Yeah, Brooke also got seriously involved with Thorne (Winsor Harmon here). <em>And</em> Ridge’s half brother, Nick Marone. But who was keeping score of her scoring, right?</p>
Image: Aaron Montgomery/JPI
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<p>As this photo so clearly illustrates, the furious force of nature was eager for Brooke to get a hold of herself — a <em>choke</em> hold, if necessary.</p>
Image: Jesse Grant/JPI
8/59
<p>Alas, Brooke couldn’t help but push Stephanie’s buttons. In fact, after no-good Deacon Sharpe (Sean Kanan) deflowered her daughter Bridget (then Jennifer Finnigan) — while on the phone with her <em>entire</em> freaking family! — the strumpet still went ahead and not only hooked up with him herself, she had his daughter… you know, Hope. Speaking of whom…</p>
Image: Sean Smith/JPI
9/59
<p>This was the kind of scene that played out any time Hope (then Kim Matula) was in the same room as her mom and boyfriend Oliver Jones (Zack Conroy) after they had let masks convince them that they were shtupping other people entirely at the senior’s high-school graduation party. You can well and truly picture Stephanie’s reaction, can’t you? Thought so.</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
10/59
<p>In hopes of driving a sexy, sexy wedge between Brooke and Ridge, Stephanie had Thomas (Adam Gregory here) lie that he and his stepmother had gotten busy while high on hallucinogenic flora after a plane crash. As you can imagine, given both Brooke’s reputation and Thomas’ abs, everybody believed it.</p>
Image: Cliff Lipson/CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
11/59
<p>In Stephanie’s defense, she had been hardenened by years of abuse at the hand of her father — years of abuse to which mom Ann (guest star Betty White) had turned a blind eye. It took the two of them an eternity to make peace. But as if we needed further proof that miracles can happen, Stephanie and Brooke became…</p>
Image: Sean Smith/JPI
12/59
<p>As a matter of fact, Brooke mourned the loss of her longtime tormentor as much as she had that of her own mother. No one understood Brooke better than her foremost foe. No one challenged her as much as her most vocal detractor. And heaven knows, no one smacked her as much.</p>
Image: Aaron Montgomery/JPI
13/59
<p>Proving that she had as much vicious moxie as sister Stephanie ever had, Pam Douglas (Alley Mills) made it her mission in life to undermine would-be mistress of the manor Donna Logan (Jennifer Gareis). As you can see, their exchanges were… um, colorful.</p>
Image: Geraldine Overton/CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>The natural enemy of the Forrester family was knockoff queen Sally Spectra (the late, great Darlene Conley). A real broad’s broad, she wasn’t the type to sit around waiting for the phone to ring. Well, despite the implications of this particular image!</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>Sally’s softer side was embodied by daughter Macy Alexander (Bobbie Eakes), a promising vocalist who found all too many reasons to sing the blues. Not the least of which was her habit of dying.</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>Never mind Sally’s tough exterior. She went as squishy as a marshmallow when it came to her Bucky, playboy designer Clarke Garrison (Daniel McVicar). Sadly, he could never handle a woman who was as feisty and formidable as Sally. He was more into whoever was…</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>If that meant making a play for the Forresters’ frosty daughter Kristen, so be it. There is, after all, a “tulle” for every job.</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>Over the years, Macy tried to navigate a complicated relationship with Thorne (Jeff Tracta here) that was downright Shakespearean aside from the infrequency of duels and scarcity of poison. </p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
19/59
<p>During hiatuses from Brooke, Ridge attempted to move on with Taylor Hayes (Hunter Tylo), a shrink who took to couples costumes like a fish to water. Or, if we’re going for a fashion analogy, like a seamstress to a sewing machine?</p>
Image: Monty Brinton/CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
20/59
<p>Ridge even endeavored to start a new family with Taylor, one that included identical twins Steffy (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood) and Phoebe (MacKenzie Mauzy). We’ll just leave that there for a hot minute. <em>Identical</em> twins. Mm-hmm.</p>
Image: Sean Smith/JPI
21/59
<p>For a moment, Ridge (now Thorsten Kaye) broke his pattern of ping-ponging between Taylor and Brooke for long enough to become enaged to the latter’s kid sister, Katie (Heather Tom). Again, this was only “for a moment.” Knots tied in string rarely <em>stay</em> tied.</p>
Image: Sean Smith/JPI
22/59
<p>After an injury stripped Ridge of his designing mojo, he found renewed inspiration in working — <em>closely</em> — with Caroline’s namesake niece (Linsey Godfrey, most recently Sarah on <em>Days of Our Lives</em>). That and macking on her.</p>
Image: John Paschal/JPI
23/59
<p>Distracting Ridge from his womanizing from time to time was his <em>other</em> family, surprise biodad Massimo Marone (the late, great Joseph Mascolo), the aforementioned Nick (Jack Wagner) and Nick’s mother, Jackie (Lesley-Anne Down), whose predilection for boy toys was rivaled only by Sally’s.</p>
Image: Aaron Montgomery/JPI
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<p>Stephanie had let her husband and son go their entires lives without mentioning that it was old flame Massimo to whom Ridge should have been sending Father’s Day cards. But then…</p>
Image: Aaron Montgomery/JPI
25/59
<p>… was kinda Stephanie’s approach to the truth, especially when telling it might have consequences. She even kept Eric in the dark about the fact that their “late” daughter Felicia (Lesli Kay) was only late in air quotes. It was a whole thing.</p>
Image: Sean Smith/JPI
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<p>We did mention, didn’t we, that Jackie was a bit of a cougar. Mind you, her relationship with Owen Knight (Brandon Beemer, now Shawn on <em>Days of Our Lives</em>) really put the “love” in “love affair.”</p>
Image: Aaron Montgomery/JPI
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<p>When not contemplating going all in and changing her name to Mrs. Robinson — get it? — Jackie ran her own design house. Among its staff: Bridget (Ashley Jones here), who spent years becoming a doctor, only to realize that what she really wanted to do was draw dresses while wearing the “impenetrable” disguise of Madame X.</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>The CBS soap’s early cast included John Wayne’s son Ethan and Robert Mitchum’s granddaughter Carrie as Brooke’s siblings, Storm and Donna.</p>
Image: Tony Esparza/CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>By 1998, Brooke had hired the world’s worst nanny for Bridget (Agnes Bruckner here) and Rick (Jacob Young): Impetuous Amber Moore (Adrienne Frantz) seduced her boss’ teenage son. Needless to say — and as his expression suggests — Sally’s son C.J. Garrison (Mick Cain) was suddenly <em>very</em> eager to be babysat.</p>
Image: John Paschal/JPI
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<p>Rick (Justin Torkildsen here) didn’t take it well when he learned that bride Amber had traded their ill-fated offspring for the healthy child born to her cousin Becky (Marissa Tait).</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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<p>In 2013, Rick (Young again) lost his heart to Maya Avant (Karla Mosley), who at various points was played as a salt-of-the-earth ex-con, a scheming, updwardly-mobile model and a transgender trailblazer. To this day, we have no idea why the couple divorced.</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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<p>No sooner had Maya and sister Nicole (Reign Edwards) discovered that their family tree needed a branch added for their dad’s illegitimate daughter, Sasha Thompson (Felisha Cooper), than the vixen began putting the moves on future half brother-in-law Zende Forrester Dominguez (Rome Flynn here).</p>
Image: Aaron Montgomery/JPI
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<p>There was no mistaking that gleam in Taylor’s eye. It was a sure sign that she was once again going to try to get over Ridge — in this case, by getting under his stepbrother, Rick (Kyle Lowder here).</p>
Image: Evans Ward/JPI
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<p>Oh dear. The tears sparkling their way down Taylor’s cheek suggest that, even as she was committing herself to Ridge’s half brother, Nick, she knew that she could never really love any man but the one she couldn’t have.</p>
Image: John Pashal/JPI
35/59
<p>Briefly, it looked as if Taylor might become Ridge’s stepmother. Which, if his history has taught us anything, is hardly a hindrance to a hookup. (Right, Brooke?)</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
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<p>Ultimately, Taylor might have been better off staying in Morocco, where she landed after a “fatal” plane crash. There, a smitten Prince Omar (Kabir Bedi) treated his Layla like a queen. Or at least like a princess.</p>
Image: CBS/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
37/59
<p>Yup, now would be a good time to “reflect” on 1992, the year that <em>The Young and the Restless</em>’ epic feud between baby-stealing psychopath Sheila Carter (Kimberlin Brown) and her favorite punching bag, Lauren Fenmore (Tracey E. Bregman), spilled over to <em>The Bold and the Beautiful. </em></p>
Image: John Paschal/JPI
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<p>After being held prisoner by Sheila, shrink James Warwick (Ian Buchanan) should have known better than to have anything to do with her. But he not only had something to do with her, that something left her pregnant with his child.</p>
Image: Aaron Montgomery/JPI
39/59
<p>If Sheila had a bonkers equal, it was Ridge’s old flame, Morgan DeWitt (Sarah Buxton), who went so off the rails over what could’ve been but never was, she kidnapped a very young Steffy and let her parents believe that she’d been eaten by a shark. Oh, and judging from Stephanie’s expression here, Morgan was an at best mediocre plumber.</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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<p>From the moment we met Bill Sr.’s namesake son (Don Diamont), his interests were clear: women, women and more women. And if the woman happened to be one of the Logan sisters, so much the better!</p> <p> </p>
Image: Sean Smith/JPI
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<p>We thought that the 2009 wedding of Bill and Katie settled the matter of which of the Logans was his true love. We thought wrong. The groom’s lips and sister-in-law Brooke’s have over and over again seemed to be as drawn to one another as our lips are to a glass of Malbec.</p>
Image: Sean Smith/JPI
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<p>“Like father, like son” took on a whole new meaning when Bill’s chip off the ol’ block, Liam (Scott Clifton), began ping-ponging between Hope (Matula here) and her sometime stepsister, Steffy.</p>
Image: John Paschal/JPI
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<p>Every once in a while, another woman would catch Liam’s eye. (See illustration A above.) But those flirtations tended to last about as long as a commercial break.</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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<p>It’s always been Steffy for Liam. Or Hope (now Annika Noelle). Or Steffy <em>and</em> Hope. The more things change, the more he… doesn’t. To this day, he still waffles between them the way you or we might between fries and hash browns.</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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<p>Don’t try telling that to Wyatt (Darin Brooks). Bill’s son with Quinn Forrester (Rena Sofer) has seen so many of his relationships go up in smoke thanks to her meddling that if he ever gets married again, he’ll likely wear a flame-retardant tuxedo. And leave her off the guest list!</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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<p>A perfect example of Quinn acting on Wyatt’s behalf: In 2016, she kidnapped an amnesiac Liam to eliminate her son’s competition for Steffy. She even pretended to be Liam’s wife and “encouraged” her own estranged husband — you remember Deacon — to take a flying leap into a watery grave. As you can see, he was not pleased. They so rarely are.</p>
Image: John Paschal/JPI
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<p>In 2017, Sally’s namesake grandniece (Courtney Hope) took the fashion biz by storm. Unfortunately for her, that storm consisted of a light breeze and some drizzle.</p>
Image: Sean Smith/JPI
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<p>Bill was only too happy to have Steffy marry into the family, whether to Liam or Wyatt. At the same time, when the opportunity to sleep with her himself landed at his doorstep… Let’s just say that he didn’t — as he should’ve — say, “Go away, we don’t want any.”</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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<p>For a long, tear-stained year, Liam and Hope were led to believe that baby Beth had been stillborn when, in fact, the kid had just been napped by an unscrupulous doctor and sold to her aunt, Steffy.</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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<p>’Cause the twisted plot that found an unstable Thomas getting to second base with “Fauxpe,” as we took to calling his Hope stand-in, was equal parts ridiculous and awesome.</p>
Image: Howard Wise/JPI
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