ABC/Ricky Middlesworth
Grey Area: Michael Knight will be back on screen on General Hospital as Martin beginning this week.
It was all the way back in February that Martin Grey left town after calling things off with lover Lucy Coe (not to mention catching her after a literal roll in the hay with her ex, Scotty Baldwin). But now the character — who in addition to his romance with Lucy has other key ties to the canvas, given that he is the brother of the mayor, Laura Collins, as well as Cyrus Renault — is heading back to Port Charles, which means that his Daytime Emmy-winning portrayer, Michael E. Knight is, too.
Long Time Coming
Originally, Knight’s on-screen absence was intended to be shorter. “It was supposed to be three months,” he says. But his planned hiatus coincided with the shakeup of the show’s writing team, which extended Martin’s stint out of town, and the actor wasn’t sure if GH’s future plans included the character. “By the time it got to August, I was thinking, ‘Okay, well, you know, no harm, no foul,’ ” he admits.
That’s because of how genuinely grateful he was for the time he had already spent on the show. “Frank [Valentini, executive producer] brought me on initially to work with Roger [Howarth, whose Franco was attorney Martin's client] when I was trying to make my health insurance [work requirement]. And I will love Frank for the rest of my life for doing what he did, because four days [of GH work] turned into four years,” Knight declares. “So, to me, I already had the brass ring in my pocket. I wasn’t going to complain about four days turning into four years! I’m one grateful monkey, you know what I mean?”
But, after another change was made at the top of GH’s writing team, and the new head-writing team of Elizabeth Korte and Chris Van Etten was firmly in place, Martin was once again on the show’s radar. Soon, Valentini reached out to Knight about resuming the role. “My first loyalty is to Frank, always,” says Knight. “And when Frank called me and told me about bringing me back and gave me the lowdown [about the show’s plans for Martin], I was a very happy guy.”
We Meet Again
While Knight can’t divulge what brings Martin back into the Port Charles fold, he does hint that the character will have a key function, teasing, “People used to ask me, ‘Well, what’s your role on General Hospital ?’ And I would say, ‘It’s kind of like paprika. You don’t use it a lot but you use it to sort of spice things up.’ ”
As a vet of the genre — he played Tad Martin on All My Children for the better part of 30 years after joining the show in 1982 — he sees the big-picture creative advantage to his recurring status with GH. Knight notes, “The best position you can be in on a soap is being the new toy, because once you've married Dixie three times [as Tad did], you're, excuse the expression, screwed. It’s like, if they bring her back from the dead for the third time and don’t even explain why just so you guys can ride off into the sunset, you’ve been there a little too long. You’ve overstayed! Well, now I get the benefit of Chris [Van Etten] being back; Chris created Martin. And I get to be a new toy for Chris, twice."
Now that he’s once again immersed in the Port Charles universe, Knight is delighted to once again be working with the talented cast, including several actors he had previously worked with on AMC, such as Maurice Benard (Sonny; ex-Nico, AMC) and Genie Francis (Laura; ex-Ceara, AMC) — and now, he can add one more to the mix: Eva LaRue (Natalia; ex-Maria, AMC). “What can I say about her?” Knight smiles. “She’s gorgeous, she’s wonderful, she’s been a friend for 30 years. It was awesome to see her.”
Digest actually got to break the news to Knight that yet another figure from his Pine Valley past is poised to be a part of his Port Charles future, since Alexa Havins — who, as AMC’s Babe, was romantically linked to Jamie Martin, the son of Knight’s character — is joining the GH cast as a recast of Martin’s niece, Lulu Spencer. “Oh, my God. Alexa?! Stop, you’re lying! Oh, that’s amazing. That’s fantastic. That’s really, really good news. She is a wonderful actress and I just love both of them [Havins and her husband, Justin Bruening, ex-Jamie, AMC].”
Lucky Draw
The actor is having a blast with his new storyline, and enthuses, "I’m very happy to be here. I’m eternally grateful to Frank for this opportunity — especially since I get to play with great people, and there are so many great people to play with here. I thank my lucky stars for this fortune cookie.”
His gratitude extends to GH's viewers. "If it wasn't for the fans, none of us would have a job," he points out. "So, to the fans, God bless each and every one of you. Thank you, thank you, thank you for giving me the chance to play."
Local News
