"Ma Walton" Michael Learned Joining 'General Hospital'

[Brian Damage]

Four-time Emmy winner Michael Learned—so fondly remembered as the Depression-era matriarch Olivia on The Waltons—is joining General Hospital April 16 for a multi-week stint. Alas, the prognosis isn’t good. Learned will play Shirley Whitney, a terminal cancer patient, and we’ll watch as she lives out the final days of her life. Sounds depressing as hell but guess what? It ain’t! TV Guide Magazine spoke with Learned and found out she’s not only having a ball on GH, she’s deeply inspired by her new role.

It must be such an interesting experience to play a character all the way to the point of death.
The truth is, when I first got the offer I thought, God, it would be so nice to get a part where I’m not dying or an oxygen tank or using a walker. I am getting to that certain age! [Laughs] But if you’re dying, this is the way you want to go! Shirley is a wonderful character—fun and feisty and irreverent. She teaches her handsome doctors how to dance the rumba. She makes bad jewelry and knows it’s bad. She is determined to savor every last moment.

Sounds like she handles death the way we all wish we could.
I have a couple of friends who are fighting for their lives right now and it’s rough. It’s the thing we fear the most. How will it happen? What will it be like? Though I think most of us fear helplessness more than death itself. I’ve tried to imagine how I’d handle having only a few months left. I hope I’d really value and savor the time. Shirley always opts for the positive even under tragic circumstances. She reminds us that we all have that choice in this world. We can either bitch and moan or be grateful that the birds are singing. I just love her! I’m in that same place in my own life.

How so?
Thankfully, I don’t have cancer but I’m trying to be very mindful that life is good. I try to stay in a place of appreciation and gratitude. I’m working hard to turn things around. Not just the big stuff but the small stuff, too. When I’m in a traffic jam I think, would I rather be here or dead? Okay, I’ll take the traffic jam! Of course, there are days where you go, I don’t want to be in a good mood today! I choose to be in a crappy mood! But when you feel grouchy and put upon, you do have a choice to change your outlook. You can turn it around.

Thinking about those who are worse off sure helps a lot.
[Laughs] No, that doesn’t help me because I wind up feeling guilty and then that makes me feel even worse. But I will say that when I’ve made visits to hospitals where people, and especially children, are severely or terminally ill, it’s usually unbelievably upbeat and full of love and humor and courage. You don’t come away depressed. Instead, you think, “Isn’t the human spirit amazing?”

What’s Shirley’s history? She has no relatives?
Not that I know of. They didn’t give me much in the way of background. I do know that she’s had a good life. She had fun. She broke some of the rules. She reminds me of my own grandmother, who said, “Don’t mourn for me because I’ve done everything in life that I’ve wanted to do.” That’s a good way to live, rather than being a self-sacrificing martyr, which I tended to be for a long time—and I no longer am! My husband now says to me: “I don’t know this woman!”

So is this soap work as tough as they say?
Oh, they work so hard at GH and they’re the nicest bunch of people you can imagine. There’s no time for egos or any of the fancy-schmancy stuff. It’s all about the work. I’ve known Jane Elliot [Tracy] forever so she showed me the ropes. I was the new girl floundering around, dropping my script pages, not knowing what I was doing. I was probably over-emoting a bit, because I’ve been doing so much stage work lately, but they couldn’t have been sweeter or more patient with me. The memorization is always hard when you’re still trying to figure out your character. On The Waltons, I was so connected to what I was doing that I could wait till the last minute and learn my lines in the makeup chair. [Laughs] Of course, most of my lines were “More coffee, John?” or “Time for bed, kids!” But this job is tough. I still get nervous about acting.

After all those Emmys? No way!
I do! There’s always that worry that I’m going to screw up or I’m going to somehow throw off the other actors. I always wonder, will the Muse show up? I cannot work without that danger, but it’s hard on the system as I get older. I think, why am I putting myself through this torment? [Laughs] Acting isn’t brain surgery. What the hell is wrong with me? Relax! So you screw up? So what? Shirley is such a lovely and marvelous character. I just hope I can do her justice.

http://www.tvguidemagazine.com/soaps...tial-4550.html

[catlover79]

[Marvo301]

I've been rewatching The Waltons on DVD and I have been reminded what a great actress Michael Learned is. She will be brilliant playing a terminally ill charcter on GH!