Entertainment Weekly 1993
The Soap Box
'STAR SEARCH' MEMORIES' Joe Lando has prime-time fame now as hunky Sully on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, but time was when he couldn't cut it on Star Search. In 1986, Lando was trounced in Search's acting contest by Scott Thompson Baker, now on The Bold and the Beautiful. "I guess Joe just wasn't Star Search material," quips Baker, who won $100,000 on Search. "But I'm sure if he could do it over, he would still choose to lose and be where he is now." Baker, 32, mowed down 13 challengers before losing to David Cowgill, recently of The Young and the Restless.
Search reruns air on E!, but Baker, a Minneapolis native, avoids them
like the plague. "I watched one," he says, "and I was awful! I was
just a guy coming from community theater in the Midwest. I have no
idea how I everbeat anyone." Double Exposure 1993
by Lindy Patti
Summer of 1993 
Not since the sensational Blackout Week in the summer of '92, has a major heat wave hit Springfield until Joe Lando (Macauley West), an ex-cop with shadows in his past arrived, igniting the screen and sending the mercury soaring. On a six week hiatus from primetime's Dr.Quinn, Medicine Woman where he plays the brooding, sensual Byron Sully, Lando is guesting on GUIDING LIGHT in a cross-promotional move designed by CBS exec Jeff Sagansky. Flexing his talent again in daytime, the disarmingly handsome actor's appearance promises to have a significant impact on Springfield's residents. In an exclusive interview, Lando offers a candid look at the inner man. Born in Park Ridge, IL, he grew up in the shelter of a close-knit family with his parents, grandmother and sister, Kathy, ten years his senior. Describing his formative years, he confesses with amusement, "I was a wild child. I had a motorcycle and lived in a very rural area surrounded by farms so I rode all day long. That's when I started getting all banged up and got all the broken bones. I ran with a bunch of wild guys and there was nothing for us to do out there but make our own entertainment." At the same time, a kind of quiet sensitivity was woven into the fabric of your Lando. "It was like growing up in nature," he recalls, "and I used to go for long walks by myself and just get lost for hours. I spent a lot of time by myself because I chose to and still do to this day." At 18, lost in deep conflict with himself, Lando choreographed his future when he struck out on his own and headed for the West Coast with a pocketful of dreams and $400. . "Nobody thought I could do it," he remembers, "so I went out, moved in with a friend (now his stockbroker) and paid $125 a month to sleep on the living room floor. I went from this upper middle class neighborhood where I was waited on hand and foot by my mother and grandmother and everything was done for me to where, if I didn't clean the apartment, do my laundry or cook something, it didn't get done. All of a sudden, I learned that this is what real life's all about but I was also 18 and nobody told me when to come home, go to bed or wake up. . . . in some ways, it was great!" Although acting was always the ultimate ambition, Lando saw stunt work as a stepping stone. Motivated by a local biking experience, a stash of tricks and a fair share of mishaps, reason dictated that he could get knocked around and be paid for it, however, Hollywood was on strike and doors were closed. Early LA years evoke bittersweet memories. "I got a job in a restaurant cooking," he says, "and my friend worked at a racquet ball club so we pooled our resources and it worked out well." By this time, he upgraded his sleeping arrangement to a mattress topped with a sleeping bag located behind the couch. Six months later, his roommate left for college in Arizona and Lando stayed behind. No stranger to struggle, the actor continues, "I spent a lot of years banging around doing odd jobs. I worked in an aerospace plant, swept floors, did painting, worked as a carpenter's apprentice, a motion picture caterer and finally went back to the restaurant business as a cook." He worked 6 nights a week (the restaurant was closed on Mondays) and attended drama class by day. "One day, I found myself in the William Morris agency and it all started happening." In retrospect, Lando admits that this was essentially a happy time despite the lack of material things. "I was having fun," he muses, "That's the trade-off. Now things are more serious." In 1990, with an acquired sense of maturity born of 10 lean LA years, a 28 year-old Lando reached a career crossroads where the bottom line was land a legitimate acting job or opt for restaurateur. "People were offering to back me because I was pretty good," he explains. "I knew how to run a restaurant and how to handle people but once I did that, you're married to it . . . there's no more acting." Within a month, he was in New York as Jake Harrison on daytime's One Life To Live, the catalyst to Dr. Quinn. Asked to comment on the overwhelming deluge of media hype surrounding his sensational splash as Sully and if it affects his lifestyle, Lando fields the question thoughtfully, then replies, "Well, it does, but OLTL broke me in. That's when I had the most problems dealing with it. Nobody prepares you for being 'famous'." He seems to stumble over the word keenly aware that fame's security belongs only to the moment. "You walk down the street and people recognize you but you don't know who they are and that's kind of weird. People point at you and you want to do the right thing but I was always a very 'to-myself' kind of person so it's something I've had to come to understand as part of the business. When I came here to do the Guiding Light job, I realized that I was going to have to do the publicity but it's really not like me to do the talk shows and numerous interviews." Recently, People Magazine listed Lando as one of its 50 Most Beautiful People. Asked his reaction, he responds, "It's flattering," then confides, "The public chooses whether or not they want to see you so by next year nobody may care." Hardly a remote possibility considering the quality of his work and the extraordinary charisma. Lando draws on the powerful contributions of industry legends Paul Newman and Kirk Douglas for inspiration. Admiring their endless resilience and benchmark career, he mentions having the privilege of meeting them at Spago's Oscar Night bash and regards it as a memorable honor. Turning to the mechanics of Dr. Quinn, the actor explains that it is shot in southern California approximately ten miles inland from Malibu separated from the Pacific by the Santa Monica Mountains. Each episode spans seven days of filming. Despite the scorching temperatures, often nearing 110 degrees, artificial lighting is still used. Needless to say, Lando's buckskin outfit tends to make for a less than Disney day. Regarding the show's Native American folklore, Lando reassures its letter perfect authenticity with, "Somebody at the Smithsonian keeps us in check. The White Buffalo ritual (a focus of one episode) is real and the guy who plays my friend, Cloud Dancing (Larry Sellers) is actually way up there in the Indian religion . . he's like a priest and is called the 'contrary'. That's like the middle man between the spirits and people on earth. He has visions and the scars on his back and chest are real. They're from the sundance where they chant, pray and do a vision quest, meaning you go out for 4 day and nights and you don't eat or drink. It gets you in touch with God and things around you and you're forced to sit in a circle and not be distracted. In this way, you think about yourself and how you fit into this big web." "We are one of the most politically correct shows on the air," he continues, adding that he personally researched the appearance and habits of mountain men to find that dirt was an integral part of their character. Consequently, he insisted on being reasonably grimy because "Sully means dirty to me," he laughs. On this side of the camera, Lando's social profile extends to channeling energy into roller blading, hiking, mountain biking and hanging out with friends. Recently, he retreated to Maine, rented a car in Portland, traveled up the coast to Bar Harbor and hit the bike trails, hair tucked back, shades and baseball cap. The privacy was interrupted, however, when he was mistaken for Mel Gibson who's latest movie was premiering nearby. Assuming he was asked to advise another 19 year old embarking on a similar career, Lando reflects momentarily, then chooses his words carefully, "I would say, 'Don't expect anything overnight. Be willing to look at (the possibility of) a very rough time for 10 years, because everyone has these dreams of being rich and famous. Everything's going to be great and it's going to happen overnight!;" He half smiles, "I don't know too many people that it's happened to that way and, if it does, it often happens and it's over. So, I would say 'always have something you can fall back on and be prepared to work hard, concentrate your efforts and don't be afraid of success.'" Fame, in its best sense, may be defined as the applause of numbers. Clearly, Joe Lando hears the applause and is grateful but fails to be affected, though millions have memorized his face. In modern society, it may seem counter-cultural to reach the zenith of stardom yet refuse to behave like a star, however beneath the astonishing exterior, Lando's really a regular guy. Soap Opera Weekly 1993It's no secret that the Bold and the Beautiful's Scott Thompson Baker (Connor) was a $100,000.00 Star Search winner (he mentions it often in interviews) in the Leading Man category in 1985. What you may not be aware of, however, is who he beat in his third round of competition. His losing challenger was none other than Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman's - and Guiding Light's recently departed Macauley West - Joe Lando! The score out a possible 4.0 was Lando 2.75; Baker 3.50. Soap Opera Digest 1993
Joe Knows
"This is the straight record as Joe knows it," chuckles Joe Lando. "I had originally asked to leave One Life To Live. I wasn't happy with things they were having me do as a character (Jake). And I went up to (then executive Producer) Paul Rauch, who was a very good friend, and I said, 'Jessica (Tuck, ex-Megan) is leaving and I think this would be a good time for Jake and Megan to ride into the sunset together.' So I went under the assumption that when it came time for Jessica to leave, I was going to leave with her. Then there was a changing of the guard (at ABC), and Paul was going to be leaving the show. Suddenly I'm getting married on the show. They were spending like a quarter of a million (dollars) on this wedding - going on location and making a big deal about it. After that, I started looking at my days, and Jessica Tuck and Joe Lando's names have X's all the way across the month! I'm no Einstein, but I walked in and said, 'Am I getting axed?' They said, no, no, no. Finally one day they said, 'We decided to let you go early.'" Lando moved to Los Angeles and started auditioning. "Then (Executive Producer) Linda Gottlieb came into power and said to Jessica that she might want to have me come back so we could finish up her storyline in a big way. So when I went to New York, I had a drink with Linda, and I said I'd love to come back and finish this thing off the right way. By the way, did you fire me, Linda, when you came in? "No, I didn't fire you.' Did Paul Rauch fire me? 'No.' So everybody's got teflon shoulders. 'It wasn't me.' I came back to One Life To Live a very happy man. I got to work with Jessica and do some of the best stuff of my career with her. That recognition helped me get Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. One thing led to another and here I am, back to Guiding Light. So that is the saga of How Did Joe Leave One Life To Live? And how did he go back!"
Soap Opera Update, September 1993
The CBS press release read ..."JOE LANDO co-stars in MEDICINE WOMAN as Byron Sully, a mysterious loner who quietly watches over Dr. Quinn (Jane Seymour) and the Cooper children. One of his biggest fans is little Brian Cooper, a little boy who is mesmerized by his relationship with the Indians." A long way from Llanview, ONE LIFE TO LIVE and Jake Harrison. Sort of. "Working with Jane Seymour has been great," Joe tells. "It was like working with Jessica Tuck on ONE LIFE. They are both real professionals. I'm learning a lot from Jane. She works twice as hard as me. She is just a real gracious, very nice woman." At first glance it may appear that they come from two different worlds, but let's face it - much of the work that Jane Seymour does has the same appeal as soaps. She often plays the strong heroine whose only weakness is romance. Still, "she's never seen a soap in her life," Lando reports. "I showed her a couple of the last shows of ONE LIFE TO LIVE and she really liked them. She was really impressed and she said that she had no idea." But Jane Seymour is just one part of MEDICINE WOMAN, which premiers this winter on CBS. The drama "about a strong-willed woman who becomes one of the first female doctors to practice medicine on the American frontier," also boasts a wolf in the cast. And if you think the similarities between the box office smash "Dances With Wolves" and the Indian/frontier-based MEDICINE WOMAN aren't noticed by the people right on the set, then think again. "We sometimes call it "FRANCES WITH WOLVES," laughs Lando. The wolf's name in real-life is Cody, just like Kathie Lee's baby," Joe adds, making reference to Kathie Lee Gifford. "He is big ad lovable. The one you usually see me with is Cody," Joe specifies. "There are actually two wolves. Cody is the really friendly but kind of stupid wolf. The other dog, Micah, does the snarling, and he's not afraid to go inside the teepee. Cody won't - he's afraid of the bear rugs." But in addition to working with a wolf, on his first day on the set, Joe had to speak Cheyenne. "It's nothing like French or Spanish or anything that I've studied," Joe describes, and then he's asked to speak a little. Something like"Ishewamga gu ..." trails out of his lips. Beautiful. But no matter how difficult the language is, in comparison to ONE LIFE TO LIVE, MEDICINE WOMAN is easy work. "When I returned to ONE LIFE TO LIVE around Emmy time, we got in at seven in the morning and left at a quarter after two in the morning. You work in that building that has no windows, and when you go outside it's dark again. Here you drive everywhere. We tape at the Paramount ranch - the same place that they taped M*A*S*H." Still Lando would prefer living in New York. "If money were no object, I would like to live back east and have a place in the country like Bob Woods (Bo) or Erika Slezak (Viki) do. But I'm happier since taking this role. I've always wanted to do a western, it's good exposure." Joe informs us that the show is tentatively scheduled to air on Saturday nights. We inform him that no one is usually home on Saturday night. "I am," Joe counters. "But I guess that's because I'm 30-years-old. But I think people will enjoy this show. It's interesting." Joe concludes: "On daytime, people stick by you. But here, doing this show, I might get terrible write-ups. I've already thought about that ..." he pretends he's reading the paper ..."Jane Seymour - great; the kid's great; the dog's fantastic, Joe Lando: go back to soaps." Either way, fans of Joe Lando can't lose. EW Interview Canadian TV Guide, August 28, 1993
The Mighty Quinn
We never would have guessed it. This year's Reader Poll was full of surprises, but the biggest shocker of all was your overwhelming support of Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman - a CBS family drama that hit the airwaves just last January. Never in the eight-year history of our poll have readers taken to a series so quickly (as have viewers, since Dr. Quinn ended the season a solid 24th overall in the Nielsen ratings). Besides taking Best New Series and placing second in the Best Current Drama category, Quinn hunk Joe Lando was Sexiest TV Actor, and he steamrolled the competition as Best Newcomer (Male) with 46 percent of the votes - the highest winning percentage in any category. And Dr. Quinn herself, Jane Seymour, copped the Sexiest TV Actress award and placed second as Best Drama Actress. "This is lovely - there have been so many surprises to this first season," Seymour said when told of the news. "Thanks so much to all of my lovely friends in Canada. This is just what the doctor ordered." In other results, Star Trek and its spinoffs made a predicatbly strong showing earning category clinches in the Best All-Round category.
Soap Opera Digest, August 3, 1993
Joe Lando Joins GL for the Summer
Macauley West (Lando) will make Mindy's head spin It's going to be a long, hot summer for GUIDING LIGHT's Mindy (Barbara Crampton, shown here). While her romance with Nick (Vincent Irizarry) has reignited, a new man -- played by DR. QUINN, MEDICINE WOMAN's Joe Lando (Sully) -- will steam up her life even more. Lando, who makes his GL debut on July 26, plays Macauley West, an ex-cop with a troubled past and a taste for blonde fashion designers. Though Lando is forfeiting his DR. QUINN vacation time to work on GL, the actor says that he's "genuinely excited" about the job. "I'm jazzed about going back to New York," says Lando, who played ONE LIFE TO LIVE's Jake before snagging the role of Sully. "And GUIDING LIGHT has a great atmosphere." Lando admits he didn't have to work too hard to get the GL stint: "It was [CBS President] Jeff Sagansky's idea. He gave my agent a call and told him about it. When the head of the company comes up with an idea, it's a good sign you're going to do it." The actor didn't get much of a chance to watch GL before he flew out to New York. "I was usually at work when it was on," he explains. "But one day, I had a late call. I watched [GL], and I was really impressed. There are a lot of great actors on that show." Among those great actors are some old friends from OLTL. Fiona Hutchison (Jenna) used to play Gabrielle, and Leonard Stabb (Hart) was OLTL's Hunter. "It's kind of a mini-reunion," enthuses Lando. Of course, he admits it's tough to return to a hectic soap schedule: "It's hard going back to learning 20 pages a day as opposed to two pages. The only hard part about DR. QUINN is the heat and the costumes."
Dr. Quinn fans can expect a two-parter to kick off the fall season. "It'll take place in Boston, so we're shooting on an old back lot at Universal Studios," Lando reveals. "[Dr. Quinn] goes back to Boston for a medical convention, and hooks up with somebody there romantically. Sully gets a little antsy and misses her, so he follows her there. He's like Crocodile Dundee trapped in the big city."
Soap Opera Magazine, August 3, 1993Currently on hiatus from CBS' Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, Joe Lando will be making things sizzle in Springfield this summer as the slick Macauley West. With a certified prime-time hit under his belt, and a proven daytime track record as OLTL's Jake, why would the actor decide to return to soaps now? And how will he shake things up on GL during his six-and-a-half week stay? Last March, Jeff Sagansky, a top CBS executive, asked Joe if he'd be interested in spending his summer hiatus on GL, attracting fans of that show to Medicine Woman and vice versa. Since he had no other plans yet, Joe accepted the offer and was hired without a screen test. While he admits work is work and the pay isn't bad either - coming back to daytime isn't just about returning to a soap. "I'm going back because I work for the same network (in prime time). It's a cross -promotional thing," he says, adding that a return to ABC's OLTL didn't make sense, even though he has a legion of established fans there. "They didn't ask me to come back anyway, so it's a moot point." Even though Macauley will be as strong and dynamic as Sully on Medicine Woman and OLTL's Jake, the actor promises his current role will be different from the others he's had. "Sully's a man of fewer words than Macauley. He's also more spiritual and honest than Macauley, who seems to be living a lie and is going to have to resolve something from his past," he says, adding "Jake was from the wrong side of the tracks. He was always getting into trouble and doing the wrong thing, until he finally found the right woman who turned him around and made him forget his evil ways." While Joe reveals that Macauley will be a combination of Jake, the street guy, and Sully the mountain man, he hopes he'll be a little better dressed and a little slicker. I'm working on making him that way by thinking about his mannerisms and how he moves. but he also has to be charming in order to win people over quickly." Since Joe will only be on GL for six and half weeks, or roughly 24 shows ("That's a season in Medicine Woman talk!"), show execs are making sure his character hits the road running, changing the lives of almost everyone in town. First on his list will be Mindy (Barbara Cramptom), whom he meets in a grocery store this week. "After they have a mix-up, he follows her home and suggests they have dinner, flirting with her the whole time. So they hit if off and Nick (Vincent Irizarry) arrives to find them cooking on the grill with soft music playing in the background," Joe reveals, adding that Macauley's darker side will probably surface. "I don't know exactly what they have planned, but I'm sure my relationship with the jealous boyfriend is going to be antagonistic." Even though Macauley is a charming, smooth-talking ex-cop-turned-defense-lawyer, we will also see a different side of him through his connection to Gilly (Amelia Marshall) and David (Monti Sharp) who took a murder rap for his sister Gilly years before. With David facing murder charges once again, Nick checks into his previous arrest and learns Macauley was on the case. "He was thrown off the force for his involvement in the case, but we won't know what he did for a while," reveals Joe, who says he came up with idea of having Macauley hate to be called Mac. "Every soap has a Mac. It's like the general tough-guy name."
With Macauley's immediate secret past and his immediate future trying to wine and dine Mindy, Joe feels confident GL fans will stay tuned during his stint. It's a level of confidence he admits he didn't always feel on OLTL. "At one point, I left because there was so much tension. They caused it and I caused it. It was a two-way street. Working there was the best time in my life and the worst time" he says, adding "when I returned to tie up my storyline with Jessica Tuck (ex-Megan), Linda Gottlieb (the new executive producer) and the new writers came up with the strongest material I had seen during my entire time there." As for his former OLTL co-star, he says, "Jessica's the best leading lady I've had to date - professionally and personally. I love her. I spent two hours on the phone with her yesterday." When Vincent Irizarry and Barbara Crampton flew out to LA to tape GL promos with him, the actor was amazed to see how much his new co-star looks like Jessica. "Barbara has the same coloring - the same white/blonde hair and blue eyes and fair skin and everything. I thought, "Wow, this is like a flashback to the beginning." To play Macauley West, Joe had to move East, which gives him the perfect opportunity to spend time in the Big Apple and visit other OLTL co-stars he still considers to be close friends. "I keep in touch with Bob Woods (Bo) and his wife and their baby - and Leonard Stabb (ex-Hunter) who's now on GL as Hart" he says, adding that he's also anxious to see Brian Tarantina (ex-Lucky) who was his best friend on and off screen. "We both lived down in Hell's Kitchen and had a great time hanging out together." On the same day Joe learned he'd be spending his summer working on GL, his agent called to tell him People had listed him as one of their 50 Most Beautiful People While flattered by the compliment, he doesn't let himself take it too seriously. Being labeled also doesn't anger him the way it once did. "The whole hunk thing used to make me feel the way women must when men call them bimbos. But at some point, you have to grow up and get over it. Every actor who's not a character actor gets tagged like that now and then." So, what does one of the 50 Most Beautiful People see when he's alone, looking in the mirror? "I see this guy I've been looking at for 31 years and I think "S---, you're getting old!" He laughs, adding that he doesn't think much about his looks and never spends time in the gym. "I work so much I don't like to spend my free time in a gym, pushing weights around. That's just more work, I'd rather get my exercise by mountain biking or hiking." Born and raised in Prairie View, IL, a suburb of Chicago, Joe has always had a love for the outdoors. He's also always had a great imagination which was nurtured by a grandmother who lived with his family - his father Joe Sr. who owned a fishing tackle company, his mother, and his only sibling, Kathy, who's 10 years older and runs a home-based day care center today. "I was a loner as a kid. I spent a lot of time pretending I was one person or another," says the actor who's half Italian and a quarter Polish and Russian. At 18, he left his family's house with $400.00 in his pocket and a dream to become a stuntman in L.A. Although his parents thought he'd be back in no time, he stayed, finding an apartment with one of his hometown buddies who's his stockbroker today. With no set plan to break into the business, Joe began doing catering work for motion picture studios and making connections that way. After deciding to become an actor, he studied with acting coach Vincent Chase. Before being hired on OLTL, he also worked as a technical adviser on the film I Love You to Death, teaching Kevin Kline and Tracey Ullman how to spin pizza. He also appeared in the film Star Trek IV, prime time's Nightingales and several national commercials. When he isn't busy working, he relaxes by hiking, camping, seeing an occasional movie (the latest was Jurassic Park) and listening to music, ranging from classic to The Doors to his all-time favorite group U2. "In fact I missed last year's wrap party of Medicine Woman because I went to a U2 concert," he reveals, adding he's also a big fan of Johnny Cash. "He and his wife were on Medicine Woman twice. They're great people. I learned a hell of a lot just watching those folks." If Macauley West is a big hit in Springfield this summer, Joe feels certain GL execs will leave the door open for him to return again at some point, an opportunity he'd welcome - after a well-deserved vacation. "By next year, I won't have had one in three years. I'd like to go to New Zealand or Australia, where Medicine Woman is one of the No. 1 shows. My girlfriend (a restaurant cashier-turned-teacher) whom he met before he was on OLTL) is from New Zealand, so I think we'll take advantage of that and mix a little business with pleasure.: While Joe thinks fans would be most surprised to know he's fairly shy and much different from the characters he plays ("I don't run around saving the day or throwing tomahawks!"), he'd like to offer them a piece of advice given to him by Johhny Cash: "He said, 'Don't let possessions be the stick they beat you with.' As I stay in my one-room apartment in Hollywood for 900 bucks a month, I say, 'I got it. Keep it simple.' So that's what I try to do." Garrett A. Foster Canadian TVG, July 23 - 30, 1993
Dr. Quinn's Mane Man
Easy-going Joe Lando takes a summer turn in the soaps. When people ask me about the show," says Orson Bean, co-star of Dr. Quinn, Medicine woman, "they always ask me about Joe first. They've seen Jane Seymour for years and they love Jane. But they wanna know about the Hunk." The Hunk is Joe Lando (formerly Jake Harrison on One Life to Live) who begins a six-week stint Monday as guest star on CBS's Guiding Light - a cross-promotion engineered by the network in hopes that some of Lando's prime-time luster will rub off on it's low-rated soap. A move back to day-time while still hot in prime time is rare - GL executive producer Jill Farren Phelps says, {I can't ever remember something like this happening" - but CBS senses that Lando fans are just dying to get more of their heartthrob. "I tell people that Joe is very mysterious," Bean says with a wink. "He isn't." So consider that fair warning: If you don't like having your romantic fantasies skewered, don't read on. Because Lando is not like Dr. Quinn's Byron Sully, the rough-hewn, half tamed, emotionally wounded character that made him a star. Consider the physical differences alone: Sully is a sun-bronzed creature created for the screen. Lando, much paler, can't wait to scrub off the heavy, burn orange face and body makeup. Sully rides bareback with ease. Lando has to use ice packs to soothe tortured muscles. Sully lives in harmony with nature. Lando is allergic to almost everything on location: grasses, pollens, even horses. And the differences aren't just physical. Sully is a man who shares the Kung Fu philosophy of violence" The tomahawk flies only when absolutely necessary. Lando, a hellraiser before turning 30 calmed him down, sustained enough injuries from motorcycle wipeouts and barroom brawls to wish he had Dr. Quinn in the family. He's broken his nose five times, all 10 fingers, both wrists and his jawbone. "To have Joe split open a head, or to show up some place bloodied, or to crack a tooth, or break a finger was a very, very ordinary thing for him to do," says a high-school friend, actress Alison LaPlaca (The Jackie Thomas Show), who has known Lando since the age of 15. Then there's the matter of his emotional makeup. Sully, still grieving over the loss of his wife in childbirth, is a man of few words. Lando, who has a steady girlfriend and plans down the road for a family, walks around the Dr. Quinn set with the attitude of a happy-go-lucky kid. "He's terrific with children particularly," says Seymour. "He spent a lot of time around my kids and he was great." And why not? He spins makeup towels like pizza dough - a carry-over from his years as a pizza maker in an Italian restaurant. He dons silly glasses with spring-loaded eyeballs and sings "Happy Birthday" - badly - to fellow actors, grips, cooks, even park rangers.
"What's Joe really like/" ponders Dr. Quinn's executive story editor, Toni, Perling. "Joe is a goofball." Still, there is one important similarity with Sully. This guy is seriously gorgeous. "That's your line, not mine," teases Seymour who had a brief fling with Lando when they first met on the Dr. Quinn set. With so much attention, you might wonder if sudden stardom has gone to Lando's head. "He doesn't see himself as a hunk," says Bean. "He seems himself as a guy who's lucky to be working." That luck started in earnest in 1990 when Lando landed the part on One Life to Live. It was his first steady gig after struggling from the age of 18 to break into acting. A native of Prairie View, Ill., Lando took any job that would allow him to get close to the stars, including gigs on catering trucks, as a stuntman and in restaurants. But Lando wasn't just the stereotypical Hollywood waiter taking acting lessons on the side. He was a chef who often worked six nights a week. "I would have worked seven," says Lando, "but one night a week they were closed." Lando eventually became so expert at stretching pizza dough that he was assigned as a technical adviser on the film "I love you to Death," coaching Tracey Ullman and Kevin Kline in the finer points of spinning pizza. Bit parts finally came his way, including one in the feature film "Star Trek IV" and another on the short-lived NCC television series "Nightingales." Still, there were many months of wondering how he would pay the rent. Lando didn't want to ask his parents, who owned a modest fish tackle plant, for help. "My older sister and I always knew that our parents were there if we needed them. But we never asked them for money. There were times when I was crying and thinking" This is it, I'm going to break down and ask. But something would always come trough. Eventually, that something became his role on One Life and then Dr. Quinn. He was the first cast member signed for the show; Seymour was last. The two had never met and there was no screen test, and executive producer Beth Sullivan had no idea if their chemistry would work. "That part was pure luck," she says smiling. Seymour, 42, admits she was concerned about the possible complications of having a personal relationship with her 31 year old costar - particularly when so much of the show's appeal hinges on the sexual chemistry between the two - and Sullivan was worried too. "But they're pros," the producer says. "I knew that no matter what happened, they would come out of it as friends, and they have." Friends- Seymour has since married one of Dr. Quinn's directors, James Keach - but with an interesting edge. "The fact that we like ach other - and have since we first met - really helps," says Seymour. "Because there's a vulnerability and a trust. When we act certain scenes, it's not just acting. Something special happens." Still, some critics charge that Lando is just a pretty boy, only there to look good, throw his tomahawk and save the day. "That really pisses me off," says Lando. "This one woman wrote that I was the perfect man. Looks good, shows up, doesn't say anything, saves her life and walks away. What if I wrote that about a woman? Nice body, nice smile, takes care of the kids, stays barefoot and pregnant, I would be run out of town." Instead Lando will be flying out of town - first class - to start his GL duties in New York this month. "I'm a little surprised that he's going back to the soaps" says Perling. "But I know he loved that world." Whether he will be welcomed with open arms is another matter. Lando's $30,000 per week salary is roughly three times what the top drawer soap stars normally get paid. And his role - GL's Farren Phelps will only say "he won't be a villain" - is tied to a major storyline that takes advantage of Lando's romantic appeal. "I told him, I don't mind if everybody starts watching the show when you get here," says Farren Phelps, "as long as when you leave, everybody is hooked." By Deborah Starr Seibel
TV Guide, July 13, 1993
Medicine Man
Joe Lando may be Hollywood's hottest new hunk, but is he anything like the lone-wolf frontier hero he plays on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman? Joe Lando hates having dirt under his fingernails. "That's one of my pet peeves" he says, looking at his grimy, camera-ready fingers.
What? Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman's Tarzan of the Prairie - the one who sleeps in the woods with his pet wolf and wears moccasins and feathers - can't stand a little dirt? "It drives me nuts," he says, smiling. Since he's spending his summer vacation as a guest star on CBS's Guiding Light, he gets plenty of time to soap up these days. And his time is valuable. This network-engineered cross-promotional move reportedly will land Lando a weekly $30,000 paycheck. But wait - a prime-time star doing a six-week run in a daytime serial? "I can't remember something like this happening" says Jill Farren Phelps, Light's executive producer. The move is designed to shed some of Dr. Quinn's hit luster on CBS's lowest-rated soap, Light, while attracting millions more adoring female fans to Dr. Quinn. And it's all because Lando has become something larger than life for women - the TV equivalent of a pulp-romance hero. "When people ask about the show," says Dr. Quinn co-star Orson Bean "they always ask about Joe first. They love Jane Seymour but they wanna know about The Hunk. I tell them he's very mysterious." Bean winks. "He isn't." So consider that fair warning. If you don't like having your romantic fantasies skewered, hold on tight. Because Lando is not - repeat not - like Dr. Quinn's Byron Sully, the rough-hewn, emotionally wounded character who has made him a star. Consider the physical differences. Sully is a sun-bronzed creature, while Lando is pale beneath the heavy makeup. Sully goes bareback with ease, but riding leaves Lando's bad back in need of ice. Sully lives in harmony with nature, while Lando is allergic to almost everything from grasses and pollens to Cody, the fluffy malamute that plays his pet wolf. Sully is a noble save: The tomahawk flies only when necessary. Lando, a hell-raiser before he turned 30, has sustained enough injuries from barroom brawls and motorcycle wipeouts to wish he had a Dr. Quinn in the family. He's broken his nose five times, cheekbone, jaw, collarbone, both wrists and three or four fingers" he says, not proudly. Then there are the emotional distinctions. Sully, still grieving over the loss of his wife in childbirth, is a man of few words. Lando, giving a tour of the set's historical landmarks ("we call them hysterical landmarks"), seems more like a happy, go-lucky kid playing Davy Crockett. "He's terrific with children particularly," says Seymour. "He spent a lot of time around my kids, and he was great." And why not? He spins makeup towels like pizza dough - a skill left over from years as a starving actor and pizza maker in Italian restaurants. He dons silly glasses with spring loaded eyeballs and sings "Happy Birthday" - badly - to fellow actors, grips, cooks, even park rangers. "What's Joe really like?" ponders Dr. Quinn's executive story editor, Toni Perling. "Joe is a goofball." Still, there is one important similarity. Like Sully, this guy is seriously gorgeous. "That's your line, not mine" teases Dr. Quinn's star, Jane Seymour, 42 who dated Lando briefly when they first met on the set. (Seymour has since tied the knot with one of the show's directors, James Keach). So what words would she use to describe her 31-year old co-star? Cute? Adorable? She smiled and nods, but refused to play along, explaining with a laugh, "I recently got married." Others offer appraisal freely. "The first impression I have of him is that he has wonderful eyes" says frequent guest start Barbara Babcock. As a dancer, Babcock notices other things too. "He moves very well. He's very lithe, very graceful." With so much attention, you might expect stardom to go to Lando's head. "You think he's going to be full of himself," says Bean, "but he doesn't see himself as a hunk. He sees himself as a guy who's lucky to be working." The luck started in 1990, when Lando began portraying Jake Harrison on One Life to Live. It was his first steady gig after struggling since the age of 18 to break into acting. He put in time on catering trucks, as a stuntman, and in restaurants. As a chef he often worked six nights a week. "I would have worked seven, but one night a week they were closed" he says with a playful smile. "Joe is extremely charming" says Beth Sullivan, Dr. Quinn's executive producer. "But I don't think he knows how talented he is. He may be one of those guys who never quite does" - Lando was the first cast member Sullivan signed for the show; Seymour was last. The two had never met and there was no screen test. Sullivan had no idea if their chemistry would work. "That part was pure luck" she says. Lando gently diverts any discussion of his time dating Seymour saying only, "it's old news." but when Seymour discusses Lando, it's with great affection. "I was single at the time and we became very close. But I'm at a different stage in life. So we decided to turn back to being friends." Didn't the thought of having an intimate relationship with her co-star - particularly in a show that so hinges on their chemistry - worry Seymour? "It was a concern, yes," she says. "Fortunately, we were able to continue our friendship without any animosity or problems. The fact that we like each other and have since we first met, really helps," Seymour explains. "There's vulnerability and trust. When we act certain scenes, it's not just acting. Something special happens." On the set, Lando has a rep for making things happen. "He never does too much says Bean. "He walks into the scene, says his words, and walks away. And it's enough. The first time I saw that was when I did a movie years ago with Jimmy Stewart. He had that capacity. Say the words and walk away. Joe's like that in his simplicity." But that same simplicity has made some critics charge that Lando is just a pretty boy there to look good, throw his tomahawk and save the day. "That really ticks me off" says Lando. "This one woman wrote that I was the perfect man: looks good, show up, doesn't say anything, saves her life and walks away. What if I wrote that about a woman? Nice butt, nice smile, takes care of the kids, stays barefoot and pregnant, I'd be run out of town!" Instead, Lando flew out of town - first class - to start his Guiding Light duties in New York. Whether he's being welcomed with open arms is another matter. Lando's reported salary is roughly double that of a top soap star. And his character, says Light's Farren Phelps, will be a major romantic non-villain. What about Lando's own romantic fantasies? He thinks the most beautiful woman in the wold is Lauren Bacall. He has a steady girlfriend but doesn't plan on marriage before age 35. "I figure by then, I'll be ready to have kids." What is his idea of a romantic evening? An old black-and-white movie? "Definitely," says Lando. "And a pint of Haagen-Dazs Chocolate Chocolate Chip with whipped cream on top. But I can't do it very often." Why not? "Because I had a cholesterol problem." The Big Hunk on the Prairie - a picky eater? Alas ... another illusion shattered. Deborah Starr Seibel
Soap Opera Update, July 13, 1993In a move that can only be described as pure marketing genious, CBS - the network that brought us the ultra-successful Sheila Carter crossover, the not-so-late-night David Letterman and another attempt at ratings' success for Roseanne's husband - has devised a way to satisfy millions of women throughout the long, hot summer, while bolstering the ratings of not one, but two, of its television programs. The object of all this attention - and the man that is set to do double duty - is actor Joe Lando, best known to daytime audiences for the role of One Life to Live's Jake Harrison, a role that he had for only about a year, but none-the-less, one with which he made a definite lasting impression upon viewers. That seems to be a pattern with Lando - making very positive first impressions. The proof was seen again earlier this year when a tiny little show with a minimal chance of survival called Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman premiered on New Year's Day and became an overnight hit, and with it, made it's male star, Joe Lando, a primetime sensation. As Sully, a loner with a broken heart in need of mending, Lando's chemistry with series star Jane Seymour was instant and undeniable - as was the appeal of his off-beat appearance. The Lando "look" has been the subject of many discussion, not the least of which an article that appeared recently in the New York Times. But it's more than "the look" that has made Lando the standout male performer of the 1992-93 television season. It's the rest of his qualities: Lando's raw sex appeal, his low-key sensuality, his honest portrayal of a man trying to overcome his past, that Guiding Light is hoping to capitalize on this summer, as they bring Joe Lando to Springfield as the would-be spoiler in the reunion between much put-upon lovers Nick and Mindy (Vincent Irizarry and Barbara Crampton). Only weeks before his limited run - and higly publicized - daytime stint was to begin, Lando took some time out of his hectic schedule to discuss how and why this media experiment came about ... among other important things: We've taken to calling the show DQMW here in our SOU offices, what do the people who work on the show refer to it as? We call it Medicine Woman, we call it Dr. Quinn. How has the "overnight success" of the show changed you? It's an ongoing thing. It's a great thing, but it also doesn't feel like it's happening. The show is very far from the whole Hollywood studio. We work out in the country far away fron the network, that's completely different from where we work. Are you looking forward to a lengthy run on Medicine Woman? I'd be happy if the show ran for five years. Right now I see it lasting three years. How did the Guiding Light stint come about? They called me up from CBS and said that my name was on a list of people that they were considering, they pulled my name off and said they wanted me. It gives me a chance to go back and work really hard. Do you really need to be working this hard? It's a job and I'm an actor. Maybe not next summer, I probably won't go back and do a soap, I'll probably do a play or go on a vacation. From March of this year to April of next year, I will not have stopped working. If I have the opportunity, I would like to do a play, or if a movie presents itself by that time ... if nothing happens, then I will go on a vacation someplace. I won't just take work for work's sake, for the money reasons. I'm in a postion where I don't have to work for money. I saved all of my money when I was working on OLTL. Are you looking forward to New York? Of course. I'm excited to be working. I look at things and like to have a challenge, and I know this is going to be a challenge. And you're looking forward to playing this character? Yes. From what I hear, this guy is going to be a funny individual that dresses nicely. Quite a departure from Sully .... I want him to have a real name. What else have you been told about the character?
He's not going to be who he appears to be ... they weren't quite sure what they were going to do. I've been very busy these last few weeks. I put myself up against another challenge. I was going to do The Howard Stern E Interview. His people then called up and said it was off; he (Howard Stern) didn't feel like working. Then my agent called me up and said that the Stern thing was back on. But this time I said that it was off. How would you respond to Howard Stern's style?
I look at Stern as a real challenge. He does share Sully's penchant for long locks ... I have to keep my hair a certain length for the show because I have already gotten myself into the identification with the character. Right now, my hair is doing whatever it wants to do. Did you read that article in the New York Times about hair? The article talked about long hair coming back, and it listed me as one of the people who is bringing it back. They also said that it must take four people to meaintain my hair. All this ridiculous stuff. Do you have any specific plans while you are in New York? I plan to see some theater, I plan to hang out with my friend from One Life to Live, Brian Tarrantina (ex-Lucky) I plan on doing a lot of hiking up in Connecticut. I used to go up there when One Life was getting to me. Do you miss the nature of the East Coast? I'm in nature so much that I really don't get the opportunity to miss it. Out where Medicine Woman films, there is so much plant life. It was just like the East Coast for a while. Will it take you long to get back into the New York frame of mind?
It will take me 48 hours and then I will be back in the swing of things. I like to be outdoors, but I have a city part in me. I was raised by two city people, but my father always took me out fishing. At the age of 9 or 10, we moved to the south of the country. There is something about New York, there is this adrenaline rush. No doubt Lando will need that rush of adrenaline to get him through the long, hot summer ahead on Guiding Light. People, May 3, 1993 (50 Beautiful People Edition)Let's just call him the big Hunk on the Prairie. As strong and silent Sully on the CBS hit series Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, the mountain man with the cascading wouldn't-it-be-great-to-run-barefoot-through-it-hair and impeccable pecs has been cutting viewers down to sighs. "He's gorgeous," says costar Jane Seymour who briefly dated Lando, 31. Medicine Woman's producer, Beth Sullivan, is more voluble: "He's got a devastating smile. It'll melt you. It's a one-two punch - the blue eyes in a certain way and whammo, there's nothing you can do to resist it."
Raised near Chicago, Lando left home at age 18 and while knocking around the country did little to protect his natural resources. Courtesy of barroom brawls and motorcycle accidents, he has broken his nose five times, all his fingers, his wrists, his cheek and jawbone and has had more stitches than a couturier gown. What the former pizzamaker, stuntman and soap actor (One Life to Live) won't spar with is his sex-symbol image. "It's part of the job. If you take it seriously, you get yourself in trouble." Too busy right now for a serious relationship, Lando, who lives alone in a funky old Hollywood apartment, envisions settling down with "an intelligent woman. I like women who are better edcuated than myself, and more worldly." Sounds like good medicine. Soap Opera Update, December 29, 1992Just outside of Los Angeles is a mountain range untouched by time - for the most part. A realistic western town has been built where horses and wagons move about as freely as cameras and actors. Silent movies began filming on this site in 1914, and during the heyday of TV westerns, The Cisco Kid and Have Gun Will Travel called this home. Today it is the location of the new CBS series Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman which premiers on Friday, January 1 and the moves into its regular time slot the following night at 8:00 p.m. EST. And this is where SOU caught up with former One Life to Live hearthrob Joe Lando (ex-Jake). The handsome actor no longer looks like the clean cut Jake who held his beloved Megan as she slipped from this life into another. Lando has let his hair and his beard grow for the part of Byron Sully, a hunter and trapper who feels more comfortable living among the Cheyenne Indians than among the people of 1868 Colorado Springs. "It's a kind of 'Dances With Wolves' thing," Lando jokes, after filming a scene with his wolf companions. "It's a slow process in getting the townspeople to understand the Indians and I am kind of a liaison. Sometimes that gets me in trouble because I'm an Indian sympathizer."
Something else that Lando is pretty good at is doing his own stunts. We witnessed Lando in action when he staged a fight with co-star Orson Bean, who plays his father-in-law. "Doing my own stunts makes me feel that I'm doing everything that I possibly can as an actor," Lando says, calculating that he's been in a couple of hundred "fights" since his OLTL days. But the actor admits that there are downsides to doing your own stunts, "I disclocated my thumb the other day in a fight and I've cut myself open in a few places. But like the stuntmen say, 'it's too far away from your heart to hurt.'" Lando is the leading man to series star Jane Seymour and admits: "She basically carries the whole show. I get off easy." Seymour hides her English accent to play frontier doctor Michaela Quinn (Dr. Mike). "When I read the script, I totally identified with the character," says Seymour, herself a doctor's daughter. "She's a woman not trying to be a man. She's strong and intelligent, but not trying to be better than anyone else." Although Lando's Sully is a loner because of the death of his wife, a mutual friendship develops between him and Dr. Mike that will slowly evolve into something much more. Both Lando and Seymour are looking forward to the show premiering in January because they will stand out as the only western on network TV. Even before it starts airing, CBS is so excited by the show that they've ordered additional episodes. "People used to love westerns, and then they got into cop shows, then lawyer shows, and then the teenage shows. But this is an old standard and everyone loves them" says Lando. "It's not like any western," adds Seymour. "It has real bite." DR CBS Press Release ~ November 19, 1992
for January 1, 1993 Dr. Quinn Premier
Soap Opera Weekly, July 21, 1992
I'LL SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS - Megan "returns" to One Life to Live
One Life to Live meets Shakespeare this week when various Llanview residents have a close encounter of the "A Midsummer's Night Dream" kind. Figuring prominently in their nocturnal visions is Megan (Jessica Tuck), who died in February. Whether she is a dream or a ghost will be left to the viewers' interpretation. The episodes are scheduled to air Wednesday-Friday, July 15-17. Tuck, who now makes her home on the West Coast, where she recently finished filming the movie "Don't Stop Now" (scheduled for a fall release), says she agreed to do the guest spot "when (executive producer) Linda Gottlieb called me and asked if I was interested in doing a few days. I said sure, because it would be really fun to come back to One Life to Live and see all my old friends. It was a chance to visit New York, to work on a show that I've always loved. "It was just a guest spot, so it was nothing very binding," she notes. "I was going to be back in New York anyway for the Emmy's. (Tuck was a nominee in the Outstanding Lead Actress category) so I thought, what the heck?" Joining Tuck for the three episodes is Joe Lando, who played Megan's husband, Jake. "They gave me a call, and as far as I know, it was the same day they called Jessica," says Lando, who's also moved west. (This fall he co-stars with Jane Seymour in the new CBS series "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman".) "We already discussed it privately, Jess and I, and said, 'I'll go back if you'll go back.'" Jake moved to California following Megan's death; he returns to Llanview to see his friends and visit Megan's grave. It's during this visit that he and several other people, including Tina (Karen Witter), Viki (Erika Slezak) and Andrew (Wotham Krimmer), "see" Megan in their dreams. "The only person who hears me [during the waking hours] is Tina; the others hear me in their sleep," explains Tuck, who feels Megan's presence "spurs on certain storylines. I advise people and encourage people and reassure people - things like that." Since "it's very ambiguous" whether Megan is a spirit or a figment of a collective imagination, Tuck says she figured, "I'd just sort of do my own thing. I think if you get to woo-woo about it, trying to look transparent, you're in trouble. "There are ghosts that people come back as and they look no different from anyone else - it's just a matter of whether people can see them or not," Tuck explains. "I don't think you have to act like a ghost. I think it makes it more interesting if you don't play being a ghost and you just play it for the story." Nonetheless, don't expect Megan to show up in a designer suit or jeans. "I have a little flowy outfit. The whole thing is set up in this sort of "Midsummer's Night Dream" backdrop, so everybody is wearing interesting things." Tuck and Lando are both excited about the "old home week" aspect of this project: "I like working with my good friend Bob Woods (Bo). He's always a hoot," says Lando. "It's really nice to be here, and what's sort of scary is that you come back and you find you just sort of slip back into the old routine, " comments Tuck, who says she wouldn't object to doing more guest spots on OLTL. "That would be really fun. I can't honestly say that I would be willing to commit to come back every two months or something, but if I'm not doing anything, who can say no to work, hanging out with your friends, and working on "One Life to Live," which is something I've always loved? I'm certainly not going to close doors to anything." Irene S.
Krause
Soap Opera Weekly, July 21, 1992"Joe Lando was in town taping what he calls a "Midsummer's Night Dream"-type tag to the Jake/Megan storyline. This fall he co-stars with Jane Seymour in a new CBS series, "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman," but its clear Jessica Tuck (Megan) will always have a special place in his heart. He still wears his silver wedding ring from the show. "I usually wear it around my neck as a good luck charm, but tonight I'm wearing it on my finger as good luck for Jessica," he said. Soap Opera Update, May 5, 1992
California Dreamin'
by Bill Lieberman Joe Lando is no longer with ONE LIFE TO LIVE as you well know. During his tenure with the show, there were many rumors surrounding his abrupt departure and his impressive but brief return to finish up Jessica Tuck's storyline. Despite his absence, his presence was always felt, due to the outpouring by the legion of Jake and Megan fans wanting answers as to why only one week after the couple's celebrated wedding he was off of the show. Soap Opera Update had an opportunity to catch up with Joe, who is now residing in California and trying to progress the career that even daytime couldn't derail. Why do you think that Jake was such a popular character? I don't know exactly, other than he came on in a very popular storyline. He was a guy who is like a lot of guys out there too. I think that Jake was a very likable character in the sense that he had tons of flaws, and he was always trying to get past them and do something else. He came from a broken family, and he was trying to get the thing that he never had in his life - a family life. And a happy marriage-type deal. A lot of people have that same thing going on in their life. What did you think when you watched Megan's death scene? I cried. Jessica (Tuck) and I did that whole show on a Saturday. It was 72 pages of dialogue, and we just did it in one take all the way through. We really weren't watching it while we were doing it; we were just doing it. I came home from work out here, and I taped it that day, and I sat down - it was a Friday night, and I had been working all week on a pilot. And I thought, "I'll just watch this show and then I'll go out and have some fun, have some dinner, whatever." Well I sat down and started watching the thing. And this was the first time that I was seeing it. And it killed me so bad, that I just made some soup and I stayed home in bed. I was just so bummed out. What pilot did you do? I had a pilot development deal with CBS that I signed right after I left ONE LIFE TO LIVE the first time. This pilot's with Jane Seymour and Diane Ladd, and in it I play a mountain man named Byron Sully. It's a western that takes place in the 1860s, post-Gold Rush, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. When we filmed it, it was called "Medicine Woman," but that title will most likely be changed. What about returning to another soap? I would be hesitant right now because I don't think I've given myself enough time to try other things. I saved my money while I was working on ONE LIFE TO LIVE, and planned this a long time. Just like Jessica Tuck. She and I basically used to discuss our little plan of action - how we were going to work out lives. She can stay out of soaps longer than I can because she worked longer and saved more money. I've got a year or two years that I can stay out of them. And if they'd even want me back, I don't know. I liked working on ONE LIFE TO LIVE, especially toward the end when I was going back. I really liked what the writers were doing. I wouldn't mind going back to ONE LIFE TO LIVE just for the summer for a short period of time if everything could work out. It's familiar, it's comfortable, I know the people, I like to go to New York. On your first go-round at OLTL, there were rumors that you were difficult. Do you agree? I don't think that anyone can say that I was ever late for work. I know my lines, I show up. I do my job. But when I do my job, I really get intense about it. I came into working in daytime television like I jumped into the middle of a race. I didn't realize the pace, even though I'd been prepped for it. People told me. My character didn't just come on slowly. He didn't just hang around and work one or two days. All of a sudden, I was there and I was working four and five days a week. It was kind of overwhelming the amount of stuff that you have to memorize. And at the beginning, you've got so many people coming at you from all different directions. Also, I was popular on the show because of the storyline. So you've got a lot of people who are patting you on the back, telling you one thing, and then doing another thing. It's just overwhelming. I'm smarter, I'm wiser towards it now. I know that I could handle it a little bit better. What didn't you handle well? I had a lot of arguments with the old writers of ONE LIFE TO LIVE. A lof of the stuff was getting to be really asinine, and I was embarrassed by what I was doing some of the time.I would just be on the set, saying, "I can't say this. I can't do this. We've got to change this. How can we make this better?" That would then upset the writers and producers because I was basically saying that their judgment was wrong. But I think at the time there were a lot of people who were concerned with nothing but their jobs. It was a very tumultuous period at ONE LIFE TO LIVE. Why did you leave ONE LIFE TO LIVE the first time? I had asked to leave in January, the end of my second year contract, and it
was August. They originally said "No," but then they came back and they
said, "Okay, we'll let you as long as you don't start phoning in your
performances, as long as you give us 100%." And I said, "Listen, I'll always
give you my best." I came back this last time a very happy man. Everybody
treated me nicely and I think I got the chance to show that I could do some
good stuff. I can honestly say that ONE LIFE TO LIVE was very, very good to
me. It was a great learning experience. You can never work harder than you
do on a soap!
Soap Opera Digest, March 3, 1992Why Jake Won't Be Staying in Llanview 
If you think One Life to Live's Jake will be returning to the show in the near future, guess again. Joeseph Lando (ex-Jake) has moved to Los Angeles, where he's shooting a prime-time pilot with Jane Seymour for CBS. With a workiing title of Medicine Woman, the show, set in the Old West, will make its debut in mid-summer. Lando stars as Sully, a pioneer who rejects his own society and bonds with an American Indian tribe. "My character has been bitter ever since his wife died," Lando remarks. "I always seem to be playiing widowers." Lando says there is a lot of "sexual tension" between Sully and Seymour's character, an outspoken Boston-born doctor. "My character hasn't seen a woman in years," he explains. "Suddenly, this beautiful creature shows up in town, and I'm all over her like a cheap suit." If the pilot proves successful, the show will air as a prime-time series in the fall. Lando says he's relieved to finally be working on the show, which is currently being shot in the mountains near Los Angeles. "I was cast last November, but had never auditioned," he remembers. "My agent kept talking about this pilot deal, but it was hard to believe it was even true. Then, for a while, it seemed like it wasn't happening at all. They couldn't find an actress to play Jane's part." Lando says actesses Karen Allen and Mel Harris (Hope, Thirtysomething) were considering the part, but both had scheduling conflicts. He says he was "thrilled" to learn Seymour would be playing the role. "I was worred I might not have chemistry with my co-star," he explains. "I know it sounds corny, but that's very important. (Jessica) Tuck (ex-Megan, OLTL) and I had it. And after seeing Jane's work, I knew I'd have it with her. The best part about his new role - next to his co-star - is the location. "When I was working at OLTL, I would go to the studio before the sun came up, and then I'd spend the whole day indoors. Since the studios didn't have any windows, I'd sometimes spend whole days without seeing the sun. Now, I get up at 4:30 in the morning, and I drive to the mountains. I get to watch the sunrise, and I come to this beautiful, natural outdoor place with horses. I look around, and I think, 'it's great to be me.'" Soap Opera Digest - Wedding Special, Summer/Fall 1991
AGAINST ALL ODDS
Jake and Megan Harrison, ONE LIFE TO LIVE It was dislike at first sight. Jake Harrison and Megan Gordon rubbed each
other the wrong way. Ex-con Jake showed up on the Llanview scene suffering
from a gunshot wound (after being an unwitting delivery boy for criminal
Michael Grande) in search of his half-sister, Andy. Michael ordered Jake to
woo Megan in order to gather dirt on the young actress and thus halt her
support of her mother's campaign for mayor. Jake didn't count on falling in
love with Megan, and vice versa.
They consummated their love on the resort island of Badderly, where Megan and her sister, Sarah were kidnapped. To win their release, Jake romanced Charlotte, daughter of the mob kingpin Carlo Hesser, and married her to keep Carlo from executing him. Charlotte drugged her husband and convinced him that they'd had sex. Megan (who was freed) heard the news and felt betrayed. When Charlotte suffered hysterical blindness, Jake stayed with her out of pity. Eventually she recovered her sight, but hid the development from her husband. Meanwhile, Megan's ex-boyfriend Hunter Guthrie came to town carrying a torch for her. Try as she might, Megan couldn't get Jake out of her heart, though she still couldn't forgive him. Obsessed with his father-in-law, Harrison stayed wed to Charlotte so he could nail Carlo. Eventually, Jake and Megan got back together, though he never did get Carlo. Harrison, did, however, receive an airmail divorce from Charlotte, who'd gone to Europe to see an eye specialist. As Jake and Megan planned their nuptials, Charlotte turned up and tried to
seduce Jake--just as Megan walked in. This time, Megan believed her fiance's
side of the story. Still, determined to do damage, Charlottte stole Megan's
wedding dress. Luckily, just as she was about to incinerate it, Megan caught
up to her and saved the gown. The wedding was on.
It was a lovely, simple ceremony, with no interruptions or disasters. The
newlyweds planted a tree to commemorate their special day and rode off in a
horse-drawn carriage.
The honeymoon was divine, but the Harrisons didn't live happily ever after.
Jake accepted a job in the Far East. Since Megan was under contract to
FRATERNITY ROW, the newlyweds opted for a commuter marriage.
Soap Opera Digest, May 28, 1991
If I Were a Rich Man ...
"I've lived on the edge of the business for a long time," says the One Life to Live star. NO MORE! When an actor decrees he won't do interviews, journalists immediately assume the worst: He's arrogant. Or tongue-tied. Either way, he's hiding something. In the case of One Life to Live's Joe Lando, who agreed to break a year-long silence for this magazine, the suspicions appear unfounded. Friendly and open, Lando speaks easily about everything from overzealous fans to his tempestuous relationship with co-star Jessica Tuck. And yet simmering beneath the twenty-nine-year-old actor's colorful quotes is a marked distrust of publicity and the very idea of daytime stardom. "I don't want to be a soap star" he declares. "I don't understand what this is, first of all. When I think of 'stars' I think of people like Paul Newman and Bette Davis who've had careers that spanned decades. We're just actors working on daytime televison, trying to do the best we can every day. Some people really love the attention that comes with the job, but it's not my cup of tea." Given that this is his first big interview, Lando displays no vanity, bounding into the OLTL reception area in a well-worn terry cloth robe and bare feet, his just-shampooed hair pushed carelssly behind his ears. He's less "rough" looking in person than on-screen and makes an appealing show of mellowiing out before the interrogation by lighting an aroma-therapy candle and preparing herbal tea. Introduced as man of adventure with a shady past, Lando's Jake Harrison became an immediate hit with OLTL viewers. "I was signed to something like sixty-eight shows last year, and I did more than two hundred and twenty," he notes. People reacted really well, partly because I was coming into a storyline with someone who is deeply entrenched. Jessica Tuck's there whether I'm there or not, so I just got on her coattails, and we hit it off -- eventually." The show's producers were aiming for sparks between Jake and Tuck's feisty heroine, Megan Gordon, but they got a bigger fire than they bargained for. "We hated each other's guts," Lando says flatly. "I wanted to quit after the first week. I'd call my agents and cry, 'I hate her! She hates me!' And everybody was saying, "Well, Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd hated each other.' If there was chemistry between us, it was only because there was deep hatred there." We're both very stubborn," says Jessica Tuck, "and we ended up in a constant state of argument, on and off the set, before and after our scenes. He'd come over to wipe a piece of lint off my shoulder, and I'd slap him and tell him not to touch me. It was not a good situation." "Brian Tarantina (ex Lucky) was brought in as a buffer," Joe claims, "to inject some humor and get us to work together. Finally, at the end of the Badderly storyline, we started clicking and enjoying each other." He laughs. "And now she and Brian and Bob Woods (Bo) are my best friends. Just The Facts: Soap Opera Digest, May 28, 1991
A Long Time Coming
Jake and Megan finally make it to the altar 
Jessica Tuck certainly must have set some kind of soap record. How many young leading ladies play characters for almost three years, fall in love four times, and yet never marry? The powers-that-be at One Life To Live must have started to wonder the same thing. So when mail began pouring in raving about the magical pairing of Jake (Joe Lando) and Megan (Jessica), they decided to marry them. It's no secret that at first meeting, either Jake and Megan, nor Jess and Joe particularly cared for each other. Nonetheless, there was a certain unnameable something that came through. Executive Producer Paul Rauch noticed it, and so did the actors. "Even when we hated each other, it still came out that there was something there," says Lando. "Somewhere along the line, we hit it off. It got better. There is chemistry between Jessica and Joe." Once the backstage problems were resolved, the on-screen problems began for this budding super couple. Jake was unable to commit, then married another woman. Megan became involved with another man (Hunter, played by Leonard Stabb). Then Jake had to leave Megan in order to protect her from Carlo. All the adversity only made the viewers more eager to see the couple together. "We've gotten the best response on Megan and Jake than any other of the men I've been with," says Tuck. "The time is right and Jake is the right man. Megan has been around the block, and it's about time she got married. They make a good couple." Jake sees security in Megan, but with a bonus - he loves her. "Jakes comes from a broken family. He's very adamant and excited about getting married," says Lando. "What it represents to this guy is his idea of what a family is supposed to be, what life is supposed to be like. He wants it desperately at this point. He found somebody who he can actually be in love with and stay in one place for. He sees that he can have that with this woman, the security of having your own family and not you against the world." More importantly," says Tuck, "Jake and Megan are fun. You can see them getting married and it not ending their relationship" she notes. She can say it, but it doesn't make it true. What actors fear - that marriage will kill their story - often is the case. Though Tuck says she and Lando will fight against marriage stagnating their characters, it'll be a tough battle. "It would kill us if all of a sudden they focused on the fact we were married and everything became about the fact that we were married. Which they always do," she says. "But Jake and Megan can be interesting in spite of the fact that they are married. He is a private eye, so she can get involved in his capers, like Moonlighting." Lando also has ideas about how to keep the couple interesting as well as provide an easy out for Tuck when she leaves Llanview in January. "Jake could have a problem with the pressures of being married," he suggests. "Let's give him something like an internal conflict within the relationship, rather than always having extraneous things like getting handcuffed to a bathroom or something like that," he says. "Maybe Jake should have a drinking problem. Or maybe Megan departs and leaves him a single father. They didn't like that story. And they don't like Jake as an alcoholic," he says. "I don't talk to the writers anymore because I find that a lot of times I am patronized. They say, that's a good idea' then pat you on head. Basically, I know what will happen to Megan and Jake. They will always be white bread almost." But, if the future looks bleak, the present, (i.e. the wedding) looks exciting. Plans are for a big bash to take place at a country church. And ironically, this is not only a first marriage for Megan and Jake (well, his first big wedding) but for Jess and Joe as well. "I knew I would get married on TV before I got married in real life," Lando says, laughing. "I was thinking about it this morning while I was shaving. I'm getting married on TV'. After thinking about it, and all the stuff that surrounds it, I know when it comes down to getting married, I'll choose to have a quiet, small wedding. This will be the wedding that I won't have in real-life as far as the big bash goes." Tuck wholeheartedly agrees. "I don't think it's weird that I'm getting married on TV before I get married in real life. I just think it's weird that I'm getting married on TV. That feels more strange, she observes. "We have a fitting for this dress and I've lost weight since then and I think it's just the excitement of going through all this. We made the dress, we had all these fittings, we can't find a location for the shoot, blah, blah, blah. It seems like a bit much. Having done this as a character, I don't think I could stand a real formal wedding."
So nontraditional is Jessica that she's not even worried about whether Megan has her something old, something new, et cetera. She's more concerned that the wedding is portrayed as fun and "groovy." "I am really pleased that they're giving me young bridesmaids. Sometimes they have these weddings and it's like the people getting married are fifty years old. They have such stodgy weddings," she says. "Tina is my maid of honor, and I've got Andy and a girlfriend of Megan's from college. You kind of feel that could happen in real life. We're trying to stay away from everyone dressing in fancy evening gowns so it will look like a real wedding. Sometimes when we get dressed for these weddings, I feel like Prince Charles and Lady Di a little bit. Have it be a young wedding. We are young. It would be really fun to have a big party and not have it filled with people getting killed." Paul Rauch claims it will be a trouble-free romantic wedding, but adds I have no promises to make about the future."
Soap Opera Update, 1990
Not just another Joe - It's JOE LANDO
There's another new man making strides in Llanview. Andy's half-brother has arrived in the form of actor Joe Lando. Originally named Ross, Lando arrived on the ABC studio scene only to quickly have the character's name changed to Jake. It was believed the name Jake was better suited to the escapades - fleeing jail, being involved in criminal drug activity, having Michael Grande order him to trail Megan to sabotage Viki's mayoral campaign - his storyline would gear him toward. Joe Lando came to New York from California to begin his reign as Jake on ONE LIFE TO LIVE without knowing a soul in the Big Bad Apple. He was actually hesitant in even auditioning for the role after coming to the Empire State three previous times to try out for roles on ANOTHER WORLD, and coming up empty-handed. His audition with Jessica Tuck (Megan Gordon) gave him the confidence he needed. "She made me feel real comfortable. She came up and told me things to avoid and things to try to do, as far as what they'll be looking for. Sometimes you don't get very gracious actors or actresses who would do something like that." If that was an ego booster, then maybe the fact, that his agent told him that he was the only actor being flown in to test for the part would be. But it wasn't. "I thought, 'Great. I'm only up against myself. So if I don't get the part, I can't blame somebody else, or say somebody else was better." Well, obviously no one else was better, for the part went to Lando. He lucked out in finding an apartment right away, on 45th Street. "I've always been partial to the number 45 for some reason." Joe also feels he lucked out in being paired with Jessica Tuck, "one of the big stars on the show. It can't hurt me whatsoever." What may be hurting, however, is his face, if he doesn't do the dirty work Michael Grand has ordered of his character - following Megan Gordon to obstruct the mayoral campaign of Viki Buchanan. "Somebody's got to help him," Lando wonders of his on-screen persona Jake. "He's got himself in kind of deep with something. Jake was carrying some money that was going to be laundered for some drug people who are connected with Michael Grande. So what he's done wrong here is that he then was sent to prison and signed up for work detail so that he could get himself out. It's kind of like the 'Cool Hand Luke' scenario." And speaking of movies, they were the key to getting Lando interested in the acting business when he was a mere tot. "I used to sit and memorize the 'TV Guide' on Sundays when we got it. I'd read the credits in the back and check out when the movie was made and who directed it and who starred in it. And I knew how many stars they got. Mostly black and white movies." But even then he wasn't sure. "I think you don't realize that you want to be an actor, that you want to become involved in it when you're living in the midwest," admits Lando. "It seems like a million miles away from anything like that, like another world." But when Joe Lando turned 18, he decided to give it a shot. He moved to L.A. just as his high school sweetheart would. Just for the record, his girlfriend from Adlai Stevenson High School in Illinois is currently starring on the Fox Network's OPEN HOUSE comedy series. Her name? Allison La Placa. As any struggling actor knows, the way to a successful career is at one time or another becoming a waiter, so later on in your successful career you can tell any inquiring reporter about all of the famous people you waited on while you were working your way to the top. At one L.A. restaurant Joe worked at - "I used to spin pizzas. When I say spin pizzas, I don't mean just throw them up in the air. We're talking throw it up in the air, the other guy catches it. Walks out towards the people, spins it, throws it back, you know that kind of deal." There was a fellow waiter who used to walk around and sing a lot. "I remember one day saying, 'Hey, you knwo what, Jack? You've got a good voice.' It was Jack Wagner, and we know where he is today. So Jack and I worked in the same restaurant in 1984-85. I didn't know he was a singer. I figured he was probably an actor or a model or something. The restaurant was full of them." But there's one less waiter now that Joe Lando is the newest addition to ONE
LIFE TO LIVE. If you have a hankering, however, to rate the skills of the
pizza-juggling Lando, right before nailing the part of Jake on OLTL, he
added a technical adviser credit to his resume - teaching the likes of Kevin
Kline, Tracey Ullman and River Phoenix to spin pizzas for the currently
released Lawrence Kasdan feature "I Love You To Death." Yes, it seems like
the moon has hit Joe Lando's eye!"
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Lando says that playing the part of Sully has been a learning experience for him. Not only has he learned to masterfully throw a tomahawk, speak limited amounts of Cheyenne, and ride horses, but he's learned to ride bareback. "It was kind of a tough and painful experience," he relates. "My character is afraid of horses and goes through the whole thing of breaking his fear to learn how to ride. I went to horse wranglers and told them that I wanted to learn how to ride too ... and learn to ride the Cheyenne way, which is where you mount from the right and ride bareback. Somedays I couldn't stay on the horse more than 15 minutes because I was in so much pain. But I'm pretty good now."
