NEWS: Michael E. Knight, Carmen Duncan, 'Mistresses' Renewed, Alan Cumming, Krista Allen, Tyrese Gibson

Michael E. Knight

New Young and the Restless cast member Michael E. Knight doesn't think Chuck Pratt was given a fair shot at All My Children
"I don’t think Chuck was given a fair shot at AMC," Knight tells TV Insider. "I suspect he got his marching orders from [former ABC Daytime chief] Brian Frons, who only wanted the under 35 audience. Chuck had to turn AMC, which was moving very slowly, into a show that demanded your full attention, not something you could half-watch while you were making a ham sandwich. He really had to mix it up. But he was only there for what, seven months? I think he’s a funny, progressive guy. And hey, Y&R is doing pretty well under him!"

ABC renews Mistresses, but Jennifer Esposito will not be returning
Esposito, who succeeded Alyssa Milano, won’t be back for Season 4.

Tyrese Gibson: I’m going to romance Cookie on Empire
“I’m coming to get my girl back,” he told Wendy Williams, referring to he and Taraji P. Henson’s previous work together on the 2001 film Baby Boy. He added: “All them dudes on there kissing on my girl … I’m kinda done with seeing all that."

Why fewer men are watching TV this fall
In the first three days of premiere week the number of young men turning on their TVs dropped by a stunning 22 percent compared to last year, Nielsen ratings show.

“That the [young men] figure is down to that amount is very interesting and speaks to the point there are other activities besides TV,” Horizon Media’s senior vice president of research, Brad Adgate, told The New York Post.

Alan Cumming developing 1980s AIDS crisis drama for Showtime
Florent is set in the mid-1980s against the backdrop of the AIDS crisis. Morellet rose to prominence in that era with the popular restaurant Florent that drew a broad range of clientele, from cops to foodies to literati. The eatery helped revitalize the city’s Meatpacking district and became a hub for gay rights and AIDS activists. Morellet was famously open about his own HIV-positive status, posting his T-cell counts on a board alongside the restaurant’s daily specials.

Carmen Duncan. Photo Credit: Dylan Robinson

At home with Another World star Carmen Duncan and her eclectic collection of beautiful things
Duncan has worked in London, New York, Los Angeles and Europe but the mother of two eventually returned to Australia and has lived in her apartment in Sydney’s east for 10 years.

“I came back because of family and decided to stay for a while and now, I guess, I’ll be wherever my grandchildren are,” Carmen says.

5 Ways Kermit The Frog & Liz Lemon Are Totally Alike
Much like Kermit the Frog, Liz Lemon had a large TV production to keep in check. But that’s not the only thing these two have in common.

The Holy Return of Shondaland: The Blessedly Insane Premieres of Grey’s, Scandal, and HTGAWM
Writes Kevin Fallon: "The pontiff arrived just in time to bless Shondaland, TV’s Garden of Eden, where things are handled and murders are gotten away with and dreams are McDreamed. The gates to Shondaland were opened again Thursday night, with the returns of Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, and How to Get Away With Murder. And, as St. Shonda decreed, it was good."

One Life to Live alum Andrea Evans will emcee 17th Annual Wiggle Waggle Walk
The 17th Annual Wiggle Waggle Walk is just around the corner and the Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA is inviting animal lovers and their canine friends to its community fundraiser for animals at Brookside Park adjacent to the Rose Bowl on Sunday, Sept. 27 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Organizers have set a goal to raise $400,000 from the event, which will be used for food, shelter and medical care for homeless animals, nearly 12,000 of which are taken in by the PHS every year.

Evans, who won an Indie Series Award earlier this year for her work on DeVanity, will emcee the event.

"The battle for the BBC is lost" warns former Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies
Davies says he is convinced the Government will make the BBC a subscription-only service in ten years' time - which will rob the British viewer.

Jason Bateman is returning to TV to star in a drama series
Bateman will be the star, executive producer and director of Ozark. The Missouri-set drama, which doesn’t have a network attached, takes place in the Lake of the Ozarks, and focuses on the "dark and dangerous world of drug money laundering.”

Days of our Lives alum Krista Allen sues David Spade for $1M claiming he made ripoff version of reality TV show they agreed to make together
The former model claims the comic originally agreed to split the proceeds from a show based on an idea she came up with equally, and after she refused to take a smaller share he instead made the program without her.

NEWS: Kristian Alfonso, Bradford Anderson, Krista Allen, Linda Gray, Daniel James O'Connor, Greg Rikaart

Kristian Alfonso. Photo Credit: Jim Wright

Days of our Lives star Kristian Alfonso on Bo and Hope: "There is no hope for Bo!"
"[Laughs] There is no hope for Bo! She feels so let down by him, so discarded. That’s why she filed for divorce. The last straw was his letter saying he was going undercover again—for a year! What about the wife who yearned for him? What about his daughter, who is growing up without a father? And then suddenly there’s Aiden, this handsome, debonair attorney, a guy Hope can lean on. They’re both single parents. They have similar struggles. He’s extremely feisty and a challenge—and Hope is always looking for a challenge."

General Hospital casting 9-11 year old girl
GH is seeking to fill a role described as "Caucasian, 9-11 years old. This is an ONGOING recurring Day Player. Very important role, looking for complex actress." It's possible this is a recast of Josslyn, whose current portrayer, Hannah Nordberg, has been unavailable to the show of late; she booked a role in NBC's upcoming Dolly Parton biopic, Coat of Many Colors.

Daniel James O'Connor leaves General Hospital writing team, remains at ABC
"Thank you to the amazing GH team & fans for a great 3yrs," O'Connor tweeted on Monday. "My last ep airs today. Hope it goes off without a hitch... Happy to still be part of ABC on a new project. Stay tuned."

The Young and the Restless star Greg Rikaart wraps guest stint at TNT's Major Crimes
Tweeted Rikaart: "Episode wrap for Bobby G. Monroe. Cannot overstate how lovely, talented & welcoming the @MajorCrimesTNT folks are. Such a great time."

Bradford Anderson set to make another return to General Hospital

Days of our Lives alum Krista Allen was thrilled Significant Mother cast Linda Gray as her mom
"First of all, when I found out that Linda Gray was going to play my Mom, I absolutely fangirled out so hard. I was so excited. I was also a huge fan of Dallas, a huge fan of Linda Gray. I’ve always thought she was fantastic and it was a real big deal. Linda Gray is playing my mother! It was amazing. When she first came to the set, I just gushed. I was so happy and welcomed her. We had such a great time shooting. She was wonderful. She was just wonderful. She’s such a great lady and so talented and so funny and so easy to work with and everyone loved her. I can’t say enough wonderful things about Linda Gray. She’s fantastic."

Gray guest stars on Monday night's episode of Significant Mother on The CW.

NEWS: Eric Braeden’s 4 Tips for Surviving Soaps; Krista Allen Joins MISTRESSES; THE GOOD WIFE Adds John Leguizamo

Eric Braeden’s 4 Tips for Surviving Soaps
"The challenge in daytime in particular, I think, is to go against all the traditional clichés of daytime and try to make it real," THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS star told Backstage. "That has been my motivating cause ever since I started 33 years ago in daytime." Back then, he found himself put off by the lack of rehearsal time and lengthy pages of dialogue to memorize, until his wife said, “Why don’t you look at this as a challenge?" The rest is soap opera history.

DAYS OF OUR LIVES: Will and Sonny Finally Say 'Yes'
“Like Macklemore says, behind the keys of the message board people are doing it,” says DAYS star Freddie Smith (Sonny). “But I could never compare what I’ve experienced as a straight actor playing a gay part to what the LGBT community deals with. From the small sliver I’ve seen, my hat goes off to the LGBT community for showing such strength and courage all these years.”

Krista Allen joins MISTRESSES
Allen (ex-Billie, DAYS) will guest-star during Season 2 of the summertime sudser as Janine Winterbaum, a "real housewife" of Beverly Hills who enlists Harry and Joss to cater an elaborate soiree.