Saturday, July 9, 2011, Century City. It is estimated that an act of domestic violence occurs every 15 seconds in the United States. That figure translates to over 2.5 million victims per year. Approximately two-thirds of reported domestic violence incidents are classified as “simple assault.” which results in a misdemeanor rather than a felony. However, up to 50% of these “simple assaults” result in physical injuries and disfigurements that are at least as serious as 90% of all rapes, robberies, and aggravated assaults.

Astin and Marcil are celebrity charity ambassadors for Face Forward, whose mission is to provide physical and emotional reconstruction for women and children who have been victimized by domestic or gang related violence. Face Forward vows to provide each victim with the best possible treatment pro bono.

The event takes place at the Intercontinental Hotel in Century City, California, on July 9. It includes cocktails and hors d’oeuvres with Live Music from Daveed & Gio at 7pm, followed by a Silent Auction & Other Surprises as well as a 3 Course gourmet dinner from Executive Chef Jonathan Wood & Banquet Sous Chef Shane Hosac.

A huge story is unraveling this week on General Hospital — which culminates with some pretty spectacular work by Vanessa Marcil Giovinazzo. As fans know, Giovinazzo shot her last episode of the ABC sudser on June 9. Here’s an exclusive sneak peek of one of her last scenes with the equally beloved Maurice Benard (Sonny) that airs July 21. ABC Daytime says to keep an eye out for two heart-wrenching exit scenes that day.
Nice having you back in Port Charles, Bren.

So it’s happening, eh, baby?
Marcil Giovinazzo: It’s happening! My time’s up. It happened awful quickly and I’m really sad about leaving, really depressed, really emotional, but this was always supposed to last just one year. I was always very careful to call this a “visit.” Always.

Let’s assess this year in the life of Brenda Barrett. How have you felt about what’s been done with — and to — the character? A lot of fans have taken issue with it.
Marcil Giovinazzo: When things go really well, I don’t take credit, and when things don’t go well, I don’t take credit. I don’t listen to the good stuff or the bad stuff. I work really hard, come home, hang out with my family. I’ve been really oblivious to what’s been said about Brenda’s story and how the audience is responding. And I don’t see the show. In our house, we don’t watch ourselves on television. [The actress is married CSI: NY star Carmine Giovinazzo.] It just works better that way. Fame is fleeting. It comes and goes, ebbs and flows. I learn so much from failure. I don’t really know what you learn from success, to be honest, but I think you learn a whole lot from failure. It’s hard for me to really judge what this visit has been like in the bigger picture, but on a personal, selfish level, I’ve had so much fun at GH and I love my co-stars so much that it’s been really, really worth it. As for the writing, I hand over everything to the powers-that-be. I find out what I’m doing when I get the script.

Last year, you and I did an interview as you were getting ready to make your return, and you said you’d nixed the idea of coming back to the canvas with James Franco because he had nothing to do with Brenda. So how come the first two months of your return story had Brenda stuck in Rome with all-new people — Adrienne Barbeau and that Brad Pitt wannabe and a bunch of the Balkan’s hopelessly inept goons?
Marcil Giovinazzo: I don’t know why. The only thing I will say is this: When I came back I made it clear I wanted to work with my old gang — Maurice Benard [Sonny], Steve Burton [Jason], Kimberly McCullough [Robin], Ingo Rademacher [Jax] — and I was disappointed that for the first few months I wasn’t with them. But I took it on as a challenge. I tried to do something with that situation in Rome, and create a Brenda that wasn’t like the Brenda the audience remembered. She’d left all the people she loved and got wrapped up in the supermodel world and become a shell of herself. I’ve seen people do that in real life. They can lose their real selves.

I get what you’re saying and see the dramatic potential, but I don’t think that came across. The writing certainly didn’t support it.
Marcil Giovinazzo: Well, I tried to make an acting experiment out of it. I think she only became the real Brenda when Jason finally came to Rome to visit her and when she was back in Port Charles with Sonny again. But no matter what I didn’t like, I couldn’t be happier about this visit overall. The writers gave me the love story with Maurice and that’s all I really, really wanted — to have the opportunity to work with him again, and to give the fans some sort of resolution to that love story. I understand it can’t go on forever and that is upsetting, but for these two to finally get married and have their love story — at least for a minute — has been important.

They barely had time to be happy, though. We never even saw their honeymoon.
Marcil Giovinazzo: But we did shoot it! I have no idea why they didn’t air our honeymoon. I don’t get involved in the business aspect of things but I thought we shot some really beautiful material, and there was a lot of it! But they have their bigger picture to worry about, and I have a lot of respect for that. The show comes first. It’s not about us.

Did Maurice try to talk you into staying?
Marcil Giovinazzo: [Laughs] He’s an emotional mess! He doesn’t want me to go. He’s beggingme not to go, and I don’t want to go, but schedule-wise, it has to happen right now. Someday I do want to come back and much sooner than last time. I was away too long before — eight and half years.

What’s next for you?
Marcil Giovinazzo: Carmine and I still haven’t had a honeymoon, so we’re trying to work that out. Because of his schedule, we live half the time in New York. Right now I’m really on fire creating my animated children’s show, and my organic product line, and the line of clothes I’ve been developing for seven years. I just got on Twitter because my best friend Jillian Michaels has been screaming at me to do it so I can tell everybody what’s going on with all these projects. By the way, please tell everyone that my official [account] is @Marcil_Vanessa, because there are so many imposters out there. I couldn’t use my whole name. It’s too long.

Tell me about it! On behalf of myself and every other soap reporter, I’d like to say thanks. We’ve had to type Vanessa Marcil Giovinazzo so damn many times we all have carpal tunnel syndrome!
Marcil Giovinazzo: You know what the problem is? Carmine is Italian and he gets all upset if I don’t use his last name. He’s old fashioned, and he comes from a lovely old-fashioned family who are like, “What do you mean? You have to add the Giovinazzo.” I’m like, “People can’t say it or spell it!” [Laughs] Reporters are like, “Well, I was going to write something about her but now I can’t because I’m exhausted!”

Speaking of exhausting, what’s your take on Brenda’s baby drama?
Marcil Giovinazzo: I was shocked to find out there was a baby. I was told Brenda had a miscarriage. That’s what the script said so that’s what I played. And then suddenly Brenda didn’t have a miscarriage after all. But that’s soap operas. [Laughs] I could read my next script and they could say Brenda is an alien from outer space.

That would certainly explain a lot…
Marcil Giovinazzo: In her final scene she could pull off her skin to reveal the truth! [Laughs] People would say, “So that’s how she survived dying in that crash off the freeway.”

It would also explain why she always wears those long goofy sleeves.
Marcil Giovinazzo: [Laughs] That’s right — to hide her alien hands!

So back to the baby.
Marcil Giovinazzo: I have to be honest. I never wanted Brenda to have a child, and we all know how much I love being a mom in real life. I’m a teacher’s aide at my son Kassius’ school. I read every book that comes out on parenting. I’m fanatical about all things motherhood. But, to me, Brenda is a dysfunctional character who always leaves in the end. You can’t count on her, so I never wanted her to have a child.

It didn’t make sense that Brenda instantly connected with Lucian, and then it turned out he wasn’t her kid after all. We’d like to think a mom would recognize her own child — on a soul level, down in her DNA, wherever, however — so that didn’t ring true. Unless it was done to illustrate how Brenda is even nuttier than we think.
Marcil Giovinazzo: That’s a great point. Maybe the opportunity to be a mother made her overcompensate and jump on it too quickly. I think you would know your own child, and when it turned out not to be her child, it was so devastating, especially when he was taken away from her, that she really had to question why she felt that connection. But that’s what makes Brenda such a cool character to play. She grew up with no real family, no place to call home. She’s like a lost soul. Don’t forget, she ended up having a nervous breakdown at one point, and it’s always possible it could happen again, because she does truly feel alone and unlovable. This is a girl who overcompensates just to feel normal, to feel she’s a part of the world. And the only person she doesn’t have to do that with is Sonny. She feels like her true self when she’s with him, so it’s a beautiful love story as a result of that. Maurice brings that out in me so it’s not hard to play.

Are you saying Sonny and Brenda would have made it this time if only her true child, Alec, hadn’t been found?
Marcil Giovinazzo: Definitely. She had a beautiful line where she said, “I finally have to put somebody else first before myself.” And that’s incredible, a sign that she has finally grown up. She thinks it’s the thing that’s going to finally make her a good person. Wanting to protect this little boy from Sonny’s mob world is such a pure thing for her. By leaving Sonny, she’s doing the best thing possible for the child and the worst thing possible for her. My therapist told me something great a long time ago: “You love who you love.”

You paid someone for that?
Marcil Giovinazzo: [Laughs] It’s true! But that’s a whole other conversation. You and I will have to have margaritas and eat tacos and I will tell you my whole theory on it. There’s a difference between romantic obsession and being around someone who is unhealthy for you and hurts you in love, but I do think you love who you love, and Brenda loves Sonny period. She’s tried every single other option. Sometimes you can love someone so much that it almost scares the crap out of you. If Brenda makes the choice to protect her son and cannot be with Sonny, I think she would choose to be alone. It is the worst thing for her to be away from her one true love, and she needed a really huge reason to do it. So, despite my not wanting Brenda to have a kid, it turned out to be a great thing, dramatically. It was smart of the writers. They’re always way smarter than I am. I want the drama to be as high as possible before I leave.

Word is, they’re working Jax into Brenda’s exit.
Marcil Giovinazzo: Yes! I was itching to work with Ingo, so I was really happy they are giving us some stuff together at the end, especially now that he’s leaving, too.

Do Jax and Brenda actually leave Port Chuck together?
Marcil Giovinazzo: I don’t know. My final tape date is June 9 and I’ll probably get the script the night before, but I do know there’s a big twist when Brenda leaves. They have a surprise up their sleeves. I will say there’s still unfinished business for me. I still want a storyline with Tony Geary [Luke] and Jonathan Jackson [Lucky]. And I’d love to do a triangle with Maurice and me and Steve Burton. Steve got me through my first few months when I joined GH and I’ll never forget that. I was having some very serious health problems, was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance, there was all kinds of drama, and Steve was my rock. Can you imagine if Brenda goes and sleeps with Jason? That would cause so many problems.

Yeah, considering the long and extraordinary bond between Jason and Sonny. That would be…
Marcil Giovinazzo: … the ultimate betrayal! The love of her life and his best friend. It’s so huge you can’t even imagine it and normally my first reaction would be, “No way! I’m not betraying the love story of Sonny and Brenda!” But that’s exactly why we should do it. Things like that happen in life sometimes.

Now, wait a sec! I remember that in one of our recent interviews you were adamant you’d never in a bazillion years play a romance between Brenda and Sonny’s son Dante [Dominic Zamprogna].
Marcil Giovinazzo: That’s right. I would never go there.

But isn’t Brenda hooking up with Jason even worse? Sonny barely knows Dante. Jason is much more of a son to Sonny.
Marcil Giovinazzo: [Laughs] I can’t believe I have to explain this to you, Michael Logan! A child is a child. Blood is blood. Having sex with Dante would be like a Jerry Springer episode. Plus he’s 10 or 15 years younger than me. Jason and Brenda went to the prom together, they have a major connection, major history. Steve and I have our own special chemistry, and I think people would agree with that. Jason and Brenda together would be so wrong but that’s why it would make a good story! I’m very often completely irrational and unreasonable, but that’s how I feel.

What if GH gets cancelled and you can’t come back?
Marcil Giovinazzo: [Groans] Oh, noooooo!

Sorry, we gotta go there.
Marcil Giovinazzo: I know it’s a reality but I prefer to stay delusional. No matter what other things I do in my career, I had every intention of eventually coming back to GH and growing old on the show and becoming Anna Lee [the late actress who played Lila Quartermaine]. To sit down and have all the young characters come talk to me and get some great wisdom about life — the kind of thing you can only do on soaps — would be so wonderful! I miss Anna Lee so much. I can’t even think about Stuart Damon [Alan] without bursting into tears. Where are the Quartermaines? I do believe it was a mistake to get rid of all that history. Aaaauuurgh! It’s so hard to think about cancellation. It’s such a tough thing to talk about, but [GH exec producer] Jill Phelps and I did discuss it the other day. If GH were to end, I want to be there. If God forbid this show is cancelled, I guarantee Sonny and Brenda will be riding off together into the sunset! That doesn’t mean Sonny may not find love with somebody else and have a great relationship between now and then.

Let’s say GH hangs in until September 2012 when Katie Couric takes over. That gives Sonny time to mourn the end of his relationship to Brenda and find a new love.
Marcil Giovinazzo: Oh, he’ll do that by next Tuesday. He’s such a whore.

So he’ll be settled with someone and be blissfully happy, and thenyou will come back at the end of the show and screw with that?
Marcil Giovinazzo: [Laughs] Oh, 100 percent! And you can write that in stone. Whether it’s Carly [Laura Wright] or some other hooker he decides to shack up with, I promise you Brenda will take care of it! Maurice and I both agree on that fact. Our characters will end up together when the show ends. And, hopefully, that’s a good long time from now.

Funniest Moment: Diane Miller attempting to secure Sonny and Brenda’s release signatures in anticipation of her and Spinelli’s book.

WTH? Moment: Luke dousing the Haunted Star in gasoline, in an apparent attempt to burn it down. The man is on a downward spiral.

Best Moment: Carly asking Sam to give Jason a baby in order to help him get over losing Jason. First of all: classic soap logic. Second of all: classic Carly, butting into everybody’s lives and trying to get her way.

Performer of the Week: Vanessa Marcil Giovinazzo as Brenda Barrett, for her highly emotional reaction to Suzanne showing up on her doorstep with Lucian, as well as her delightfully bitchy fight with Carly.

Why We Love General Hospital This Week: Johnny plotting with his father on the phone. Johnny trying to reform Lisa. Johnny offering to help Michael with the Brandon situation. We don’t know WHAT he’s up to, but it’s intriguing to see that he’s up to something.

So let’s hear YOUR favorite GH moments this week!

General Hospital

You’ve been telegraphing the return of Brenda’s child for quite some time, so this is no surprise. Why play it that way?
GuzaBecause this is so much more than a reunion of a mother and son. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Brenda has always wanted children and she bonds quickly and hugely with Lucian — and he with her — but there are great psychological ramifications for her and her new husband Sonny [Maurice Benard]. He’s made it clear he doesn’t want any more children. She’s fiercely protective of Lucian, and wants to keep him away from Sonny’s mob world.

So there’s already trouble in paradise?
GuzaWe are going to resurrect the Brenda and Jax [Ingo Rademacher] part of the Brenda-Sonny-Jax triangle, and it will all hover around the return of Brenda’s child.

So Ingo’s not going anywhere? He’s been Tweeting a whole different story to his fans.
GuzaHe has? I don’t know anything about that. He has a major story coming up.

He seems to think he’s being phased out.
GuzaNope. Not true. Maybe down the line, but not in the foreseeable future. We’re going to take care of all those fans who feel we’ve ignored or haven’t done justice to the old Jax and Brenda relationship.

What about La Giovinazzo dropping hints that she’s leaving soon? At the beginning of March she told Access Hollywood her time is ‘almost done.’
GuzaNews to me. [Laughs] If she’s leaving, I’m in big s–t trouble because I have big plans! I can’t stress this enoughThis is a sprawling umbrella story. Jax and Carly [Laura Wright] are coming off of the hugely emotional near-loss of Josslyn, and that baby is a very precious part of their very existence. At this point there’s not a whole lot else going on between them. The stories of Brenda and Sonny and Carly and Jax will be intimately intertwined.

Let’s back up. How does Brenda reunite with her son?
GuzaAs you know, she believes she miscarried but Suzanne [Adrienne Barbeau] comes forward with the child and tells Brenda what really happened. Suzanne was terrified that the Balkan [Daniel Benzali] would do something to Lucian, and rightly so, so she placed the boy with a family in the Midwest. Now with the Balkan dead and out of the way, Suzanne feels she can introduce Brenda to her child and it appears to be quite a magnanimous gesture on her part — appears being the operative word. This will unravel in a big way.

Meaning what? The kid might be an imposter?
GuzaJust remember thisSuzanne will do anything to protect her grandchild.

We’d like to think that most mothers instinctively know their own children, even under these wackadoo soap circumstances. If this child is a phony, why would Brenda connect with him so “quickly and hugely” as you say?
GuzaLet me pose a hypotheticalA woman has no idea she gave birth. Now, three and a half years later, she’s at a playground and sees a child. What on earth — biological, physiologically, scientifically — would make her think this kid is hers?

Huh? You’re giving me a headache.
GuzaRemember that even though Brenda had no idea this child existed, there’s still this subconscious guilt.

Aurghhhh! Moving on. Why the name Lucian? It sounds like one of those antichrist kids in the Omen flicks.
GuzaHe was deliberately named, as you suggest. I’m just planting a little seed here, desperately hoping that daytime will be around in 15 years and we can harvest it. Lucian is old way beyond his years.

Is the Balkan really dead?
GuzaYou know I can’t answer that question.

I’ll take that as a no. So all is forgiven between Brenda and Suzanne?
GuzaNot at all! Brenda’s whole take is, “I get that you were trying to protect my child, but shouldn’t you have told me?” It’s a big bone of contention.

Why so many kid stories right now? You have the return of Lucian, the death of Jake, Josslyn’s kidney cancer and the Sam-Jason baby thing playing out at the same time.
GuzaIt’s this whole notion of the sins of the fathers in its many, many forms. Some of our characters have gotten away with an enormous amount for a long time. Our heroes are bad guys. They’re criminals. They are certainly haunted by what they do but now we’re showing them the consequences of their actions. We want to show the ramifications as their legacies are passed on.

Jake’s death and the organ transplant that saved Josslyn struck many viewers as a replay — if not a downright rip-off — of Claire Labine’s great death of B.J. story in the ’90s. What’s your comment?
GuzaWe absolutely thought about that, and it was a very real concern for all of us.  But that was a long, long time ago and, more importantly, we found a way to do a big variation on it. If the rollout couldn’t be different there was no point, because Claire did the story magnificently.

Was Jake’s death the original impetus for getting Rebecca Herbst[Liz] off the show after you fired her?
GuzaYes, but we came up with a much better idea and we went to Becky and asked her to stick around.

Her immense popularity aside, it seems odd you were willing to let her go considering you have a whopper secret — the true parentage of Liz’s baby Aiden — just waiting to explode.
GuzaI wouldn’t have killed the character at all. I would have let that secret lie fallow and play it later. We just came up with a better wrinkle, which we like a lot. So that’s why Liz Webber is going to remain a big part of this canvas.

One last thing. Let’s address the anger that the Liz and Jason fans feel over Jake’s death. I’m guessing their primary beef is that you’ve eradicated the one solid link that keeps these two characters in each other’s lives, and therefore jeopardizes any chance of a romantic future. Well?
GuzaIf that’s the case, they’re not thinking. The quickest way to bring a couple together when they’re distanced is to give their child a tragedy. Think about it. You’re going to see a lot more of Jason and Liz in the wake of what happened to Jake than you ever saw before. And what will this do to Lucky [Jonathan Jackson], who raised Jake and is the father in all ways but blood? The ripple effect is going to be wonderful!

This is the wedding of the new soap century! Let’s cut to the chase: Are you a gorgeous bride?
Marcil Giovinazzo: I don’t know about that but I’m definitely smart and funny in this wedding, which I love. Marrying Maurice is my dream come true. Brenda is one of the rare characters in soaps who’s been around 20 years and has never married. She did have that infamous funny-pretend wedding to Jason but that doesn’t really count. I’m talking about a real wedding to someone she truly loves, so this is a first. [Laughs] It’s like the end of an era.

We know the wedding will actually take place this time, unlike Brenda’s past ceremonies. What don’t we know?
Marcil Giovinazzo: A lot of things happen that I’ve never seen take place during a soap wedding. It’s not just another spin on something we’ve done a hundred times. Sonny and Brenda end up exposing everything about their real selves so that there are no more horrible secrets between them and it’s just incredible. It’s what true love is supposed to be about. Nobody has to lie or hide anything anymore, so it’s a deeper love than they’ve ever had before. It’s an adult love. All that childish, keeping secrets stuff is boring if you’re not 25 anymore, you know?

Is a happily-ever-after ending really possible for these two?
Marcil Giovinazzo: I’m the wrong person to ask about that because I do not believe in happily-ever-after. I believe you can love somebody truly and want to do what’s best for them no matter how it affects your life. And that’s Sonny and Brenda. That doesn’t mean it’s always going to be perfectly lovey-dovey. After all, they’re both hot-blooded Latins.

They are?
Marcil Giovinazzo: Aren’t they? Isn’t Sonny supposed to be Italian?

Uh…I always thought the name Corinthos was Greek.
Marcil Giovinazzo: Well, anyway, what I mean is that Maurice and I are both Latin, and that can’t help but come through in our characters. Even if Sonny and Brenda are happily-ever-after we’re going to be seeing some great fights along the way. I really believe this couple can make it. They won’t have your typical home-sweet-home. [Laughs] There will be gangsters hanging around and the occasional dead body. But there’s real love there. Even though I can see a lot of fights, I also see a lot of fabulous making-up scenarios where truth and passion win out. I don’t like those relationships with the flowers and candles and all that crap and everyone has to be nice, nice, nice. Those relationships end up exploding in the end. Maurice and I were talking just today about how we’d be so excited to portray a real marriage with all its arguments, debates and problems but also with great moments of real love and friendship.

Let’s discuss Brenda’s relationship with Dante [Dominic Zamprogna]. Before we found out about their secret past together, you two really played up the sparks. It seemed there was a definite potential for romance there.
Marcil Giovinazzo: I was very much playing that because [GH head writer Bob Guza] wanted to make sure that [the possibility of attraction] was established and intact. Of course, at that point Brenda and Dante didn’t know they had this crazy connection, but I do like the serendipity of it all. I think Brenda was drawn to Dante because he’s basically a younger version of Sonny, who is the love of her life. There’s something kind of pure about it. [Laughs] Even though in theory it’s a little alarming.

If you decide to stay with the show, can you see Guza pursuing a Brenda-Dante romance?
Marcil Giovinazzo: Oh, no, no. I can guarantee nothing like that will ever happen now that Brenda knows he’s Sonny’s son. Never! Now we’re getting into Jerry Springer territory.

Hell-ooo, have you never seen The Bold and the Beautiful? How are you so sure it will never happen?
Marcil Giovinazzo: At the risk of being too honest here, I have never played that kind of a character.

So you’d refuse?
Marcil Giovinazzo: Brenda’s never been that kind of a person. It was one thing when she was young and would do crazy bad-girl stuff, but now she’s a grown woman. You don’t sleep with your son-in-law. Sorry.

But it’s a soap opera!
Marcil Giovinazzo: [Laughs] I don’t care! It’s not going to happen!

What if Sonny and Brenda split and their relationship is permanently kaput. Would it be OK then?
Marcil Giovinazzo: No! You still can’t sleep with your ex-husband’s son. Ever.

What, is it too Woody Allen for ya?
Marcil Giovinazzo: I stopped watching Woody Allen movies for that very reason, and he’s a genius! Don’t get me wrong. I’m crazy about Dom. We get along really well and I have loved playing that line where you’re not really sure what’s going on between them. Did they? Didn’t they? I always like unanswered questions.

Where do you see the Brenda and Carly [Laura Wright] rivalry headed, especially after Carly’s determination to ruin the wedding?
Marcil Giovinazzo: I don’t know what the writers will do but I think there’s a lot more for Laura to play because Carly has children with Brenda’s man, and there’s nothing more intense than that. As for Brenda, she’s not a big grudge holder. She’s not sitting around thinking about what Carly did to her nine years ago or whatever. She’s rather oblivious about it, which I think is funny.

I always find it disappointing when Brenda sinks to Carly’s level and gets all bitchy-witchy.
Marcil Giovinazzo: It disappoints me, too! I really don’t like that Brenda does that. She’s not really a hater. You’re not going to see me getting crazy with the girl fights. Not my thing.

Jeez, girl, your list of what you won’t do on this show is getting longer by the minute! You signed for one year. Will you renew?
Marcil Giovinazzo: I still feel the same way about the character and the show as I always have — I’ll come visit for the rest of my life. Anything’s possible. That’s one thing that has never wavered.

Yeah, but will you renew?
Marcil Giovinazzo: It’s always going to be about scheduling and family for me.

Don’t you need to decide somewhat soon so the writers can plan?It’s not like Brenda can just flit off the canvas and go back to European modeling — she’s in committed marriage territory now.
Marcil Giovinazzo: I agree with what you’re saying. It’s no secret I came back to GH to work with Maurice, not only to honor my roots but to honor him specifically. When I was the new kid on the show, he took me under his wing. He really saved me. The week we shot the wedding was the best week ever because I was in scenes with him all day long, every day. Working opposite him is like listening to music — it’s beautiful and emotional and surprising and nostalgic and I feel all that at completely spontaneous levels. This is literally the most fun I’ve ever had acting. Right now my happiness is at its peak, if that answers your question.

I’ll take that as a definite maybe. Hey, while we’re on the subject of weddings, what’s the deal with yours? Are you legally married or not in real life?
Marcil Giovinazzo: Of course I’m married.

I keep reading that it’s either not legal or you only recently made it legal and that your previous ceremonies were just symbolic. So straighten this out.
Marcil Giovinazzo: Isn’t that always the way with people? They make stuff up.

Well, you do help foster the mystery. You’re the most ambiguous chick in show biz!
Marcil Giovinazzo: [Laughs] No, I’m not! Of course we’re married.

Legally?
Marcil Giovinazzo: Yes! We’ve had a few different ceremonies, including one for our east coast family and one for our west coast family.

At what point was it legal?
Marcil Giovinazzo: A long time ago.

So why is the press claiming otherwise?
Marcil Giovinazzo: How do I know? Why do they keep writing that Oprah’s having an alien baby? Why do they write that Jennifer Aniston was in Angelina Jolie’s backyard throwing rocks at her window? I’ll tell you why! [Laughs] Because the truth is too boring! Source: tvguide.com

Vanessa Marcil-Giovinazzo plans to spend a “simple” Christmas with son Kassius.

General Hospital star Vanessa Marcil-Giovinazzo, new hubby Carmine Giovinazzo and her 8-year-old son Kassius plan to celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas.

Kassius is very good about Hanukkah prayers and candle lighting,” Vanessa tells Celebrity Baby Scoop.
“He loves Christmas as well. Our traditions are simple. Eating, family, friends, New York, and our farm.” Source: celebritybabyscoop.com

Vanessa opened up to Celebrity Baby Scoop about her “smart and very funny” 8 1/2-year-old son Kassius, her return to General Hospital, and herholiday plans.

CBS: We are so glad you’re back as Brenda! Are you also glad to be back on the show? Can you give us any hints of what’s to come?

VMG: “Brenda was my first job and I’m so honored to remain welcome on the show and to teach my son how important it is to always honor your roots. What’s coming up is something that some people have been waiting 18 years to see. Including me.”

CBS: Your 8-year-old son Kassius is gorgeous! How is he doing? What is he into? Does he like school? What are his favorite subjects?

VMG: “Kassius is smart and very funny. I always remind him that how you look means nothing and is fleeting, but smart and funny are forever. He loves to read and write his own books. He’s on a baseball team. Anything science, Lego, DS, Pokémon, ocean related, movies – he’s very into learning how to open his own business and making his own money. He’s my favorite human being.”

CBS: What are some of your favorite family traditions over the holiday season?

VMG: “Kassius is very good about Hanukkah prayers and candle lighting. He loves Christmas as well. Our traditions are simple. Eating, family, friends, New York, and our farm.” Source: CBS Exclusive

Vanessa’s secret is quite simple. Instead of making mealtime an active combat zone, she lets her 8-year-old son join her on the front lines in the kitchen.

“I try to instill healthy eating in my son, such as eating organic, by making sure he’s involved and feels a part of the healthy eating process.” Vanessa adds, “For example, I involve him in the seeding our garden in Los Angeles and upstate New York so that he understands and sees where his food is coming from.”

Let’s face it: most of us aren’t lucky enough to have our own garden, but we can let our kids into the kitchen. Let ‘em chop veggies or be in charge of mixing. These little prep tasks might just make them more apt to try their ‘culinary masterpieces.’

The 42-year-old actress also makes sure to take care of her own eating and fitness regimen – especially during the holidays.

“I honestly hate to workout with all my heart. I don’t like structured exercise and I’ve never belonged to a gym. However, I am super active. I love to race motorcycles, surf, and I coach my son’s little league.”

As for watching her weight during the holidays, Vanessa tries not to stress. The actress, who recently married “CSI: NY” actor Carmine Giovinazzo, tries to keep their diet organic and makes sure they drink lots of water mixed with cranberry. Source: Yahoo

She fatally shot one of the Balkan’s henchmen after rushing into a decoy stakeout where Sam was serving as her own decoy. Flashbacks revealed that she also shot a man — who appeared to be the man she was on a date with earlier in the sequence and presumably is connected to the Balkan. Dante hid his body, proving that the ability to bury dead people where the cops won’t find them is genetic.

Brenda: tiny supermodel and sharpshooter. It’s not a particularly shocking secret, given that baby Emma is the only character on the show who has never picked up a gun. Unfortunately, Brenda’s response to history repeating itself is not to appreciate the one useful skill that she learned from spending so much time with Sonny (Maurice Benard) and Jason (Steve Burton). Instead, she opted to have a minor nervous breakdown, confusing the two incidents, blathering on about how she is not supposed to talk about what happened. Then she had a nightmare. So, now not only is Brenda’s storyline totally lame, the character has turned into, as Carly put it, “poor, pathetic, tragic Brenda.” That is not the impulsive, strong character that GH viewers fell in love with. Who wants to watch a hothouse flower who needs a throng of men to protect her?

Then again, one of the few strong women on GH, Robin (Kimberly McCullough), is now being blamed for both not immediately forgiving her husband for cheating on her and for his cheating in the first place.

According to Steve (Scott Reeves), Robin should be totally over being drugged and kidnapped by the woman Patrick (Jason Thompson) slept with, then having to continue to work with her. “I can make an argument that Robin is doing nothing to help you or herself. She’s not trying to forgive. She’s not fighting for your marriage. She’s doing zero to preserve her family. Which, frankly, I find a little troubling. Unless, of course, you’re beating or verbally abusing her.”

What? I happen to think that Robin and Patrick should stay together, but that’s because I am a viewer. Robin has every right to find adultery unforgivable or to need to take some time to get past her anger. Steve, who I have loved up to this point, seems to think that a woman only has the right to leave a man if he abuses her. He must take issue with every single Port Charles divorce, with the possible exception of women who used to be married to Sonny. I do not think the scene intended to make any sort of statement, beyond having someone voice support for Patrick, but I once again have to ask, does this show realize that most of its viewers are female? Source: Fancast