2001 SOD Awards

DATELINE - July 1, 2001
Erica

On June 29, 2001, Soap Opera Digest Editor Stephanie Sloane was on hand in Burbank to present no fewer than eight Soap Opera Digest Awards to the lucky winners from Days.  Bo and Hope were voted Favorite Couple, beating out GH's Sonny and Carly and ATWT's Jack and Carly for the honor in the 17th Annual Soap Opera Digest Awards.  This year for the first time, the polling took place exclusively online with Days sweeping in every category in which it was nominated, including Favorite Show.

This was also the first time in recent memory that the awards were not presented on television, which wasn't such a bad thing because it gave me the unprecedented chance to have front row seat for Kristian's acceptance speech.  The informal ceremony, which included cake and soft drinks afterward, was held during the usual lunch hour on Stage 2 of the NBC Studios, with many of the Days cast and crew in attendance to cheer on and congratulate their colleague.  The soap press, a crew from the cable network SoapNet, the top brass from NBC Daytime programming, and a few visiting friends and family were also there to take part in and document the festivities.

Peter was unable to attend, so Kristian accepted the Favorite Couple honor on behalf of the both of them. A combination of nerves and emotion made her voice a little shaky, but she gave a lovely acceptance speech nonetheless, thanking first and foremost the fans:  “Days of our Lives fans are the best and most loyal fans in daytime. Peter and I would like to thank all of them for sticking by us always and for being so supportive.” 

In addition, Kristian expressed her gratitude to Tom Langan for continuing to write “great, unpredictable stories for this couple,” and Ken Corday for his friendship and loyalty throughout what has been “a lot of years.” Kristian also tipped her hat to the tireless efforts of the Days crew, citing in particular the camera and lighting crew; hair, make-up and wardrobe; and the dialogue writers for putting the words for Bo and Hope on the page that allow Peter and Kristian to bring the couple to life.

Digest asked Kristian whether she and Peter had to work at keeping Bo and Hope alive as a couple. Kristian replied:  "I think it comes naturally, but also it's written on the page.  We always try to find new and inventive ways of doing different things to keep it interesting for us as well.  It's a fun couple."

The award for Favorite Storyline went to the Baby Switch, and in Tom Langan’s absence, Kristian and Renee Jones accepted the award on his behalf. They both once again acknowledged the fans for their love, support and dedication and encouraged everyone to stay tuned as the storyline continues to unfold in exciting new directions.

Being somewhat on the shy side, Kristian was relieved when her speeches were over with!  After the presentation, photos were taken of the cast with their awards, and with Stephanie Sloane, and the cake was sliced and passed around. Kristian introduced me to her onscreen son, Jason Cook, who was as nervous as she was at the prospect of speaking off the cuff in front of so many people!  Kristian, always in mother mode, gave him a squeeze and assured him he did a wonderful job (he did!), which seemed to make him feel a whole lot better.  Jason then introduced both of us to his real-life mom, who was on hand to watch her son accept his award.  What a lucky guy to have two such supportive moms looking out for him!