THROUGH THE YEAR'S

DAYS'S Wally Kurth And Judi Evans Reflect On Their Decades-Long Partnership

- Janet DiLauro

Soap Opera Digest: You've worked together on and off since 1987. Do you ever feel like an old married couple?

Judi Evans: Definitely sometimes. Don't you, Wally? 

Wally Kurth: Absolutely. But we really aren't a married couple [because] we still love each other just as much as we did 36 years ago [laughs].

Evans: Probably more in some cases.

Digest: Judi was on DAYS first. Wally, did you screen-test with her?

Kurth: I just remember testing with Lisa [Trusel, ex-Melissa]. I was sent there for Lisa. She and I had a story for three or four months. Then they had me meet Adrienne in the park. That was something that I think was unplanned. They thought, "Wait a minute. Why don't we put [them together]?"

Digest: Wally, were you aware that Judi had won an Emmy for her work as Beth on GUIDING LIGHT?

Kurth: Yes, I was. And I was a little intimidated, I have to say. I knew that she had been around a long time... had been around the block.

Evans: And I was intimidated because he came from Broadway.

Kurth: TV was completely new to me and here I was working with someone who had won an Emmy, so I trusted her and just followed her instincts. I knew that I could learn something from her. That was smart on my account. I was just saying, speaking about John Aniston [ex-Victor] in his tribute, that it was Judi and John that made me the TV actor I am today. They sort of set the bar. We worked together almost every day. I learned how to memorize lines, how to approach the work, how be professional. Both hem were like mentors to me.

Digest: Did it take time to build a relationship and warm up to each other?