Soap Opera Digest Online Feature Article
Feature Story: Supercouples: A relic from the ’80’s or still alive and kissing?
“Not A Patch On Them”
April 27, 2004
Mention the word supercouple and many fans fondly remember Steve (a.k.a. “Patch”) and Kayla, who captivated DAYS OF OUR LIVES viewers from 1986-1990.
“We both knew that we had found our match when I started working there,” smiles Mary Beth Evans on her electric pairing with Stephen Nichols. “It’s funny — I didn’t think much about [being a supercouple] then. Now I realize how big it was because the enduring factor of this couple is amazing. I get recognized for Kayla probably three times a week. I did GENERAL HOSPITAL for seven years after I did [DAYS], and I do AS THE WORLD TURNS now (she recurs as Sierra Esteban Montgomery). But it’s always Kayla! It left a huge mark in people’s minds.”
While Steve and Kayla were one of many supercouples on DAYS during that time, Evans said there was never any competition between the actors. “Those people were all my friends, and I felt like that period when I was on DAYS was like family,” she states. “The show was very Middle America and had real, heartfelt stories. We just tried to do our best work and that’s what we focused on.”
Evans stresses that supercouples are what soaps are all about. “DAYS invested their time and energy in couples, gave them good stores, and nurtured them along. You hook up with someone and you’re there for 20 years with the same person! You may change names or identities, but you basically stay together [laughs].”
Supercouple magic doesn’t always strike twice, as Evans and Nichols found out when they were later paired up as Katherine Bell and Stefan Cassadine on GENERAL HOSPITAL. “GH never really did anything with it,” shrugs Evans. “They could have taken it and gone with it. They did briefly, but I don’t think they ever invested in it.”
Evans credits Steve and Kayla’s on-screen chemistry to her close friendship with Nichols. “We are such good friends and that showed through,” she smiles. “Stephen and I just did a photo shoot for Soap Opera Digest, and I swear, we were like the old married couple (laughs). We were sitting on the couch, all cozied up, he was reading something, I was doing something. It’s like we don’t even have to talk to each other. It cracked me up! We’ve known each other for such a long time and we’re so comfortable with each other. So I’m hoping that we work together again, because I always have such a great time!”
— Tonya Lench/Soap Digest Online
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