Michael Easton (8/91 Easton family)
Excerpt from Soap Opera Digest 8/20/91: Michael Easton
Born to Be Wild! This Free Spirit Roamed The World Before Settling Down As DAYS's Newest Rebel
By Gene H. Sobczak
The portrait of the young Irish artist -- brooding, restless, haunted by the past -- is part of Ireland's cultural history. It is a tradition from which Michael Easton draws profusely, though respectfully, for his artistic inspiration. Born in Inglewood, California, but reared in a seaside village in Northern Ireland for eight years, Easton exposes more than a trace of ethnic pride in discussing his admiration for Irish culture. "You look at [George Bernard] Shaw and [William Butler] Yeats, maybe the greatest writer, and Sean O'Casey. Then there's all the music -- U2 and Hothouse Flowers. You know, we've produced a lot for such a small, small country. We take a lot of pride in that."
Easton's portrayal of Brian Scofield's maverick brother, Tanner, on DAYS OF OUR LIVES is only one of his creative interests, which include theater, music and his greatest passion, writing. "I had this really weird idea," reveals Easton "that I was going to be a writer and acting was going to be my supplement, which was a really twisted theory now that I think about it. But I always knew I wanted to be some form of artist."
Ironically, Easton's heritage proved to be an obstacle. Specifically, the problem was his parents, who are Irish-born professionals (Dad is an engineer and Mom is an architect). "My folks are very...uh, how do I put this delicately?" he asks with the sincere intention of being fair in his judgment. "When you're from an immigrant family, when you come to another country, you have to have the skills that make you accessible to get a job, because that's just the way it is. At least, that's the way they perceive it.
"I admire my parents, because they came here and were able to build a very good life. But, for a long time, when I said I wanted to go into acting...you just didn't say that. My dad understands it now, because I'm getting a paycheck. But I was the black sheep for a few years."
Dressed in tattered blue jeans and a black Harley-Davidson T-shirt, Easton recounts the Bohemian activities of his not-too-distant past. "In between high school and college, I went to Europe for a while and missed the first quarter of college. That was the best experience I ever had," he fondly remembers. "Five months of hitchhiking around. When I came back, I finagled my way into UCLA. I didn't know what I was doing there, but I liked living in Los Angeles. I loved that school, but you didn't really have to go to school there. [Parents, please take note.] It's, like, six hundred people were in the class; they never took roll. You had one test at the end of the year, and that was your whole grade. So, for two weeks you cram and the rest of the year you were out and about," he admits.
For Easton, being out and about during college meant "bumming around the country. I went to New Orleans and New Mexico," he relates. "I met these two girls from Sweden, and they wanted to see part of the country. So we packed up the car and went. I don't know if your readers want to hear that, but it's the truth."
After college, "I kind of drifted around for a while. A friend of mine was working at a bar in the Cayman Islands, so I went there to tend bar for six or seven months." His spare time was spent reading, writing and playing drums. "I started with the clave and then worked my way over to the congas. Now I'm learning timbales. In the islands, playing the conga drums is a spiritual thing," he notes.
Easton's freewheeling odyssey eventually returned him to Southern California, where he found instant solace in the off-beat arts scene of Venice. Life at the beach was a contrast the middle-class world he'd left behind. In his apartment, he recalls, "There were supposed to be six people living there, two girls and five guys. But it turned out to be, like, fifteen people. Everybody was in the arts, in bands. Somebody would be doing a play, and everybody woudl come back and crash. It was wild. I slept on a mattress in the middle of the living room."
His dad's response? "He didn't like roommates with dredlocks or girls who looked like spare-time mud wrestlers. It was hard for him to understand."
....
Now that Easton is on DAYS, do his parents accept his profession? "There was something about me in one of the trade papers and I sent it to my folks. My name was printed on the page that listed castings as well as what was going on around town, and I was in the same row as Johnny Mathis, who was singing at the Flamingo in Las Vegas. Well, my mom thought I had arrived because I was listed alongside Johnny Mathis," laughs Easton. "That's made all the difference."
© Soap Opera Digest
Excerpt from Soap Opera Weekly 11/19/91: Michael Easton, on ME Corner
Taking on Tanner: Days of Our Lives' Michael Easton
-Caelie M. Haines
Birthplace: "I was born here in Los Angeles while my folks were vacationing. They're from Ireland and were born and raised there, but they had moved to Australia, where I guess I was conceived, if you want to get personal. My father's best friend was getting married in Los Angeles; they came up for the wedding and I was born here. We lived here for about six months and then went back to Ireland."
© Soap Opera Weekly
Excerpt from Soap Opera Digest 9/10/96: Michael Easton, on ME Fusion
"Michael Easton" (Ex-Tanner Scofield, Days Of Our Lives)
Quitting DAYS wasn't easy, but Easton now says it was for the best. After saying good-bye to Tanner, the actor took a career sabbatical in order to deal with the loss of his mother, who had just died of cancer. "[My mom] was the most wonderful person," Easton says quietly. "I was closer to her than anyone. I had no desire to work during or after [that time]. Fortunately, I have an understanding agent."
© Soap Opera Digest
Excerpt from Young & Modern Magazine 1/98: Michael Easton, on Synchronicity
Shopping Studs
By Bari Nan Cohen
MICHAEL EASTON
sign: Aquarius
....
What inspires you to write poems?
My mother died four years ago. She was a really big influence on me, and her death left a big hole in my life. So I write a lot about that loss.
What was the best Christmas gift you ever gave your mom?
When I was 13, I set up a camera and took a family portrait. Then I built a frame for the photo in my wood shop class. My mom kept that picture on display for years.
© Young & Modern Magazine
Excerpt from TV Guide.Com 8/18/01: Michael Easton, on Synchronicity
"Interview With A Vampire" Michael Easton Sinks His Teeth Into A Juicy New Role On Port Charles
AND TELLS TV GUIDE MAGAZINE ABOUT THE PERKS OF BEING ALLY MCBEAL'S WELL-ENDOWED BOY-TOY
TV Guide By Michael Logan August 18, 2001
He credits the Los Angeles Mission, a homeless shelter on the city's skid row, with putting him on the straight and narrow, and his late mom, Joan, with keeping him there. She died in 1994, after a two-year bout with cancer, during which Easton quit acting and moved back to the family home in New York State to help care for her. (His father, Stewart, is an engineer; his younger brother, Keith, is a Navy pilot.) "In some strange way I feel my mom can see me now and that I need to live my life in a better way," Easton says. "There was a time when I was a real a--hole, but now I look at life with a different perspective. I've learned to be thankful."
© TV Guide
Excerpt from Soap Opera Digest 5/5/05: Michael Easton
Michael Easton OLTL 5/5/05: Take Five
Who do you admire the most?
"In life, it would be my father. He came from Ireland and did more with his life in doing that than I'll ever do with mine. And on this show, it would be Bob Woods [B]]. He's kind of like a father figure to all of us, even though he's got more life in him than any of us do. We have a hard time keeping up with him. He's an inspiration in conduct and dignity. I've learned a lot from him in how to handle situations. He's truly a great guy."
What's the smartest decision you ever made?
"Being with the girl who I'm with."
© Soap Opera Digest
Excerpt from Soap Opera Digest 3/28/06: Michael Easton
SOD 3/28/06 Dynamic Duo
Michael Easton (John, OLTL) hit the town with his Italian wife Ginevra. "We just had our first wedding anniversary last summer," he grins. "We made a year. I'm kind of excited. We're actually going to Italy in June. We'll be there for two weeks and eventually make our way up to Paris. I want to show her a couple places I used to hang out when I lived [there]."
© Soap Opera Digest
Michael Easton's MySpace 4/16/11
Michael Easton's blog: Birth announcement of Lilah Bell Easton
We are delighted to announce the birth of our daughter…
Lilah Bell Easton
Born April 15, 2011
7 lbs 9 oz.
Michael and Ginevra Easton
© Michael Easton
Michael Fairman 4/16/11: Michael Easton
OLTL’s Michael Easton and wife welcome baby daughter into the world!
In the midst of all the downers of the past week with OLTL and AMC being cancelled, there was a beautiful ray of light at the end of it all for the talented Michael Easton (John McBain) of One Life to Live. He and his lovely wife, Ginevra welcome their new bundle of joy, yesterday, Friday April 15th! Michael and Ginevra have named the latest edition to their family, Lilah Bell Easton. Lilah Bell weighed in at 7 lbs. 9 Oz. Congrats to Michael from On-Air On-Soaps!
© Michael Fairman
Michael Easton's Facebook 9/7/13
JACK BORU EASTON
We welcome with love our son, born September 7, 2013 at 8:07 a.m. weighing 9 pounds 9 ounces. Thank you for your kind wishes and God Bless.
© Michael Easton
Michael Fairman 9/12/13: Michael Easton
GH’s Michael Easton and Wife Welcome Their Son Into The World!
9 September 12th, 2013
Fan favorite Michael Easton (Silas, GH) is a proud papa once again! Easton let it be known via his facebook page that his lovely wife, Ginevra gave birth earlier this week to a son, Jack Boru Easton! Easton posted, “We welcome with love our son, born September 7, 2013 at 8:07 a.m. weighing 9 pounds 9 ounces. Thank you for your kind wishes and God Bless.”
This is Michael and Ginevra’s second child, they have a daughter Lilah who was born in April of 2011. Looks like Lilah will have to be a big sis for little bro Jack!Congratulations to Michael from On-Air On-Soaps! One of the nicest guys we know, who we are sure is one hell of a dad! Share your well-wishes for Michael, Ginevra and the ever growing Easton Clan in the comment section below!
© Michael Fairman