Fabulous At 40

Doug Davidson Happily Marks Four Decades On Y&R.

- Devin Owens

Doug Davidson is the first to admit that he never expected to be marking 40 years in Genoa City. “When I looked at a script six years after I started on Y&R, I was shocked even then that I was still there!” he marvels. “I would hope my younger self would appreciate the tenacity and the discipline it took to remain relevant for four decades.”

Davidson was a young actor with just one feature film and a TV movie under his belt when he read for the role of Paul. The audition, he felt, didn’t go well. “I thought I blew it!” he recalls. “I took my sister and [real-life pal] Rick Springfield [ex-Noah/Eli, GH] and I was really nervous. I thought, ‘I could’ve done so much better.’ ” Convinced he didn’t get the part, “I was all ready to move to New York and do the actor thing when I got a call from the [Y&R] wardrobe lady. It was Friday night, and she asked what I thought I should wear for the show taping on that Monday. I said, ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about,’ because I thought for sure I didn’t get it. So, that’s how I found out! I was totally shocked.”