Spotlight On…Tom D'Angora

The creator/writer/executive producer of the new drama MÉLANGE, which features a host of daytime faves, talks about his love of soaps.

- Stephanie Sloane

First things first, tell us about your soap background and interest in soaps.

“I started watching ONE LIFE TO LIVE with my grandmother in 1986, when I was in second grade. I instantly became obsessed with the genre and became a lifelong fan. My shows were/are ONE LIFE TO LIVE, ALL MY CHILDREN, LOVING, RYAN’S HOPE, THE CITY, FALCON CREST, DYNASTY and KNOTS LANDING. I became so obsessed as a young boy that in second grade, I got suspended from school because I would only respond if you referred to me as Dorian Lord. Luckily, my mother had my back, and when the principal asked her if it concerned her that her 7-year-old son wanted to be a soap villain, she responded by saying, “Why would it bother me? Dorian is fabulous!” Robin Strasser [ex-Dorian] loves that story. My childhood bedroom walls were covered in clippings from Soap Opera Digest. I had every issue from September 1986-99, but a black mold problem in my mom’s house sadly destroyed my collection. Soaps have been my happy place for 34 years. No matter how bad my day is, popping in an old DVD and escaping to Llanview or Pine Valley can always bring me to a joyful place. Being an overweight and overly gay child in the 1980s wasn’t easy. I don’t know if I would have survived without the escapism my shows gave me. I have such love and respect for what [AMC/OLTL Creator] Agnes Nixon did. She was a trailblazer in every sense of the word and I never write a line without asking myself, “Would Agnes approve?”