May 12, 1985: NBC Party
Robin Wright attended the NBC Network All-Star Party For 1985 Summer TCA Press Tour at Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, California.
July 1985: Santa Barbara is one year old
The cast of the soap celebrated the first year of ‘Santa Barbara’. They had their gala at Universal City’s Swanky Fung restaurant.
In these pictures you can see Robin Wright (Kelly Capwell), Valorie Armstrong (Marisa Perkins), Marcy Walker (Eden Capwell) and Rupert Ravens (Danny Andrade).
July 30, 1985: Robin Wright talks about David Haskell
In a small article of Soap Opera Digest, Robin Wright talks about David Haskell who plays Nick Hartley on ‘Santa Barbara’, her new love interest.
She really loves working with Haskell. She says: “David Haskell is very, very talented. He has a great disposition and he’s wonderful to work with”.
August/September 1985: Robin Wright is filming her first movie
From August 19 to September, Robin Wright is filming ‘Hollywood Vice Squad’, her acting debut in cinemas.
The movie is directed by Penelope Spheeris and Robin Wright plays Lori, a runaway teenage girl, who gets caught in the world of pornography, drugs and prostitution.
Here you can some photos of Robin during the filming of the movie.
September 24, 1985: Robin Wright in Soap Opera Digest
Robin Wright is featured in the USA magazine Soap Opera Digest.
The article, written by Ellen Byron, says that “Once in a blue moon, something magical happens on daytime television. A young unknown suddenly appears. Often, he or she is untrained and inexperienced. But these fledgling stars are gifted with such incredible beauty and natural talent that they instantly captivate the audience and voila – like they say in the movies, “A Star is Born.” In this case, Ellen Byron is talking about newcomer Robin Wright.
In the article, Wright talks about the auditions she did for ‘Santa Barbara’ in 1984. She says: “I auditioned in February for Laken and then I came back and auditioned for Jade. I thought, ‘Well, I didn’t get it.’ I was out of money, so I went to Hawaii to work. They called me four days later and said, ‘You got Kelly.’ It BLEW me away. I couldn’t believe it.”
Robin Wright speaks about her newfound fame. She says: “It was a shock in the beginning. A lot of it is trying to keep your sanity and going places for serenity, which keeps you in line. I see so many stars who have their noses up in the air and act like they own the place. I think that’s a complete joke and I pray to God I’m not that way.”
Also, Robin Wright talks about her beautiful experiences with the fans. With the help of Santa Barbara staffer Mary Andersen, Wright responds to every letter she receives. “I can remember being star struck by movie stars so I know how they feel. There are a few people I really like, and I write to them week to week.”
Unfortunately, not all fans are so harmless. Robin Wright talks about a terrible experience she has with a ‘Santa Barbara’ fan. She says: “There is this one male, I don’t know how old he is, but he writes a lot. Crazy writing. I got a letter last week saying, ‘Well, I finally decided, Robin, if you’re not going to respond to my letters, I’m going to commit suicide. And he’s threatening me. He says he knows the address of SANTA BARBARA, and he’s going to come here. It’s scary.”
Robin also speaks about Santa Barbara chaotic growing pains. The show has gone through four C.C. Capwells and, “It was HARD,” Robin stresses. “One day we were in there with Paul Burke, and the next day, we were in there with Charlie Bateman. And it was a direct pickup from the day before! It was like, ‘Okay, you’re my dad. Guh- reat!”
However, Robin’s most frustrating moment came with the firing of Dane Witherspoon and the dissolution of the Kelly/Joe storyline. “I was told that the Kelly/Joe/Peter storyline was the hottest thing going, then they killed them both off and left me stranded to mourn for weeks,”
Witherspoon’s departure was particularly difficult. “Oh God, that was death,” Robin moans, admitting that working with replacement Mark Arnold “was terrible for the first two months because I was real good friends with the original one and I still am. But I was being real close-minded about it, too, and people got on my case.”
Although NBC spokespersons say Joe was killed off because Arnold didn’t want to renew his contract, Robin has her own theory. “I think Dane was the biggest loss on the show, and the Dobsons knew it; that’s why they got rid of the character”
Yet, Robin was thrilled about the new direction Joe’s death forced Kelly into. “I love it. I couldn’t wait for this point in time. I was longing for it,” Robin declares decisively. “I feel she’s experienced everything she could up until now, and I think she’s finally going to be in control of herself. Her perspective will be a lot different and she won’t need Joe anymore. I feel like she should be a strong character and in the last few months, she’s finally standing up for herself.”
One of the biggest differences between Robin and Kelly Capwell is that the actress is a lot more assertive and independent than her alter-ego. “I think she’s more of a wimp,” Robin states with amusing honesty. “She’s not really adventurous like I am. In most of the storylines, I would just go after it. I would have killed my ex-fiancé, that sort of thing. Kelly’s from a very wealthy family, she’s daddy’s little girl, so she’s always looking for someone else to cover her.”
But right now, Robin Wright is disappointed and frustrated with Kelly’s story because she was looking forward a more adult and stronger role, but her most recent storyline with David Haskell, who plays Nick Hartley, had her lose her memory and revert to a childlike, dependent state.
She hopes that changes very soon because Wright wants to play a strong and confident young woman character who doesn’t need a man to rescue her.
November 1985: Robin Wright is on the cover of Daily TV USA
In this article, Robin Wright talks about her auditions for soap opera ‘Santa Barbara’. She says: “I tested for three roles on this show a year before. At first they said I was too young for Kelly.” But finally, they gave her the role of Kelly who is supposed to be 22 years old right now, but Robin Wright is only 19 years old.
Robin Wright also explains that, if she has any reason to be unhappy about her long-term commitment to the soap opera, it’s because it’s clipped her wings. No time for travel and she misses it a lot. Also, she’s not able to do other works. She says: “I’ve turned down two movies and two commercials in the past year. I couldn’t take them because I’m always working.”
One of them is the movie ‘Weird Science’. The casting director of the film Jackie Burch revealed that Kelly LeBrock was not the first choice for the character of Lisa. Robin Wright was cast but they lost her because she was working on ‘Santa Barbara’ and the producers of the soap opera didn’t allow her to do this movie directed by John Hughes and starring Anthony Michael Hall, Bill Paxton & Robert Downey Jr.
At this point in time, she’s almost certain not to renew her contract when it’s up. “I have learned a lot and the other actors have been very supportive. I’ve also learned not to do another soap. I think you can get stuck in them.” She wants to do movies. She wouldn’t mind following in the same path as Jessica Lange, whom she admires tremendously.
But Robin says that she also has some time out for amusement on the soap set. “Dame Judith and I sit around and talk about my makeup or lack of it, and the fact that I love to wear jeans and t-shirts.” But the venerable matriarch of the show doesn’t totally approve of the youngster’s casual garb.
1985: ‘Santa Barbara’ Holiday Party
Robin Wright and her boyfriend Dane Witherspoon attended the ‘Santa Barbara’ holiday party that took place at The Palace, Hollywood’s glitzy art deco nightclub.
December 1985: Robin Wright in Télé Star magazine
Robin Wright is featured in the French magazine Télé Star.
The article says that Robin immediately pleased the producers of ‘Santa Barbara’ when she made her first audition. But everyone had a different idea of the role they wanted to give her.
She first auditioned for Laken Lockridge (Julie Ronnie) and then for Jade Perkins (Melissa Reeves). But the producers were so impressed with Robin that they decided to give her the leading role of Kelly Capwell. For Kelly, the producers wanted a sophisticated actress, much like a young Grace Kelly.
The article explains that on the set of ‘Santa Barbara’ she met Dane Witherspoon (who played the role of Joe Perkins). They fell in love and now Robin Wright is seriously considering marrying him.
Her dream is to have a child with Dane. “I want him to be raised in France and his first language to be French,” she says. “And I wish it will be a girl. When she is born, I will stop working for three years to raise her properly in France.”
But Robin’s health has been a little concerning lately. A doctor has obtained that her contract no longer requires her to work five days a week, twelve hours a day. So Robin only goes to the studio for three days.
That means in general she only appears about 2-3 episodes per week instead of 4-5 like Marcy Walker, A Martinez or Lane Davies. And that’s a relief for Robin because she’s tired of working on the show after one year and a half.