Check out my new, official site: ChrisMann.TV

Here it is, in all its self-promo glory : ) ... ChrisMann.TV

Nourishing the body, mind and soul: My new WellBella cover-story interviews with three motivational foodies

Bob Harper (The Biggest Loser trainer and Skinny Meals author):
http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb14/i20/p16

Lisa "Hungry Girl" Lillian:
http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb14/i18/p32

Rainbeau Mars (Hollywood-based yogi and holistic foodie):
 http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb14/i21/p36

My new print & video interview with spiritual thought leader/"Year of Miracles" author Marianne Williamson

Read the whole interview with Marianne in the May issue of WellBella here

Calm thyself: My new WellBella cover-story interview with inspirational "RHONY" star/author Aviva Drescher

An accident at the age of 6 left the beautiful blond—and “Real Housewives” costar—with an unexpected obstacle. But that wasn’t about to hold her back from living the life she imagined. 

Read the whole story here:

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb14/i7/p26

My new Wellbella TV and magazine interview with "Facts of Life" star & "Survivor" finalist Lisa Whelchel

Read the digital version of the April issue here.

I'm proud to share my new print and video interviews with The Facts of Life actress, author and Survivor finalist Lisa Whelchel for the April issue of WellBella magazine. For the first time ever, we have produced an on-camera companion interview with our cover celebrity for WellBella TV. Some of these clips, telling Lisa's inspiring 35-year story of spiritually-driven personal transformation, are below. As ever, Lisa's sunny on-camera energy radiates in these WellBella TV exclusives. 

As many of you know, personally speaking, this WellBella TV project is a rewarding culmination of nearly two decades of celebrity interviews and related work I've done for print media, books, DVD featurettes and for Retroality TV's YouTube channel and Reimagine That! podcast. Spirituality, wellness and pop culture are huge passions of mine, so this "TV magazine" effort is an exciting creative development in this multimedia age.

Next month, WellBella TV will feature my video interview with spiritual author and thought leader Marianne Williamson in connection with her new book A Year of Miracles: Daily Devotions and Reflections. Marianne, who presently is running for a seat in the 33rd U.S. Congressional District, has long been on my short list of famous folks I'd love to meet and interview. I'm honored to say that this dream came true for me thanks to WellBella and to the spiritually-based thinking that Marianne has so eloquently advocated since authoring her first bestselling book, 1992's A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principals of A Course in Miracles.

All of this aligns with other projects I have in store for 2014 and beyond. I'll be sharing more about these ventures (which include a new online destination) in the coming months. Until then, here's to a year of "mann-ifesting" miraculous opportunities, great health and your deepest, most heartfelt dreams!

Outtakes from my new Muscle & Body interview with Olympic icon-turned-broadcaster, fitness inspiration, philanthropist & ever-spirited performer Apolo Ohno

http://www.muscleandbodymag.com/

As the Sochi Games come to a close, what better time to look back at the amazing career trajectory of America's most decorated Winter Olympian, Apolo Anton Ohno. I had the opportunity to chat with Apolo again for Muscle and Body magazine. which published two versions (above and below) of this Icon interview for its February 2014 issue.

But we still had some great outtakes from this interview, so I'm sharing those below. Here, Apolo shares additional insights on his careers in sports and entertainment as well as his philanthropic endeavors and his current training and nutrition regimen.

Here are my outtakes from this interview:

I did three profile pieces on athletes for the Sochi games. My pursuit of sport outside of the competition world is something I’ve always been involved with and for me is a perfect fit. Russia is going to be interesting Games altogether.

It’s definitely a big change (to be commentating rather than competing). I went to London and did some broadcasting work there for the 2012 Olympics. That was my first real firsthand experience of going to the Games and not competing. 

It’s humbling and an honor to be able to go to the Olympic Games and compete as an athlete and represent your country. But short track speed skating is one of those very obscure sports where it doesn’t get a lot of attention outside the Olympic space. So when we do have a chance to compete, whether it’s on North American soil or overseas, it provides incredible opportunity for athletes to shine when the curtain is open.

It’s a very special journey en route to the Olympic Games. Oftentimes we as Americans only view the athletes during that two-week period in February. That’s when we get to fall in love with the stories, the sacrifices and the athletes themselves. But it’s so much more beyond that. It feels good to know that people saw me, they supported me. 

When I went to the Olympic Games in 2012 and watched some of my fellow athletes and friends and comrades compete, it inspired me to say, “I can do this one more time.” You’re an athlete and you see a friend of yours who’s going for his fourth Olympic Games, and he’s trying to break records as well. That inspires you as an athlete to say, “You know what, I can do this one more time.”

I’d be lying if I didn’t say I went to those Games with a surge of wanting to go back to the states and train my ass off and get back in the groove and say, “I’m gonna do this. Particularly this time, I’m smarter, I have more knowledge, I have more experience. I know what to do, I know what not to do. I know what to eat, what not to eat.” You have all this ammunition that perhaps you didn’t have when you were 18 years old. Maybe you might physically not be as strong or as quick, but you have this knowledge database that really, really can’t be traded for anything else. 

Luckily I didn’t make the decision there, in London, and make some weird announcement (of), “Oh, I’m gonna go back for another Olympic Games.” I came back to the U.S., I took some time off again. I said, “I’m gonna spend some time in LA and the next two weeks I’m gonna slowly think about this and really come to the decision if I wanted to dedicated more of my life toward the sport.”

At the end of those two weeks I said, “You know what, Apolo, I’m very happy. I still love this sport. I still feel healthy. I think I can do another Game—but …” For me I think it was time to refocus and concentrate my efforts outside of that one daily focus of speed skating.

I think I made the right decision. I’m very happy with my career and am very blessed. I have so many incredible friends and supporters and family who helped me get to that point. For me, I feel like it’s a new chapter. 

So I’ve focused all of my time and resources on all of these other ventures. It’s a big gamble—the transition from competing Olympic athlete to non-competing athlete is perhaps the most difficult thing any Olympic athlete goes through in their life. Because you’ve spent so many years of your life completely consumed and involved in your sport that there was no Plan B for a lot of these athletes.

For me, I feel like I did good planning, but you still struggle with that transition stage. Because there’s definitely romanticism involved with the daily pursuit of one singular goal, and every single aspect of your life is revolving around this. Like all of these planets around the sun, they’re all revolved around this one focus.

I wouldn’t say (short track speed skating) was my destiny or that it was a realization that this was what I was born to do. Rather, it was a realization that if I did decide to pursue something, I’ve gotta put all of my effort toward that. 

Before, I was afraid of failing. I was afraid of giving 100 percent and then it not being enough. So I didn’t. Instead I’d give 70 percent. If I was off, I’d be able to say, “Well, I didn’t try my hardest.” So it was kind of an excuse to rest up rather than risking it all. And sometimes in life and in sport, that’s what it takes, regardless of outcome. That’s what it’s about—risking it all, for that one moment on the ice every four years for 41 seconds.

(After failing to make the Olympic team in 1998), I didn’t want to be a lost statistic. I didn’t want to be that kid who could’ve and should’ve but didn’t … That loss ignited a fire within me that I didn’t know existed yet. And it taught me a lot about losing and pain and emotions and how to channel that into something positive.

My manager, Lee Kernis, right after the (2010) Olympics asked, “There’ll probably be a lot of opportunities. Is there anything specific you want to do (in the entertainment arena)?” I said, “I want to play a small role in a movie—I don’t care what it is. I want to go on a few different TV shows”—Hawaii Five-0 was one of them—“and I want to host a show.” We made all of these things happen. 

I’ve taken a lot of acting classes in LA. And I fell in love, actually, with the art of acting. But because I do so many other things besides just singularly focusing on acting and performing, I didn’t feel confident enough to be able to go out there and try to produce a big role. I had so much respect for those actors who dedicate so much time (throughout) their entire life for that craft.

It was wonderful to experience it. And I continue to do things like that. I love being on screen—I think it’s really, really cool. I have a lot of friends who are actors and I just admire what they’re able to do. It’s a total 180 of what we do as athletes. 

As athletes you’re taught to hide or mask all of your emotions, to show no fears. Whereas in acting, vulnerability is perhaps one of the most utilized tools you can showcase on screen or when you’re performing. It was a big change to me to go inside my own psyche and emotional content and be able to bring that out and talk about certain things and relate to certain things that affected me personally.

Anyone who’s interested in psychology, just go take an acting class. It’s like Psyche 101. The experience was awesome. It taught me a lot about myself. 

And Minute to Win It—I never thought I’d be hosting a game show. But it was a lot of fun. It was much different than I thought. I got to give away a lot of free money to people who were strangers, and I made a lot of friends along the way.

My entertainment career’s been a lot of fun. I’m sure I could’ve focused a lot more attention and energy to it, but at the time it was exactly what I wanted. If there’s something there in the future in the bigger perspective, then I hope to continue to pursue it. I’m in no rush. I’m really happy with the position I’m in now. So I’m going to take my time. 

The first thing I said after I finished the Olympics was, “I want to focus a lot more time on giving back.” I thought about starting my own foundation, which we did. But I found it far more effective to perhaps partner with existing philanthropic organizations and groups, in either lending my name or helping bring attention to them or awareness to that cause.

There’s so many philanthropic groups and organizations around the world. Some of my very close friends in the Seattle area have done an excellent job dedicating their entire life and financial resources to giving back. I really respect that. I’ve done everything from the World Philanthropy forum in Singapore to a lot of events for the Special Olympics—I’m a global ambassador to the Special Olympics—the Ronald McDonald House, children’s hospitals, SeeYourImpact.org. 

My nutrition now is definitely more normal now. I do a lot of business now domestically and internationally, so I’m always traveling. Which anyone knows who’s trying to stay in good shape, it’s very hard to eat clean when you’re traveling. Look, I enjoy a great meal like anybody else.

I think there’s definitely a bit of balance there. It’s whatever your goals are. If your goals are to be absolutely shredded and chiseled like stone, it’s pretty difficult to go out to eat. You need to be making and preparing your meals every single day, and at the same time making sure you get in protein every two and a half, three hours. It’s not fun, but it’s whatever your goals are.

For me, I go through phases. There are times when I do focus like that. When I was on Dancing with the Stars, I’d eat very clean. But when I’m traveling … When I’m in New York, I’m not gonna say, “Oh, no, I’m not gonna eat a pizza. I enjoy those things. When I was training as an athlete, I never would. It was basically hard-boiled eggs, kale, salmon, chicken breast, and coconut oil seven to eight times a day, every single day. And raw oats, unsweetened applesauce—stuff like that. And water. It’s kind of boring and repetitive.

For me, balance is the most important thing. There are times when I spend three to four to five to six weeks straight eating really clean. And I feel amazing and I perform better mentally and physically when I’m eating clean and my nutrition’s on point. But it takes a lot of time and a lot of work.

Nutrition is just as hard or harder than the actually training aspect. And I think the benefits are 75 percent-plus of the training. 

I love training. I love working out. It will always be a part of my life. I’m not as lean as I was when I was training to be an athlete full-time. I’ve spent time doing NFL training with some friends in Philadelphia. I’ve done cross-fit training. I did the New York City Marathon, which, oh my God, was so incredibly brutal. My body is not designed for endurance sports.

I’m great at intervals. That’s kind of my forte. But endurance-sports non-stop cardio for that many hours is insane. I love doing a variety of workouts. I don’t have that kind of time, so I tend to focus on high-intensity interval training more than anything. That’s really helped in terms of terms of getting a great workout, a great sweat and also staying in good shape. 

Anything from creating my own circuit programs to doing cross-fit training on the side. Or, if I have limited space, I do a lot of stuff off the Beachbody program—whether it’s P90X or Insanity. I like to switch it up.

It’s an amazing how many people out there are incredibly fit but where never athletes. It blows my mind, actually. I’ll be working out with some friends in LA and some guys will come join us and they’re like freaks or beasts of nature. It’s like, this guy should’ve played NFL football, this guy should’ve been a speed skater. It’s actually inspiring and humbling.

I don’t do training anymore on ice. I don’t want to get in that skin suit anymore, either. (Laughs.)

As a bonus, here is my 2008 Muscle & Body cover story on Apolo in its entirety. Interesting to see how far he's traveled on his journey. 

Catching up ... a gallery of healthy celeb cover stories from the last year (where did 2013 go?!?)

2013 was a blur for many -- and my year was no exception. Between writing a screenplay and a book, developing a sitcom, interviewing some major sports icons, penning a slew of health and wellness stories and now (phew!) helping produce celeb wellness video interviews/webisodes and planning an exciting new online destination, I've had little time to blog here.

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vmb14/i1/p42

That will change in the coming months (can't wait to announce what we have planned!). But in the meantime I'd love to share a gallery of the celeb health and fitness cover stories I've penned over the last year. From fiercely fit and spirited Olympic athletes to health-minded reality stars to nutritionally-sound, sexy-at-60-plus retro TV favorites, their stories are enlightening and inspiring. Enjoy!

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb14/i2/p26

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb14/i1/p26

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb13/i10/p26

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb13/i1/p22

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb13/i2/p28

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb13/i4/p28

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb13/i6/p28

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb13/i7/p30

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb13/i8/p26

http://basicmedia.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vwb13/i5/p32

Buy this book! "Backstage at 'The Price is Right': Memoirs of a Barker's Beauty" by Kathleen Bradley

Though we're technically on hiatus here at Retroality.TV until sometime this spring, I wanted to take this opportunity to give a shout out to model-actress-singer-entrepeneur and now author Kathleen Bradley. The first black Barker's Beauty (1990-2000) just released her new tell-all book, Backstage at The Price is Right: Memoirs of a Barker Beauty -- and it is a sexy, eye-opening page-turner!

The African-American co-star of the hit 1995 movie Friday spills about her experiences behind-the-scenes at America's longest-running game show during Bob Barker's affair with prize model Dian Parkinson (1975-93), the blonde bombshell's subsequent exit and scandalous sexual harassment lawsuit against the legendary emcee, the host's costly and equally jaw-dropping legal battles with redheaded girl-next-door model Holly Hallstrom (1977-95) and the ensuing "fire"-storm that saw the contested dismissals of Bradley, longtime Price model Janice Pennington (1972-2000) and three other female staff members employed on the show for several years. 

In her exposé -- which dares go where Bob Barker's 2009 memoir (the aptly named Priceless Memories) and the "official" Price tome (2007's Come on Down!) interestingly did not -- Kathleen kindly acknowledged interviews I've done with Holly and other Barker's Beauties for this site and elsewhere. (As many of you know, among the books I've been writing is my own Price is Right tell-all. I talk about this long-in-the-works project here.)

Bob Barker will almost certainly not like Bradley's book. The big question is: Will Bob Barker fans approach this with an open mind and give her story a well-deserved read? We'll see. Let the Plinko chips fall where they may!

(C'mon, Mr. Barker ... open up on all of this controversy. You deserve your say, as do the women of The Price is Right. The on-screen magic that you all -- yes, the entire oft-feuding Price family -- created during the show's hey days will forever flicker on YouTube and in the minds and hearts of game show fans. 

A definitive history on the show will one day be published, and it is my sincere hope that it includes the memories and perspectives of Bob, Janice, Dian, Holly, Kathleen, original show model -turned-artist Anitra Ford and the show's other surviving key players/creative forces on camera and behind-the-scenes. Sadly, many important Price folk -- even some around well before L'Affaire Dian -- have been afraid or unable to comment given all of the litigation surrounding the show. But one day their voices will be heard, their faces seen and their contributions acknowledged -- just as they were by Bob Barker back in the good old days. How nice it would be for Bob to acknowledge them once more -- as Price did him on his 90th birthday, despite controversy in 2010 and 2012 -- and discuss the good, the bad and the, well, not so Beauty-ful, in a way that will bring the Price story full circle.)

Bradley's well-written, nicely-illustrated and hot-off-the-press memoir is available at KathleenBradley.TV. Soon, as per her just-posted promo video below, versions will be available at Amazon.com, too. 

Buy a copy, heat up some Hot Pockets and get ready for some serious sizzle!

My new interview with POP SPEAKING!

So honored to share this fun and probing new interview I just did for the insightful and entertaining blog Pop Speaking. Thanks so much to Ms. Gaynor Paynter for the opportunity to share some of my personal stories about loving Three's Company and meeting and interviewing its stars, including the late, great John Ritter This was quite a trip back for me -- I got, like, deep and cathartic and stuff about how this zany sitcom farce of misunderstandings sustained me as a zany, misunderstood sitcom-farce-loving kid. (I also talk about some of my other projects, including my long-in-the-works biography on John.) If you get a chance to read, I hope you ENJOY ... and my apologies in advance for any necessary therapy thereafter . #comeandknockonourdoor

Happy 65th birthday, John Ritter!

Your fall-down-funny comedy and goodwill forever dance in our hearts.

Retroality's "Reimagine That!" podcast, episode 22! ............................................................ Chris Mann's special guest, Beth Maitland (pt 2 of 2), on loving Jeanne Cooper, enjoying horses with Jess Walton, not embracing Brenda Dickson's new "hurtful" memoir; and: "stairway to heaven" dreams

Listen to episode 22 of "Reimagine That!" here

Beth Maitland (pt 2 of 2) ... "Rethinking the Drama, Part 2" ... In this candid and revealing conclusion of her exclusive interview, Emmy-winning actress-turned-author and Drama Queen Bee creative-living expert Beth Maitland opens up in depth to "Reimagine That!" host and Retroality.TV founder Chris Mann about her dramatic and comedic experiences on and off set during her three-decade-plus tenure as Traci Abbott Connelly on CBS's "The Young and the Restless."



Here, the fan favorite shares amusing, heartwarming and never-before-told memories of working for more than 30 years with the late, great Jeanne Cooper (see 16:42); discusses her 15-year "day job" working behind the scenes on several sitcoms (see 9:12); and spills on her recent spirited Central-Coast animal adventures with fellow horse lover (and ostrich feeder!) Jess Walton (see 28:02).

Maitland also expresses disappointment at not being invited to Katherine Chancellor's funeral (airing Sept. 3 and 4) or yet receiving a related storyline with fellow Emmy winner Walton's illustrious, long-running character, Jill Foster Abbott Fenmore (see 33:13).

And finally, for the first time ever, Maitland breaks her silence about former co-star Brenda Dickson's explosive and "hurtful" new memoir and difficult on-set behavior during her 1983-87 return as the then-villainous Jill Foster Abbott (a role, sans "Abbott," that Dickson originated in 1973-80). (see 22:15)

A sampling of Beth's comments:

On Jeanne Cooper: (Listen at 16:43) "She had this magical way of making everyone feel like they were her favorite. And also she took new actors under her wing. She loved to give advice and help you if you needed to work through something. She was a great sounding board. The door to her dressing room was always open. She always had people in there, sitting and talking ... She was remarkable. I thought there was just a few of us, but as we all shared our stories we found out almost everybody felt the same way. Almost everybody was her special, favorite one. But there were various phases of Jeanne's life that I got to, for three decades, enjoy." 

Listen at 20:11: "She was a big presence. She was a broad. She'd cuss like a sailor. She hadn't in the later years, but she used to smoke like a fiend. And she drank. And she was a broad. My first agent used to play poker with her. (Laughs.) And the stories they had about her early ingenue starlet days in Hollywood -- just cussing and drinking and smoking and playing poker all night -- it was a Hollywood story. She was bigger than life.

And everyone she touched -- even fans have told me, and she was terrific with fans and loved (them) and considered most of them friends. And she would stop to talk to you, and those blue eyes would drill right into you, and you honestly believed that for that moment you were the most important thing to her. She had that gift." 

On the funeral of Katherine Chancellor (listen at 33:13): "I can tell you that Jill and Traci did not have a story in (these episodes) together -- and I was very disappointed. They did bring back many historical characters to be a part of this, but it was pretty modest. And it was my hope that they would take this opportunity, because they had to wait to figure out how they were doing to handle the loss of such a significant character to that story platform. I thought they would find something really amazing to do with having it impact so many different characters in Genoa City. And they have not hit that momentum; that has not been very revealed. So I was not invited to the funeral.

"I also want to leave the door open for (future unrevealed story developments). Likely these farther-reaching things have just not been revealed yet. But I thought it was just gonna be a gobsmacking episode where some bomb was going to be dropped. And I don't think that happened."

Hear Beth talk about Jeanne's giant flying fingernail during the show's Dynasty-esque '80s hey days at 17:28. And, at 18:35, listen to Beth's touching tale of Jeanne -- after waiting 35 years to win her own long-overdue best-actress Emmy -- generously re-introducing her in recent years to "Y&R" cast and crew as "Ms. Beth Maitland, the first actress to win an Emmy for 'The Young and the Restless.'"

On Jess Walton (listen at 28:02): "We hadn't seen each other for a little while ... We shared a dressing room on the day of the Jeanne memorial taping (broadcast in May). She said, 'I want to talk to you ... I see on Facebook that you know Jill Willis and Jaime Jackson, these pioneers (in the humane care and domestic management of horses)." I said, 'Yes, I'm longtime friends of them. They saved the life of a horse that we adopted and rescued. And they're old friends.' And she said, 'Are you kidding?' -- and they are sort of world-famous. And said said, 'Is there any way I could ever meet them?' I said, "Yeah! Come up any time.' She came up to my place, and the two of us and my daughter headed up to their place. They have a beautiful sample paddock paradise on the mountains overlooking the ocean in Lompoc. So we met for lunch and we had like a girls' road trip, a 'Thelma and Louise' road trip."

On what she's learned working behind-the-scenes on sitcoms (listen at 9:21): "I've continued to add to my bag of tricks. Every now and then what we've seen recently are some really cute, funny scenes with Traci and her brothers that have been almost like a sitcom. They talk fast, they tease each other, we make jokes and we poke fun ... and that really helps me lighten up, coming from a dramatic, emotional character."

On Brenda Dickson (listen at 22:15): "Brenda was, in my opinion, always very complicated ... She was always bigger than life. And honestly, we were never close, although she was always very nice to me ... And I am really conflicted about what to say about her because, again, she was always nice to me. But she ... there were antics. Honestly, she was not easy on people. And she was not easy to work with. And she was not a giving, generous actress. And she was very, very ego-driven in terms of how she was treated there, and it made it hard on everyone else. I saw her at the Emmys just a few years ago -- and it was nice to see her and she was very pleasant -- but she seems to be a person who's always had an agenda."

On Brenda Dickson's book (listen at 24:09): "I honestly have not read her book. Although I have read Jeanne's, I haven't read Brenda's -- and I'm sort of not going to. And this is pretty candid, and I hope that it doesn't hurt anyone's feelings, but I really feel like she waited until no one could defend themselves to come out with several issues that were in her book that I think are hurtful to others. And just as a person, I feel like that's cheap. And I'm not saying that Brenda is cheap, but I feel like the gesture is cowardly. And if she had those stories to tell and she had those axes to grind, it seems like the appropriate, mature and brave thing to do is to talk about those things when others can either comment, defend themselves or rectify it. And it seems to me (it's) a little too little to late.

"And I'm so sad to see the wake of pain and hurt feelings that some of the stories in her book have caused. The people who aren't the direct stories in her book -- the family left over, the people left behind that don't have any answers but that this brings a great deal of hurt to them and sort of taints memories for them. I really feel like it's not very brave, and it was kind of a cheap shot. So I just choose not to put that on my radar ... If you wanted to have these things to say, and if it's about getting publicity and getting attention, then do it when people can answer it. You're gonna generate twice the comments. But doing it now just hurts people.

"As an actor you, to play a different character that's not you, you have to kind of think about how they think. Character analysis is a big part of my daily life. To see something that, like you said, is sort of striking out ... you get to the point where, as young adults, you can't blame your past on your parents. You have to start taking responsibility for yourself at some point. You hope sooner than later. And in order to be a productive person -- to be a good mother or wife ... a good other person on the planet -- you kind of have to take responsibility for yourself. And I just worry when people don't seem to be doing that. I feel bad, but again, I have just chosen not to put that on my radar. Because I'm so loyal to other people involved, I don't want those feelings to be even present in my awareness."

Also ... in Chris's monologue opening the show (listen at 1:36), he shares news about the three talented children of the late John Ritter and his first wife and best friend, Nancy Ritter. Their eldest child, son Jason, is adding to his impressive acting repertoire with his starring role in "Us and Them," a new comedy for FOX (slated for early 2014). The youngest of their brood, son Tyler (see him in this funny Old Navy commericial), opens Friday, Sept. 6, at the Malibu Playhouse in his first play, "The Dream of the Burning Boy." And their daughter, Carly, is an emerging artist, too. A folksy, soulful singer-songwriter, she rolled out her premiere CD, titled "Carly Ritter," in late August. On Sept. 3 you can see her perform live at 10 p.m. during her record release show at The Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles. For more info, she her official web site, http://CarlyRitter.virb.com.





Finally, in her "Reawakenings" segment (click file above or listen at 48:48), our resident dream weaver, Yvonne Ryba, discusses dreams about loved ones crossing over or otherwise (a la Jeanne Cooper's poignant final scene as Katherine Chancellor) ascending the "stairway to heaven."



For more info on Yvonne, check out http://YvonneRyba.com

For more info on Beth and links to her Drama Queen Bee products and online community, visit http://BethMaitland.com

Check out a free preview of Beth's new book here!

Host: Chris Mann

Announcer: Linda Kay

Created by: Chris Mann

Producers: Linda Kay, Chris Mann

Copyright 2013 by Chris Mann/Retroality.TV/ReimagineThat.TV/ChrisMann.TV

Retroality's "Reimagine That!" podcast, episode 21! ............................................................ Chris Mann's special guest, Beth Maitland (pt 1 of 2), on returning to "Y&R," reinventing herself as a creative-living brand/author, and seeing changing realities in daytime in the post-soaring-ratings (and egos!) era; also: intuitive "Reawakenings" dream

Listen to the podcast here

Beth Maitland (pt 1 of 2) ... "Rethinking the Drama" ... In this exclusive and candid interview, Emmy-winning actress, author and Drama Queen Bee creative living expert Beth Maitland opens up in depth to "Reimagine That!" host and Retroality.TV founder Chris Mann about her three-decade-plus tenure asTraci Abbott Connelly on CBS's "The Young and the Restless." Recently returning to the iconic daytime drama's canvas for an indefinite stay (much to the viewing public's, including Marie Osmond's, delight), this newly-Twitter-savvy and Facebook-friendly fan favorite discloses how "Y&R" has been "a gift" in her life since joining the series in 1982. 

Though she has not been a full-time player since the mid-'90s (somebody get this lady a contract, STAT!), she has remained in the Genoa City fold off and on since 1999 -- all the while witnessing drastic changes in the daytime television landscape. While "Y&R" has remained TV's number-one soap, and one of four network sudsers to escape cancellation this millennium, Beth cautions that the genre is not out of the woods yet. "Watching the way daytime has changed," she says, "the number of the shows that have been canceled, the few shows that remain, I hope that (the industry) doesn't dishonor daytime and eliminate it entirely. But the writing is on the wall that we're not finished with the change."

Since leaving the show on a full-time basis, this multi-hyphenate talent has reinvented herself as a crafty quilter, a teacher, a horse enthusiast and, most recently, as an instructional book author -- her first tome, "Bewitching Fresh Stitching: Enchanted Needle Series Book One," rolls out in eBook form next week and as a print book in September.

More on this episode to post soon ...

Retroality's "Reimagine That!" podcast, episode 20! ............................................................ Chris Mann's special guest, Jaime Lyn Bauer (part 2 of 2), on William Bell, possibly returning to "The Young and the Restless," reinventing herself in the financial planning sphere; also: Comfort TV blogger & TV historian David Hofstede; "new vista" dreams

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In the conclusion of her in-depth, emotional interview, actress Jaime Lyn Bauer opens up to "Reimagine That!" host and Retroality.TV editor Chris Mann about her at times complicated working relationship with late "Young and the Restless" creator William Bell, her 2002 return to the CBS soap and the possibility of reprising her iconic role of prolific author Lorie Brooks during the show's 40th anniversary season (and beyond). And while she considers writing her own long-awaited autobiography, she shares her experiences reinventing herself following the 2008 stock market crash as a financial services planner for the organization People Helping People.

While admitting in part one of her interview that Bill Bell "hated" her during her first six months on the show in late 1973/early 1974, Jaime Lyn explains that their relationship soon improved and was always professional. "Bill and I were on very warm terms," she says. "But with Bill I was never quite certain. You know, you have to have boundaries with people that are your employers, your producer, your director. You become friendly with them but only to a certain degree ..."

By the early 1980s, when "Y&R" expanded to an hour, Jaime Lyn was one of the only cast members from the series' first few seasons to remain. In 1982, following the birth of her second child and often working six days a week, she told Bell she had had enough and would exercise an out in her contract with CBS.

"I was so exhausted. When I was doing contract negotiations, they had refused to put a ceiling of three shows a week in my contract -- without my permisson. And I couldn't continue working the way I was working ... I wanted to limit it; they wouldn't agree to it. That's why I ended up leaving. As Bill and I were talking, I said, 'Bill, whatever you do, I'm just telling you I feel I'm going to break. And if you lay anything on me about "It's going to ruin this person's career, it's going to ruin this for so-and-so"' -- all this stuff that had happened over the years with my producer or the network telling me this or that," she recalls.

"Bill was so amazing because he had already decided that if I left he was going to fire my entire family and make a new show under the name 'Young and the Restless' -- and he did not tell me that. If he had told me that I would've stayed because I loved the other actors. They were my family, too. I would've protected them. But he didn't. He let me go. And I thanked him, with tears in my eyes ... Several years later I went back to see him and (wife) Lee (Phillip Bell) and sat and told them some of the personal stuff that had been going on, and she had tears in her eyes, rolling down her face. They were so lovely. It's like, real life goes on."

Jaime Lyn's outcome was much better than that of original cast member Brenda Dickson, who returned to "Y&R" in 1983 after a three-year hiatus -- only to be unceremoniously fired during the 1986-87 season after a dispute with her producers. Dickson discussed her contentious departure in a 2001 episode of E! True Hollywood Story. This spring, she released an e-book of her new tell-all tome, My True Hidden Hollywood Story: My Memoir of Sexual Harassment, Blacklisting and Love Affairs with Some of the Most Powerful Men in Hollywood. In the book (out soon in hardback), Dickson claims she had an affair with Bell in early 1973, that he wrongfully fired her in 1986 and that the Bell family has sought vengeance against her in the decades since. (Bell died in 2005.)

"I have no idea what she said," Jaime Lyn, apparently unaware of the alleged 1973 affair and sexual harassment claims, says of Dickson's recent accounts. "Let's face it -- we were all very young. And, you know, when you're young you're kind of messed up. You've got all of your family issues from childhood and you haven't processed them all yet, and yet you have to act like an adult and you have to be in the real world. So we had a lot of drama going on. And Brenda was young with the rest of us. And I didn't hang out with her, so I didn't know what any of her personal drama was. Bill could be tough. You weren't sure sometimes if you could trust him. At least that was always in my mind. I was friendly and we were close up to a degree but there always was that professionalism that always was maintained. I would say that I wasn't always sure I could trust what he was saying. At the same time in the end what I saw was he made a great sacrifice, and he put me and my wholeness and personal well-being before the show -- and that was a game-changer altogether."

Jaime Lyn also discusses her brief 2002 return to "Y&R" and reveals how much she enjoyed working with Peter Bergman, who took over the role of Jack Abbott from the late Terry Lester in 1989. She also discloses that show producers approached her agent in January, asking if she was available to film during a specific week in February (apparently for the show's special 40th anniversary programming this spring). "So I stayed in town -- because I'd been planning to leave town -- and I waited for the call and never got it. So I have no idea what happened or what the thinking process was. But I was disappointed."

She is still open to the invitation to return as Lorie. "I'd love (returning). I'd love it. It would be great if she just moved back to town." With Michelle Stafford leaving the show next month, would Jaime Lyn enjoy rekindling Lorie's old romantic ties to Bergman's Jack Abbott? "That would be fun. That would be a blast," she says. "Because he was lovely to work with. It was so natural and so easy -- and just so fun, too, (especially) the stuff with Nikki. And I'd never worked with him before. I thought those were some of the best scenes" during Lorie's 2002 return. "Gee," Jaime Lyn adds, "if only you could put it in (producers') ear."

... In our "Reality Reimagined" segment, TV historian and author David Hofestede talks about his classic television blog Comfort TV. After penning several books on the medium, David explains how in this digital (and sadly, for the most part, post-TV-book) age he has created a space online to share his passion for '50s, '60s, '70s and '80s television.

... Finally, in our "Reawakenings" segment, our resident dream weaver Yvonne Ryba interpets two of her brief but potent sleep-time vignettes that inspired her to re-envision her life and all of its offerings.

Host: Chris Mann

Announcer: Linda Kay

Created by: Chris Mann

Producers: Linda Kay, Chris Mann

Copyright 2013 by Chris Mann/Retroality.TV (http://Retroality.TV)

Retroality's "Reimagine That!" podcast, episode 19! ............................................................ Chris Mann's special guest, Jaime Lyn Bauer (part 1 of 2), on loving the late Jeanne Cooper, developing Lorie Brooks, experiencing "Y&R" fame, returning to "DOOL"; also: "Women's Eye" host Stacey Gualandi

Hear episode 19 of "Reimagine That!" here

Jaime Lyn Bauer (pt 1 of 2) ... In this exclusive, in-depth and at times emotional interview, iconic soap starJaime Lyn Bauer opens up to "Reimagine That!" host and Retroality.TV editor Chris Mann about her love for the late Jeanne Cooper, her experiences with TV's Katherine Chancellor behind-the-scenes at "The Young & the Restless" and in the play "Plaza Suite," and her "life lesson" in not having reached out to the ailing actress when receiving her phone number just weeks prior to her death earlier this month.

As Cooper's current co-stars gather to celebrate her life in a one-hour "Y&R" tribute airing on May 28, Jaime reveals that the TV legend was an intimate comrade, a mentor and a mother figure -- in spite of the well-documented personal travails, including alcoholism, that plagued Cooper's life off-camera during her first decade on the CBS daytime drama. (Listen at 20:44.)

"I loved Jeanne," Jaime Lyn says, choking back tears. "She was a very important person in my life. She saved me through some of my worst years. She befriended me, she mothered me. She was an incredible woman. And she was very troubled at that time as well, in her personal life. And we were good for each other. We hung out a lot. I even dated Corbin, her son, for a while, and she was graciously alright with it."

Joining "Y&R" in December 1973 -- a month after Jeanne premiered as the soap's grande dame -- Jaime Lyn quickly shot to fame as the show's original bad girl-turned-heroine, Lauralee "Lorie" Brooks." This character, named after series creator William Bell's daughter, soon became the half-hour soap's centerpiece. Jaime Lyn reveals how she developed the sexual, sophisticated and "bad-seed" character in part by observing men and women "play all these silly games" at the Playboy Mansion.

The actress's and her alter ego's popularity skyrocketed when she became part of daytime TV supercouple Lorie and Lance. But Lance's original portrayer -- "Bold and the Beautiful" star John McCook, who also shares his remembrances of Jeanne in the May 28 "Y&R" tribute -- was but one of Lorie's loves. In the first part of Jaime's "Reimagine That!" interview, she fondly recalls her friendship with actor Tom Selleck, who played Lorie's publisher-turned-paramour Jed Andrews before hitting it big in primetime.

Jaime Lyn also explains the toll the ever-increasing "Y&R" workload took on her -- the show expanded to an hour in 1980 -- leading her to exit the show 1982. In addition, she shares what her then-boyfriend Henry Winkler taught her in dealing with fame and aggressive fans in the 1970s. And she reveals how Leslie Neilsen came to the rescue when one fan became threateningly physical in a Century City high-rise apartment lobby while she took a break from filming the 1975 pilot of the primetime series "S.W.A.T." "This woman came down from having just watched me on ("Y&R")," she recalls. "I'm sitting in this wingback chair, and she came and she grabbed my face in her hand -- so I couldn't move. Because of the wingback, I can't even get up. And she's screaming at me at how horrible I am as Lorie."

Finally, in this first half of her two-part interview, the now-Facebook-savvy Jaime Lyn talks about her brief return last month (see also here and here) as ex-psychiatric patient Dr. Laura Horton in "Days of Our Lives," and discloses just how much the process of filming soaps has changed since she left that series after six seasons in 1999. (She also reprised the role briefly in 2003 and 2010.)

... In our "Reality Reimagined" segment (listen at 50:10), former "Inside Edition" correspondent Stacey Gualandi talks about her true Hollywood stories -- as a hard news reporter, celebrity interviewer and "Match Game 1990" contestant" -- and shares how she reinvented herself as a Vegas-based online media anchor and writer, behind-the-scenes TV producer and now host of the successful Women's Eye radio show. This busy, enterprising woman's star continues to rise.

... And finally, in her "Reawakenings" segment (listen at 1:14:30) our resident dream weaver, Yvonne Ryba, interprets a shopping-mall-centered dream rich with symbols, metaphors and "clues" that led her to expand her horizons and manifest her living dreams in the 1990s.

Host: Chris Mann

Announcer: Linda Kay

Created by: Chris Mann

Producers: Linda Kay, Chris Mann

Copyright 2013 by Chris Mann/Retroality.TV (http://Retroality.TV)