Soap Opera Weekly
April 15, 2003
Applause, Applause

Catherine Hickland
Lindsay, One Life to Live

Outstanding performer for the week of March 17

The lowest point of Lindsay’s life – shooting ex-husband Sam – was one of the high points of portrayer Catherine Hickland’s career. Intensely dramatic situations such as this can be treacherous for an actor, but Hickland treaded carefully to reach her target without any missteps.

When Lindsay returned to the crime scene, Hickland’s eyes expressed Lindsay’s shock and horror as she realized she had shot the wrong man. Hickland’s voice was cool as Lindsay spicily recounted to Bo her actions that evening, but broke when she got to Sam’s name. “I…heard…him…say…it was…Sam,” she heaved between sobs, tears streaming down her face. Hickland skillfully conveyed both Lindsay’s grief over losing Sam and her secret guilt for having pulled the trigger.

Like many people who have lost a loved one, Lindsay switched back and forth from autopilot to overwhelming sadness. And for once, everything wasn’t all about Lindsay – she was her most emotional when she talked about her kids. “He was the father of my children!” she shouted at Mitch, finally releasing her rage. “It is never going to be the same again.”

Most heartbreaking was when Lindsay told Jen that her father had been killed. Jessica Morris was superb, showing us Jen at her rawest as she wailed for her dad. The women embraced, awash in tears as Lindsay stroked Jen’s hair and whispered, “I’m sorry.” Jen couldn’t see her mom’s face, but the audience could, and it was obvious from Hickland’s expression that Lindsay was apologizing for much more than Jen realized.