Maurice Benard and Stephen A. Smith Talk GH & Building A Family After Loss

Posted on February 27, 2023

The two friends and GH co-stars experience intense outbursts while discussing the value of support in the wake of loss and when friends turn into family.

banner

Stephen A. Smith, an American sports personality and presenter for ESPN, has been a General Hospital devotee for more than 40 years. He jumped at the opportunity to make a cameo appearance on his beloved daytime soap in 2007, but was unhappy when Sonny Corinthos was left out. Years later, he was asked to return in a scene with Maurice Benard, and with the role of Brick, he won over the actor and executive director, Frank Valentini. The remainder is Port Charles’ past. Smith sat down to converse with the thespian for this week’s State Of Mind episode of Benard’s video show.

Stephen A. Smith: Landing The Role Of A Lifetime

Smith, who had four elder sisters, used to watch General Hospital while doing his schoolwork. The mob leader was one of his favorite characters. The occasional actor is no novice to television as a sports commentator and presenter, but he could hardly control his excitement when he received the call.

He recalled the shooting day. “I completed the opening sequences, and you said, “You nailed it. The senior producer, Frank Valentini, rushed down and asked, “How much time do you have to do this? This is a part we want to keep coming back to.

Smith described how he remained composed despite the stress of working with his hero and during the daylight. “And I recalled the reasons for my achievement in the situation. I went back to the man who had been binge-watching General Hospital for the previous 40 years. And I understood what my job was meant to be with Sonny. It helped me.

The outspoken reporter managed to keep his anxiety under control and nailed the scenario. “It was a fantasy come true for me. Sonny Corinthos, my guy, oh my. I am eager. I am eager. I am eager. Once I arrived there, I was so touched by your generosity. You were so gracious.

Brick, the surveillance expert, has since been used frequently to assist Sonny, including when the mobster needed to track down calls from Russia in order to determine that Patient Six was Jason Morgan (played by Steve Burton), when he needed to fix Mike Corbin’s (Max Gail) phone because his Alzheimer’s disease was getting worse, when he needed to gather information on Cyrus Renault (Jeff Kober), when he needed to find Julian Jerome (William deVry), and even when The skilled engineer has a devoted following.

When Friends Become Family After Loss

Stephen A. Smith is also a New York Times bestselling author of Straight Shooter: A Memoir Of Second Chances and First Takes, a biography that discusses everything from his struggle and sacrifice to become a TV and radio success to growing up with a negligent father and a devoted and loving mother, losing his older brother, Basil, to how he battled depression after the death of his mother to cancer in 2017.

A few days before his State Of Mind interview, the multi-talented actor learned that his novel had won the top position. “I am the New York Times’ Best Seller seated here today.” He was still processing the achievement. “Everyone else is having fun, but not me. I have my sister, who I adore with all of my being. She is truly amazing. Juve, my security, is like a sibling to me. My sister, sibling, lady, relatives, friends—everyone is having a party! Just glad will do.

It was an intense whirlwind to write the novel. “I am aware of the efforts I made to compose that work. My work was not ghostwritten. It was a novel I authored. Every phrase is mine. That audio was mine. I was the one who wrote about my mother’s passing in detail. relived the existence of my mum. The sum she was forced to pay as a result of my father’s actions and inactions.

The deep effect it had on my friends and family because they were in my immediate vicinity but were unaware of what was going on in my mind, my heart, or the burden I was bearing every single day. He made an effort to keep his intense feelings from Benard and the other people who had grown to be family to him.

So, Maurice Benard, contact me when I get to this part, he said. “Eric Braeden and my family. Victor Newman, Young and the Restless. Everybody. When they said I had reached the New York Times Best Seller List on Wednesday, I left. And when I simply strolled away, nobody noticed me.

Smith kept going. I turned and left. I simply walked into my room, glanced in the mirror, and let the tears fall. I did that because, on the day of my mother’s birthday, I was designated the New York Times Best Seller. That was the day that it occurred.

The installment of the buddies and siblings in healing covered a lot more ground. Sports, Smith’s passion and Benard’s delight, took up the entirety of the next twenty minutes as the two talked about boxing, basketball, football, famous interview highlights, motivational athletes, and the Super Bowl scandal. Learn more about his successes, setbacks, and defeats.

The SportsCenter commentator opened up deeply and honestly about the loss of his mother, the resentment he felt for his father, and how friends and the affection of his two girls, Samantha and Nyla, helped him through it all. Smith didn’t hold back when discussing current and important societal problems, such as Rihanna’s Super Bowl performance and Tyrene Nichols’ tragic death at the hands of Memphis police, in his characteristic no-nonsense manner.

The extended discussion on State Of Mind is something that fans of GH and sports won’t want to skip. Follow Stephen A. Smith on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Click here to read his biography. Don’t forget to Tweet, Instagram, and TikTok Maurice Benard. Go to Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube to connect to and follow State Of Mind.

READ NEXT:

Post Views: 15

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *