Names and faces
▪ Dwayne Johnson says he gets why people have criticized him and Oprah Winfrey for asking the public to donate to their Maui fund. “When we first launched the fund, there was some backlash,” Johnson said in a video posted Sunday to his Instagram. “I get it and I completely understand, and I could’ve been better — and next time I will be better.” The WWE champion said he remembers how it feels when money is tight, commenting, “The last thing you want to hear when you’re living paycheck to paycheck is someone asking you for money, especially when the person asking you for money already has a lot of money.” Johnson and Winfrey started the People’s Fund of Maui in August, days after wildfires tore through West Maui, including Lahaina, where flames destroyed houses, businesses and historic, cultural landmarks. The fund connects donations directly to people affected by the wildfires in the form of $1,200 monthly checks. To start the fund, the pair of celebrities donated $10 million each to seed the charitable foundation. For the rest, Johnson and Winfrey asked the public for help. During his apology, Johnson also announced that the first round of monthly checks has been given to “the thousands and thousands of survivors” over the last several weeks. He shared how his part in the rebuilding effort with others is inspired by his culture and said it is a “reflection of who we are as Polynesian people.”
▪ Returning to set after more than 25 years away from ABC’s “General Hospital” was “really weird,” an odd mix of familiarity with essentially being new, Rena Sofer said. “Just walking around the halls, I’m looking at the names on the dressing rooms and so many I remembered and so many I had no idea. … It was a little discomforting, but it was also a little deja vu,” she recounted. One name she is very familiar with is Wally Kurth, who still plays Ned on the show. Sofer and Kurth were married for a short time after meeting on “General Hospital.” All it took to slip into the character was to pick out Lois’ signature nails: “I put the nails on, I was done. The nails are such a part of who she is.” Sofer recognizes how special it is for an actor’s work to resonate with people. “I played Lois for just under three years … I’m proud of who she is. I’m proud to have played her,” she said of the character she began playing in 1993. “If Lois were a real human being, I would hope she’d want to be my friend.”