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didn't really happen that fast, though. Things were changing in John's life. Lots of things. To start from the beginningwhat originally brought John into the bright lights of stage, television, and film, and what came about to bring about his change in personas?

He was born in the 1950s. At a point where there was no male figure in his life, his mother worked as assistant to the famous Eartha Kitt, and she and John lived with her. He called Eartha the "head of the household," and said she was "stubborn and agressive in her way, but very smart." It was a "unique" atmosphere, since the head of their home "was a black woman." John became accustomed early on to "women and blacks in positions of power."

He, his mother, and Eartha went from theater to theater, and, as he put it, acting "just seemed like . . . what grown ups did." So when he grew up, John followed suit. He went to college, then to drama school in London. He did a considerable amount of regional theatre before going on to Broadway.

How did he make the transition to soap operas?

He auditioned. As John Martinuzzi, he auditioned six times for the role of Stavros Cassadine. Though he had been born John James Morrissey III, his parents divorced and his mother ultimately remarried. He was adopted by his stepfather and lived as John Martinuzzi well into adulthoodand notoriety as an American actor, a time which had started with these auditions.

John said, "By the time it got to the end" of the casting process for the part of Stavros, "I had come to be what they imagined, and they changed some dialogue for me and when I would improvise, they would add some of what I said." Stavros was uniquely his, and even though he held that part for only a year or so, he put an irresistible stamp on the character . . . so much so that, over 25 years later, viewers still talk about "John Martinuzzi" and his portrayal of Stavros Cassadine. And the next thing they want to know is, "Whatever happened to him?"

After his stint on General Hospital, and then Guiding Light, and other less-visible roles, John moved from in front of the cameras to behind them as a movie producer. During this time, he made the decision to return to his roots. Now the name change. It came about when he fell in love and asked his sweetheart to marry him.

"Will you take my name?" he asked her.

"Not the Italian one," she replied, "but I'll take your real name." He acquiesced, and returned to his birth name. For about 14 years, John James Morrissey III was a married

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