{alltv} Ted King Hits One Life to Live for a Mysterious New Role

Thursday, January 13, 2011

{alltv} Ted King Hits One Life to Live for a Mysterious New Role

Vive la difference! Former General Hospital baddie Ted King is cleaning up his act and moving to One Life to Live on January 21 as a struggling Parisian artist simply known as Tomas. The mystery man's last name is hush-hush for now because it'll eventually be revealed that he's related to a certain someone in Llanview. He'll also be the new love interest for Blair Cramer, the heartbreak heroine played by Kassie DePaiva. The plot: Blair jets to Paris to track down Tomas — whom she's never met — to find out why he painted a portrait of her. It's not just any portrait, but one copied from a photo taken of Blair at one of her weddings to Todd (back when Roger Howarth was playing the role...cue the Howarth rumors!).

"I'm turning my world upside down for this job," says King, who became a dad for the first time this past October and then had to relocate his wife and newborn from L.A. to New York. Yes, the deal is that good. "I was negotiating with another soap when I got the offer from OLTL," King says. "[Exec producer] Frank Valentini told me everything I wanted to hear. That included an opportunity you don't often get in this business: I got to co-create the role. Hopefully, we can carve out something together that's really special."

Tomas, he says, is a recluse with a secret much bigger than his connection to Llanview. "He's a little out of touch with reality — the kind of guy who'll go buy a beautiful bottle of Bordeaux instead of paying his rent," King says. "I love the character's spontaneity. He wants to live in the moment and doesn't care about the practical things in life."

And he's ripe for the pickin'. Says King: "Tomas and Blair sit down and share some wine and it's clear she's on a bigger journey in life, one that's about much more than a painting. She's looking to connect with someone on a whole other level. It's beautifully written."