June 2006 - The Parklander Magazine

By Charlene KeelRealMenWatch Soaps!And They Don’t Care Who Knows It...Vito Raneri has watched General Hospital forover half his life. This 37-year-old, die-hardfan is a partner in Dominic’s II Pizza & Pastain Boca Raton and every day at 3:00 p.m., theTV in his pizza parlor is on. His wife Jenniferand his employees have also become fans.Sometimes his buddies—Paul, the carpetcleaner and Steve, the locksmith—will stop infor a slice of pizza and a taste of daytimedrama, mostly because of the characterplayed by actor Maurice Benard.“Sonny Corinthos is a tough guy with a suave, classy attitude,”says Raneri. “He’s got pizzazz and he doesn’t take anythingoff anybody. That’s what I like about him. And Benard’s a hellof an actor.”Originally from the Ridgewood section of Queens, NY,Vito moved to South Florida as a kid with his parents who wereseeking a better life. He has been part of Dominic’s II for 15 years.Jennifer is a Miami native and they work together in the restaurant.“We also TiVo the show,” she says. “If we get busy and miss a scene,we watch it again at night.”Unlike men who won’t admit they watch soaps because they don’twant to be called “sissies” Vito welcomes the emotions dramatizedon General Hospital. And nobody would dare call him a girly-girl.“I cry at those emotional scenes,” he says. “I cried when Sam toldAlexis that she’s Sam’s mom. I’m not ashamed. I love that stuff.Italian guys portray a tough, macho attitude but inside—”Jennifer interjects, “—they’re soft and mushy.”“I work 60 hours a week,” Vito says. “Watching General Hospitalis my sanity time. I can forget about everything else. It’s like amental vacation.”RabbiDan LevinRabbi Dan Levin, the spiritual leader at TempleBeth El in Boca Raton, agrees with him and admitsthat General Hospital is his “guilty pleasure.” Levinhas been watching the show since he was about four,he says, when he was hanging out with his mom asshe folded laundry.The soft-spoken rabbi thinks real men watch soapsbecause, “It’s fun to escape into those crazy worlds.”And he believes there are life lessons to be derived. “Just abouteverything characters think is an ultimate consequence hardly everis,” he observes. “In real life, we celebrate justice, love, family andcompassion. Soaps, on occasion, celebrate those values. That’s whenit’s most satisfying for me.”His favorite character is Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary), wholives life on his own terms. “He’s never afraid to be himself eventhough he’s always trying to figure out who that is,” says Levin.Vito Raneri also likes Luke Spencer because he’s a survivor,and because of his flair for comedy. Would he continue to watchif Sonny got killed off? “He’d be hard to replace,” Vito surmises.But he also likes hit man Jason Quartermaine (Steve Burton), andVito and his staff watchGeneral Hospitalevery day at 3pmhe’ll be glad when the current gangster turfwar is over because, “Jason is Sonny’s bestfriend and it should stay that way.”Word up to writers: If Vito could create astoryline for Sonny, he’d have him get ittogether with Jason and separate from Emily(Natalia Livingston), Jason’s sister.“She’s too soft for him,” Raneri maintains.“He’s blinded by lust. Jason has never askedSonny for anything except to give up Emily,who is Jason’s sister. I’d put Sonny withsomeone strong like Alexis. And he can’t get out of the business, likehe’s talking now. He’s in the mob. The only way he can get out is bygetting killed. He’s got to keep that dark side. That’s whateverybody loves about him.”Maurice BenardMaurice Benard sounded sincerely pleased when we told himthat the inspiration for this article is Vito Raneri, who watches theshow mainly because of the character Benard plays on GeneralHospital. Born in San Francisco to parents who had immigrated fromSan Salvador and Nicaragua, Benard went to work right after highschool. Some modeling gigs led to a commercial, which ledto acting.His credits include feature films Lethal Charm, Ruby and Mi VidaLoca; TV movies, Lucy & Desi: Before the Laughter and To Face Her Past;and daytime TV series, All My Children and General Hospital, forwhich he won an Emmy.Completely open about his lifelong battle with manic depression,he is a spokesperson for the Depression and Bipolar SupportAlliance and Benard has campaigned for bipolar disorderawareness for the National Mental Health Association. Maurice andwife Paula (whom he met when he was 22 and she was 16) havethree children, Joshua, Cailey and Cassidy, and a menagerie of pets.the Parklander: Why do you think real menwatch soaps?Maurice Benard: A lot of guys like to check out the women. I thinkthey start watching for that, and then find other characterswho intrigue them.What’s the best thing about being on a soap?When you get to play a character you love, and when it’s written foryou. And the hours are incredible.What’s the worst thing about being on a soap?When you get storylines you’re not into, that makesit difficult. Thank God, for me there havn’t been toomany of those.There’s a whole group of fans who’d like to see you getback with Alexis. Any chance of that happening?That’s kind of…been there, done that. Right now, Emily is perfectfor Sonny—for him to have someone who loves himunconditionally. He has needed that.22the PARKLANDER