Michael Dietz - and the adorable Dr. Joe - finally are having their day in the sun
From Soaps In Depth, 1/26/99
Rarely does a native East Coaster adapt to California living as effortlessly as has Michael Dietz. Just a year and a half ago, the Pittsburgh native headed West to join PC after an unfulfilling stint as big-business boy wonder Alan-Michael Spaulding on the Manhattan-based Guiding Light. But time certainly has healed that old wound. Today, the actor’s endearing portrayal of Dr. Joe Scanlon has earned him fan’s devotion and a sizzling frontburner storyline with no less than two luscious leading ladies. "It’s obviously much better than GL because being a recast [for Rick Hearst] was so difficult," he admits. "Everything’s 10 million times better now. And it’s especially good to be in Los Angeles and not New York!"
What’s his beef with the Big Apple, you might ask. Dietz never could find any peace and quiet in the city that never sleeps. "You basically just go from building to building in a cab there," he laments, "and everybody you know lives within a one-mile radius. That drove me nuts!"
But residing in Southern California, on the other hand, is a whole different ball game. It means that the soap star can sparkle on television every day without losing sight of life’s simpler pleasures. "It’s nice hearing birds in the morning and crickets at night," he says with a smile.
HOUSE BEAUTIFUL
PAPA JOE
Even if Joe manages to avoid repeating his alcoholic papa’s mistakes, paternal perfection still may prove elusive. "If anything, maybe Joe will be too loving and protective," Dietz speculates. "He might not be able to let Neil go and be his own man."
Of course, Joe’s got more immediate problems - like trying to get fiancee Karen to the altar unscathed. Next month, look for Courtney to forge an unholy alliance with Joe’s older brother, Frank in hopes of dividing the happy couple. How would Dietz handle his alter ego’s scheming ex and belligerent big bro? "A fistfight between Joe and Frank would be great," he laughs. "Karen could be in the background at the same time, so we’d be tagging each other in to take turns beating Courtney and Frank up. It’d be like a big wrestling match!"
Fisticuff fancies aside, Dietz loves the latest wrinkles in the fabric of his character’s universe. "Ultimately, I would love to see Joe and Karen married," he says, "but there needs to be a lot more friction between them, so that it’s a bigger climax when they finally do get together."
Well, at least Dietz is guaranteed to play the blushing groom at one happy wedding this year - even if it isn’t Joe’s.
A longtime renter, Dietz hopes to own his own home within the next year. He sums up his idea of a dream house in one word: huge! "I’d like a modern place with at least five or six bedrooms," he grins. "Seclusion is big with me. I like not hearing cars or seeing my neighbors. Plus, sunshine and a deck to sit out and have breakfast on - that’s the stuff I need in a house."
Of course, Dietz won’t occupy his roomy rural mansion alone. No doubt, he’s also considering the wishes of fiancee Arianne Zuker. And though he’s been taciturn on the subject of their headline-making engagement, it’s clear that the prospect of marriage agrees with him. In fact, he’s even looking forward to the next step: parenthood. "I absolutely adore children," he confesses. "I could sit and just watch a kids for hours. They’re so innocent, naïve, and wonderful. The fact that [he or she] would be mine, someone that I played a part in creating, is amazing to me. So I personally cannot wait to have my own child. I know I’ll make a great father."
Dietz seems to have instilled some of that confidence in Joe, who recently was thrilled to learn that he’s 8-year-old Neil’s daddy. While instant fatherhood would throw most guys for a loop, the Scanlon scion isn’t more guys. "Joe really resents that his father wasn’t around for him," the actor suggests. "Now, he sees a chance to make it right with his own son."
