~March 30, 1999~
By Robert Waldron
As They Celebrate Their 9-Year Anniversary, Scott And Melissa Reeves Open Up About Being Married…With Children, Off-Screen And On
As They Celebrate Their 9-Year Anniversary, Scott And Melissa Reeves Open Up About Being Married…With Children, Off-Screen And On
They were soaps’ sweetheart couple, Scott Reeves has been playing YOUNG AND RESTLESS’s Ryan for nearly eight years; Melissa Reeves was the hugely popular heroine Jennifer on DAYS OF OUR LIVES from 1985-95. In 1994, they even took home twin Soap Opera Digest Awards for Outstanding Younger Leading Actor and Hottest Female Star. But the very public chapter of their fairy-tale marriage came to close after Melissa’s abrupt departure from DAYS in 1995. Back then, the couple released a brief statement expressing Melissa’s intention to devote more time to her family, particularly daughter, Emily, then 2. And they’ve kept a low profile ever since.
In the year-and-a-half that followed her DAYS exit, Melissa, who was still under contract to the show, was entangled in a legal battle with Corday Productions. When the suit was eventually settled out of court, the job offers came in. But Melissa was content staying home with her family – which now includes 20-month-old Larry. “At that time, Missy had no interest in going back to work at all,” says Scott now during a joint interview with the couple. “The difference we saw in Emily was amazing. I think that opened both of our eyes. We realized how important it is for one of us to be an at-home parent. It didn’t matter how we got to that point, but once we had reached it, we saw the difference it made in Emily and her behavior. Everything about her changed. Mommy was home. Mommy was able to take her to pre-school and pick her up. Fortunately, with my job on Y&R, I’m also able to be home more often than the average person. So we get to be together with our children. We consider it a privilege and a blessing. The family is our first priority now."
This month marks the Reeves’ ninth wedding anniversary. Scott and Melissa, who are in their early 30s, marvel now at how much they’ve grown since they said, “I do.” “We were both young and going full-board with our careers,” explains Scott. “I see us as kids back then. Between the ages of 23 and 27, you go through so many changes in life and in yourself. But when you get married to someone that young, it really gives you the chance to get to know them. We’ve both gone through changes. We just happened to be married, so we went through them together.” Any regrets? “I wouldn’t change anything because our experiences have made us who we are today,” smiles Scott.
Melissa wouldn’t change anything, either, though her respect for stay-at-home moms has increased tenfold. “It’s no easy job!” she exclaims, “I thought, ‘This is going to be a breeze.’ But I learned that the hardest job on the face of the earth is being a full-time mom; I don’t care what anybody says. It’s also the most rewarding job.”
A typical day for Melissa includes spending time at Emily’s school, as well as tending to Larry. “There’s the constant challenge of keeping a level of patience the entire day with an 20-month-old boy,” she grins, “but he’s a good boy!” With Emily in school for several hours a day, Melissa points out, “It’s almost like having an only child because Larry is the only child at home. But when we have another one, it’ll be a little closer together.”
Another one? How many children would the couple like to have? “Four,” Scott quickly answers.
Of course, four children might seem like a piece of cake to the Reeveses, who recently shot the ABC TV movie, HALF A DOZEN BABIES, set to air on May 17. It is based on the Dilleys, a real-life couple raising sextuplets. Both actors had to read for their parts. “We thought, ‘What if one gets it and the other doesn’t?’” recalls Melissa. “We were nervous about that. We decided that if only one got cast, it’ll be great. So we were really happy when they chose both of us.”
Despite the fact that the Reeveses met while they were both working on DAYS, the TV movie was the first time they exchanged significant dialogue as actors. “The only other time we were ever in a scene together, I don’t think we said two words to one another,” laughs Scott, who briefly played DAYS’s Jake. “I vividly remember the scene Missy and I were in on DAYS. We were on the beach. I was with Charlotte Ross [ex-Eve], and Missy was with Billy Warlock [ex-Frankie; now A.J. on GENERAL HOSPITAL]. She was standing behind Frankie, who was having a confrontation with Jake.”
It wasn’t until Scott left DAYS that he impulsively invited Melissa to a small get-together at his home. “The exact date was February 24, 1989,” motes Scott. By April Fools’ Day, the couple was in love – and Scott, who was leaving for two months to film a Friday the 13th movie in Toronto, proposed marriage. Melissa accepted. “Missy came up every weekend,” recalls Scott. They made plans to marry the following February, on the 24th.
They were forced to postpone the wedding after Scott suffered two severe seizures, both witnessed by Melissa. “I had the first seizure in my sleep, while I was taking a nap. Missy thought I was joking around,” says Scott. Because he had no recollection of the seizure, they dismissed it. “Five months later, I had another seizure, only worse,” says Scott. “Missy called my parents and they rushed me to the hospital. Two days later, on January 23, I had brain surgery for an abscess that had developed from a sinus infection. It was pressing on an area of the brain.” Each day before work, Melissa was at the hospital. “She was there every step of the way,” shares Scott. Finally, on March 23, 1990, Scott and Melissa married.
Now, nine years later, Melissa confesses to jitters, wondering what the reaction will be to her first on-camera appearance since leaving DAYS in 1995. “I’m really nervous,” she confides. “There’s the feeling that everyone’s going to be looking with a magnifying glass.”
She can count on the support of her fans, who have never stopped asking about her. “There are so many times when you’re working on a soap that you don’t know if you’re doing a good job,” she says. “So we really rely on the fans’ input. To have them support me through these years of not working makes me feel that maybe I was doing my job right, that they might still be interested and will want to see what I’m doing. So I’m keeping my fingers crossed that they’ll all watch the TV movie. I hope I can make them feel the same way I did on DAYS.”
Former DAYS Head Writer James E. Reilly, whose new soap, PASSIONS, is set to premiere on NBC in May, has said that Melissa’s name has come up during casting discussions. “I love hearing that,” says Melissa. “I loved it when James Reilly was writing for me on DAYS. I’d love to work for him again. But my thoughts have changed so much as far as working 50 weeks a year on a soap schedule, especially [regarding] my kids. I know that there are a lot of moms who have to work. It’s important for them. But having not worked, I see how important it is for me to be there for my kids. Being on a soap is a great job, but I really enjoy raising my kids and taking responsibility for them.”
"If it could happen in a way that wasn’t detrimental to our family, great,” Scott says of his wife returning to daytime. “But we would never put our family’s well-being in jeopardy for it.”
For now, Scott and Melissa view their TV movie as a wonderful opportunity to merge their professional and personal lives. “It’s great,” Scott enthuses. “We’re playing a husband and wife with children. It’s something we can definitely relate to!”
Through The Years
The Reeveses have graced our cover on three other occasions (not to mention the many times they have been featured with other real-life couples). Always apparent has been their strong devotion to each other.
“You have to go through all the bad relationships so that when the right one comes along, you just know.” – Melissa, 1992
”We need to be tighter by ourselves periodically.” – Scott, 1993
“Scott is always taking care of the domestic stuff. If a bill comes and Scott doesn’t pay it that night, he won’t sleep.” – Melissa, 1994