I just got the April 5,2005 issue of Soap Opera Weekly and it announces that Benjamin Henderickson is returning as Hal.Randy's last airdate hasn't been given.I'm not happy.

I'm not happy either.... Maybe this means we'll see Randy on USAR-1.

That's too bad, but on the other hand they weren't having him often enough to make it worthwhile to watch, unless you were watching anyway before. And the storyline really needed work, imo. I'd like to see him in a show that makes better use of his talents. I'm going to just consider it 5 more hours a week when I can do something else, without the thousands of commercials and those other annoying characters getting all the screen time. I wonder if he'll be back or if that 1 minute scene on March 8 was his last one? He did have some great scenes these past 6 months and better ones back in 2003 when he subbed for Ben Hendrickson. I can watch the tapes of that when I need a Randy fix. Did it say that Ben was coming back in the article? That wouldn't be too bad.

Here's the article:
In a shocking behind-the scenes move at As The World Turns,Emmy-winner Benjamin Henderickson is returning as Hal,the role he created in 1985,in May.When Henderickson quit ATWT last September after a contract dispute,Randolph Mantooth assumed the role on a recurring basis."I guess I was just keeping the bench warm for him",remarks Mantooth."I wish him all the best .They're a great group to work with.I'll miss them all"."All of us at As The World Turns would like to thank Randy for his consummate professionalism and tremendous talent",executive Chris Goutman says."It's the hardest thing in the world to step in and take over a role that's been played by it's orginator for 20 years.Randy has done this twice,each time with grace and humor,and has put his own unique mark on the role of Hal.We are incredibly grateful.

Crap!.......I really loved being able to see Randy on TV again, who knows when he'll be on TV again...

This site says that Benjamin starts filming in May and should air in July.

http://www.soapcity.com/atwt/news_events/detail_27600092.jhtml

So I'll keep watching to see if he's got at least a few scenes between now and July. I guess the snail mail address for fan mail is still good. I still can't believe the people in charge of ATWT haven't given him more of a storyline. I hope something really good for him will come his way soon. I'd enjoy seeing him in anything.

I am really not sad to see him go..I love soaps but sopa is very slow moving and I just don't enjoy watching it. I don't think they gave him a chance, his character didn't have a thing to do and I am really hoping now that he's done with this someone will offer him something much better elsewhere. He certainly deserves it.

I emailed As The World Turns to tell them in a way I was glad Randy was off... Now I won't have to watch it anymore, since he was the only reason I watched to begin with. They missed their chance, he is great at soaps, they just didn't utilize him enough. Can't wait to see where he ends up next, USAR1 would be great!

You know, you're absolutely right. It's not a very good show, not the actors fault for the most part, its the writing that is just horrible. I really will miss seeing Randy, but he deserves better, they gave him crappy lines, he is better than that. I hope he gets something different. Plus, now he doesn't have to be away from Kristen (his wife) because that was probably not great either....

I totally agree.Randy deserves more than a couple of lines.I'm sad to see him go but it's for the best.He's a talented actor who deserves more than to have a few lines on a soap.