'The Bold and the Beautiful' Star John McCook Did Not Sign A Three Year Contract
I fabricated an article for Celeb Dirty Laundry, stating the actor signed a multiple-year contract. I never expected major networks to use my article as a source.
I started working with Celeb Dirty Laundry in 2015. At the time, I would write whatever the publisher and owner wanted me to. I needed the money, and I didn't care if my words upset the fans.
The more I wrote, the more I cared. I connected with other soap fans on social media and started having guilt over writing blatant lies disguised as spoilers.
In 2018, I left CDL for a couple of years. I worked on my own blogs and started writing on Medium. It was a different type of writing, focusing on my life experiences. It was the focus change I needed at the time.
In late 2019, Soap Opera Spy, another one of CDL's blogs, contacted me to edit for them. They hired me as a junior editor, a job I loved. Then COVID-19 hit, and I lost my job. The owner let much of her staff go as no one was reading soap news.
Last year, the owner of CDL contacted me about filling in for his full-time writer when she was on vacation. I jumped at the chance to write for him for ten days. He paid me per article plus a very generous bonus. Everything went well. After ten days, I was happy the project was over. It wasn't easy to write 12 soap articles per day for ten days straight.
In September, CDL's owner contacted me again. He wanted me to fill in for the primary writer again. She would be gone nine days this time. He told me his website was having traffic issues, and he couldn't pay me as good of a bonus. But I would be paid for my work plus "some type of bonus."
The Bold and the Beautiful aired a storyline where Eric Forrester (John McCook) was suffering from a health crisis. He was having hand tremors. I spoke with the owner via Skype and mentioned that John McCook's contract status was unknown.
He encouraged me to say he renewed his contract to get the fans excited. I needed the money, so I agreed. I wrote an article stating that John McCook scored a three-year contract.
Not long after the now-famous article was published, I had a misunderstanding with the CDL owner. We decided not to work together anymore. He believed he could talk to me however he saw fit, and I disagreed. I demand respect in a professional relationship.
It wouldn't have been a big deal, but TV Insider, Daytime Confidential, and numerous other outlets picked up my article and used it as a source. Everyone, including the B&B fans, believed that John McCook signed a three-year contract.
A few days ago, I decided to come clean on Twitter to the soap fans. I couldn't shake the guilt of everyone believing it. I had several media outlets contact me for a comment.
I expected social media to roast me. I expected hate and anger. I was greeted with kindness and respect for finally telling the truth. It was so unexpected, but it felt great.
The fact that major networks picked up my article and used it as a source sent my guilt into overdrive. You would think TV Insider would fact-check before publishing a contract status as a fact. But they didn't.
We still don't know John McCook's contract status. He could have signed a year deal or could be leaving the CBS soap opera. CBS doesn't typically comment on contract status,' so unless the actor comes forward, we won't know the truth.
All I know is I had to come clean. I had to tell the truth because many of the soap fans that I fooled are people I consider to be friends. It wasn't fair; it was time to come clean.
So there you have it. I am the writer, also known as Marcy Cohen on CDL, who wrote the fabricated article about John McCook that so many fans believed. I apologize from the bottom of my heart for misleading the fans about McCook's contract status.
About the Creator
Chrissie Marie Massey
Chrissie has spent the last 20 years writing online for several major news outlets. When not writing, you’ll find her watching a Lifetime movie, wearing her favorite PJs with a frozen soda in hand.
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Comments (2)
The CDL owner's wife owns several other soap spoilers and I worked for her. I was fired because I wrote my own stories on Vocal and shared them on Facebook. I don;' get a good vibe from that couple and CDL articles are not allowed in many FB groups because of false information.
Thank you for your honesty. I wrote an article for Newsbreak quoting TV Insider and a soap spoilers called me and NewsBreak liars.