Michelle Stafford’s (Phyllis Summers, The Young and the Restless) victory speech at the 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards was dissected and much discussed over the weekend, particularly her recollection of crying in her boss’ office. Now the Best Actress winner is clearing up the confusion.
Michelle Stafford Gets Real
“[Need] to kill this weird narrative [that] seems to be catching fire regarding the thing that I said to Josh Griffith on stage [i.e.] “Thank you for letting me cry in your office,” began Stafford’s missive on Instagram.
She continued: “I usually wouldn’t give a sh*t. But I think actually sharing the story with you might be helpful to anyone who is experiencing grief. I lost a parent recently. It was devastating. But you must carry on with life. You go to work. You take care of your kids….And life does in fact move on.
“About 10 days or so after his death I had already had a meeting planned with Josh about some questions I had in my story. We were discussing a couple things and every time I talked about my character’s relationship with her children and aspects of how it would play out… this surge of emotion came over me…I found myself weeping in Josh’s office. Like an idiot.
“Something about talking about Phyllis’s relationship with her kids just did it. I was so embarrassed. I apologized profusely. He did the most human thing. I won’t get into what he said and did but it was quite human…
“Maybe folks out there who are trying to spread a rumor that I “cry to get a storyline” maybe they have a bad work situation. Or a boss who doesn’t even care to listen to them. I don’t know….All I know is that I’m very honored to work with people I also care about and who I believe care about me. What a gift. What I said on stage was a spontaneous comment to my boss who did something very kind for me. Very human for me. My wish for others is that one day they actually experience a working environment that’s similar.”
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Tracey E. Bregman (Lauren Fenmore Baldwin, Y&R), Colleen Zenk (Jordan Howard, Y&R), Missy Claire Egan (Chelsea Lawson, Y&R), and Tamara Braun (Ava Vitali, Days of our Lives; ex-Carly Roberts Corinthos, General Hospital et al.) were among the many who commented on the post.
The latter penned in part: “I understand, I’ve been and am there and I am so glad you had that experience with Josh. I hate that you feel you have to justify what you said but it’s beautiful and true. Grief…it bobs and weaves and hits you at times that surprise the hell outta you.”
Please join Daily Drama in thanking Michelle Stafford for speaking so candidly on such a sensitive subject.
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