Q & A with Hank Cheyne
(Ricardo Torres, Sunset Beach)

Today's soap fans know and love Hank Cheyne (pronounced Shane) as straight-arrow detective Ricardo Torres on Sunset Beach. But in the mid-1980s, the former lawyer-model turned actor broke new ground as Another World's Scott LaSalle — a character whose girlfriend, Dawn, was HIV-positive.

Eventually, Cheyne wed AW co-star Missy Hughes (ex-Sara), moved West and returned to daytime in 1997 as part of Sunset's original cast. The Aaron Spelling soap is known for its off-beat style, but Ricardo is currently involved in a traditional love triangle with his fiancee, Gabi (Priscilla Garita), and his brother, Father Antonio (Nick Kiriazis). The handsome lawman is also supervising the Francesca Vargas murder investigation. Offscreen, a bigger soap looms: Will NBC cancel Sunset, AW or both to make room for its newest soap, Passions?— Michael J. Maloney

As an actor, do you prefer not knowing who killed Francesca?

Yes. If I, Hank, knew who did it, I'd be jaded as to what's going on during Ricardo's scenes. The writers may not even know for sure who the killer is at this point. If they do know, they haven't told us.

Unlike other soap cops, you've got a storyline outside the murder mystery. It's a great triangle.

Thank you. Ricardo's right in the middle of a huge brushfire and he doesn't even know it. It's a good, strong and interesting storyline within the murder mystery. Gabi and Antonio have even suspected each other [of being the killer].

There's usually one participant in a soap love triangle who's unaware of what's going on. How do you avoid the traditional perception that that character is kind of, well...

An idiot?

Thank you.

Well, [the idea that Gabi and Antonio have made love] has got to be the furthest thing from Ricardo's mind right now. If there is a subconscious suspicion, it hasn't manifested itself. Ricardo knows something's not right, but his mind doesn't even go there. It's tough. With all due respect to the writers — I know that they have a tough job — you have to remember that Ricardo's a detective.

The writers don't always immediately know that an actor is playing a subtle awareness of something being amiss.

That's true. Nick, Priscilla and I talk about this. You know when someone's not telling you the truth, especially if she's someone you're going to marry. That's one of my constant battles. I want Ricardo to pick up on things. If Antonio and Gabi aren't lying, well, then I'll call [Nick and Priscilla] on it. I'll say that I'm not buying it. But they have their own things going on in the scene as well — like the attraction that their characters feel toward each other. It's a complicated process.

It's also a good, old-fashioned soap opera story. A woman torn between two lovers. Lots of lying and subtext. All in the middle of a murder mystery.

I'm glad people like it.

Last summer, Ricardo emerged as a real hero during the show's Poseidon Adventure homage, kind of like Gene Hackman did in the movie.

It's funny you should make that comparison. Some of us had gone in for a story consultation with Gary [Tomlin, Sunset's executive producer]. He likened the ship capsizing to The Poseidon Adventure and he told me that I'd be the Gene Hackman character. It'd been a while since I'd seen the movie, so one night Missy and I rented it. We're lying in bed and we see Gene's character fall to his death. [Laughs] Well, we just looked at each other and neither of us said anything for about five minutes. We really wondered if Ricardo was going to die.

Happily, that was not the case. How have you seen Sunset change since its premiere?

Right now, it feels as if the show is in a very good groove. It takes a while to get the wheels going on a new show. We're doing things that are very different in terms of writing and technical aspects. The actors are all very comfortable. To use an athletic term, we're really in "the zone" right now. Things are working, which is good, because the network's got a big decision to make. I just hope and pray that [NBC] gives us some time to continue what we're doing. Our audience is younger, and in terms of the future, that's a good thing.

So morale must be pretty high these days.

Honestly, it's a double-edged sword. People are excited by the fact that the show's looking good and things are coming together. However, people also know that there's a hatchet over our heads. That's not a comfortable feeling. But there's also a relaxed atmosphere, too. We know that we're putting out a good show. If you look at the other shows that have been on for a long, long time, their ratings are really not that much better than ours.

Maybe Sunset Beach could find a new home on Fox or the WB, where Aaron Spelling's had so many prime-time hits.

NBC's a great place to work, but you're right. I hope, if it's necessary, that those avenues are explored. We have a built-in audience that would follow us. People love our show. Our fan response is tremendous. Viewers come up to me and tell me that our show is so fresh and different. And these aren't typical soap viewers. I don't want to offend anyone, but I think that viewers get comfortable watching their shows. It's very hard to get them to switch channels. I feel that we've drawn a new audience into daytime.

Since you and Missy met at AW, I'm sure it would be the second worst thing if it were to be the one that got canceled.

Exactly. I don't have divided loyalties because I am at Sunset Beach now. But Missy and I do have close friends [at AW]. There are people who are depending on their respective shows for their livelihoods. A lot of [technical] people would go right back into the mix and be placed on other shows. But a lot of people wouldn't be. It's a very weird situation.

Would you like to work with Missy on Sunset Beach?

I would love to work with Missy. We've never played love interests onscreen, but I know that there would definitely be some chemistry. I'm sure some people would remember us from our time on AW. It'd be great. Plus, we could share the car on the way in.

On AW, you were part of daytime's first AIDS storyline. Do you feel that soaps should entertain or educate?

There's the option to do both. People do want to "tune in" to "check out." Other times they want to see that people have problems that can be worse than their own. Our show has a good mix. Look at the Jerry Springer Show take-off we did. I thought that was different and great. We've got the drama, but we've got the fun stuff, too.

How are your dogs, Cody and Pozo?

They're great. Thanks for knowing their names. Cody tore a ligament in her leg about four months ago. A doctor recommended surgery, but he also said that there was a good chance that it wouldn't help. The recovery period was going to be three months, which would be very difficult. It was a tough decision [to hold off on the surgery]. She still gets up in the morning and chases rabbits around the yard, but she'll come back limping.

Do you ever watch Sunset when it's re-broadcast at 3 am?

Just once. Missy and I had a party after the Soap Opera Digest Awards. We were up very late and we just ended up turning on the show. It was fun watching it that way. That's actually another audience we have. We also have a huge foreign audience. Half the fan mail I get is from international viewers. Hopefully, this will work out for the best. If not here, then somewhere else.

You sound pretty philosophical about Sunset's future.