Kelly Cramer
| Kelly Cramer | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| One Life to Live All My Children character | |||||||||||||||||||||
 Gina Tognoni as Kelly Cramer | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Gina Tognoni Tracy Melchior Heather Tom | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Duration | 1995–2006, 2010–present | ||||||||||||||||||||
| First appearance | February 17, 1995 (OLTL) March 29, 2004 (AMC) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Last appearance | February 18, 2005 (AMC) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Created by | Michael Malone | ||||||||||||||||||||
 Tracy Melchior as Kelly Cramer, in the One Life to Live opening sequence | |||||||||||||||||||||
| File:Kelly-HeatherTom.jpg Heather Tom as Kelly Cramer, in the One Life to Live opening sequence | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Kelly Cramer (formerly Buchanan) is a fictional character on the long-running daytime soap opera One Life to Live. The role was originated by Gina Tognoni, who portrayed the role from February 17, 1995 through August 14, 2001, briefly returning in December 2001 and January 2002. Tognoni reprised the role in February 12, 2010.[1][2][3][4]
During Tognoni's absence from the series, the character returned in July 2003 with Tracy Lindsey Melchior in the role through December 2003. The role was again recast with Heather Tom in the role from December 11, 2003 until December 14, 2006.[3] Kelly crossed over to the ABC's All My Children on March 29, 2004 and April 6, 2004 and later February 18, 2005 during a "baby switch" storyline involving both series. [3]
Storylines
The early years
Kelly appears on the doorstep of her aunt, Dorian Lord, in February 1995. The daughter of Dorian's younger sister Melinda, Kelly had been expelled from her Parisian boarding school. She soon befriends Jessica Buchanan, the daughter of Dorian's nemesis Victoria Lord, and later falls in love with Jessica's brother (and Dorian's former lover) Joey.
Devastated over her breakup with Joey, Kelly gets into a car accident in the rain. The passenger in the other car is Kelly's cousin Blair Cramer, who loses her unborn baby (later named Brendan Thornhart). Wracked with guilt, Kelly hides her involvement; the secret is soon revealed, and she and Blair are estranged for a long time.
Kelly dates wealthy Ian Armitage and inherits his fortune when he dies in a plane crash in 1998. She then becomes romantically involved with Joey and Jessica's cousin Drew Buchanan, who is also later killed in October 1998.[5] In early 1999, Kelly has an affair with Max Holden; she later leaves him at the altar when she realizes she is still in love with Joey. Kelly's boarding school friend Grace Monroe comes to town in 1999 and becomes engaged to Joey's brother Kevin Buchanan, but is tragically drowned the same year. Kelly and Kevin console each other as she and Joey become engaged in December 1999. That New Year's Eve, Kelly and Kevin have a few drinks and kiss. They stop themselves from making love and decide not to hurt Joey by telling him about it. Joey learns of his mother's breast cancer, and he and Kelly elope on April 14, 2000. Kelly struggles with her feelings for Kevin as she tries to make her marriage work. She ultimately confesses all to Joey, and they divorce in January 2001. Joey moves to London, and Kelly begins a relationship with Kevin. When Kevin moves to Texas to be closer to his young son Duke in March 2001, Kelly follows him in August.
Kelly returns for Blair's wedding to Todd Manning in December 2001, and again briefly in January 2002.
First return
In July 2003, Kelly (now portrayed by Tracy Melchior) returns to Llanview on the heels of Kevin, now her husband. Their marriage strained, it is soon revealed that Kevin's new political career had pushed a lonely Kelly into an affair with a man named Nick Carson in Texas. Desperate to save the marriage, Kelly tries to get pregnant even though it may put her life in danger. Kevin asks for a divorce but changes his mind when Kelly becomes pregnant. While out of town in 2004, Kelly (now Heather Tom) loses the baby and finds herself on the verge of a breakdown.
Meanwhile, Kelly's half-brother Paul Cramer finds himself delivering the babies of both his ex-wife Babe Carey and her friend Bianca Montgomery during a rainstorm in nearby Pine Valley on March 24, 2004. Paul stages a crash with his MEDEVAC helicopter and takes Babe's son for Kelly, who is desperate for a child to save her marriage and has not yet told Kevin about the miscarriage. Paul initially tells Babe that the child had died in the accident; threatened at the scene by the powerful family of the child's father, Paul quickly changes his plan, giving Bianca's daughter to Babe and telling Bianca that her baby had died instead. Unaware of the child's origins, Kelly brings Babe's infant back to Llanview, passing him off as her child with Kevin. Kevin and Kelly name the baby Asa "Ace" Buchanan II after Kevin's grandfather. Their marriage crumbles anyway in 2005, and Kevin secures custody. Meanwhile, a devastated Kelly discovers that Paul had stolen Ace from his mother; Paul, desperate for cash, blackmails Kelly by threatening to reveal the secret to Kevin and Llanview. Armed with the truth, Kelly realizes they must return the child to his parents; though broken-hearted, they do.[6]
Kevin and Kelly begin dating again but soon break up; she briefly dates Dr. Spencer Truman and then reconciles with Kevin. After Spencer performs a new surgical procedure on Kelly that could potentially reverse her infertility, Kevin proposes. Spencer, however, enacting his vendetta against the Buchanans, exposes Kevin to a virus that renders him sterile. Kevin falls into a depression that strains his relationship with Kelly. Kevin's son Duke, now an adult, consoles Kelly and soon falls in love with her; they sleep together once before a tornado hits Llanview. Kelly and Duke are both seriously injured; with only one surgeon available, Kevin is forced to choose whether his ex-wife or son will go into surgery first. He chooses Kelly, and is devastated as Duke dies in his arms.
In the wake of Duke's death, Kelly discovers that she is pregnant with his child; Kevin swears he will never forgive her, and Kelly decides to leave Llanview. Kevin has a change of heart, and convinces her to stay; he is at her side when she gives birth prematurely to a son, and they name the baby Zane. Reconciled and resigned to start over as a family, Kevin and Kelly relocate to London with Zane.
Second return
In February 2010, Kelly returns to Llanview and receives devastating news that her mother Melinda has died of a heart attack. Dorian believes that Mitch Laurence, who has threatened the Cramer women, is behind Melinda's death. Kevin proposes to Kelly on the day of her mothers funeral, but she declines. Todd tries to convince Kelly to stay in Llanview and work for him at The Sun, in part to annoy Blair; Kelly at first refuses, but is intrigued by the challenge and is soon goaded by Todd into signing a contract. Kelly subsequently receives calls from a mysterious person informing her that her mother was indeed murdered. She first enlists Todd and Detective John McBain to assist her in the investigation, and later asks private investigator Rex Balsom to help find Bennett Thompson, a man she believes murdered Melinda.
Bennett Thompson is revealed to be Elijah Clarke, the new beau if Blair's. Eli is later killed by Cole Thornhart and Kelly finds peace now that her mother's murderer is dead but remains lonely. She kisses Rex on the evening Tea returns to Llanview but as they push away Rex tells Kelly how he is in love with Gigi. Kelly pours her heart out to Rex and declares that she is still in love with Joey Buchanan and Rex urges her to reunite with Joey and win him back. She meets and becomes friends with a woman named Aubrey Wentworth, until they find out that Aubrey is Joey's fiance. She has been looking into Aubrey's background, and met a man named Cutter. Kelly and Joey stood up as the Godparent's of Jessica and Brody's son Ryder Lovett.
References
- ^ http://www.soapcentral.com/oltl/news/2009/0921-tognoni.php
- ^ http://www.soaps.com/onelifetolive/news/5497/One_Life_to_Lives_Gina_Tognoni_Returns
- ^ a b c Kelly Cramer profile - SoapCentral.com
- ^ Gina Tognoni - IMDb.com
- ^ "October Demises". Soap Opera Digest. Vol. 33, No. 44: pages 70–71. October 25, 2008.
{{cite journal}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ^ Rabinowitz, Naomi (February 24, 2009). "Babes 'N' Switch: Double Trouble (AMC/OLTL 2004-2005)". Soap Opera Digest. (Vol. 34, No. 8). pp. 72–75.
