How did you get started in acting?

Stephen Martines: Short version or long version? [Laughs] It's been a dream of mine since I was six years old. I used to walk around the house saying, "Hey, I'm going to be the next Tom Cruise." My father passed away nine years ago and, from that point on, I was trying to discover what I was, where I wanted to go. I went to the Air Force, did a lot of different things and just couldn't find that niche in the right direction. Sitting on the couch one day, if I'm not mistaken, it was Dec. 30, I started crying, and I was watching a movie called It's a Wonderful Life. My dad and I used to watch it every year. My mom looked at me and said, "What's wrong?" And I said, "I'm leaving tomorrow." She said, "Where are you going?" I said, "I gotta try. It's an instinct. I have a feeling. If I don't do it now, I never will." So I packed my car, left in eight hours on a little '95 Eagle Talon and about 200 bucks in my pocket. And I got to Hollywood and slept in my car on Sunset and Orange Grove. And here I am. I've been blessed. It's been a great thing.

How long did it take before your first break?

Stephen Martines: To be honest, I slept in my car for about a month and a half. Then I booked my first job on Pacific Blue with Mario Lopez, and went from that to another movie, called Justice with Jim Belushi and Charles Durning and literally coming off that set I booked General Hospital within a week. Basically, I've been working since my second month. It's been an incredible journey for me. You count your blessings.

Who have you been working with so far?

Stephen Martines: Mostly I've been working with Paul Anthony Stewart [Danny], Daniel Cosgrove [Bill], Deborah Zoe [Eden]. I've worked a couple times with Lindsey [McKeon, Marah] and I can't wait to work with her again because I love her to death. This whole cast has been incredibly welcoming, in terms of open arms. I couldn't ask for a better place to be.

Prior to landing the role, you'd gone by the professional name "Coltin Scott." Is this your first acting job as Stephen Martines?

Stephen Martines: No, actually, I just saw a trailer of a movie I finished two days before I came here. It's called Ring of Darkness. It was originally called The Darkness. It stars myself, Adrienne Barbeau and Ryan Starr. That actually was the transition, but Guiding Light was very welcoming to the name change.

When you got the role of Tony, were you familiar with the show?

Stephen Martines: To be honest with you, I wasn't. No, I kind of ran into Jordi [Vilasuso, ex-Tony]... I got lucky, because this happened literally the first day I was off GH. They had called and asked if I was interested in moving to New York. It was about a two-and-a-half month battle. And I met Jordi about a month before I'd come aboard, and he came up to me, he's just a great guy, and he said, "I'm very happy that they're talking to you." I said, "I've seen some of your work, and I'm extremely happy to play this character, and to come aboard and do this." It was kind of neat because it was easy to come in. For me, going through this once already [replacing Tyler Christopher (Nikolas, GH)], I just like to stay away from what used to be and do my thing, even though I know I've got shoes to fill. You just have to know and learn some way to make this your own and do what you're going to do with it, so I don't emulate too much.

And of course, the writers will try to find "your Tony."

Stephen Martines: They're taking it slow, which is good. I think it's good for everybody. You don't throw yourself at the fans right away. They don't get sick of me too fast. They're learning to adjust. For me, I'm adjusting. For them, they're learning me, as an actor. Because I know a lot of the writers, and I know Rob Decina [Casting Director, GL] had seen some of my work, my reel. But they don't really know what my take yet is going to be, like you were just saying, so they're going to kind of... they're good for everybody. That's what I love about this place. They utilize everybody's talents equally. That's why I look at people like Kim Zimmer [Reva, GL], she's such an amazing person. You don't find the star of a show walking around like that very often. I'm having a blast.

You've also recently had the chance to come face-to-face with GL fans. How has the reaction been?

Stephen Martines: It's overwhelming, coming from St. Louis, and you see how much you really touch somebody's life in any way, shape or form with what you do for a living. Which is the beautiful thing about being an actor. You should never walk around like somebody owes you something. When I go to fan events, and I watch people in my line follow me from another show to a show they've never seen before, I'm touched, because it shows they appreciate what I do, just like I appreciate them as much as I can which is why I always give back to the fans. Because if it weren't for them, I'd be flipping burgers at McDonalds. Charles Durning said to me, "Be true to who you are." Belushi said the same thing. What you see is what you get with me. I do this because I love it, I don't do this for the fame and fortune, certainly we don't make a lot of money. I do it because I love it. I love the passion, I love the work, I love the creativity, I love being able to work with the caliber of talent that's out there that I've watched since I was two years old.