Episode 84 – Legendary Soap Star Thaao Penghlis Discusses His Villainous ‘Days’ & Uncovering ‘The Lost Treasures’ - Part 2

During the second half of Tony’s eye-opening conversation with legendary soap star Thaao Penghlis they discuss how much more fun it is to play a villain on film than be the hero of the story, how his longtime “Days of Our Lives” love interest Leann Hunley initially had doubts about their onscreen pairing, the lack of accolades and awards for the cast of "Days of Our Lives" compared to other network soaps, how he landed the role of master-of-disguise Nicholas Black on the prime-time revival of “Mission: Impossible”, his experience filming the series in his home country of Australia, his lifelong friendship with his 'Mission" co-stars Phil Morris and Jane Badler, how he and legendary actor Peter Graves once butted heads on the set of the successful action series, his thoughts about Tom Cruise and his successful Mission Impossible film franchise,  the creation of the podcast "The Lost Treasures," his enjoyment in hosting the podcast, his desire to create another podcast about an untold biblical story, and the recent re-release of his second book, "Seducing Celebrities One Meal at a Time."

THAAO PENGHLIS

When Thaao Penghlis looks in the mirror, he sees different faces. During his remarkable run over the last four decades on the NBC daytime drama “Days of Our Lives”, the Australian-born actor has played both the seductively villainous Count Tony DiMera and the count’s evil look-a-like impersonator Andre DiMera. The double roles are on top of a wide-ranging collection of characters on two other daytime series, “General Hospital” and “Santa Barbara”, as well as television series, movies and plays.

He started his career acting on stage, performing in “Jockeys” under Milton Katselas's direction. He first appeared to daytime audiences in 1981 on “General Hospital” during the Ice Princess saga when he played the role of Victor Cassadine. After his character was written out of the show by being taken to prison, he was cast as the villainous Count Tony DiMera, in the NBC daytime drama “Days of Our Lives”. His long-running work on Days, has earned him three Emmy nominations for Outstanding Leading Actor and a Soap Opera Digest Award for Favorite Return.

In 1989, Penghlis played master-of-disguise Nicholas Black on the prime-time revival of “Mission: Impossible”. He also starred in the miniseries "Sadat", appeared opposite Omar Sharif and Jane Seymour in the miniseries adaptation of Sydney Sheldon’s “Memories of Midnight”, played a terrorist in the television film “Under Siege” with Peter Strauss and Hal Holbrook, and starred with Joanna Cassidy in the miniseries “Tribe”. One of his more unusual roles was playing the lover of Dame Edna as Colonel Godowni in the cult classic “Les Patterson Saves the World”. 

He has also written two books “Places: The Journey of My Days, My Lives” (2014), which delves into his Greek and Australian heritage and recounts his escapades from his entertainment career and “Seducing Celebrities One Meal at a Time” (2015), presents recipes for what would be his dream Hollywood dinner parties. 

He is currently the host of the popular podcast “The Lost Treasures”. This new project channels his passion for Greek history and culture.

The Lost Treasure Podcast on Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1i9s9RBDskZTv9oMSipeEm

Thaao Penghlis Books on Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Places-Journey-My-Days-Lives/dp/1624672566

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