MEADOWS BALKS!!!!!!

In what came as quite a shock to executive producer/creator juniorZ, Kristen Meadows declined an offer to join Return to Santa Barbara for a short stint. What was the breaking point? Word around town is that Ms. Meadows reps were more interested in her taking the role than she was. While Meadows loved the cast and crew, she's the first to admit that she didn't have the best rapport with the fans and unfavorably recalls the letters she received from many and the reactions she received in the streets. While she'd love to work with Walker, Davies, Grahn and many of her other old friends, she just felt it best for her to lay the character to rest, as she had years ago.

What does this mean for RTSB?

"We're forging ahead- actually Victoria has been cast. I'm disappointed we were unable to strike a deal with Kristen- obviously she was my first choice. While I was never fond of Victoria, or Kristen in particular, the reality is that Meadows has everything to do with why I could never sympathize with or like Victoria Lane. Which is a necessary quality for the part."

But wait? Did we read that quote right? Victoria has already been cast? She has and we at SONBC have been asked to keep a tight lip about the actress who landed the part. But we just can't resist giving out a little tidbit: the Santa Barbara fans will be pleased and certainly will have no more reason to sympathize with the new actress than Meadows. STAY TUNED..............

Oh- and don't miss the second part of yesterday's episode between 8-9:30 PM TONIGHT (U.S. Eastern Standard Time)