And if that whoop of delight during the broadcast didn't fill you in, Austin Peck (Brad, ATWT) is thrilled for his on-screen brother. "Michael Park! I'm happy about Maura West, but I've yet to meet her, so I'm especially happy for Michael because I work with him every day. I love working with Michael.... Are you kidding? Hopefully his chops will rub off on me. He's a great guy and I think he deserves it." Terri Colombino (Katie, ATWT) was thrilled to read Park and West's names out loud at the nominations. "I'm happy for everyone on my show, but specifically I have to say Trent [Dawson, Henry] because I've worked with him for the longest. Now I'm working with Michael and Maura and I'm so psyched for them because they had really heart-wrenching beautiful work and they had good story to show it. But for Trent, he's my boy. I love him so much, he's such a hard worker and he really is the best supporting actor."

Bradley Cole (Jeffrey, GL) was also thrilled for his show. "It's so nice to get a Best Show nomination because it's our 70th anniversary year," he says. "That's really nice. And we got Kim Zimmer and Crystal Chappell with Best Actress nominations and Ricky Paull Goldin with a Best Actor. I didn't see all the awards; they just told us what we announced, so I want to see that later."

Presenter Mandy Bruno (Marina, GL) broke out into applause about Stephanie Gatschet's (ex-Tammy, GL) nom. "Woo! That's what I think! Woohoo! If anyone deserves it this year, I mean everyone always deserves it, but I am so glad that Stephanie got that nomination. She's absolutely amazing and she's already so sorely missed here at GUIDING LIGHT so kudos, kudos, kudos for her. I'm very excited."

"I was asleep in bed!," laughs Gatschet. "I actually forgot that the nominations were being announced today otherwise I would've been watching them too because I was excited. Some of the people that work in the GUIDING LIGHT production office including Alex Johnson, one of the producers, they called me and woke me up and told me. It's a good way to wake up!"

ATWT's Michael Park (Jack) was on a golf trip in California with Jon Hensley (Holden) when he called home and heard about his first nomination in the Lead Actor category (he was up for Supporting in 2001). "I woke up to check on the kids at 9:30 and my wife was crying, saying 'Congratulations! You got nominated for an Emmy.' And as soon as I turned my phone on, I realized I had about 10 messages, from Jesse Soffer [Will] to Ricky Paull [Goldin, Gus, GL]. Christian LeBlanc [Michael, Y&R] called, too; I heard Peter Bergman [Jack, Y&R] was happy. It shows what a class act these guys are. But my first question to [wife] Laurie was, 'Was Maura nominated?' I was probably more happy that hopefully this could be her year, moreso than myself. I know it's hard for people to believe it, but that's the truth. She's the most underrrated actress in daytime. And she called me and went into congratulating me," marvels the actor, who was surprised to see that Kelley Menighan Hensley (Emily) and Winsor Harmon (Thorne, B&B) didn't make the list. "You're thrown into a category with such amazing actors and you cross your fingers, because the sad thing is we only get to show one of our shows from a year's worth of work and you hope you made the right selection. I really appreciate everybody who gave me 'good grades' on my episode. This nomination really means a lot to me."

Brian Frons, President, Daytime, Disney-ABC Television Group: "I am so happy for Frank [Valentini, executive producer, OLTL] and ONE LIFE TO LIVE — the show is consistently excellent and deserves to win for Best Show. GENERAL HOSPITAL also delivers an emotional experience daily and should win for their strong writing. Bob [Guza, head writer] and his team continue to excel in delivering quality drama."

"I was in the makeup room, lying on the couch," says Jesse Soffer (Will, ATWT). "We were watching, then we got a phone call 5 minutes later. I was very excited, but I was more excited about the fact that all the kids got nominated, so that's pretty cool. And I really wanted Van to get nominated, so it's cool that we get to share that together."

"There was no 'Oh, I'm so happy for you, but I'm sad....' Everyone was happy!" laughs Jennifer Landon (Gwen, ATWT). "I was on-set and I wasn't sure if I was nominated. I didn't really know, because I heard them say Van's name but they didn't say mine. So I just thought, 'Focus on the scene. Focus on the scene.' I didn't get excited, and then when I finally heard it was neat. What's so exciting is how many we got for the show."