Somebody has been going on the Internet and pretending to be Days of Our Lives' Kristian Alfonso and stirring up a hornet's nest of rumors -- among them, that she's leaving Days to join General Hospital. So the real McCoy came to us hoping to set the record straight. We figured, hey, why not help out a superstar in distress? And, in the process, we'll pump her about that upcoming romance between Hope and -- are you sitting down? -- John!

TV Guide: So how are you?

Kristian: Fabulous! Well, except for this imposter problem. Oh, God, it's the worst.

TV Guide: It's the future, my dear, get used to it. So someone, or several someones, have been pretending to be you?

Kristian: Yes! And I swear to God it's not me! I have a computer but I don't know how to use it, OK? My former assistant -- who's this big computer expert -- told me I had to get a computer, so I did. But I don't know how to use it, and she no longer works for me. So now my son, Gino, is going to use it. But there are people who go online and say that they're me -- or they say it's "Gino's Mom." Even if I did have computer knowledge, I don't have time for this stuff.

TV Guide: So is this at the root of these rumors going around that you're joining GH?

Kristian: I guess. I've heard that I'm leaving Days and that [GH producer] Shelley Curtis has offered me a two-year contract.

TV Guide: Oh, really? How much she payin' ya?

Kristian: Gee... I don't know, maybe I should check it out. Nah, it's a complete rumor. It's not true. I'm very happy where I am.

TV Guide: This is such a weird day and age -- everything, true

or not, gets on the Net, and there are 10 million

more soap magazines, so nothing goes unreported. Is

this discouraging to actors?

Kristian: No, I think it just puts more information out there for the

viewers, not that it's all true. Just like the rag magazines:

Everybody swears they don't read them, but they do. And I'm

one of them.

TV Guide: Yeah, me too. Do you just read them for free at the

checkout line or do you actually risk shame and buy

them to take home?

Kristian: Well, I do pay for them, but here's what I do: I'm always flying

someplace, so I buy them at airports and take them on the plane

with me.

TV Guide: Hey, me too -- they're very good airplane reading --

light, fluffy, stupid. They really take your mind off

taking off.

Kristian: It's true! I have this whole routine down: I go buy the rags at the

airport newsstand, hide them in my bag, get directly on the

plane, sit down, start reading the Star, then by the time we take

off, I'm probably on The Globe having my little coffee or

whatever, then I read the Enquirer, then they serve dinner and

then I get off the plane.

TV Guide: Wait, you forgot the part where you stash the rags in

that little seat pocket where they keep the barf bags

so that nobody sees you disembarking with them.

Kristian: Yeah, right, I do that, too -- though if I'm flying to see my

family, I take them home so my mom can read them. Listen,

everybody denies that they read them, but we do read them,

even if they're not always true.

TV Guide: What gives them credence -- and the same goes for

the Internet -- is that so much of what gets out there

is true, so it's hard to separate fact from fiction. The

same goes for actors. Lots of them do go online these

days, so it's totally plausible that you might be one

of them, too.

Kristian: If they only knew!

TV Guide: How did you find out about the imposters?

Kristian: I heard about it from fans, and my manager and [NBC publicist]

Michael Feeney would tell me -- or other actors will tell me that

so-and-so said I was online and said such-and-such. I'm so

computer-illiterate it's not even funny. I bought all these

computer things for my son when he graduated from

kindergarten, thinking we could use them on my computer, but

now we need... what is it... a CD-ROM? And I don't even

know what that is.

TV Guide: How old is Gino now?

Kristian: He's 6. He's starting first grade in October.

TV Guide: Let's talk about you and Drake Hogestyn. This sounds like an incredible idea to pair you two, but it's also pretty surprising -- not just because it's out of the blue but because people almost never seem to switch partners on Days.

Kristian: I think they've had this idea in the back of their minds for quite some time. They weren't sure when they were going to do it or if they were, but now I guess they are. I don't know where it's

heading, things can change from one day to the next. There's no bible. But I'm excited to be working with him. It's good to have change. You get too comfortable if you don't. This show is not

the way it used to be, where we would know months in advance what was going to happen to our characters -- now I'm finding out as I get my scripts.

TV Guide: And you prefer it that way?

Kristian: I do prefer it that way sometimes, and then sometimes I'm Curious George and I want to see some light at the end of the tunnel. Like, where is this story going?

TV Guide: What do you think the fans are going to think about a John/Hope pairing?

Kristian: I don't know.

TV Guide: Well, what do you guess?

Kristian: I don't know. So far I've had no complaints with the stories I've been involved with, and they've always been wonderful stories.

TV Guide: What are you, the official Days publicist? Do you think "John and Hope" has the same ring as "Bo and Hope"?

Kristian: Ring, what ring? Do you know something I don't know?

TV Guide: I don't mean wedding ring. Oh, never mind. I do have a hunch you guys will really click.

Kristian: I hope you're right. I'm just happy there's going to be a new

story and I won't just basically be whining about Bo. I would

like to kick his butt!

TV Guide: Damn right.

Kristian: Like, why would Hope not confront Bo immediately when he

was on that bed? I mean, he wouldn't know what day it was by

the time she was done with him. That I never did understand.

But I guess I do understand why now, because otherwise we

couldn't move on to this next storyline with John. Bo and Hope

had to be resolved. But Hope would never just walk away! And

Bo would also never be off in Rome when his brother's dying!

But the audience finds it fun and interesting and that's why they

continue to watch. I don't think soaps are what they used to be,

either. They've come such a long way. They're not just about

two people gazing across a room anymore.

TV Guide: Are you happy about that or complaining?

Kristian: Oh, I think it's a good thing because there is still a lot of romance, but the stories are built differently. I don't think they move as quickly as they used to, but a lot of things are always happening within the stories. They have positive and negative points.

TV Guide: Fans often pick the New Orleans remote as the high point of Bo and Hope fever. Do you agree?

Kristian: Many feel that way. This is the third time Peter and I have been back, and I have to thank the fans for opening up their arms and embracing us again. I really didn't know how they were going to respond. So many things happen over the years. When I came back, there was a new Bo who was involved with Billie. I felt a tremendous amount of pressure when I returned.

TV Guide: Clarify for me: When you came back as Gina, did you know from the get-go that she was eventually going to turn out to be Hope?

Kristian: Of course. Absolutely. I would never have come back as a different character. The audience doesn't care about Kristian. They care about Hope.

TV Guide: Both you and Peter Reckell have gone on the record about the little tiffs you used to have during the early days. Now you seem to have gotten well past that....

Kristian: I love working with Peter.

TV Guide: So what's that change about? Getting older? Gaining maturity? Do you one day see things you didn't see before -- or do you overlook things that once drove you nuts?

Kristian: It wasn't that we fought. We were together all the time. You

argue with your friends. You argue with your loved ones. The

people you're closest to you feel safe enough to argue with, and

that was the case with us. Peter and I work wonderfully

together. There are no egos involved. If he has something that

can help me in a scene, I'm more than open to it. And he listens

to what I have to say, as well. We both respect each other, and

we're friends.

TV Guide: How are you different now than in the early days of Days?

Kristian: I really have my life in perspective. I always said that my family is No. 1 in my life, and it still is -- that's stronger than ever now that I'm a mother. I now understand what it's like to know that I would die for my kid. But I also have to say I now feel a calmness within me. I love my job. I am passionate about it.

TV Guide: You've done the Falcon Crest and Melrose Place thing. Do you still have dreams of prime time the same way you used to? Or are you in a different place, professionally?

Kristian: Oh, absolutely I still want to do those things.

TV Guide: But enough to leave Days again?

Kristian: I don't know until that opportunity knocks on my door -- it has knocked a couple of times, and I've chosen not to answer. I like where I am right now. When I'm at the studio, I'm 10 minutes from my son. He's my little angel. Days gives me the opportunity to go home to my family in Boston when I have to, because that is really my home. Every time I walk through the doors at Days, I'm thankful that I have a job.

TV Guide: Word is, your contract is coming up -- how do they

know you'll stick around and do this Hope and John

romance?

Kristian: My contract's not up for another eight months.

TV Guide: Yeah, but as we know only too well, Days romances drag out for decades. Of course, you do have a new head writer coming in, which could change the pace of the show.

Kristian: We'll see. I don't know. I'm not saying no, I'm not saying yes,

it's something I do have to think about absolutely.

TV Guide: What are your thoughts on the head writer switch -- exciting or scary?

Kristian: Of course, we're going to miss Jim Reilly. I wish him much success and happiness in his new show. He really is a mastermind at stories. I'm not really familiar with the new writer [Sally Sussman], but if Days hired her, she's got to be talented. I hope to God she finds my character interesting and continues to write for her. She may come in and say, "You know what? I don't want Hope there anymore."

TV Guide: Oh, c'mon!

Kristian: No. I have to be realistic.

TV Guide: You have to be nuts.

Kristian: This is the one thing that I'm completely realistic about. There are 10,000 people behind me waiting for my job.

TV Guide: Oh, stop it!

Kristian: It's true! This is a here-today, gone-tomorrow business. I recognized it when I was first on the show: I see so many young actors come in and go, "Wow, I've got a three-year contract!" And before they even blink, they're out buying this, buying that, and not really thinking, "Wow, I could be gone tomorrow" -- and then I'd see them be gone tomorrow.

TV Guide: Yeah, but it's a very different thing to be written out when you're relatively new to a show -- but you have been one of the focal points of this show for years. You are Days history.

Kristian: Everybody's replaceable.

TV Guide: Are you putting me on?

Kristian: No, I swear to God! Everybody. So, of course, I'm realistic about it. I have my little hurricane fund. You have to plan for the future. I have to worry about my baby!

TV Guide: Would you let him enter show business?

Kristian: I would support him in anything he wants to do.

TV Guide: Yeah, parents always say that until reality bites. How would you really feel if he grows up and wants be some hunky piece of he-meat on a daytime soap opera?

Kristian: My parents always supported me in everything I did, and so I have to do the same for my son. Of course, I would love him to be a plastic surgeon, so when I get older he can take care of me.

TV Guide: Aren't there laws about operating on one's own mommy? Life isn't Days of Our Lives, you know.

Kristian: I don't care. I'm gonna push him in that direction -- I'm always thinking, "Protect the hands, protect the hands!

TV Guide: There's big money in that field.

Kristian: Very big money! And he could make his mother look like a million bucks when she's 60 years old. But whatever he wants to do, I would be behind him completely. If you'd asked me this a year ago, I would have said, "Absolutely not, I don't want him to be in the business," because it's very, very tough. You have to be pretty strong to handle the rejection.

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