From Deseret News archives:
Tamblyn follows father's footsteps
But she wasn't pushed into show business. As a matter of fact, Amber Tamblyn said she and her father fought over her acting career — first because he wasn't in favor of her signing on as one of the stars of "General Hospital" in 1995; then because he insisted that, once she was involved, she keep her commitment.
"When I started doing it (he) wanted to support me fully. But if I didn't want to do it, he felt like he was pushing me to do something I didn't want to do," she said.
Tamblyn said her father was "dead-set against" her becoming an actress "for a really long time." Indeed, back in 1998 on the set of "General Hospital," Russ Tamblyn told the Deseret News, "I wasn't even that much for her doing this."
At the age of 12, Amber joined the cast of "General Hospital," playing Emily, a character who was supposed to be around for a few months at most. She ended up staying seven years. And not an altogether happy seven years.
"It's really hard when you're 12 years old working five days a week doing 22 scenes a day," she said. "Soaps, as you know, go very quickly, and there's a lot of work involved."
Her father hadn't worked in soaps at that point (he did a stint on "Days of Our Lives" later, in 1999), but he did try to warn her that acting wasn't all fun and games.
"It wasn't because I didn't like acting or I didn't want to do it, it was because I felt that it was taking away from my life," Amber Tamblyn said. "That was actually the reason my father didn't want me to do it was because he was a child actor and it was very hard for him. Very hard for him. So he didn't want me to go through the same things he did."
But he did expect her to do a good job once she accepted it.
"We actually went head-to-head for a long time when I was on 'General Hospital'; and doing some other things," Amber Tamblyn said. "I wanted to be a normal kid that went to school and got to go to a lot of birthday parties. And I was really tired of working. And he was really tired of getting me to be into working. And it just wasn't working.
"I knew my father was in the business and had been with him through a lot of what he did . . . I don't think I fully understood what it took away from your life until I started doing it on a soap opera. And that's where the battle came in."
After taking a bit of time off following her seven years on "General Hospital," the now-20-year-old was eager to sign on to "Joan of Arcadia," which airs Fridays at 7 p.m. on CBS/Ch. 2. She plays a teenager who talks to God in one of the surprise hits of the season.
"I'm having the best time," she said. Although she resists the idea that acting is some sort of family legacy.
"My dad is incredibly proud of me," Amber Tamblyn said. "I think I'm fortunate to have that kind of background, but I don't think that that makes me feel compelled to be in the business that I'm in."
E-MAIL: pierce@desnews.com
