THERE’S A STRANGER IN ‘LOVING’S’ TOWN

Daytime Emmy-winning actor Thom Christopher is returning to daytime to create the role of Joe Young on “Loving.” Very little information has been released about Christopher’s new character, except that he will be a stranger in town with a secret agenda.

Soap viewers first became acquainted with Christopher when he played the role of underworld figure Carlo Hesser on “One Life to Live” from 1990 to 1992. Christopher quickly grabbed the attention of “One Life to Live” viewers and became a favorite. After Carlo was murdered by his niece, Stephanie Hesser (Robyn Griggs), Christopher returned in the role of Carlo’s previously unheard-of twin brother, Egyptologist Mortimer Bern.

For his dual role (Carlo was seen occasionally in flashback scenes), Christopher won the 1991-92 Daytime Emmy for best supporting actor. He earned a second nomination in the same category the next year.

Between his soap stints, Christopher starred in a regional theater production of “The Sound of Music.” He recently finished filming a role in the upcoming Ron Howard movie “The Paper,” which stars Glenn Close.

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Kimberlin Brown, who plays Sheila Forrester on “The Bold and the Beautiful,” and her husband, Gary Pelzer, are anxiously awaiting completion of their new home in Nevada.

“It should be finished by the end of the year,” reports Brown, who had a big hand in designing the place. It seems the actress actually had desires to become an architect before turning to acting.

Brown notes that she and her husband selected Nevada because of its homey atmosphere.

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We are pleased to tell you that Leonard Stabb (Hart Jessup on “Guiding Light”), who was comatose for two weeks after his hang glider crashed into a mountainside in upstate New York last summer, is progressing in his rehabilitation. He was alert and able to be fed by mouth, but was not able to speak at press time.

Because Stabb will be unable to return to work for quite some time, friends and some of his “Guiding Light” castmates have established the Leonard Stabb Trust Fund to help provide for him during his rehab. Anyone wishing to make donations (which are not tax-deductible) can make checks payable to: Leonard Stabb Trust Fund, P.O. Box 20301, Columbus Circle Station, New York, N.Y. 10023.