Once again, Dan "The Man" Kroll shows why his site, Soap Central, is the go-to online soap site.

With the Daytime Emmys being handed out on May 1, nearly every soap site has posted a list of the nominees and the reels they put up for contention. Soap Central, online for over 20 years, goes so much further. It offers a link to show who entered what. Seeing the nominees out of context can make the clips almost worthless. So Kroll also gives a synopsis of what the scene was about. If that were not enough — and Kroll knows it isn't — you can also read what happened the day before and the day after each episode. Genius. He offers us lots of "The more you know ..." moments. Soap Central has never just been about posting news items. It offers insight. Look at the rest but then go to the best.

Although this year's Daytime Emmys show won't be televised, you can be sure Soap Central will provide minute-by-minute coverage.

For some reason, "General Hospital" under-appreciates Rick Hearst (Rick). He is headed back for one episode in May. The Emmy-winning actor is talented and, by all accounts, easy to work with. His character is tied to Sonny, Molly and Liz. It is frustrating to see the show push new characters with no ties and show no reverence for solid stars from the past. His character deserves airtime. Instead we get characters with ties to no one. And soaps are, at their core, all about family ties. Hopefully the show will bring him back on a full-time basis.

I have some good news, some moderate news and some bad news. The good news is from "Days of Our Lives": Freddie Smith (Sonny) is returning. No word on why or for how long. We hope it is for good. Sonny may be involved with his former lover, Paul — who is John's son. He and Phillip could fight over who cares more about Victor.

Now for the "medium" news — "medium" because no one will confirm or deny it. Greg Vaughn, who was stunned when his character of Eric was written off, has teased that he might return. For now he is in Louisiana filming "Queen Sugar" for Oprah's OWN network.

The return of Jack will be involved in a stand-alone episode dealing with Jennifer's painkiller addiction. Is he a ghost, a trip down memory lane or a person risen from the dead? Ken Corday said any character that died after September was really, sincerely dead. But Jack was killed off long before that. And none of Jennifer's romances post-Jack have worked out. No one can imagine Jennifer with anyone but her Jack.

And lastly, the bad news: The Pop network will no longer carry same-day repeat episodes of "Days of Our Lives." The encore broadcasts were losing lots of viewers after the airing of "The Young and Restless" re-casts.

One final note: On Thursday, April 14, "The Bold and the Beautiful" star Katherine Kelly Lang (Brooke) was awarded the Founder's Award for leadership for her work in bringing awareness to cancer as well as her work with the Breakaway From Cancer initiative. The event took place at the Lighthouse at Pier 61 in New York City, at a gala hosted by the Cancer Support Community. This signature event is designed to honor the legacy of the community.

To find out more about Lynda Hirsch and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com.