Andrew Dixon
Encyclopedia
Andrew "Andy" Dixon is a fictional character
on the CBS
soap opera
As the World Turns
. The character has been commonly known by the nickname "Andy". He was born on-screen in 1976; his birth year was revised to 1970 when he was aged to 15 in 1985, at which time he was played by Scott DeFreitas
. DeFreitas played the role from February 1985 to April 1995 and again from November 26, 1997 to July 12, 2000.
After a failed romance with the psychotic Janice Maxwell, Andy left town to pursue his career abroad. Andy returned a few years later when his mother had heart surgery. Upon his return, he began teaching a photography class at Oakdale University where he'd meet one of his students, Nikki Munson. After challenging Nikki to work on her photographic skills, the two became embroiled in intrigue involving master criminal James Stenbeck, especially since with the help of Nikki's pictures they figured out that Nikki's friend, Matt, was actually working for Stenbeck! Soon, Andy feelings for Nikki deepened and he quit his teaching job so that he and Nikki could begin dating. Later, Andy would be devastated when Nikki sent him a Dear John letter when she was away at college. Nikki's rejection caused Andy to start drinking again. Again, he got help from another town vixen, Molly Conlan. Despite her past, and his family's objections, the pair started dating and moved in together. Unfortunately, Molly's obsession with Reid Hamilton put an end to the relationship however and Andy threw Molly out.
In 1999, Andy learned that Hope Maynard was his daughter. Hope was the product of a drunken one-night stand with Denise Maynard almost two years prior. Unsure about whether he wanted to relinquish his parental rights and let Ben Harris adopt Hope, Andy confided in his father. Suddenly, John started talking about custody battles and Andy became overwhelmed. Unsure about whether he was ready to be a father, and certain that Denise was a good mother, Andy refused to go along with his father's demands that Hope be taken away from Denise. To ensure that Denise keep custody of Hope, Andy convinced Denise that they should get married.
After marrying Denise, Andy was convinced that they could become the family that he never had growing up, despite the fact that he knew Denise was in love with another man. When Andy was injured in a helicopter crash on a photography job in Eastern Europe, he was left paralyzed. Though he eventually regained the use of his legs, he was afraid that his daughter would grow up in a broken home (like he did) and faked his paralysis in order to keep Denise married to him. Eventually, his plan was discovered and, under pressure from his mother (not to mention his own conscience), Andy told Denise the truth. The dissolution of his marriage caused Andy to almost return to drinking and he left Oakdale for rehab.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
on the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
As the World Turns
As the World Turns
As the World Turns is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS from April 2, 1956 to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her other soap opera Guiding Light...
. The character has been commonly known by the nickname "Andy". He was born on-screen in 1976; his birth year was revised to 1970 when he was aged to 15 in 1985, at which time he was played by Scott DeFreitas
Scott DeFreitas
Scott DeFreitas is an actor, best known for his role as Andrew "Andy" Dixon on the American television soap opera, As the World Turns ....
. DeFreitas played the role from February 1985 to April 1995 and again from November 26, 1997 to July 12, 2000.
Character history
Andy Dixon was born to Kim Sullivan and John Dixon during their tumultuous marriage. Although Andy had a stable childhood in the care of his mother, that didn't prevent him from succumbing to alcoholism at an early age. Andy started drinking when he was still a teenager. Though his family and friends tried to get him to quit drinking, it wasn't until Lien Hughes was hurt in a car wreck that he got help. One person who supported Andy during this time was town vixen, Julie Wendall. They became good friends and Andy supported her when the whole town was against her. Eventually, they moved in together and, when Julie became pregnant, Andy agreed to claim the child as his own even though he knew it wasn't. The stress of the situation became too much for Andy and one night he went on a bender and had a one-night stand. Although he couldn't remember what the woman looked like, the woman, Courtney Baxter, did remember and was very hurt when Andy didn't recognize her. Despite this, they became friends, and though Andy grew attracted to Courtney, he was still obsessed with Julie's problems. Feeling inferior to Julie, Courtney developed a serious eating disorder and was hospitalized. Almost losing Courtney made Andy see that he was in love with her and the two eventually married. Unfortunately, Courtney felt that Andy's career took a back seat to her and they divorced.After a failed romance with the psychotic Janice Maxwell, Andy left town to pursue his career abroad. Andy returned a few years later when his mother had heart surgery. Upon his return, he began teaching a photography class at Oakdale University where he'd meet one of his students, Nikki Munson. After challenging Nikki to work on her photographic skills, the two became embroiled in intrigue involving master criminal James Stenbeck, especially since with the help of Nikki's pictures they figured out that Nikki's friend, Matt, was actually working for Stenbeck! Soon, Andy feelings for Nikki deepened and he quit his teaching job so that he and Nikki could begin dating. Later, Andy would be devastated when Nikki sent him a Dear John letter when she was away at college. Nikki's rejection caused Andy to start drinking again. Again, he got help from another town vixen, Molly Conlan. Despite her past, and his family's objections, the pair started dating and moved in together. Unfortunately, Molly's obsession with Reid Hamilton put an end to the relationship however and Andy threw Molly out.
In 1999, Andy learned that Hope Maynard was his daughter. Hope was the product of a drunken one-night stand with Denise Maynard almost two years prior. Unsure about whether he wanted to relinquish his parental rights and let Ben Harris adopt Hope, Andy confided in his father. Suddenly, John started talking about custody battles and Andy became overwhelmed. Unsure about whether he was ready to be a father, and certain that Denise was a good mother, Andy refused to go along with his father's demands that Hope be taken away from Denise. To ensure that Denise keep custody of Hope, Andy convinced Denise that they should get married.
After marrying Denise, Andy was convinced that they could become the family that he never had growing up, despite the fact that he knew Denise was in love with another man. When Andy was injured in a helicopter crash on a photography job in Eastern Europe, he was left paralyzed. Though he eventually regained the use of his legs, he was afraid that his daughter would grow up in a broken home (like he did) and faked his paralysis in order to keep Denise married to him. Eventually, his plan was discovered and, under pressure from his mother (not to mention his own conscience), Andy told Denise the truth. The dissolution of his marriage caused Andy to almost return to drinking and he left Oakdale for rehab.