The Young & The Restless Celebrates 7,000th Episode

"The Young and the Restless" premiered March 26, 1973. It has won 78 Emmy Awards and garnered 244 Emmy nominations .

WRAL's Laurie Clowers went behind the scenes to unsnarl the tangled webs in Genoa City, where everyday life takes many twists and turns. Secrets Revealed?As the No. 1 daytime drama taped episode 7,000, would the actors spill the beans on where the road of intrigue will lead?

Here is a nice hint from David Lago, who plays Raul.

"I can tell you it's going someplace really, really cool. It's going to be fun to watch," he says.

Whose baby is Ashley carrying?

"I suspect the same thing that everyone else is suspecting -- that somehow it's Victor's," says Don Diamont, who plays Brad Carlton. "And if that does turn out to be the case, there's going to be some conflict happening there!"

Surely, Eric Braeden, who plays the vindictive Victor Newman, will tell.

"I'm not telling you a damn thing, am I? No," he says.

It seems the actors will not tell what will happen next because they do not know. Scripts are not released far in advance of taping.

Taping the No. 1 daytime drama is a slow, tedious process. The actors work closely with producers, directors and a team of behind-the-scenes professionals.

"We never stop trying to get perfect performances and great shots," says executive producer Ed Scott. "If it's boring to me watching it here, I'll do it until the cows come home, as they say in North Carolina." Soap Life vs. Real LifeThe father of the baby Ashley is pregnant with is not yet known, but we were able to find out that Eileen Davidson, who plays Ashley, is not pregnant in real life.

Lauralee Bell, whose character Christine is not ready for motherhood,ispreparing to be a mom in real life. The writers will have to make up an excuse for her absence during maternity leave. Tar Heel TiesYou might not know that Y&R has ties to the Tar Heel State.

Christian LeBlanc, better known as Michael Baldwin on the show, recalls fond childhood memories of the Sandhills.

"I was born in the lovely city of Fayetteville at the base of Fort Bragg where my father was an MP, and I took swimming lessons," he says.

Jeanne Cooper has played Katherine Chancellor since the show first started in 1973. She is the grande dame of Genoa City, but she has Carolina on her mind.

"The Carolinas are the most undersold states. There's beauty, there's history, there's hurricanes," she says with a laugh.

Actress Sharon Case thinks of sports when she thinks of the Tar Heel state, having played golf in Roanoke Rapids.

"You have a great airport. It's one of the nicest airports in the country. Why I remember that I don't know, but you land in so many airports and I came to that one and said, 'This is a beautiful airport," she says.

"My bed and end tables were made in North Carolina," says Diamont. Secrets to SuccessThe stars of "The Young and the Restless" credit a strong writing team, good people and good actors. Here's to 7,000 more episodes!