Rex Balsom

Rex Balsom is a fictional character from the American daytime drama One Life to Live, portrayed by John-Paul Lavoisier from May 9, 2002, to January 12, 2012.

Rex Balsom
One Life to Live character
Portrayed byJohn-Paul Lavoisier
Duration2002–12
First appearanceMay 9, 2002 (2002-05-09)[1][2]
Last appearanceJanuary 12, 2012 (2012-01-12)
Created by
Introduced byGary Tomlin
ClassificationPast; regular
Profile
Occupation
  • Private investigator
  • Nightclub Owner
  • Businessman
  • Bellhop
  • Con artist
ResidenceBlackheath, London

Casting and characterization

With the character initially named "Jamie" prior to production, then-Executive Producer Gary Tomlin "toyed with the idea" of putting Rex in a gay storyline and Lavoisier stated in Soap Opera Digest in 2003: "I was asked by the higher powers at the show how I would feel about doing something like that. I said, 'Absolutely, any plot you want to give me, I'll take on strong.' And they said, 'Okay, we just wanted to check.'"[3] However, this idea never realized, with the character repeatedly paired with women. Calling Rex a "heterosexual horndog," Lavoisier noted he "added a glint in [Rex's] eye he'd lifted from Ryan Phillippe's ... Cruel Intentions character of Sebastian. 'They said, "Sure, go with that. Start with that." And that was pretty much it.'"[3]

In 2007, the series revisited Rex's backstory, introduction of the character's high school girlfriend, Gigi Morasco, and her son, Shane — with Gigi having something she has waited years to tell him — that Shane is Rex's son;[4] this is confirmed on March 17, 2008.[5] Tomlin's return to the series as Head Writer during the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike also featured Rex beginning an investigation into his own family history, prompted by his pending wedding to Adriana Cramer[6] and the "suspicious" behavior of his mother Roxy. Rex was born in 1979, as a result of an affair between Clint Buchanan and Echo DiSavoy.[7][8]

Storylines

2002–05

Believing Roxy Balsom is her biological mother, newspaper heiress Jessica Buchanan travels to Michigan in 2002 to meet Roxy's son Rex.[2] Money-hungry schemer Rex soon comes to Llanview to take advantage of the fact that Jessica is a member of the wealthy Lord and Buchanan families. Raised by his father's sister Corinne Balsom,[2][9][10] Rex has an uneasy relationship with the wild, unreliable Roxy. It is ultimately revealed that Jessica had not been switched at birth with Rex's sister Natalie, but that the women are actually fraternal twins and both the daughters of Victoria Lord Davidson. Rex has remained close to Natalie, the "sister" he grew up with, and maintains a friendship with Jessica.

Rex becomes involved with Jennifer Rappaport, a former manipulator who is trying to follow a more respectable path after the murder of her father. Torn between bad boy Rex and the wholesome clergyman Joey Buchanan, Jen first elopes with Rex in the summer of 2003 and then quickly divorces the union to marry Joey in a more traditional ceremony in August. Jen miscarries Joey's baby thanks to a bumpy motorcycle ride on Rex's bike; Rex extorts the deed to Jen's father's house from her by threatening to reveal their affair to Joey. The truth comes out and Jen and Joey divorce, but Jen begins a relationship with Riley Colson. Rex later has a short relationship with Jen's mother, Lindsay Rappaport.

Opportunist Rex becomes a bit more respectable by taking over management of R. J. Gannon's nightclub Ultra Violet. Over the years, Rex parlays his street smarts and shady connections into a sideline career as an amateur private investigator. In occasionally aiding the police, Rex develops a friendship with Police Commissioner Bo Buchanan, who is constantly frustrated by Rex's mischief and methods but cares about him like a son.

2006–08

In 2006, Rex becomes romantically involved with Adriana Cramer, whose mother Dorian Lord disapproves of the match and goes to great lengths to keep them apart. When one of Dorian's plans backfires and puts Adriana into mortal danger, Rex comes to her rescue, finally convincing Dorian that he is a worthy mate for Adriana. In 2007 Rex and Adriana's relationship is tested by celebrity baseball pitcher Tate Harmon, who becomes romantically interested in Adriana and manipulates events to get close to her and cause conflict between Adriana and Rex. Jealous Rex's own investigations of Tate prompt Adriana to break up with Rex and start to date Tate, but Rex is later vindicated when Tate is revealed to be a white supremacist responsible for various anti-semitic and racially motivated attacks in Llanview. Rex and Adriana reunite.

Rex had been devastated by Jen's murder in May 2005, but the event had cemented his closeness to Jen's best friend Marcie Walsh and to Lindsay. While searching for Todd Manning's infant son, kidnapped at birth by Dr. Spencer Truman, private investigator Rex discovers in 2006 that the child is actually his own godson: Tommy, the adopted son of Marcie and her new husband, Dr. Michael McBain. Familiar with the McBains' devotion to Tommy and knowing that they would be devastated if he were taken away, Rex is unsure of what to do; he is also aware of Todd's volatile behavior, above-the-law history, and selfishness. Perceiving Todd's consideration of his missing son as nothing more than a lost possession, Rex decides to keep the secret.

Adriana and later Michael himself become part of the conspiracy to keep Tommy with the McBains. Rex goes as far as faking a death certificate for Todd's missing child to get Todd to give up the search. An unhinged Spencer Truman is murdered on January 26, 2007 and Bo catches Rex holding the murder weapon.[11] Rex is exonerated, but Bo and later Michael's brother Detective John McBain suspect he is keeping something from them. In the wake of Spencer's death, hints to the whereabouts of Todd's son begin to surface, prompting Todd to resume his search.

In 2007, Spencer's killer is finally revealed to be Lindsay, who loves Marcie like a daughter. Lindsay had discovered Tommy's true identity and had stabbed Spencer to bury the secret forever. But at the same time Lindsay is arrested, the rest of Spencer's final plan plays out as his heir Miles Laurence gives Todd proof that Spencer orchestrated the adoption of Todd's son by the McBains. Realizing that he had been deceived by Rex, Todd swears to get revenge once he has his son back. Rex in turn vows to do all he can to help Lindsay, and to keep Tommy away from Todd.

Todd is awarded custody on October 9, 2007,[12] but Marcie flees Llanview with Tommy. The search leads Rex to the Bon Jour Café in Paris, Texas, where he runs into waitress Gigi Morasco — his high school girlfriend.[9][13] Rex apologizes for his sudden disappearance from her life in 2002 when he had left for Llanview, but does not realize the extent to which she had been hurt.[14]

The evasive Gigi, who is hiding Marcie and unaware of her friendship with Rex, lies about any knowledge of the fugitive. Agreeing with Rex that "it is a terrible thing for a father to not have the opportunity to watch his son grow up," Gigi says she has something to tell him. But she holds back as Rex mentions his plans to propose to Adriana; with Marcie anxious to get cash to leave the country, Gigi sells Rex Marcie's engagement ring. Gigi is unnerved as Rex and her son Shane — whose father she has told Shane is dead – nearly meet. Rex departs, leaving Gigi shaken.[4][15][16] Rex returns to Llanview and proposes to Adriana; she accepts and puts Marcie's ring on her finger – where it is soon recognized by Michael.[17] He rushes to Texas, bringing Todd and the authorities with him, and Tommy is returned to Todd on January 14, 2008. Meanwhile, Rex, Adriana, and Dorian worry that Blair Cramer — Adriana's cousin and Todd's wife – will tell Todd that Rex and Adriana have known all along that the McBains had adopted Todd's son.

In early 2008, Rex and Adriana meet Dorian's mysterious new house guest, Charlie Banks. Charlie – who is hiding his identity to conceal his relationship to son Jared Banks — glances idly at Roxy's business card and introduces himself as "Charlie Balsom." He is dismayed to learn that Rex's name is Balsom as well, and Rex inquires as to whether he and Charlie are related.[7] Charlie insists they aren't, and later saves Rex from Todd's long-feared wrath over his son. Rex remains curious about his lineage, asking first Roxy, then his Aunt Corinne, about Walter Balsom's side of the family. Both women are evasive and nervous when questioned about Rex's family tree, and Rex becomes convinced that they are hiding something.[18] When Corinne visits Llanview on January 25, 2008 to congratulate Rex on his engagement, Rex grills her for information, and Corinne reluctantly admits that she has her doubts that Walter Balsom was Rex's father.[19]

2009–12

To stop Rex from looking further, Roxy claims that "Charlie Banks" is his father. She begs Charlie to go along with the story; he ultimately agrees, and reluctantly lets an excited Rex start building a relationship with his "father." The truth eventually comes out, and though Rex is hurt and furious, Roxy evades his questions about his real father.

On March 31, 2010, Rex and his sister Natalie are told that Mitch is not Rex's father. Not only that, but Roxy isn't his mother. Allison Perkins, one of Mitch's faithful disciples, switched Rex at birth with Roxy and Mitch's real son, Schuyler Joplin. Believing that Roxy's baby (Schuyler) was going to die, Allison took an infant abandoned at the hospital (who would later become Rex) and passed that baby off as Mitch's offspring. She gave the baby to Roxy to show Mitch, who was in prison at the time. However, when Allison discovered that Mitch's child would be fine, she told her sister, Dr. Leah Perkins Joplin, that it was her baby, but she didn't want it and allowed Dr. Joplin to raise the child as her own.

Meanwhile, Gigi has come to Llanview to testify for Marcie in the case against her. Adriana discovers Shane's existence, and suspects that he is Rex's son. Rex refuses to believe it, and Gigi confirms that Shane's father Brody Lovett is a deceased Navy SEAL. Gigi is troubled as Rex begins getting closer to Shane. On March 17, 2008, she admits aloud that Rex is Shane's father.[5] With Gigi a constant presence and Rex getting closer to Shane, Adriana seeks to find some leverage against Gigi. She soon discovers that Brody is alive, and he confirms that Gigi had been pregnant when he met her. Adriana pays him to come to Llanview. Rex and Adriana marry on May 20, 2008, but they soon separate as Rex discovers her many machinations. When Gigi leaves town to pursue the missing Rex to Texas and seems to vanish herself, Brody uses Rex's DNA from a toothbrush to fake a paternity test which "proves" Brody to be Shane's father and protects him from being put into the foster care system in Gigi's absence. Gigi and Rex return to Llanview together, Rex knowing the truth about Shane's paternity and the couple ready to tell Shane; a despondent Brody suffers a mental breakdown, kidnapping Shane and later accidentally shooting Rex. Adriana returns and at first keeps Gigi from seeing a comatose Rex; when Rex awakens, Adriana finally accepts his feelings for Gigi, and lets Rex go for good. With Brody suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder from his war experiences, a recovered Rex decides not to press charges. Initially resentful of Rex, Shane comes to appreciate his newly found father.

Caught in another convenient lie to throw Rex off the trail of his father's identity, Roxy finally breaks down and admits to Rex that his father is dead – and that she killed the horrible man in self-defense.[20] Rex believes her, and promises to keep the secret;[20] Roxy subsequently visits an unseen, comatose man in a hospital, whom she identifies as Rex's evil father.[21] She vows to keep the secret forever and leaves, and the man's foot moves under the blankets.[21] In March 2009, Shane is diagnosed with leukemia,[22] and Roxy discovers that Rex's comatose father is a bone marrow match. Gigi's estranged ex-stripper sister Stacy Morasco, trying to get close to Rex, discovers Roxy's secret and blackmails Roxy into helping her pretend to be the donor. Stacy forces Gigi to break up with Rex for Stacy to save Shane;[23] Gigi fakes an affair with Brody.[24] Armed with a spare bag of his blood in case Shane needs it, Roxy pulls the plug on Rex's father; he survives and is spirited away by a nurse who tells Roxy he is dead. As Rex begins growing closer to Stacy after the affair, Gigi is able to prove that Stacy is not a match with the help of Schuyler Joplin.[25] Gigi and Rex secretly reunite, and end Stacy's scheming. However, Stacy finds out that she is pregnant,[26] having slept with Rex weeks earlier.[27] She loses the baby but gets pregnant again by police officer Oliver Fish and passes it off as Rex's; his relationship with Gigi soon crumbles. In November 2009, Rex's aunt Corrine gives him a copy of his birth certificate, which reveals deceased villain Mitch Laurence to be his father; Roxy reluctantly confirms it. Meanwhile, Mitch reappears alive, terrorizing his daughter Jessica and Rex's foster sister Natalie, and killing Jared. During a February 2010 blizzard, Rex discovers that Stacy's child is not his;[28] meanwhile, Gigi helps Stacy give birth in a nearby cabin to a baby girl she names Sierra Rose.[29] Despite Rex and Oliver's attempts to save her, Stacy subsequently falls through the ice of a frozen lake and is presumed dead.

In April 2010, Rex learns that Roxy and Mitch are not his birth parents; his only tangible clue to his real parents is a necklace that was left with him when he was abandoned at birth. Rex's relationship with Gigi recovers to the point that she offers to accompany him on a trip to New Mexico to learn more about the necklace. Clues lead them to discover that Rex's parents had been a star-crossed couple named Rick and Lili who had been separated by circumstance. Unable to reunite with Rick, Lili had left Rex and died of a broken heart. Back in Llanview, Rex and Gigi declare their love for each other on June 8, 2010.

In October 2010, Viki hires Rex to investigate Echo DiSavoy, who has returned to Llanview. In Echo's room, Rex finds one half of a heart necklace resembling his own. When Rex and Viki confront Echo about the necklace, she denies that there is any connection between them. Echo later confronts Clint Buchanan on November 5, 2010 and declares that they are Rex's biological parents. Clint reveals that he had known about Rex for quite some time and that he forged the letters of Rick and Lili to keep Rex from finding out the truth. Clint dislikes and distrusts Rex, whom he considers a "gold-digging piece of trash" — like Echo. Echo is wracked by guilt over abandoning Rex, and on November 12, 2010 she publicly reveals that she is Rex's mother. She names Charlie the father to protect Rex from Clint's wrath. Meanwhile, Dorian soon guesses that Clint is really Rex's father, and seeks to prove it.

In January 2011, Rex allows Echo to begin spending more time with his family. On January 27, he is shocked when Dorian tells him that Clint is really his father. Though Rex does not believe it, he takes a sample of Charlie's DNA to compare it to his; he ultimately decides not to submit to a paternity test, pretending that he has and stating that Charlie is indeed his father. At Jessica and Natalie's double wedding on February 8, Vimal Patel shocks everyone by revealing that Clint is Rex's father, and that Clint had paid him to tamper with the test. Rex and Charlie are devastated.

On April 19, 2011, Rex asks Gigi to marry him and she says yes, because they love one another and also to help give Shane some stability after his bullying by Jack Manning, which almost led him to commit suicide; this was stopped by the interference of Rex and Gigi. On June 29, 2011, Rex and Shane say their goodbyes to a brain-dead Gigi due to carbon monoxide poisoning. Rex has a vision of Gigi where they marry and she says goodbye, telling him to live for her, Shane, and himself.

Rex agrees to give Gigi's heart to Clint in exchange for all his assets. After his emotional goodbye, Gigi is taken away and her heart is given to Clint, leaving Rex a widower. Rex also moves into the Buchanan Mansion (which he took ownership of as part of Clint's assets) along with his son Shane and his biological mother Echo.

Rex is now planning on using the assets from Clint to take down the Mannings for revenge. Rex later plans to kill Todd and Jack Manning armed with a gun at the Palace Hotel during the "Vicker Man" movie premiere, but he later chickens out and heads back home to the Buchanan Mansion. After he returns home and drops his revenge plan against the Mannings, Rex starts seeing Gigi's ghost. Rex chases after Gigi's ghost, but doesn't catches her after she runs away from him. Rex later confides in Echo that Gigi might not be a ghost, and that she is probably still alive. When Natalie sees Rex going through security video footage of the mansion to see a glimpse of Gigi, Natalie then hires psychic Madame Delphina to help Rex contact Gigi's spirit. Madame Delphina gives Rex a cryptic clue about a "spotted pony". Rex then researches the clue, and later finds out from David Vickers Buchanan that The Spotted Pony is a strip club in Anchorage, Kentucky. Rex then goes with his sister Natalie to Kentucky by taking the Buchanans' private jet to Kentucky. Rex and Natalie then go to The Spotted Pony to investigate the place. After Natalie is mistaken for a stripper, Rex then sends Natalie back to the jet after he feels he found nothing that will lead him to Gigi. Rex then hears an announcement for a stripper going by the name of "Gigi". It turns out that "Gigi" is a stripper name that's being used by Kimberly Andrews, who was a friend of Gigi's dead sister Stacy Morasco. Rex then confronts Kim and tells her why she is using his late fiancé's name. Kim says that she is using the name to pay respects for her dead friend (Stacy used the Gigi name as her stripper name back when she was a stripper in Las Vegas). Rex then tells Kim that Gigi recently died and wants her to help her find Gigi after he's seen her ghost, but claims that Gigi is not a ghost, and that she is still possibly alive. Kim tells Rex that she can't help him find Gigi. Rex also tells Kim that he is Clint's biological son from Clint's affair with Echo, and he extorted and blackmailed the entire Buchanan fortune and ownership of the Buchanan Mansion away from Kim's ex-husband Clint in exchange for Clint to get Gigi's heart after Clint suffered a heart attack. Rex also tells Kim that Clint is living with his ex-wife Viki at her Llanfair estate under house arrest for twenty years for committing recent various crimes. Rex then leaves The Spotted Pony and Kentucky and heads back home to Llanview with Natalie. After Rex leaves The Spotted Pony, Kim then heads to the local hospital in Kentucky to visit a mysterious woman lying comatose in her room. Kim tells the mystery woman that Rex visited her at The Spotted Pony, and that Rex was investigating the place to find Gigi and also told her what happened in Llanview since she's been gone. Kim also tells the mystery woman that she wants to go back to Llanview to win back Clint's heart, to still get her hands on the piece of the Buchanan fortune, and to confront David for blackmailing her out of town with a mysterious secret that she was hiding from Clint. Kim then leaves the mystery woman at the hospital to return to Llanview, and promises her that she will be taken care of by the hospital staff while she is gone. The mystery woman is soon revealed to be Stacy, Gigi's sister, thanks to a picture of Stacy and Kim that sits on her nightstand next to her bed! On August 25, 2011 Rex sees that the year of Gigi's death has been scratched out on her tombstone at her grave site in the cemetery. Rex then has Gigi's grave exhumed to see if Gigi is really alive or not. Rex then discovers that Gigi's corpse is still in the casket, meaning that Rex is really seeing Gigi's ghost after all! Unfortunately, Rex discovers that his son Shane had just witnessed his father exhuming his mother's grave, and becomes very upset at his Dad for what he did to his deceased mother. Kim later visits Gigi's grave after Rex exhumed her grave and buries it again, and she leaves a bouquet of flowers she stole from Asa Buchanan's grave, and leaves them next to Gigi's grave. When Victor Lord Jr. (who turns out to be the real Todd Manning's twin brother!) is later murdered by a mysterious person, Echo starts to think that her son Rex might be the suspect in Victor's murder, and then finds Roxy selling her belongings at a flea market outside in Angel Square. She tells Roxy that she needs to hide Rex's gun that was in the safe at the Buchanan mansion, and Roxy hides the gun inside her stuffed beaver Morris that she is selling at the flea market. Former con artist Cutter Wentworth later buys the beaver, but refuses to sell it back to Roxy when she later discovers that he bought Morris. Echo is later blackmailed by Kim when they both confront each other about the beaver and the gun. Kim tells Echo that she won't turn over Rex's gun to the police if she can get the Buchanan fortune back to Clint and to help pay for her friend Stacy's medical bills. Echo later tells Rex about Kim's scam against Rex, but he refuses to give back the money to Clint and to give Kim money to her comatose friend. Despite Rex's refusal to give into Kim's demands though, Echo forges his son's name on the documents to hand over the Buchanan fortune back to Clint. On September 20, 2011, Rex heads back to Kentucky to investigate Kim's sick friend in the hospital, but is distracted by Kim when she lies to him saying the friend was a stripper at the Spotted Pony who was badly abused by her boyfriend and had to stay in the hospital to recover from her injuries. Rex then leaves the hospital disappointed he didn't find any leads on Kim's mysterious friend in the hospital. On October 12, 2011, Echo, Roxy, and Bo tell Rex that they think that he might've murdered Victor Jr., but Rex tells them that he didn't murder him. They also later discover that Rex's gun and the murder weapon that Kim was blackmailing Echo with has disappeared, and later found out that Shane took the gun to threaten Jack with at the cemetery to confront him for being responsible for his mother's death, and that he didn't witness Victor Jr. being murdered because he knocked him out with the gun the night of the murder on the doorsteps of Victor Jr.'s house. Bo and Rex then found Shane and Jack at the cemetery. Bo and Rex also took both Shane and Jack at the police station to question them both about Victor Jr.'s murder. Shane told Bo and Rex that after he knocked out Jack with the gun, he then took Jack to drop him off at the hospital. The next day, both Rex and Shane had a heart to heart talk about promising each other to never keep secrets from each other, and to both move on with their lives after Gigi's death. On October 18, 2011, Rex starts to bond with Cutter's ex-girlfriend Aubrey Wentworth, who apologized to Rex for ratting him out about the gun to the police, and to help him plan for her sister's Natalie's engagement party to help celebrate her upcoming wedding to Brody. They also share the fact that both of them used to be con artists.

On October 20 Rex decides to return everything to Clint as a way of his moving on with his life. However, Clint officially acknowledges both Rex and Shane as his family and says that they have a right to live in the family home, telling Rex he can stay at the mansion as long as he wishes. On October 24, Rex is visited by Cutter at Buchanan Enterprises while he is moving out of his office. Cutter tells Rex that Gigi is still alive and will return her to him for the Buchanan fortune. Rex tells Cutter that he's giving back the entire fortune to Clint, even though he hasn't received the paperwork from Clint yet to sign. Cutter tells Rex to let him sign his name on the documents so that he could have complete ownership of the family fortune in exchange for Gigi. Rex doesn't believe Gigi is still alive, even though Cutter tries to show him a picture of Gigi lying on her bed at the Kentucky hospital on his cell phone. Rex thinks the photo he has of Gigi is a fake, and gets into an angry fight with Cutter for his extortion scheme. Bo then enters the office to break up the fight between them, and Cutter then leaves the building saying that Rex will regret his decision to not take him up on his offer to reunite with Gigi. Rex then comes back home to the mansion with cuts and bruises on his face that Aubrey sees when she arrives, and she tends to his wounds. Rex tells Aubrey about Cutter's plan to use Gigi to get his hands on the Buchanan fortune. Aubrey thinks that Cutter has hit a new low with his latest scam. On October 26, Rex, Shane, and Aubrey decide to dress up as The Three Musketeers for Brody and Natalie's costume themed engagement party on Halloween out of respect for Gigi who wanted to wear those costumes for the holiday before her death. Rex then tells Shane that him and Aubrey are only friends and that she'll never replace his mother. Rex and Shane then visit Gigi's grave to pay their respects where Rex finds a flower that someone puts on her tombstone, who Rex doesn't know is Stacy with plastic surgery that made her look like her sister Gigi who is hiding behind the bushes at the cemetery that put that flower on Gigi's grave! On October 28, Rex is greeted at the door by Cutter dressed as a mummy, and Stacy dressed as Little Red Riding Hood wearing a mask on her face, with Rex not knowing that Cutter and Stacy are wearing those costumes at the engagement party. Rex then later discovers that the masked woman is talking to his son Shane. Rex also discovers that Cutter was the mummy that he let in to the party when Aubrey unmasked him at the stables causing them to foil Cutter's latest scheme. Rex also finds the masked woman with Cutter. When Rex later steps outside the mansion though, Rex discovers the mask on the front doorsteps that the mystery woman left behind after she left the party. The next morning, Rex goes to the Minute Man Motel where Stacy is staying at, and then breaks into the motel room, and yells at Stacy (who was hiding in the bathroom) for trying to fool him to think that she was his dead fiancé Gigi. Cutter then arrives at the motel room and discovers that Rex broke into his room, and Rex confronts him for trying to fool him to think that the woman he brought to the engagement party was Gigi, before he left the motel to go to Foxy Roxy's hair salon where he interrupts a conversation between Aubrey and her friend Rama when Aubrey said that she denies having feelings for Rex. On November 14, Rex attends his sister Natalie's wedding to Brody, when all of a sudden Tina shows up with the paternity test results saying that John, not Brody, is Liam's biological father. The wedding is then called off, and Rex helps Natalie track down John at the airport before he boards his flight to Seattle, Washington to leave Llanview. Rex then spots Cutter at the airport to confront Cutter again for passing of his female friend as Gigi. Cutter then tells Rex to leave him alone before he boards his flight to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Rex then tells Cutter to go away before he sees Kim's friend for the first time with Gigi's face before she boards her flight to Brazil with Cutter. Aubrey then comes to the airport to help accompany Rex to Rio to investigate Cutter and Kim's friend. Rex and Aubrey then arrives in Rio at a plastic surgeon Dr. Fascinella's office to look for Cutter and Kim's friend. Rex then tried to break into the doctor's office while Aubrey distracted the receptionist. After Aubrey was unsuccessful with distracting the receptionist and Cutter couldn't break into the room, the receptionist left to get security to escort them out. Cutter eventually came out of the doctor's office with a bandaged patient in a wheelchair. Aubrey then unmasked the bandaged woman, only to be revealed as Alex Olanov behind the bandages! Rex was surprised to see Alex again, and Alex lied to Rex by saying that she pretended to be Gigi to get her share of the Buchanan fortune with Cutter (even though she didn't tell Rex and Aubrey that she was Cutter and Kim's mother!). Rex then told them he believed their story, and also told them he didn't want to be like them, and that he already accepted Gigi's death. Rex and Aubrey then both left the doctor's office after Cutter told the receptionist to not let security escort them out because he knew them personally, when Aubrey questioned Rex why he would believe Cutter and Alex's lies. Rex then told Aubrey that he didn't really believe their story, and just pretended to so that he could let Cutter's guard down. Rex also vowed to Aubrey that he won't leave Rio until he could get to the bottom of Cutter's scam with Kim's friend. On December 1, Rex is comforted by Aubrey after he wakes up from a nightmare about Gigi's death. Aubrey then plants a kiss on Rex! Aubrey then apologized for trying to make a move on Rex while he was still grieving for Gigi. Rex and Aubrey then went to the plastic surgeon's office of Dr. Fascinella to obtain the flash drive of his patients file from the computer of his receptionist by both disguising themselves as exterminators to pretend to fumigate the room. Rex and Aubrey then head back to their hotel room to download the file on Rex's laptop computer to discover that Gigi's still very much alive sister Stacy had plastic surgery to look like Gigi! Rex and Aubrey then decided to visit Kim at the prison in Kentucky where she was incarcerated in for murdering a rich guy at The Spotted Pony several years ago to ask her about Stacy's surgery to look like Gigi. Kim was shocked to find out from Rex and Aubrey that Stacy woke up from her coma after she was arrested. Kim agreed to help give them details on Stacy in return to trying to prove her innocence for the crime at The Spotted Pony by obtaining the real picture of Cutter and the dead body from Rama's cell phone, because she said that she was framed by Cutter and Rama, and that Cutter actually was the one to really be the murderer, and that Rama and Cutter doctored a photo on Rama's cell phone by putting Kim's image over Cutter next to the dead body. Rex and Aubrey then agrees to Kim's demands to exonerate her from prison so that Rex could track down Stacy. Still unaware that Gigi is alive, Rex kisses Aubrey (to make them even) and then invites her to spend Christmas with him and Shane. Rex then goes to Paris, TX, and meets Viki who's also there to attend the pie-off contest. Both Viki and Rex are unaware that a still-alive Gigi and Cutter are both in town working at The Bon Jour Cafe. Cutter hires a preacher to distract Viki and Rex so that he could sneak Gigi out of The Bon Jour before Rex and Viki could see her and Cutter. Rex and Shane then both check themselves into a room at The Bon Sweets Motel, where Gigi and Cutter are also staying at in town, unbeknownst to both Rex and Shane! While they were staying in their motel room, Shane told Rex that he accepted his relationship with Aubrey. On December 20, Rex and Shane attend the pie-off contest at The Bon Jour Cafe where Noelle submitted her own pie that she named "The Gigi Morasco Special" in honor of her "deceased" former co-worker. Rex then recognize one of the judges for the contest named Professor Delbert Fina Jr. (whose father helped Rex and Gigi go back to their present time after they time traveled back to 1968.), but Rex only sees that he resembles Madame Delphina. After the professor declares that Noelle's pie is the winner of the pie-off contest, the professor hands Rex a book his father wrote about time traveling. Rex, Shane, Viki, Moe, and Noelle then all go to the airport to leave town where they all discover that their flight is overbooked, and that one of them has to stay behind. Rex volunteers to stay behind to board a later flight. Rex then opens up the book the professor gave him, but he once again sees the message "don't give up" on all of the pages of the book! Rex then decides to go back to The Bon Jour Cafe where he meets "Stacy", unaware that she's really Gigi! Rex then scolds at Gigi (still thinking that she is "Stacy") for getting plastic surgery to look like Gigi, and for scheming with Cutter to try to scam the Buchanan fortune from him. "Stacy" tells Rex that she is really Gigi, and that she doesn't remember anything about her old self, and was trying to get her memories back when she showed up at the Buchanan Mansion on Halloween night. "Stacy" also told Rex that Cutter dropped his scam against him to help her get plastic surgery to look like Stacy again, but couldn't get the surgery because of the toxic fumes that she inhaled from being trapped in that basement that caused her coma. Rex still doesn't believe her (even though Gig remembers previously working at The Bon Jour Cafe in Paris, TX) and gets into a fight with "Stacy", until Cutter shows up at The Bon Jour to break up the fight, so that he can finally tell the truth about "Stacy" really being Gigi. Cutter tells Rex that "Stacy" is really Gigi, and that Stacy was the one to have plastic surgery to look like Gigi. Rex doesn't believe Cutter, and tells "Stacy" that Cutter murdered a guy back in Kentucky and framed his sister for the crime. Rex then has Cutter tied up until the police arrive to have Cutter arrested and taken away to a prison in Kentucky. Rex then continue to argue with "Stacy" about her part in Gigi's death, until Professor Delbet Fina Jr. arrives at the diner to help Rex and "Stacy" with answers about the night of Gigi's death, by hooking up his time traveling remote control device to a TV to witness the night of Gigi's death unfold to them on TV. On December 23, it is revealed by Professor Fina's time traveling device that "Stacy" is the real Gigi, and that Gigi lost her memory and went into a coma after she knocked out Stacy in self-defense, and after Stacy switched her clothes with Gigi's wedding dress to try to fool Rex into marrying her so that she could take over Gigi's life! Rex and Gigi then woke up to each other the next day at The Bon Sweets Motel, grateful to each other to be together again! Rex also tells Gigi that Stacy's heart, not Gigi's, was donated to Clint after he suffered from a heart attack. Rex then called Shane to tell him he has a surprise for him when he comes back home, and Shane tells him he has a surprise for him too. When Rex comes back home to Llanview, he arrives at Llanfair to surprise Shane with his still-alive mother, explaining to him that Stacy, not Gigi, was the one that died in that basement instead! Shane then told his parents that he put Jack in prison for Gigi's "death", even though it was Stacy that really died in that basement instead. Gigi then found out from Rex that he was in a romantic relationship with Aubrey when he still thought that Gigi was dead, but Rex told Gigi that his feelings towards Aubrey disappeared when he found out that Gigi was still alive. While Gigi and Shane went over to the police station to reveal Gigi still being alive and to confront Shane, Rex headed back to the Buchanan Mansion to break the news to Aubrey about Gigi and Stacy. Rex told Aubrey that Gigi was still alive, and that Stacy was the one that died in that basement from carbon monoxide poisoning. Rex also told Aubrey that he was breaking up with her because he was getting back together with Gigi after he found out that she was still alive. Aubrey took the break up well enough to accept the news, and told him that he was a great friend to her, and that she would like to be with a guy like Rex someday. After Rex broke up with Aubrey at the mansion, he then went over back to Llanfair where he proposed to Gigi again in front of their son, and his father Clint and Viki. On New Year's Eve 2011, Rex and Gigi were married in front of their family and friends at Llanfair.

On January 12, 2012, Gigi, Rex, and Shane decide to move to England so Shane can attend an art school after Gigi filled out an application there when Shane was still being bullied by Jack at school during the last school year. They watched the last episode of Fraternity Row and said goodbye to their friends and family before leaving Llanview to move to England.

See also

References
  1. Rex Balsom profile – SoapCentral.com
  2. One Life to Live recap (5/9/02) – ABC.com
  3. Dawn, Randee. "Rex and the City." Soap Opera Digest, April 1, 2003.
  4. Hinsey, Carolyn. "It's Only My Opinion." Soap Opera Digest, Vol. 33, No. 4, January 22, 2008, page 45. "Raise your hand if you believe Shane's dad is really dead. Anyone?"
  5. Gigi confirms that Rex is Shane's father in the March 17, 2008 episode.
  6. One Life to Live recap (1/17/08) – ABC.com "Rex is hit with the reality that he hardly has any family at all. He wants to explore his background."
  7. One Life to Live recap (1/8/08) – ABC.com "Rex and Adriana meet Charlie, who digs himself in deeper with his web of lies and abruptly claims his last name is Balsom in his effort to keep his paternity of Jared secret. When Rex later questions Roxy about being related to Charlie Balsom – and wanting to investigate his family history – Roxy overreacts in warning him not to. Rex's suspicions are raised."
  8. One Life to Live recap (1/9/08) – ABC.com "Roxy seems to be keeping a secret about the Balsom family."
  9. "Rex and Gigi's Secret Past Revealed on OLTL." Soap Opera Digest, Vol. 32, No. 52, December 25, 2007, page 8. "[Rex and Gigi] were high school sweethearts in Michigan, when Rex used to live with his Aunt Corrine ... Rex just abruptly left town and left Gigi and never gave her an explanation ... She tried to get in touch with him for a very important reason and she never could get in touch with him."
  10. Though the character's name has been repeatedly spelled "Corrine" at ABC.com, SoapCentral.com and in Soap Opera Digest, Ann Hamilton was credited as "Corinne" onscreen on January 25, 2008.
  11. One Life to Live recap (1/29/07) – ABC.com
  12. One Life to Live recap (10/9/07) – ABC.com
  13. One to Live recap (12/21/07) – ABC.com
  14. One Life to Live recap (12/21/07) – SoapCentral.com
  15. One Life to Live recap (12/24/07) – SoapCentral.com
  16. One Life to Live recap (12/24/07) – ABC.com
  17. One Life to Live recap (12/28/07) – ABC.com
  18. One Live to Live recap (1/23/08) – ABC.com On the January 23, 2008 episode, Rex notes that his long-talked-about aunt Corinne is the sister of his father, Dr. Walter Balsom. "After speaking to his Aunt Corrine [on the phone], Rex is certain Roxy is hiding something about his family. Corrine warns Roxy that Rex has been asking questions."
  19. One Life to Live recap (1/25/08) – ABC.com "Rex presses his Aunt Corrine for answers about his family and is stunned by the bombshell she drops on him: Walter Balsom may not have been his father."
  20. One Life to Live recap (2/26/09) – Soaps.com
  21. One Life to Live recap (3/2/09) – Soaps.com
  22. One Life to Live recap 3/12/09 – soaps.com
  23. One Life to Live recap 3/23/09 – abc.com
  24. One Life to Live recap 3/30/09 – abc.com
  25. One Life to Live recap 6/18/09 – soaps.com
  26. One Life to Live recap 7/22/09 – soaps.com
  27. One Life to Live recap 6/25/09 – abc.com
  28. One Life to Live recap (2/10/10) – Soaps.com
  29. One Life to Live recap (2/11/10) – Soaps.com
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