Soap fans will know Laura Wright for her decades-long work in daytime TV, from Loving to The City, Guiding Light and now General Hospital.
But for former All My Children star turned TV personality Kelly Ripa, Laura is just her best friend. The pair met in the early 1990s when Laura first moved to New York City after being cast in Loving.
© Ron Galella Collection via GettyThey were "inseparable" for the longest time, and it is believed that they lived together in NYC for many years. Their first meeting came about when Laura had first arrived in the city, and was taken under Rena Sofer's wing.
"The first night, after I worked, Rena Sofer [Quinn on The Bold & The Beautiful] saw me wandering the hallways," Laura told Dishing with Digest in 2021.
© Disney via Getty ImagesRena stopped Laura and congratulated her on the new role, and asked if there was anyone she would like to meet.
Laura then exclaimed she would love to meet "Hayley from All My Children," played by Kelly, and so Rena took Laura for dinner with Kelly; All My Children and Loving filmed at the same studio.
© Ron Galella Collection via Getty"I'll never forget, they got salads and water and I got a Coke and a cheeseburger and french fries and they were like, 'She’ll learn,' — and boy, were they right! I gained 50 pounds, I think, immediately!" said Laura.
"And then that night we just hung out and went back to Rena’s place and had a good time. And that was 30 years ago. My first night in New York City, after work, on that Friday night, was with Kelly and Rena Sofer."
© Laura WrightLaura has also praised Kelly for having her back during that time, sharing that their similar childhoods helped them to bond.
"Kelly started taking me to events because I didn’t have any friends. I didn’t know anyone. She would call me and say, ‘You know there’s an event happening, and everyone from the shows is going?'" said Laura revealing that Kelly would then pick her up in a taxi and take her to the events.
© Disney General Entertainment ConThe pair became such good friends that in 1995 Kelly was reportedly a bridesmaid at Laura's wedding to her then-husband John, whom she had dated off-and-on throughout high school and college.
When Kelly got the role on Live!, taking over from Kathie Lee Gifford, Laura was one of the first people Kelly told, and Laura admitted there was no one better for the role.
"I just knew this was Kelly’s job. I had no idea she was even in the running. I was talking with a friend and said Kelly should have the part. There was no one else that quick and funny on the spot," she said.
