Henry Coleman

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Henry Coleman is a fictional character on the popular CBS daytime soap opera As the World Turns. The character of Henry first appeared in 1999, and is played by actor Trent Dawson.

For his first five years on the show, Dawson did not have a permanent contract, so the writers would bring his character back for a certain number of episodes and then film many episodes without him. In between filming, Dawson would act on the stage.

Not much is known about Henry's past. He is the oldest of eight children, the youngest being his teenage sister, Maddie. From his description, their mother was a habitual gambler and often absent from the home, where Henry did a large part of the work of caring for his younger siblings. He enjoyed theatre in high school, where he was also a track star. He attended an Ivy League university on scholarship but was kicked out for reasons that have yet to be revealed. Also, he claims to have done a stint in the Army during the Gulf War; he was trained as a medic but never saw combat because "for some obscure reason my superiors didn't see me as combat material."

Originally, Henry was only supposed to stick around for a few scant episodes, but the writers decided to keep him around. When he first arrived in Oakdale, he was working for television station WOAK. Henry seemed to be willing to do anything in his efforts to rise to the top, including poisoning Molly's sandwich and continually trying to help Katie steal the affections of Holden, who was married. He also worked for a time on Craig's newspaper, The Intruder. He later worked as a nanny to Jack and Carly Snyder's daughter Sage, as a private investigator, as a limousine driver, and most recently as a personal assistant to BJ Green.

He gambles and is infamous for his love of martinis. In various episodes, he has claimed that low blood sugar runs in his family and that his motto is "don't look back." Katie once commented that he would never understand her attachment to Simon because he didn't know a thing about love, to which Henry replied that it's not in his interests to get attached easily to people - it makes you weak and people can never measure up to a martini.

He is sarcastic, witty, and charming, but he can also be manipulative and ruthless in reaching for his goals. Generally though, Henry is a very affable character, with a "heart of gold." He never wishes to intentionally hurt anyone, be it physically or otherwise. Usually he's only working for the money, as he's constantly broke. Lucinda has referred to him as a "weasel" and Holden once called him a "crybaby."

Henry is a master of disguises, and has dressed in drag on numerous occasions. In one such instance, he was pretending to be a pregnant woman named Henrietta at a doctor's office. He was wearing a wig similar to the Barbara character's hair, and remarked that he'd asked his hair dresser to style his hair "like Barbara from my story."

One memorable stoyline saw Henry and Katie go off to a deserted island in order to find a rare diamond. Katie was eventually rescued off the island by Simon, but they left Henry behind. When he returned to Oakdale, he confronted Katie about not coming back for him. Soon after, a genuine friendship blossomed between the two, and through thick and thin they became inseparable. Henry often refers to Katie as "Bubbles."

Many fans suspected for a long time that Henry was in love with Katie, and an episode in early 2005 confirmed their suspicions. Jen asked Henry why he was always so loyal to Katie time and time again when he simply blurted out, "Because I love her, that's why." He explained: "We have an unspoken understanding. I leave my feelings unspoken because I understand that it would be a waste of time to tell her." He said that Katie was the only person he could connect with (indeed, she was not only his best friend, but probably his only friend), and that they would be good for each other. Henry also claimed that he would do anything for her - even give up gin! - and later proposed to her. Katie, on the rebound from Mike, accepted with the intention of using the marriage as a ruse to get Mike back. Henry held onto what little hope he had that the plan would fail, he and Katie would marry, and she would finally develop some kind of romantic feelings for him.

Ultimately, Henry's plan failed, and he and Katie divorced mere months after their wedding. She eventually reconciled with Mike. Henry had left the cottage and was living in the limousine he was driving when his youngest sister, Maddie, arrived in town to stay with him. For a time, the two Coleman siblings stayed with the happy couple, but the arrangement ended when it was revealed that Henry was faking his back injury. Maddie went to live with Tom and Margo Hughes, and Henry moved to the Lakeview -- although how he was able to afford to live there remains something of a mystery; perhaps his poker games have been successful of late.

A storyline in fall 2005 involved Henry working for the mysterious computer tycoon BJ Green, who was secretly Katie's high school friend Byron Glass. Henry aided BJ because his job as BJ's "assistant" was a lucrative position, and BJ had promised Henry a home for himself and Maddie. The lengths BJ ultimately went to in attempting to win Katie's affections also painted Henry as a villain in Mike's and Katie's eyes, leaving Henry even more alone than before. Although Mike and Katie offered their forgiveness and apologies after BJ fled town, relations among the former friends remain strained at best and non-existent at worst.

Henry found a briefcase containing the money BJ had intended to take with him when he left town. Emily Stewart has gained possession of the briefcase, however, and refuses to grant Henry access to "his" money unless he continues to help her with her schemes involving Paul Ryan and Meg Snyder.

In February 2005, Dawson was put on contract with ATWT after almost six years for the recurring role. Dawson claimed this was due in no small part to the loyalty of Henry's fans. His fans discuss Dawson's role as Henry Coleman on Trent-Dawson dot Net.