Figure in timeless soap operas as an American drink (4,3)
I believe the answer is:
soda pop
'drink' is the definition.
(soda pop is a kind of drink)
'figure in timeless soap operas as an american' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'as' could be 'so' (I've seen this in other clues) and 'so' is located in the answer.
'an' could be 'a' and 'a' is present in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
Can you help me to learn more?
(Another definition for soda pop that I've seen is " Fizzy drink".)