‘General Hospital’ turns 60: the soap opera’s stars then and now

“General Hospital” is celebrating its 60th anniversary.

The popular soap opera first premiered in 1963, and has seen many characters and actors join and leave the show throughout its six decades on the air. Fans watch each week to see what the residents of Port Charles, New York, are up to, and what the latest gossip around General Hospital is.

Some of its big stars have stayed with the show, while others have gone on to make a name for themselves in other projects.

Here’s a look back at a few of “General Hospital’s” biggest stars and where they are now. 

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Anthony Geary

Anthony Geary had only appeared as a guest on a few television shows before landing the role of Luke Spencer on the long-running soap opera “General Hospital” in 1978. His tenure on the hit show earned him a record eight Daytime Emmy Award wins.

While starring on “General Hospital,” Geary also appeared in a number of TV movies, including “The Shaft of Love,” “Intimate Agony,” “Sins of the Past,” “Kicks” and “The Imposter.” He also starred in the films “P.I. Private Investigations,” “Disorderlies,” “Penitentiary III,” “Pass the Ammo,” “Dangerous Love” and “Crack House.”

Geary left “General Hospital” in 1984, and took on different types of roles in order to distance himself from Luke Spencer. He returned to the show in 1991 as Luke’s look-alike cousin, but following backlash from fans that character was killed off, and he went back to playing Luke in 1993.

Throughout the ’90s, Geary starred in a few films and appeared on a number of TV shows, including “Knight of the Warrior,” “Scorchers,” “Roseanne,” “General Hospital: Twist of Fate” and “Port Charles.”

He appeared in a few movies throughout the 2000s, such as “Carpool Guy,” “Fish Tank” and “Alice and the Monster,” before announcing his retirement from “General Hospital” in 2015 after 1,116 episodes. His last episode aired in July 2015.

Geary was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for the first time in 1980, and won for the first time in 1982, receiving one more nomination in 1983 before leaving the show. He was nominated again in 1997, 1998, 1999 and almost every year for the next decade, receiving his final nomination in 2016. When Geary left the show, he had been nominated a total of 16 times, with eight wins.

Genie Francis

Genie Francis only had one small role on a television show prior to taking over the role of Laura Wright from Stacy Baldwin on “General Hospital” in 1977. As part of one of the show’s central couples, Francis skyrocketed to fame, with 30 million people tuning in to watch Luke and Laura’s wedding episode.

The actress decided to leave the show in 1982, and shortly after was cast in her own primetime soap opera, “Bare Essence,” which ran for 11 episodes. 

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Francis also starred on the soap opera “Days of Our Lives” from 1987 to 1989, and “All My Children” from 1990 to 1992. The following year, in 1993, she returned to “General Hospital,” where she stayed until 2002. 

In addition to “General Hospital,” she has appeared in other shows including, “Cybill,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “3rd Rock From the Sun,” “Oh Baby,” “Roswell, “Teacher’s Pet” and “Thunderbirds,” and in the Hallmark movies “The Note” and “Taking a Chance on Love.”

A few years after Francis’ departure from the show, she returned briefly in 2006. While she was only on the show for a month, her return earned her a third Daytime Emmy Award nomination for the role of Laura, and her first win.

Following her Emmy win, Francis starred in her third Hallmark movie, “Notes from the Heart Healer,” and began starring as Genevieve Atkinson on “The Young and the Restless.” Her portrayal of Genevieve earned the actress her fourth Daytime Emmy Award nomination.

After a few brief returns to “General Hospital” in 2008 and 2013, she returned to the show full-time in 2015 and received another Daytime Emmy nomination in 2021.

Francis first met her husband Jonathan Frakes in 1982 while filming “Bare Essence.” However, they didn’t start dating until they met for a second time in 1984 when they were filming “North & South.” They began dating in 1985 and officially tied the knot three years later in 1988.

The couple have two children together: a son, Jameson Ivor Frakes, and a daughter, Elizabeth Frances Frakes.

Kin Shriner

Kin Shriner is best known for his role as Scott Baldwin on “General Hospital,” a character he began playing in 1977, not long after he first began acting.

After only three years playing Scott Baldwin, Shriner left the show for the first time, and was almost immediately cast in “Texas,” on which he starred as Jeb Hampton. However, after only one year, he chose to leave the show and return to “General Hospital,” where he stayed for two years until 1983. 

During his time away from “General Hospital,” Shriner appeared on “The Love Boat” and starred on the short-lived soap opera “Rituals,” as well as in the films “Vendetta,” “Manhunter” and “Kidnapped” before returning to “General Hospital” in 1987. Following his return to the show, he remained active in other projects, including a number of TV movies.

Shriner chose to leave the show once again in 1993, after which he had a short stint on “The Bold and the Beautiful.” During that time, he also starred in “The Skateboard Kid 2,” “Subliminal Seduction,” “Droid Gunner,” “Echo” and “The Crying Child.”

Shriner returned to the role of Scott Baldwin in 1997, but this time on the “General Hospital” spin-off series “Port Charles.” The show was set in the same fictional New York town, and many of the characters from the original show were featured on it as well. He returned to “General Hospital” in 2000, then left the show again in 2004.

Shriner went on to join “As the World Turns” from 2004 to 2006 and was on “The Young and the Restless” from 2004 to 2011.

After leaving and coming back to the show a few more times, Shriner returned to “General Hospital” for good in 2013. Throughout his time on the show, Shriner has been nominated for four Daytime Emmy Awards, as well as nine Soap Opera Digest Awards, of which he won two.

Shriner has a son named Eric Lee.

Jacklyn Zeman

Prior to taking on the role of Barbara “Bobbie” Spencer on “General Hospital,” Jacklyn Zeman starred on “One Life to Live” for 23 episodes, playing the role of Lana McClain.

While starring on “General Hospital,” Zeman also appeared in the films “Young Doctors in Love” and “Class Reunion,” as well as the shows “The New Mike Hammer,” “Sledge Hammer!,” “Chicago Hope,” and “Jury Duty; The Comedy,” alongside Heather Locklear. She then starred in the TV movie based on the show, “General Hospital: Twist of Fate.”

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After 1996, Zeman took a break from acting in projects outside “General Hospital,” appearing in nothing else until 2010, when she began starring as Sofia Madison on “The Bay,” for which she received a Daytime Emmy Award nomination. From 2017-2019, she had a seven-episode arc on “Misguided.”

Starting in 2013, her role on “General Hospital” has been a recurring one. For her work on the show, Zeman has received four Daytime Emmy Awards, both in the supporting and lead actress categories. She continues to portray Bobbie Spencer on the show today.

Aside from her on-screen career, Zeman acted in the off-Broadway plays “Come Blow Your Horn,” “Barefoot in the Park” and “The Boyfriend.”

Zeman married her first husband, popular DJ Murray Kaufman, also known as Murray the K, in 1979. The two divorced in 1981. She then married her second husband, Steve Gribbin, in 1985, with the two eventually getting a divorce a year later in 1986. She married her third husband, Glenn Gorden, in 1988.

Gorden and Zeman had two children, Cassidy Zee Gorden and Lacey Rose Gorden, before divorcing in 2007.

Emily McLaughlin

Emily McLaughlin made her on-screen debut in 1958 on the soap opera “Young Dr. Malone” before taking on the role of Nurse Jessie Brewer on “General Hospital” in 1963. 

McLaughlin was the first voice audiences heard when they tuned in to watch the first episode of “General Hospital.” She said the opening line “Seventh floor, nurses station” over the loudspeaker, a line which still plays on the show. 

Prior to starring on “General Hospital,” McLaughlin also appeared in episodes of the popular shows “The Twilight Zone,” “Checkmate,” “Sam Benedict” and “The Eleventh Hour.”

Her final two acting roles outside the world of “General Hospital” was on the show “The Man Who Never Was” and in the movie “Young Doctors In Love.” 

In 1974, McLaughlin received a Golden Globe nomination for her role on “General Hospital,” making her the only daytime soap opera actress to be honored with a Golden Globe nomination in the show’s history. 

As McLaughlin’s health began to slowly decline throughout the ’80s, she appeared on the show less and eventually became a day-player, meaning she was hired on an episode-by-episode basis. Her last appearance on the show was in March 1991, only a month prior to her passing.

McLaughlin was married to her first husband, Robert Lansing, from 1956 to 1968, and together they had one son, Robert Frederick Orin Lansing. Following their divorce, she married actor Jeffery Hunter in 1969. However, three months after their wedding, Hunter passed away from a cerebral hemorrhage.

The actress died from cancer on April 26, 1991, at the age of 62.     

John Beradino

John Beradino had a successful career as a baseball player before transitioning into acting in the 1940s. His first role was in the 1948 movie “The Winner’s Circle.”

As a baseball player, Beradino played with the Pittsburgh Pirates, the St. Louis Browns and the Cleveland Indians, with whom he won a World Series in 1948. After suffering a career-ending injury to his leg in 1952, he retired from baseball and began focusing on acting as his primary career.

Prior to getting his starring role on “General Hospital” as Dr. Steve Hardy, Beradino mostly found work as a guest actor on popular sitcoms throughout the ‘50s and ’60s. He appeared on “The Rough Riders,” “The Texan,” “Rescue 8,” “Tightrope,” “Tales of Wells Fargo” and “Whispering Smith.”

Beradino was cast as one of the original characters on “General Hospital” in 1963, and went on to star in 1,186 episodes before exiting the show in 1996. During his time on the show, he was nominated for three Daytime Emmy Awards.

While starring on the soap opera, Beradino also appeared in a few films, including “Moon of the Wolf,” “A Guide for the Married Woman,” “Don’t Look Back: The Story of Leroy ‘Satchel’ Paige” and “Young Doctors in Love.” He also appeared on “The Love Boat” and “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.”

In 1993, Beradino was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He also was inducted into the University of Southern California Athletic Hall of Fame, as he played baseball for the school as a student there.

The actor married Jeanette Nadine Barritt in 1941, and together they had two children, Toni and Cindy. They were married for 14 years before divorcing in 1955. He then married Charissa Hughes in January 1961. The couple had two children together, Katherine Ann and John Anthony, before Hughes passed away in June 1963.

In 1971, Beradino married Marjorie Binder, and the two were together until his death. Beradino was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 1996, and passed away from the disease later that year in May.

Laura Wright

Laura Wright already had experience starring on a soap opera when she signed on to play Carly Corinthos on “General Hospital,” taking over the role from Sarah Joy Brown. 

In 1991, she made her on-screen debut as Ally Bowman on “All My Children.” She went on to play Ally on the soap operas “Loving” and “The City.”

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From 1997 to 2005, Wright portrayed Cassie Layne on “Guiding Light” before leaving for “General Hospital.” 

“As sad as I am to leave a wonderful place that I called home for a long time, it is time for me to go,” Wright said on her website when the announcement was made. “This was not an easy decision. But my husband and I talked about it, and we said, ‘What the Hell! Let’s live on the West Coast for a few years!’

After starring on soap operas for 20 years, she won her first Daytime Emmy Award in 2011 for her role as Carly. She followed that up with six more nominations in the lead actress category.

While starring on “General Hospital,” Wright also appeared on an episode of the show “Hit the Floor,” as well as in the movies “Joy,” starring Jennifer Lawrence, and “Deadly Patient,” which aired on Lifetime.

Wright married her husband John Wright in 1995, and the couple had two children together, Lauren and Michael Wright, before announcing their decision to separate in 2016. In 2017, it was announced she was dating her “General Hospital” co-star Wes Ramsey.

Jack Wagner

Jack Wagner had only appeared in a few shows prior to landing the role of Frisco Jones on “General Hospital” in 1983, the role he is most famous for.

He stayed on the show for four years, leaving “General Hospital” for the first time in 1987. During his break from the show, Wagner starred in the movies “Moving Target,” “Swimsuit” and “Play Murder for Me,” before returning to the soap opera in 1989 until 1991. 

Following his second departure from the show, Wagner took on the role of Warren Lockridge on the hit soap opera “Santa Barbara,” on which he starred for two years from 1991 until the show ended in 1993. He returned to “General Hospital” for one year from 1994-95. 

Wagner has also appeared in the TV movies “Lady Killer,” alongside Judith Light; “Frequent Flyer,” alongside Nicole Eggert; “Echo”; and “Dirty Little Secret,” alongside Tracey Gold. 

In 1994, Wagner began playing Dr. Peter Burns on the popular soap opera “Melrose Place.” His character on the show was the love interest of Heather Locklear’s character Amanda. 

After “Melrose Place” came to an end in 1999, Wagner appeared in the movies “Nowhere to Land,” “Artificial Lies” and “Cupid’s Prey,” and also appeared as a guest on the shows “Titans,” “Monk” and “Castle,” before making his final brief return to “General Hospital” for a few months in 2013.

In addition, the actor starred on “The Bold and the Beautiful” as Dominic Marone for over 1,000 episodes, starting in 2003. He was nominated for two Daytime Emmy Awards for his role before leaving the show in 2022. 

From 2016 to 2021, Wagner starred in seven movies for the Hallmark Channel, including “The Wedding March,” “Love on the Vines,” “Wedding March 2: Resorting to Love,” “Wedding March 3: Here Comes the Bride” and three more sequels to the “Wedding March” franchise.

Starting in 2014, Wagner began playing Bill Avery in the Hallmark Channel hit show, “When Calls the Heart.” Most recently, he starred in the TV movie “A Big Fat Family Christmas” and the Netflix movie “Falling for Christmas,” also starring Lindsay Lohan.

Aside from acting, Wagner is also a musician, having released six albums over the years, with his first record, “All I Need,” being released in 1984. 

The actor appeared on the 14th season of “Dancing with the Stars,” and he was partnered with pro Anna Trebunskaya. The two were eliminated early on in the competition and came in eleventh place.

Wagner was married to his “General Hospital” co-star Kristina Wagner for 13 years, from 1993 to 2006. The couple had two children together, Harrison and Peter. Wagner is also the father of a daughter, Kerry, who he didn’t meet until she was 23 years old. After spending her childhood in foster care, Kerry tracked down her biological parents and the two reconnected as adults.

His youngest child, Harrison, passed away in December 2022 at the age of 27 due to fentanyl and alprazolam (Xanax) intoxication. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner listed his manner of death as an accident.

John Stamos

One of John Stamos’ first on-screen roles was as Blackie Perrish on “General Hospital,” the role which effectively jump-started his career and was his big breakthrough. While on the show, he also appeared on “Dreams” and “You Again,” as well as in the movies “Daughter of the Streets,” “Born to Ride” and “Captive.”

While still starring on “General Hospital,” Stamos started playing Jesse Katsopolis, also known as Uncle Jesse, on the hit ABC sitcom “Full House,” the role for which he is most recognized. “Full House” ran for eight years from 1987 to 1995.

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Following the end of “Full House,” Stamos starred in a string of TV movies before landing a role on the shows “Thieves” and “Jake in Progress.”

The same year he appeared in “Jake in Progress,” he began starring as Tony Gates on “ER” from 2005 to 2009. He also starred in the television adaptation of “A Raisin in the Sun.”

Stamos went on to appear on “Father of Invention,” “Entourage,” “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” and “Glee,” where he played the love interest of Jayma Mays’ character Emma Pillsbury. Stamos also appeared on episodes of “Mash Up,” “The New Normal,” “Galavant,” “Two and a Half Men” and “Necessary Roughness.”

Some of the films Stamos has starred in include “My Man is a Loser,” “Members Only,” “My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2” and “The Little Mermaid Live!” 

From 2015 to 2016, the actor starred in his own sitcom, “Grandfathered,” alongside Josh Peck, and then had a 10-episode arc on “Scream Queens” in 2016. 

In 2016, Stamos returned to the role of Uncle Jesse on the “Full House” Netflix reboot, “Fuller House,” which lasted for five seasons. 

Most recently, the actor starred on “Big Shot” on Disney+ for two seasons, playing Coach Marvyn Korn.

In addition to acting on TV and in film, Stamos released the album “Shades of Blue” in 1994, and has starred in “Cabaret” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” on Broadway. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2009, and returned to Broadway in 2012 in Gore Vidal’s “The Best Man.” Starting in 1985, he has been occasionally performing with The Beach Boys on-stage.

Stamos began dating actress Rebecca Romijn in 1994 after meeting at a Victoria’s Secret fashion show. The two announced their engagement on Christmas Eve 1997 and were married in September 1988. The two announced they were separating in April 2004 and their divorce was finalized in March 2005.

After a year of dating, Stamos announced he was engaged to model Caitlin McHugh in October 2017. In December of that year, they announced they were expecting their first child together. Their son, Billy, was born in April 2018. The two married in February 2018.

Demi Moore

Demi Moore made her film debut in 1981, and soon after began starring on “General Hospital” as Jackie Templeton. While she was only on the show for a few years, from 1982 to 1984, it helped launch her into stardom.

As a member of the Brat Pack, Moore starred in a number of films with the other members of the group, such as “Blame It On Rio,” “St. Elmo’s Fire” and “About Last Night…” throughout the ’80s. Following the success of the movies, she went on to star in “Wisdom,” “The Seventh Sign” and “We’re No Angels,” alongside Robert De Niro.

In 1990, Moore starred as Molly Jensen, a young woman who is being protected by the ghost of her murdered lover, in “Ghost.” The movie was a critical and box office success, with the film itself receiving a best picture Oscar nomination and Moore earning a Golden Globe nomination.

The actress then starred in “Nothing But Trouble,” “Mortal Thoughts” and “The Butcher’s Wife.” Moore cemented her status as a Hollywood A-lister by starring in three back-to-back hit movies: “A Few Good Men,” with Tom Cruise; “Indecent Proposal,” with Robert Redford; and “Disclosure,” with Michael Douglas, all of which opened at No. 1 at the box office.

Moore went on to act in a number of projects including the films “The Juror,” “The Scarlett Letter,” “Now and Then” and “Striptease.” She also starred in “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” “Beavis and Butt-head Do America” and “G.I. Jane.”

In 1996, she starred in the miniseries “If These Walls Could Talk,” alongside Sissy Spacek and Cher, playing a nurse in the 1950s who is looking for a place to get an illegal abortion. Moore earned an Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award nomination for the role.

In 2000, Moore starred in the thriller “Passion of Mind,” and appeared as the villain in “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle” in 2003, alongside Cameron Diaz, Lucy Liu and Drew Barrymore. 

She went on to team up with her fellow Brat Pack member Emilio Estevez in the 2006 film “Bobby,” which tells the story of the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, and then starred in “Flawless,” “The Joneses,” “Another Happy Day” and “LOL,” alongside Miley Cyrus.

Moore then starred in “Very Good Girls,” “Rough Night,” the show “Empire,” “Corporate Animals” and “Songbird.” Most recently, she appeared in the Nicolas Cage comedy “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.”

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At the age of 18, Moore married her first husband, Freddie Moore, in February 1981. They separated in 1983 and their divorce was finalized in 1985. Soon after the divorce, she was engaged to Estevez, but they called it off prior to their scheduled December 1986 wedding date.

In 1987, Moore married for the second time, this time to actor Bruce Willis. Together, the couple had three daughters — Rumor, Scout and Tallulah — before announcing their separation in 1998, eventually filing for divorce in 2000. The former couple have remained close throughout the years, with Moore staying by his side during his recent dementia diagnosis.

Moore began dating actor Ashton Kutcher in 2003, and married him two years later in September 2005. After 11 years of marriage, Moore announced her decision to separate from him in 2011, with Kutcher filing for divorce in December 2012. Their divorce was finalized in November 2013.

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In 2019, Moore released her memoir, “Inside Out,” in which she discussed her relationship with Kutcher, revealing she suffered a miscarriage early in their relationship. She also revealed her marriage to Kutcher ended due to him allegedly cheating on her with two women.