General Hospital
ABC Rep on what Katie Couric Show could mean for GH! Half-hour version?
Photo Credit: JPI Studios
As we announced early this morning, the deal between ABC and Katie Couric has become official and that Couric will be launching her own syndicated talk show in September of 2012. It is widely known now that ABC is giving the 3PM slot which houses General Hospital in most markets back to it’s affiliates a year and half from now.
So with the ‘read- between-the-lines’ statement issued earlier today in the official Couric press release that “the network continues to support GH”, TV Guide’s Michael Logan took to the task of getting some comments from an ABC representative who wanted to remain anonymous to shed light on what is really going on here, and how it might impact the life of General Hospital. Here is a key excerpt below!
“Our release states that we’re giving back our 3pm time slot to the affiliates. This is widely known as the GH timeslot, but this does not mean the inevitable cancellation of GH. We are going to populate our daytime block with our strongest shows, the ones that resonate most with our audience. We hope it will encourage them to watch and support GH. We will consider all options, such as making The Chew and The Revolution a half hour each, or making The Revolution and GH a half hour. This all happens a year and half from now. We are going to do our best to keep everybody happy.”
How is everyone going to be happy? We are losing OLTL and AMC for the two new lower budget lifestyle/reality/makeover shows, and potentially cutting in more airtime of GH. This does beg the question, couldn’t ABC have made OLTL and AMC into half hour shows instead of dumping them?
Hang on to your seats, we have another year and half to sort what remains of the ABC Daytime soap line-up shuffle. Whatever the case, now is the time to keep watching GH!
General Hospital
GENERAL HOSPITAL Preview: Carly and Lulu Make Plans to Rescue Their Children; Anna Looks Determined to Secure Her Freedom
This week on all-new episodes of General Hospital, the race is on! Can Lulu (Alexa Havins) and Dante (Dominic Zamprogna) get to Rocco (Finn Carr) and Britt (Kelly Thiebaud) in time to ensure their safety from Cullum (Andrew Hawkes)? Can Carly (Laura Wright) with the help of her brother, Lucas (Van Hansis) rescue Josslyn (Eden McCoy) from captivity at Wyndemere? These questions may be answered, plus the return of the one and only Anna Devane (Finola Hughes) are on tap!
In the just released General Hospital spoilers video for the week of June 22-26, Lulu tells her mother, Laura (Genie Francis), “Dante and I have to get to Rocco before Cullum!” Meanwhile, Rocco (Finn Carr) looks angered and emotional as Britt walks through their cabin hideout. Does Rocco know his parents are on the way to find them, or has Cullum already tracked them down to the British Virgin Islands?
Back in Port Charles, Carly is informing Lucas that his niece, “is a WSB agent.” She knows Josslyn (Eden McCoy) is being held against her will at Wyndemere, and she has to find a way to get her out. Lucas agrees with Carly’s plan of, “We go in and we don’t leave without Josslyn!” Elsewhere, Josslyn is looking worried for her future as she is stuck in captivity thanks to Cassius, Cullum and Sidwell!
Courtesy/ABC
FINOLA HUGHES RETURNS
The final moments of the teaser promo reveal Anna in a psychiatric clinic in France. We have not seen her for months after Cullum, Sidwell and Pascal fed her hallucinogenics to make her believe her arch nemesis, Cesar Faison was alive!
Now, the doctors walk towards her hospital bed, where we see the super spy calmly knitting. Is Anna back to normal and playing everyone to get out of her predicament, or does she still remain deeply traumatized … or both?
Take a look at the rest of the official GH spoilers for the week below.
MONDAY, JUNE 22
Willow gets an unwelcome surprise. Trina sticks to her guns. “Nathan” wants reassurance. Ethan advises Ava. Brook Lynn receives an update.
TUESDAY, JUNE 23
Dante cautions Liz. Laura learns a secret. Brook Lynn confides in Michael. Sonny challenges Ava. Chase makes a decision.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 24
Anna meets with her doctor. Carly makes a stunning confession. Britt extracts a promise. Cullum pulls a fast one. Gio and Emma hit the pool.
THURSDAY, JUNE 25
Josslyn clashes with Cassius. Lulu and Dante make a discovery. Chase receives a warning. Jordan seeks help. Alexis is summoned to the PCPD.
FRIDAY, JUNE 26
Anna takes a huge risk. Britt is in grave danger. Willow is in disbelief. Danny must act fast. Curtis jumps to the wrong conclusion.
Check out the latest General Hospital promo entitled, “Rescue Mission” below.
Now weigh-in: Do you think Anna is still mentally off-balance, or OK, and just pretending to be troubled to get out of France and get back to Port Charles? Will Josslyn finally be rescued, or will Carly and Lucas find themselves locked up with her? And, who will get to Britt and Rocco first? Cullum, or Dante and Lulu? Share your thoughts and theories via the comment section below.
General Hospital
Maurice Benard Gives High Praise to ‘General Hospital’ Writers; Teases Upcoming Sonny Scenes with Anna, Jason, Justine and Ric
With the highly-anticipated returns of Finola Hughes (Anna Devane) on this week’s June 24 episode of General Hospital, Steve Burton’s (Jason Morgan) upcoming return on July 13, which also serves as the ABC daytime drama’s 16,000 episode, things are about to fire on all cylinders in the story, as noted today by series star, Maurice Benard (Sonny Corinthos).
On Father’s Day, the three-time Daytime Emmy-winning actor and mental health activist took to his Instagram and expressed in a video that he has some unbelievable upcoming senes with the aforementioned Burton and Hughes. Add to that Nazneen Contractor (Justine Turner) and Rick Hearst (Ric Lansing), where Benard gave credit where credit is due to the GH writing team, which is led by co-head writers, Elizabeth Korte and Chris Van Etten..
In this video, Benard said, “I just want to get on here and say that I did some work with Steve Burton, Finola Hughes, Rick Hearst, Nazneen Contractor, and they’re all just fantastic. Truly fantastic. But, I want to say the writing was just exceptional. It truly was. It was exceptional. So, thankful for that kind of writing. I know writers don’t get the credit a lot, but I just want to say to the General Hospital writing team, keep rolling!”
GENERAL HOSPITAL PREVIEW
So now the question becomes, with a major tease like that, what is about to go down between Sonny, Anna, Jason, Justine and Ric? Will we finally get to the end of the line for Sidwell (Carlo Rota), as previously teased by the GH co-head writers? Will we learn what happened to Jason and Anna, fully? Will Justine and Sonny becomes closer or stop their liaisons? And what of Ric? Will he be true blue to his brother or double-cross him? There is a lot at stake as we move further into the summer and one that looks like it could be one of the more exciting ones in years!
FINOLA HUGHES CONFIRMED AMAZING SCENES WITH MAURICE BENARD
As a punctuation point to his video, Benard also shared this written message in the post: “I just did some wonderful scenes with Steve Burton, Rick Hearst, Finola Hughes and Nazneen Contractor and and unbelievable writing, freaking amazing scenes that you will see in the near future on General Hospital.” In fact, Finola Hughes jumped in the post comment thread and responded, “I loved our scenes so much xxx”
Fans will most likely see all the scenes Benard referred to later in July, since GH tapes approximately six weeks ahead of air.
So, are you excited to see what Maurice is talking about? Are you hyped for what’s to come on GH? Any clue on what you think will go down between the main characters on the soap with the returns of Anna Devane and Jason Morgan to the mix? Weigh-in via the comment section below.
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General Hospital
‘General Hospital’ Alum Chad Duell Announces Upcoming Release of His First Single, ‘If You Need Me’
In a surprise move, Daytime Emmy winner, Chad Duell (ex-Michael Corinthos, GH) is getting ready to unveil a new chapter of his career in music.
The former GH star, where he played the son of Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) and Carly Spencer (Laura Wright) for 15 years, has announced his new single, “If You Need Me” will drop on Friday, June 26. The single is now available for pre-order on Spotify and major music streaming platforms and is distributed by DistroKid.
Taking to his Instagram story over the weekend, to announce the pre-save of his new single, Chad expressed, “I’ll make a full post about what I’ve been up to and my music once it goes live next week, but you can pre-save my first single so it goes straight to your Spotify once it drops next week.”
Photo: CDuellIG
SINCE LEAVING GENERAL HOSPITAL
Previously, since his departure from the ABC soap opera. Chad starred alongside Zach Mendez in the world premiere of of Yum Yum at Annapolis, a new play written by Bruce Reisman. Duell last appeared on General Hospital on the January 21, 2025 episode.
The part was recast with Rory Gibson who debuted as the new Michael in May of 2025 during the Nurses’ Ball episodes and who has remained in the role since that time.
In an interview earlier this year on The Able Show, Duell said on his decision to exit the soap opera, “I was blessed to be part of that (show) for as long as I have, but what happens sometimes is if you’re doing the same thing, especially in a creative field for such a long time, you can get a little burnt out in a way. It can make you a little depressed, so that’s kind of what happened. On top of that, I had other things going on in my life at the time. My father passed away recently and I just needed a reset. So, I stepped away. A lot of times you have to go through some stuff to really step into that next level. I needed to kind of feel uncomfortable.”
So, what type of musical genre will Chad’s new song be? Country? Pop? Rock? Dance/Club? Something else? Let us know your thoughts via the comment section below, and if you are eager to hear the new single next week via the comment section below.
DAYS OF OUR LIVES: Marlena Looks Back at 50 Years in Salem
‘WWE: Unreal’ Season 3 Premiere Date, Cast of Superstars, Announced by Netflix
GENERAL HOSPITAL Preview: Carly and Lulu Make Plans to Rescue Their Children; Anna Looks Determined to Secure Her Freedom
Deidre Hall Marks 50 Years as ‘Days of Our Lives’ Dr. Marlena Evans
Maurice Benard Gives High Praise to ‘General Hospital’ Writers; Teases Upcoming Sonny Scenes with Anna, Jason, Justine and Ric
Maurice Benard Gives High Praise to ‘General Hospital’ Writers; Teases Upcoming Sonny Scenes with Anna, Jason, Justine and Ric
‘General Hospital’s’ Controversial Luke and Laura Rape Episode: Writer Sheri Anderson Reveals Behind the Scenes Decisions and Admits ‘I Was Wrong’ to Defend It (Exclusive)
‘Days of Our Lives’ Eric Martsolf Recalls Moment He Learned He Was Cast as Brady Black, and Last Scenes with Drake Hogestyn (SOAPY Exclusive Preview)
‘General Hospital’s’ Dominic Zamprogna Weighs-In on Dante and Elizabeth Pairing and Sharing Scenes with Rebecca Herbst (Exclusive)
GENERAL HOSPITAL Promo: Rocco’s in a Panic as Britt’s Health Takes a Turn, Chase is Called to the Carpet
‘WWE: Unreal’ Season 3 Premiere Date, Cast of Superstars, Announced by Netflix
GENERAL HOSPITAL Preview: Carly and Lulu Make Plans to Rescue Their Children; Anna Looks Determined to Secure Her Freedom
Deidre Hall Marks 50 Years as ‘Days of Our Lives’ Dr. Marlena Evans
Y&R Preview: Matt Clark Asks Phyllis on a Date, Would You Be Down for the Pairing? Roger Howarth & Michelle Previously in GH’s Franco/Nina Romance
‘General Hospital’s’ Dominic Zamprogna Reflects on Dante’s Guilt for the ‘Atrocity’ That Happened to Michael Which Kept Everyone From Telling Him the Truth About Rocco (Exclusive)
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General Hospital2 days agoMaurice Benard Gives High Praise to ‘General Hospital’ Writers; Teases Upcoming Sonny Scenes with Anna, Jason, Justine and Ric
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General Hospital1 week ago‘General Hospital’s’ Controversial Luke and Laura Rape Episode: Writer Sheri Anderson Reveals Behind the Scenes Decisions and Admits ‘I Was Wrong’ to Defend It (Exclusive)
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Days Of Our Lives1 week ago‘Days of Our Lives’ Eric Martsolf Recalls Moment He Learned He Was Cast as Brady Black, and Last Scenes with Drake Hogestyn (SOAPY Exclusive Preview)
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General Hospital1 week ago‘General Hospital’s’ Dominic Zamprogna Weighs-In on Dante and Elizabeth Pairing and Sharing Scenes with Rebecca Herbst (Exclusive)
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A half hour GH ???
I would rather see ABC put the show out of it’s misery than that –
next they will say GH will air at 1:00AM.
Hush your mouth. 🙂
GH started as a half hour soap. If cutting it back to a half hour is what it takes to keep it on the air in the afternoons, I will happily take it!
I think GH should stay right where it is.
GH should be on for an hour i wouldnt be happy wit 30 min of the show
it be stupid
y do idiots have to mess up all the daytime shows on ABC i say leave them all there.
I know I’m supposed to support the soaps, but I can’t bring myself to watch GH. It is so inferior to One Life to Live that I’m insulted OLTL was sacrificed while GH gets a reprieve. I cannot stand the Sonny/Jason/Carly/Sam show and its ridiculous mob stories that prop up disgusting mobsters as heroes. I apologize to other soap lovers who will watch GH until its last day, but I will no longer watch ABC after One Life to Live goes off the air.
Jared, i could not agree with you more! Further, the rating system clearly shows that OLTL is fairing better that GH. Like you, once OLTL is finished, no more ABC TV for me. Luckly thou, I am a Canadian, and my other longtime soap “Coronation Street” has nothing to worry about. The Brits approach TV in a completely different manner. It also has just started it’s 50th year on the air. It’s on later in the evening, and is aired three times a week, with one hour episodes twice a week (Mondays and Fridays) and a half hour show on Thursdays. This past week was a major storyline and it was on every night during the week at 9pm, and yield around 12 million viewers. If daytime American tv goes all talk show, and reality tv in the evening, I may be cancelling my tv feed. I don’t mean to offend anyone, it just seems that for the past couple of years, any ABC show I enjoyed is being cancelled even before it gets a change to grow (Detriot 1-8-7, Dirty Sexy Money, V) so when ABC makes OLTL go dark, there won’t be any shows that I want to watch from ABC.
I can NOT stand Curic , NO WAY! Hope she fails here as well.
THEY’RE NOT saving, their gonna pay HER arent they.
Michael, I agree with what you said, ABC could of have made OLTL and AMC into half hour shows instead of dumping them. Once OLTL goes off the air, I will have no interest in anything broadcast by ABC. Even their news programs. Since they don’t have any respect for daytime drama viewers, I have no respect for them.
Sonzabitches, ABC is full of them.
We did not have the chance to save One Life to Live and All My Children on ABC, BUT we now have the chance to do just that for General Hospital, so now is the time to watch the show, and tell everyone you know (who watches or used to watch) to also tune in. Hopefully, in this case, we WILL have a say in what is in ABC’s daytime line-up. Now is also the time for the writers to vamp up the storylines, and make the show the best it could be, not chip away at what makes it the icon it is (as was done with OLTL and AMC). This has to be an all around group effort to keep GH on the air, so let’s get started!!!! BTW, I am still not willing to give up on the fact that OLTL and AMC can still be saved by being picked up by another network or cable station, who is smart enough to see what these shows have to offer. Call me cynical, but I think that one, if not both of the replacement shows for our beloved soaps, will be ready to be pulled by the time Katie Couric’s Show starts airing in Sept. of 2012 (if not sooner), so that might make the addtion of Katie’s Show easily fit into the line-up. Don’t forget to continue to watch or begin to watch GH !!!
ITA. Call you local cable providers and tell them you want a soap channel!
If ABC doesn’t want AMC/OLTL we want a channel that does!!!
I don’t understand why this silly looking woman keeps getting tv work, she would do better on the radio, so tired of seeing that troll face.
I do not agree. If it is too late to save OLTL, then I can not watch anything on ABC….even the vastly inferior GH. I’m sick of hearing how GH is the well known, viable and strong brand. Well….it isn’t, any more than OLTL. ABC is over. They really do not need me as a viewer. I want soaps to survive, but I will get my scripted drama from cable….Nurse Jackie, United States of Tara, True Blood…..not GH’s lame version of rated PG Sopranos. All soaps are not the same. OLTL was smart….sometimes, funny most of the time (not like Bold and Beautiful’s unintentional comedy), and well acted always. Now I am just free to watch other things…not on ABC or anything Disney related.
Let us be honest the state of the econmy is what is behind this! Face it ! I grant you stupid storylines have not helped viewership but they have in the past been able to pull back and get back on track! And I can not stand Katie she is a foulmouthed twit. I know this to be true she was at at an event I will not say when and the men were embarrased she swears like a sailor, I might add they were military.
The economy is fine over at Disney/ABC:
Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Robert A. Iger commanded a 35% jump in salary and bonuses in 2010, rewarding what the board of directors’ compensation committee called his “exceptional performance” in the face of a slow-recovering U.S. economy.
Iger’s salary and bonus reached nearly $16.3 million, up from $12 million a year earlier. His total compensation, including equity awards, reached $28 million, according to the company’s proxy filed Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
I would like to add some other things remeber when Love in the Afternoon was ABC’s motto? Where is the love and why do we need soap operas when our politicians are doing their version every day!!!!
NO GH NO ABC for me!!!!!
Couric is going to be an EPIC FAIL. Everyone on the political right despises her, she is too old too attract the younger Demos, and soap fans will boycott her. Bad move for ABC.
Just remember, if you have ever been a soap fan BOYCOTT all of ABC’s replacement shows and tell everyone you know to do the same. Support all THREE ABC soaps to the bitter end!
GH is toast. After losing OLTL, which is superior, I don’t care about GH. But why is anyone surprised? You didn’t actually believe Franz was committed to GH did you?
I agree GH is toast my prediction is that it gets canceled in 2012.
Well I have been an GH fan all my life, thirty two years now deciated to this network.
If they take my soap off the air I will boycott. ABC. I( will be hard because I Watch all the NEws promgrams and primetime shows like 20/20 world news. BUt GH is my all time favortie stupid move if they cancel for that boring katie she will fail misery if that’s the case!!!!!!!!!!!!
Do you have more great arilctes like this one?