General Hospital
‘General Hospital 60 Years of Stars and Storytelling’: What Did You Think of The Primetime Special?
For any daytime soap opera to have a primetime special is a big deal. Rarely, do the networks offer them the real estate to try to entice new viewers to the show, or the lapsed viewers to return, and give the show you once loved another try.
As we know, growing audience numbers exponentially through recent years is extremely difficult for any network soap opera.
Thursday’s ABC special General Hospital 60 Years of Stars and Storytelling served up, sort of an overview of the soap through the years, and what is at its foundation as told by current cast, some former cast who went on to other kinds of famous, and special guests.
Photo: ABC
While John Stamos, Emma Samms, Chandra Wilson, Rick Spingfield, Amber Tamblyn, Stephen A. Smith, and Sheryl Underwood brought in some name recognition, the current and core cast made appearances led by Genie Francis (who was missing all the way till the very end. Thank God, she was there or there would have been outrage!), Maurice Benard, Laura Wright, Finola Hughes, Tristan Rogers, Lynn Herring, Kin Shriner,Jane Elliot, Brook Kerr, Donnell Turner, Rena Sofer, Josh Swickard, Dominic Zamprogna, Rebecca Herbst, Jon Lindstrom, Maura West, Cynthia Watros, Cameron Mathison, and more.
Photo: ABC
There was even a surprise and touching return by Max Gail, when Maurice Benard and Nancy Lee Grahn discussed the social topics GH has tackled through the years including the Alzheimers storyline. It was actually Max and Maurice’s clip package as Mike and Sonny that reminded us of the power of the show.
The special was not heavily clip driven. Those expecting to see iconic moments such as Robin and Stone’s death, or the BJ heart transplant storyline would be disappointed. However, they did include a moment from Luke and Laura’s iconic wedding vows in 1981, and Elizabeth Taylor’s famous “My curse on you Luke and Laura” moment as Helena Cassadine.
Photo: ABC
When Rick Springfield returned to the halls of GH, he was the person who remembered those who had passed, and spotlighted his beloved friend and former co-star, Jackie Zeman (ex-Bobbie). Rick expressed: “Jackie Zeman was not only an incredibly talented actress but she had a huge heart.”
Classic weddings were also touched upon when Kristina Wagner donned the wedding dress she wore for Frisco and Felicia’s wedding, Rebecca Herbst wore the dress she had on when Elizabeth married Lucky Spencer, and Lynn Herring came to the set in the red dress sans the giant red had, she wore in Lucy’s wedding to Alan.
Photo: ABC
One of the more touching clip packages featured Stuart Damon as Alan Quartermaine who meant so much to his former scene partner, Amber Tamblyn. At 10-years-old, Amber took on the role of Emily Bowen-Quartermaine. And in the retro clips, Alan and Monica were shown asking Emily if she would let them adopt her.
The special did include, and kudos to them, for placing the unforgettable scene where Tracy withholds her father Edward Quartermaine’s heart medication, while he is having a heart attack into the show. In story, Tracy wants her father to change his will in her favor, and if he does, she will give him his pills. Still an amazing scene from Jane Elliot and the late, great David Lewis.
Kelly Monaco reunited with her Dancing with the Stars pro dance partner (and former GH guest star) Val Chmerkovskiy for a quick interstitial dance bit.
Photo: ABC
Maura West and Cynthia Watros introduced the GH bloopers. It was if we were just getting started seeing some of the guffaws and mishaps that went down behind the scenes when the segment ended. Maybe one day, the show can release some more bloopers?
Photo: ABC
At the conclusion of the special, cast members, one by one, came out from different corners of the various GH sets, each weaving the tapestry of what makes the show so unique and loved by millions of viewers for over 6 decades. When they all converged at the Nurses Station, Genie Francis was revealed and led a toast to the show and to its fans, as balloons rained down in celebration. Suddenly, we are next transported to a different set.
Photo: ABC
There, we find three doors. The left one in which Laura Wright walked through, the right one in which Kelly Monaco walked through and the middle one where Steve Burton walked through and revealed he is returning to GH as Jason Morgan.
As the credits rolled, it should be noted that General Hospital executive producer, Frank Valentini was also the EP of the network special.
Photo: ABC
So, what did you think? Did you enjoy the GH primetime special? Did you find moments that touched you, or brought back fond or emotional memories? Instead, did you find yourself disappointed? And if so, what do you think you wanted to see more of? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
Absolutely loved the special! Congratulations GH on 60 incredible years. So excited for Steve Burtons return
Enjoyed the show but can an older viewer inform me if Tracy actually let her father die or not. Was not watching it then.
Edward survived, and disowned Tracy due to her heartlessness. She was banned from the Quartermaine mansion, and I believe that was the first time she left Port Charles.
She withheld his medication and Edward collapsed but did not die.
Edward was faking the heart attack to test Tracy. He was always one step ahead of her (kind of like she is with Lucy these days).
As I recall, Mr Q was faking it to test his daughter.
I hoped for more clips as BJ’s death and Stones AIDS story. But a thrill to see Tracy deny her father his meds as her had that heart attack. Classic! I recall watching that first run. Also more connection to history… No Jessie Brewer? No Brenda? Watching, you’d think the show only started in 1995! Still, I appreciate the celebration. Why daytime has diminished is beyond me. Do we really want endless local news, excessive talk, and courtroom shenanigans? No!
The show did an admirable job with clips. We must note that residuals need to paid to any actor whose speaking role is replayed. That’s why there was a heavy focus on the 1990s through today.
Few clips exist from the pre- one hour episodes as the network reused the tapes as was the practice in daytime at that point. ABC has the entire first episode from 1963 but far less clips available until 1978.
With Bobbie’s memorial next week, I’d hope we’d get a flashback or two to BJs death (especially the Felicia “not Barbara Jean” moment when Bobbie consoles her).
Thank you, OG Steve. I didn’t think of those factors. Still, that we have GH is worth celebrating no matter what form the special took. I remain upset over losing my other faves, AMC and ATWT.
Sorry but that is not true. General Hospital actually has most of the episodes from the early years, preserved on kinescope.
I have also read that there was a period where soaps were video taped, then the tapes were re-used, which is why certain time periods are not available.
News, talk, and court shows are much cheaper to produce. Soaps are expensive. There’ll never be new ones, so enjoy the ones we have because sadly, one day, they’ll be no more. My guess is that Days isn’t long for this world unless it really drove subscribers to Peacock.
I loved the anniversary special. I did think that after we saw the clips of Lois and Ned’s romantic history, featuring the newly returned Rena Sofer (of whom I’m very fond), we might have instead seen Lisa LoCicero do a little more of the talking later, rather than have Rena be featured so prominently while Lisa was standing silently by. On the anniversary special I wanted to see a real mix of the actors I’ve come to love over the fifty+ years I’ve been watching.
That so called iconic Luke and Laura wedding should not have happened. Talk about completely negating what was done to Laura!
Congrats GH!
It was well done and clearly intended to thank the fans for their success. I personally would have preferred more clips of Anna, Robert, and Robin, but obviously they can’t fit in every fan’s favorite clips.
With regards to Steve coming back, I’m ok with it, despite believing he was justly fired. (The greater good was more important than his singular comfort.) But now that those conditions have been lifted, I don’t have an issue with his rehiring.
I wished they hadn’t killed off Britt as their relationship was intriguing. I don’t want Jason with Carly, it never worked for me.
Was it just me or was the background music so loud it made it difficult to hear what the actors were saying?
No Joel it wasn’t just you. I too found the background music to be louder than the speaking voices.
I agree. The background music was very distracting. It was so loud that it was hard to hear what the characters were saying.
I thought the same thing, so that was very disappointing about the show.
Same for me–exactly, and tweeted the same.
YES! This is the first mention of the background music. I wanted it to stop the music was so loud I had to turn on the Closed Caption text on my TV.
It happened throughout the show. They must have dubbed it incorrectly over the voices.
If the 3 door surprise ending with “Jason Rising” had not happened i think the music might be the only thing people talked about it was horrible.
Disappointment here – too much wasted time with unnecessary guest stars babbling about nothing.. Expected real comments not scripted comments from the cast trying to be “cute” and “funny”….
I’ve watched it, & I loved everything about it. I loved seeing the entire cast, the guest stars, the flashbacks, and etc. It was such a cool thing to see.
Nice numbers! Glad so many tuned in.
And it’s streaming now on Hulu and on the ABC website.
I really enjoyed it. Loved seeing Amber Tamblyn again, John Stamos, Max Gail, Emma Samms, and god bless Rick Springfield. 74 years old and he still looks great. The opening with Donna Mills and Morgan Fairchild was fun. Loved their little wink to soaps with the line about “You never know” when talking about how Donna’s character Madeline was killed off.
They had a good representation of the current cast, and got in as many of the beloved vets as they could. I was hoping Leslie Charleson would be there, but she obviously wasn’t back on set yet when they filmed this. I was wondering where Genie Francis was, but glad they saved her for the end. I loved seeing the bloopers. Kin Shriner is a hoot. Wish they would show bloopers more often in some forum. Put them on their Facebook page, YouTube, something.
I was impressed that they still have video from the very first episode in 1963. It was great to see John Beradino.
The ending with the actors walking on screen from various GH sets, leading to everyone standing around the nurses station, with Genie Francis front and center, was very touching and well done.
My one criticism is I wanted to see more clips. I get the whole “they have to pay residuals to the actors that appear in the clips” thing. So pay them, do what you have to do. That shouldn’t be a reason not to honor the rich history of the show. Nothing from Robin and Stone, nothing from the BJ’s death story, arguably the two best storylines in the history of the show. The lack of clips is the one area of the show that was severely lacking.
Overall, they did a good job with the time they had. And the fact that ABC gave GH a weeknight primetime slot should answer questions about the show’s future that everyone loves to speculate about, and the disgusting way some people seem to take glee in wishing for the show to be canceled. The way I look at it, you don’t give a weeknight primetime slot to a show you’re thinking of canceling.
Too much John Stamos and not enough clips, give it a B
Loved that the show ended with that 3 Door twist and the “Jason Rising” moment.
I felt like there were too many guest stars and not enough current cast members participating. Although I loved seeing Blackie/John Stamos, Rick Springfield, and Amber Tamblyn.
Wishing there were more clips. One I think GH could have done very quickly – Robert and Mac’s first meeting that made a total splash. Adding that despite a 32 Career on the show there were absolutely no clips or mention of Mac. The one at his Wedding to Felicia where he fell from the balcony due to Ryan showing up would have been another one.
Clips: At least one of BJ’s heart and the Aids story with Stone and Robin. Robin was barely mentioned.
It seemed to me like there was a lot of talk about how Iconic GH is/was and not enough showing us why. There was way too much emphasis on the Emmys. Hey, one scene with all of those is enough – although I liked the one with the cast members telling everyone how many they had – that was fun.
This special was fantastic! I loved the mix of legacy characters, storylines and newer characters. Especially loved the flashbacks to the very beginnings of GH with Dr. Steve Hardy. The cast, crew and Frank Valentini should all be proud. Well done.
I really enjoyed the Tony Geary tribute segment. 5 minutes was too short! As the iconic character who put GH on the map, it was so nice to see him so prominently featured in the show.
(SARCASM INTENDED!!!!)
I enjoyed Jane’s segments. And Kin’s bloopers made me laugh.
Well done !! Long time !! fan and I really enjoyed it . Classy not sappy The ending was a great surprise and a HAPPY ONE .
I give it a C- at best. It should have been very clip-heavy. The Emmy presentation to Stephen Smith made no sense. Maybe add a quick recap of what’s been going on to get fans who don’t usually watch the show an incentive to start watching. Too much John Stamos. Bring back other cast members who may have been popular on the show but never became huge stars lice Stamos.
As a long-time viewer of GH, I was disappointed with the special.
Why did Dr. Steve Hardy, a prominent doctor of GH, only appear mere seconds during the special, while Sonny, a Port Charles mobster, and his family appear for minutes.
Where was Jessie? Where was Lucille Weeks? Where was Lesley and Rick?
If it weren’t for those iconic characters, there would be no Sonny, Michael, Willow, Dex or Josslyn today.
BaxterM, you mentioned some good names. I was surprised there were no Jessie, Rick and Lesley scenes also. I was impressed they at least showed a picture of Lee and Gail Baldwin. All of them were heavily featured players when the show was making ratings history.
The latest ratings are out for the week of October 26-30, 2026 and the big takeaways include: that CBS daytime’s Beyond the Gates was separated by only 23,000 viewers behind third place (of the soaps) General Hospital! For the last several weeks, Beyond the Gates has been closing the gap on this year’s winner for Outstanding Daytime Drama Series, and continuing to best GH in the key demos.
According to the latest Nielsen ratings breakdown from Soap Opera Network, the final week of October brought Beyond the Gates 1.790 million on average tuning-in and the show set a season high in total viewers. Meanwhile, General Hospital hit a new season low! The long-running ABC soap had 1.813 million for the week, and once again the series did not go over the 2 million mark.
Meanwhile, in the key Women 18-49 demo, Beyond the Gates was firmly ahead of GH with a rating share of 0.21, while General Hospital had 0.17 rating share.Then, in the key Women 25-54 demo, Beyond the Gates was once again ahead of the ABC soap with a ratings share for that demo at 0.30 while GH came in with 0.26.
Photo: CBS
MORE BY THE NUMBERS
In addition and comparatively, Beyond the Gates +22,000 viewers week-to-week, and had the largest gains in viewership year-to-year in daytime TV with +267,000 from this in 2025.. However, General Hospital seems to be going in reverse. The show was down -56,000 viewers week-over-week and down -22,000 year-over-year .
BEYOND THE GATES
Let’s take a look at some of the storylines that had people tuning-in to Beyond the Gates during the ratings week:
Hayley (Marquita Goings) attempted a massive shocker regarding her pregnancy and tried to use it to extract money from Bill Hamilton (Timon Kyle Durrett). Although, Bill saw right through her game, he demanded a paternity test, and made it clear he has no intention of raising the child—planning instead to pay her off to take the baby and leave. Meanwhile, Hayley confided her plan to her cousin Randy (Maurice P. Kerry).
Jacob Hawthorne (Jibre Hordges) and Naomi Hamilton (Arielle Prepetit) clashed over Jacob’s ongoing investigation into The Impaler, causing significant strain in their marriage. At the same time, Smitty (Mike Manning) considered taking matters into his own hands—including potentially heading to Mexico for evidence—while Martin Richardson (Brandon Claybon) worried about what comes next.
Photo: ABC
GENERAL HOSPITAL
Over at General Hospital for the ratings period, the story served up included:
Carly (Laura Wright) and Valentin (James Patrick Stuart) teamed up to investigate what really happened to Jack Brennan (Chris McKenna). Later, Danny (Asher Antonyzyn) leads them to Jack’s dead body.
Jude (Wil Traval) dropped a bombshell claim to Alexis (Nancy Lee Grahn); that he is Phoebe’s father, while Brook Lynn (Amanda Setton) and Chase (Josh Swickard) signed their divorce papers.
Then, Danny caught Rocco (Finn Carr) and Scout (Kayden Brenna Tokarski) sharing a kiss, plus the shocking return of Heather Webber (Alley Mills) capped the week.
Now the questions become; without having much promotional synergy in the ABC day-part to draw more eyeballs it is not helping but hurting General Hospital. It seems Beyond the Gates is also a benefactor of a one-two-three punch of CBS soaps (Y&R, B&B and BTG) and promotion.
However, that still doesn’t take away the fact that Beyond the Gates is close to besting GH in all ratings category as they go head-to-head in some markets across the country.
So, are you excited to see Beyond the Gates climb in the ratings? Are you concerned for General Hospital? Do you think they can stave off Beyond the Gates in total viewers or will the upstart soap overtake them in the next ratings report? Share your thoughts in the comment section.
Antonio Sabáto Jr., the former Jagger Cates of General Hospital and GH: Night Shift, and the former Dante Damiano of The Bold and the Beautiful has issued his first public statement since the incident involving his son, Jack’s arrest in Alaska for a fatal hit-and-run.
Jack is the son of Sabáto Jr. and Oscar-nominated actress Virginia Madsen, and according to court documents obtained by KTUU Jack, was allegedly driving a white Chevy Tahoe when he hit and killed Carl Simmonds, 42, near an intersection in Anchorage around 5:35 a.m. on Monday, November 9.
The reports indicated that Jack fled the scene — but later decided to called the cops to say he hit “something” that “suddenly appeared in the road” while he was “doing late-night DoorDashing.”
Photo: NBC
Now, Antonio has taken to his Instagram breaking his silence on the situation, sharing, “At this time, my family and I are navigating an extremely sensitive and deeply personal matter.”
He added, “As a father, my love for my children remains unconditional, and my priority is the well-being of my family. We ask that the public and members of the media honor our privacy during this difficult time and keep us all in your thoughts and prayers.”
The soap alum concluded, “I also wish to extend my heartfelt condolences to the family and loved ones of the gentleman who tragically lost his life. My thoughts and prayers are with them as well. We sincerely appreciate your compassion, understanding, and respect for the privacy of everyone affected.”
Jack Sabáto was arraigned in court on Tuesday, November 10 with bail set at $5,000, and a no-driving order and the potential of $5,000 penalty fees if he fails to attend future court appearances.
Antonio is the father to Jack, 34, daughter, Mina Sabato, 24 and son, Antonio Sabáto III, 15.
This is a developing story. You can check out Antonio’s official statement below.
So, let us know your thoughts on this tragic hit-and-run, which claimed the life of another man, and Antonio’s statement, via the comment section below.
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Sonny (Maurice Benard) and Ava’s (Maura West) daughter Avery looks quite different, starting on today’s November 9 episode of General Hospital. That’s because GH has made Avery into a full-blown teenager and the role is now being played by actress Alya Bullington.
In her debut, the Tennessee native was thrown into the deep soap waters with Daytime Emmy winners, Maurice Benard and Eden McCoy (Josslyn). Bullington weighed-in to TV Insider about her first scene which featured Avery overhearing a fight between Sonny and Josslyn.
She explained “It was something I have never done before, I did not have a lot of experience with the screaming and the crying stuff, but I got my first script, and I was like, ‘OK, this is a huge opportunity to learn so much about how that stuff works and to become this character that I have never even tried playing before.’”
Photo: ABC
THE TEENAGED VERSION OF AVERY WILL HAVE A LOT TO CONTEND WITH
Speaking of working with McCoy, Bullington shared, “She’s incredible. I remember her just laughing and making jokes on set, and then the minute that they started taping, she just locked in and she cried immediately, and my first thought was, ‘I want to be able to do that.’
The soap opera newcomer added, “I think she just inspired me so much because she is so great and she can just lock into whatever character she wants to in the moment.”
The character of Avery was born back in 2014, but as recently as the October 8 episode of General Hospital, the character was suddenly referred to as a teenager. This is the second young female character in recent months to be aged up following the casting of Kayden Brenna Tokarski as Scout Cain.
As for her take on Avery and what’s ahead, Alya said,“She’s emotional, and she’s curious, and she’s a really fun person to play because so much stuff is happening in her life. I think she’s kind of confused about what’s happening and what to believe.”
So, what do you think about General Hospital making Avery a teenager? Are you excited to see the conflict between Sonny, Ava and Avery now that they have aged up the character? Share your thoughts and welcome Alya to GH via the comment section below.
‘Beyond the Gates’ Emmy Winner Ambyr Michelle Wants to Compete on ‘Dancing with the Stars’: ‘Pick Me’ (Exclusive)
THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL: Katie Kicks Bill to the Curb … for Now
RATINGS: ‘Beyond the Gates’ Inches Closer to ‘General Hospital’ in Total Viewers
B&B’s Sydney Bullock Weighs In on Future of Dylan and Will: ‘I Think She Can Hold on to Him for Awhile’ (Exclusive)
Antonio Sabáto Jr. Breaks Silence on His Son’s Arrest for Fatal Hit-and-Run
Y&R’s New Head Writers Share Vision for Genoa City: Contemporary Homage to Bill Bell, Mixing Heightened Escapism and Grounded Reality
THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS Preview: Episodes From New Co-Head Writers, Jamey Giddens and Dan O’Connor, Begin to Air
‘General Hospital’ Casts Ayla Bullington as the New Avery Jerome-Corinthos
‘Days of our Lives’ Celebrates 61st Anniversary: EP Ken Corday Teases New Character’s Arrival in Spring 2027
‘Days of our Lives’ Kyle Pryor Debuts as Dominic Marino and Says of Alleged TV Mom, “Deidre Hall is the Absolute OG, Amazing” (Exclusive)
‘Beyond the Gates’ Emmy Winner Ambyr Michelle Wants to Compete on ‘Dancing with the Stars’: ‘Pick Me’ (Exclusive)
THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL: Katie Kicks Bill to the Curb … for Now
B&B’s Sydney Bullock Weighs In on Future of Dylan and Will: ‘I Think She Can Hold on to Him for Awhile’ (Exclusive)
‘Days of our Lives’ Veteran James Reynolds Reveals Parkinson’s Diagnosis
Y&R’s Matt Cohen Talks Role as Compassionate Zookeeper in Rom-Com ‘Christmas at the Zoo’
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