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General Hospital Co-Stars Past and Present Pay Tribute and Mourn the Loss of Leslie Charleson

By Michael Fairman

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Photos: ABC and JPI

Over the last 24 hours, the General Hospital family is mourning the loss of its longest-tenured cast member, the legendary, Leslie Charleson (Monica Quartermaine).

The actress passed away at 79-years-old after a long illness, according to reports. GH’s executive producer, Frank Valentini, broke the news via his X account.

While Leslie hadn’t been seen on-screen as Monica since the tail end of December 2023, her iconic scenes, dramatic storylines, torrid love affairs with Rick Webber and Alan Quartermaine and more, plus her incredible comedic timing, will always be remembered and revered.

Photo: JPI

Many of Leslie’s General Hospital colleagues past and present have taken to their various social media accounts with touching tributes to this one-of-a-kind talent.

Genie Francis (Laura): “So sad to lose a dear old friend, Leslie Charleson. Such a big part of my childhood. Such a funny, kind and strong woman. I will miss her.”

Wally Kurth (Ned): “Oh Lord… this is a tough one. Leslie Charleson was my castmate for 34 years. Leslie… was just cool. Never let anything bother her on the set… no drama. I don’t think I ever heard her raise her voice. But she was no push over her either. Acting is a blood sport.. but not for Leslie. Lester, as I sometimes called her, was a dear, sweet soul who for the last few years experienced physical challenges that would have made any person sour. But I never heard her complain. She was tough but vulnerable. A beautiful soul. I loved hearing Leslie laugh. She had a hearty laugh. Stuart knew exactly what to say to get her going…. Thank you Leslie for your friendship… your talent…and for sharing your soul with me and all your fans.”

Photo: JPI

Natalia Livingston (Ex-Emily): “I’m heartbroken to hear of the passing of Leslie Charleson. Leslie was the most wonderful TV mom I could have ever had. I admired and enjoyed her humor, wit, and warmth. Thank you for always making me feel so welcomed into our tv family. I’ll never forget you. May you rest in peace, dear Leslie. I love you.”

Sarah Joy Brown (ex-Carly): Rest in peace Leslie Charleson. Grateful to have had the opportunity to learn so much from her while I was starting my run on General Hospital. Watching her work with Stuart Damon, a.k.a. Alan Quartermaine, and John Ingle was a joy for me, especially when I was included in the scenes, but even when I wasn’t. The Q’s always made me laugh. Her timing was legendary. Sending my condolences to her friends, family, fans, and all of her co-workers #lesliecharleson

Sean Kanan (ex-AJ Quartermaine, now Deacon, B&B): I just learned that Leslie Charleson has passed. We played mother and son off and on for years. My deepest condolences to her family. May you rest in peace, Lester”

Kathleen Gati (ex-Liesl Obreacht): “One of the kindest and sweetest colleagues I’ve had the honor to work with. May Leslie Charleson rest in peace and know how deeply she was loved and appreciated by all. Deepest condolences to her family, friends, colleagues and fans.” She added, Loved working with Leslie Charleson especially the Krampus Christmas story but just loved her as a person too!

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God bless Leslie’s loved ones. Amen

I really hope Monica gets the send-off she deserves, like the one they wrote for Bobbie, which thought was fantastic. Hit all the right emotional beats and showcased some amazing acting talent. Would love to see flashbacks of Monica with Alan, AJ, Emily, Edward, and especially Tracy. I hope Jane Elliot, Wally Kurth and Steve Burton are front and center for it.

Monica was such a funny character due to Leslie.

I am extremely saddened by the passing of Ms. Charleson; and have always enjoyed her work on television. Ms. Charleson’s portrayal of Monica and her most major storylines on GENERAL HOSPITAL will always remain inside my soul. My sincere and most heartfelt condolences to her surviving relations, friends, loved ones, and worldwide fans, the latter a group that I have always been proudly a member of.

Leslie is a major reason why I believe that a streaming home for 70s-80s era GH would garner much support. Her legendary scenes with Stuart Damon, David Lewis, John Ingle, and most of all Jane Elliott deserve to be seen by the audiences who only know her as a “supporting character.” She glowed in everything she did, and it’s always fun to run across her in Happy Days and The Wild Wild West.

I was just a little kid, but I remember her from.Love is a Many Splendored Thing as Iris Donnelly. Gosh, she was a young actress, along with Donna Mills, who played her sister Laura and David Birney, as Mark Elliott, the man they both loved. All three left the soap and went on to become tv stars in the 70s & 80s. Leslie Charleson, you were excellent as Monica Quartermaine and you will be missed. Alright, GH do right by her and give us an episode similar and great as Jackie Zeman’s.

Beautiful sentiments from the cast. One that struck me both times for how brief and impersonal was Sean Kanan’s (AJ). I would have thought he’d have a bit more warmth to his comment; he was more expressive when Stuart Damon passed. She was obviously very well liked and loved by many she worked with. I’m still processing that we’ll never see “Monica” again.

So sorry to hear of Leslie Charleson/Monica I have been watching GH from the very beginning with my mother sending sincere sympathy to her family and her GH family.

General Hospital

GENERAL HOSPITAL: Britt and Rocco Say Their Goodbyes, Then She Gets Arrested; Anna Reveals “Nathan West” is an Imposter

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On the Friday, June 26 episode of General Hospital, emotional moments, a new duo on the run, the end of the line for Britt and an eye-opening moment between Anna and Felicia were the order of the day. Let’s take a look at what went down, but first let’s give a round of applause for Kelly Thiebaud (Britt) and Finn Carr (Rocco) on their goodbye scenes.

In the story, Rocco insists to his parents, Dante (Dominic Zamprogna) and Lulu (Alexa Havins) that he wouldn’t leave Tortola without Britt. Dante is getting impatient because Britt brought all the trouble in recent months to his son. They need to protect him and they can’t if he stays with Britt. Lulu tells Britt she is the only one who can do the right thing, right now.

Britt explained it is too dangerous for Rocco to stay with her. She was very selfish and made a lot of terrible decisions along the way and Cullum is tracking her down because she did not finish the project he enlisted her for. She convinces Rocco to go with his parents and gives him a little token of something that reminded her of when he was a baby which is a bottle to blow bubbles with.

Courtesy/ABC

TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF

Rocco makes Britt promise to take her medication to ward off her Huntington’s disease symptoms and to keep changing locations so she is not caught. The two share a final hug as both are in tears. Dante makes a call. While in the car ready to leave Britt behind, Rocco says he will never forgive himself is something happened to Britt.

Back inside, Britt is ready to inject herself with her medication but is unaware that Cullum has now tainted it with poison! But she is saved from that, when two police officers burst through the door to arrest her for kidnapping charges! Did Dante call the local police? Is he doing this to keep her safe or to pay her back?

In Port Charles, Charlotte (Bluesy Burke) arrives at Crimson, completely unaware that the man in the elevator is following her. Nina (Cynthia Watros) and Charlotte have an argument about Willow (Katelyn MacMullen). Suddenly, Willow calls her mother that she is being questioned by the PCPD, and Nina learns, it is as a suspect for being the other driver that left Jordan and Curtis injured by the side of the road on Route 91.

ARRIVALS AND DESTINATIONS IN QUESTION

Chase (Josh Swickard) comes to Willow’s rescue much to Brook Lynn (Amanda Setton) and Justine’s (Nazneen Contractor) chagrin. Willow learns Lucy  and Drew are the supposed witnesses against her. Chase figures out when Joe (Jonathan Bennett) was alone with Drew, he got him to blink in a way that implicated her. However, in a shocking moment, Justine reveals that the trip log from Willow’s BMW SUV placed her at the scene of the accident just second before it occurred.

Meanwhile, Danny (Asher Antonyzyn) comes by Crimson to see Charlotte. He says he broke into the WSB office to get info to expose Cullum as a double agent. Charlotte blows a gasket! She can’t believe that he would do something so stupid that it could have gotten him killed. She firmly tells Danny that best thing he can do to help Jason is to stay out of things. Danny storms out, but notices the stranger in the elevator who now steps into the Crimson lobby.

Courtesy/ABC

The man tells Charlotte he is Agent Mark McKay with the WSB and he has orders to bring her in. When she resisted, he was about to chloroform her, when Danny knocked him out and took off with Charlotte.

ANNA PUTS HER TRUST IN FELICIA

In France, after having some private time with Emma (Braedyn Bruner), Anna (Finola Hughes) wants to talk to Felicia (Kristina Wagner). She tells her best friend she was trying to figure out what memories of her past with Faison, she could trust and not trust. Since Felicia knows her best she is hoping she can believe what she is about to tell her.

It is then that Anna says, “Nathan West (Ryan Paevey) is not who he says he is.” Felicia looks dumb-founded. Will she believe her friend … or think she has drummed this all up in her mind? Stay tuned.

So, what did you think about the goodbye scenes featuring Finn Carr and Kelly Thiebaud? Did you reach for the hankies? Do you believe that soon, Cassius will be caught for his duplicity and the truth about Britt’s “illness” will come to light? Share your thoughts and theories via the comment section below. But first check out the scenes featuring Anna on her road to recovery in France

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General Hospital

‘General Hospital’ Alum Chad Duell Drops First Single EDM/Dance Track ‘If You Need Me’

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Last weekend, we shared the news that General Hospital alum and Daytime Emmy winner, Chad Duell (ex-Michael Corinthos) was releasing his first single today on June 26th and it has indeed dropped! And for those readers who guessed that Duell’s first track out of the gate was going to be an EDM/Dance/House track … you are correct, sir!

The song entitled, “If You Need Me” is perfect for the late night clubs and can be found on Spotify and other major streaming platforms! Duell is noted as the performing artist, but as the composer/ lyricist and the beatmaker of the track. For his music projects, Chad is going solely by the name of “Duelly” which has been his social media handle for years.

Taking to his Instagram on Friday, Duell explained his deep dive into making music, expressing, “I’ve wanted to make music for a long time… I just never did it. It always felt like this huge, overwhelming thing to learn. All the technical side of it, the programs, everything that goes into actually building a track… it was easy to keep pushing it off.  A couple months ago I finally just decided to go for it.”

Photo: JPI

BIT BY BIT PUTTING IT TOGETHER

Chad added, “Since then I’ve been putting in a lot of time learning, experimenting, figuring things out, and slowly starting to find a sound I’m really proud of. This first release is more of a dance/EDM vibe, but I’ve also been working on a lot of different styles behind the scenes that I’m just as excited about. At some point I realized I could keep holding onto everything trying to make it perfect… or I could just start putting music out and grow as I go.”

Stepping out of his own way, Duell firmly says, “So that’s what I’m doing.  My first track “If You Need Me” is out now. More coming soon… this is just the beginning.”

As GH viewers know, Chad made the decision to step away from General Hospital after a 15-year run with the series where his last episode aired in January of 2025. By May of last year, the role was recast with Rory Gibson debuting in the part.

Give a listen below to Duelly’s “If You Need Me,” and let us know what you thought of it via the comment section below.

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GENERAL HOSPITAL: What Did You Think of the Return of Anna Devane, and What’s In the Letter?

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Finola Hughes made her dramatic return on-screen on the Wednesday, June 24 episode of General Hospital. Viewers will see Finola as Anna Devane again on tomorrow’s June 26th episode.

In the story, while in the French mental health facility, Anna has a session with Dr. Laurent. She tell her she now knows she was never kidnapped and that Cesar Faison is dead.

As she continued with her ruse, she went on to say she understands she was enlisted back into the WSB on a secret mission, and through that she relived all the trauma she endured by Faison, which caused her to have a psychotic break. Anna promises Dr. Laurent that her treatment plan had helped her so much in figuring out what was real, and what was in her imagination.

Courtesy/ABC

ANNA’S GOT HER OWN PLAN TO ESCAPE

In a smart move (hopefully) Anna told Laurent if she could talk to someone else who had known Faison that it might aid in her recover. She was given the phone and she called Felicia (Kristina Wagner), who agreed to fly to France in the morning. Dr. Laurent claims she is pleased with Anna’s progress, but that they still have a very long long way to go.

Now by herself, Anna pulled out a packet of letters from a bedside table. There is one in particular that she is fixated on. What does it contain? Is this all a part of her escape plan? Will she warn Felicia that “Nathan” is really Cassius (Ryan Paevey)? If so, will Felicia even believe her?

In a summer preview with Soap Opera Digest, GH co-head writers Elizabeth Korte and Chris Van Etten shared, “We’ll see echoes of Anna’s earliest incarnation as she returns to Port Charles with deadly intentions.”

So, were you happy to see Anna Devane back on your screens? What do you think is in the particular letter she was staring at? Will Felicia help Anna escape or not believe a word she says? Weigh-in via the comment section.  But first, you can check out some of the scenes from Anna’s on-screen return below.

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Jonathan Bennett joins the cast of GH as Joe Fitzpatrick. Catch the latest promo! Leave a comment.Leave A Comment

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Finn Carr & Dominic Zamprogna as Rocco & Dante

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