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Rick Hearst Shares ‘General Hospital’ and ‘Guiding Light’ Most Felt Like Daytime Home; and The Road to Ric Lansing

By Michael Fairman

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Photo: ABC

Three-time Daytime Emmy winner, Rick Hearst (Ric Lansing, General Hospital) is this week’s special guest on Soapy Hosted by Rebecca Budig and Greg Rikaart.

Hearst. who also previously has played: Scott Banning on Days of our Lives, Alan-Michael Spaulding on Guiding Light, Matt Clark on The Young and the Restless, and Whip “Whipple” Jones on The Bold and the Beautiful, was asked by Budig, of all of the soaps he has appeared on which felt most like home?

Rick shared: “I’ve been fortunate that I would say that there were two shows, I think that I can say felt most ‘familial’ as in like a family. One, I would say would be Guiding Light, because it was such a unique growth period in my life as a human being, as a father, all of that. I really felt like I cut my teeth as an actor in daytime on Guiding Light.” Hearst played Alan-Michael #2 from 1990-1996.

Photo: JPI

His second pick was his current home at GH. Hearst then revealed how he actually landed the role of Ric and how the character didn’t even have a name at his beginnings of the show, dating back to his initial run in 2002. Since that time, Rick has returned fo three times runs: 2002–09; 2014–16, and 2024 till the present.

“When I came to General Hospital, it really was a character that I got a chance to make my own,” recalled Rick. “The funny thing is when I went in and met Bob Guza and Chuck Pratt who were writing the show (at that time, I didn’t have to audition. I didn’t have a screen test. I went in and I met them, and this may sound funny, but in auditions, I tend not to be chatty. I just sort of lay back, let them do all the talking, and then respond in kind, and kind of feel them out at the same time.”

Following the meeting, Rick explained, “Mark Teschner (casting director, GH) called my agent. So, I said, ‘So, what’s the deal? He said, ‘They want to know if you want to screen test for it.’ I said, “‘Wait.  I thought this was an offer?'” So, Rick eventually decided, “No” and he shared, “That’s the first time I ever said that and I was panicked.”

Photo: ABC

Hearst elaborated: ‘I said to my agent, ‘Send my reel over to them so they can at least see a body of work.’ And when I did that, they still screen tested other guys. But, then I got a call from my agent on a Friday night. It’s 10 30 pm. They want me to start early Monday. I said, ‘I have no script. I don’t even know the name of the character, and they didn’t either. They sent over a stack of scripts. So, I show up on the day, and looked to see the character’s name and at first. nobody could speak the character’s name. It was Peter, and then it was Daniel, and then they’d settled on Rick, but RIC. I became Ric Lansing but that didn’t happen until two weeks into the role.”

You can learn more about Rick’s entrée into GH, and his very first scenes, where he had to speak Spanish and he didn’t know how and muchmore by checking out the full episode of Soapy below.

So, have your favorite soap roles of Rick’s through the years been that of Alan-Michael Spaulding on Guiding Light and Ric Lansing on General Hospital? Let us know via the comment section below.

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I agree: his roles on General Hospital and Guiding Light felt the best for him in my eyes. And hopefully, one day, he will pop up on Beyond the Gates, where I know he would excel, too.

I first saw his work and loved his portrayal as Alan Michael on GL
Love him on GH.

I have a big soft spot for Carl T Evans the first Alan-Michael but Rick was wonderful in the part too and deserved his Emmy for it (or Emmys can’t remember).

When he was on bold and beautiful as Whip I used to cringe when Brooke would pronounce it as “Wheee-up” lmao

Definitely my favorite role of his was Alan-Michael

All I know is that when he appears on the screen, I’m watching- riveted actually. This is a rarity for me.

Interesting tidbit on how the character of Ric Lansing got his name. JFP and Guza generally ignored the “don’t reuse character first names” rule as you never know if/when they’ll need to bring back the original.

Case in point, Ric Lansing was driving story when the writers chose to bring back Rick Webber for the dreaded retcon that sent Laura to catatonic land.

Olivia Falconeri had been on for a number of years when Ron had Olivia Jerome return from the dead.

General rule is you don’t even use names that sound alike. Kiki was used instead of Lauren to avoid having someone talk about Lauren in one scene then Laura in the next.

Love Alan Michael and miss GL forever! And having Rick show up on our screens is always a gift. His comedic timing is pitch-on. Hopefully we will get to see more of him in the upcoming year.

General Hospital

GENERAL HOSPITAL: Cullum Kidnaps Obrecht as Britt’s Replacement to Finish Faison’s Final Project

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WSB director Ross Cullum is truly as despicable villain as they come, and played with steely intensity by Andrew Hawkes. For the double agents latest crime, you need to look no further than the Friday, June 5 cliffhanger of General Hospital, where in the episode’s final moments he sneaks up on an unassuming Dr. Liesl Obrecht (Kathleen Gati) after hiding in the back seat of her car.

Next, he chloroforms her with his intent clear. He plans on forcing her to finish the last leg of Faison’s final project at Wyndemere, since her daughter Dr. Britt Westbourne (Kelly Thiebaud) left town with Rocco Falconeri (Finn Carr) in tow to get away from Cullum!

In what led to the kidnapping, Cullum had a terse conversation with his business associate and co-conspirator on the project, Jenz Sidwell (Carlo Rota). It is Sidwell who is preoccupied with wanting to bring Marco’s killer to justice (not knowing it’s the man right in front of him!). Sidwell told Cullum if bringing Marco’s killer to justice wasn’t a priority for the WSB director, then why should protecting Cullum be a priority for him?

SIDWELL VS. CULLUM

The two finally put aside their differences as they have to complete Faison’s final project for it will be highly lucrative for them, useful for their mutual gains, and groundbreaking. In order to do that they need a great mind with a scientific background to finish it up and get them to the finish line since Britt as disappeared.

Later, outside of “General Hospital,” Obrecht is headed back to her car after searching Britt’s office for any clues as to the whereabouts of her daughter. But when she got in the car to drive away, that’s when the aforementioned Cullum strikes!

Courtesy/ABC

BROOK LYNN GETS ADVICE FROM A FORMER ADULTERESS

In other key developments, after Willow (Katelyn MacMullen) keeps inserting herself into Chase (Josh Swickard) and Brook Lynn’s (Amanda Setton) life, all with the seeming pretense to pay back Chase for helping her clear her name at the trial, and standing by her, she brings good news in person about baby Phoebe’s adoption to Alexis’ (Nancy Lee Grahn) law office to Chase. Once Brook Lynn heard Chase was on her away over with paperwork, she decided to hightail it out of there for an “emergency” appointment for Deception.

As we come to find out, Brook Lynn meets up with Lucy (Lynn Herring) at the Metro Court pool, She then proceeds to inform Lucy about Willow sniffing around he husband. Lucy says she knows a thing or two about being an adulteress. Brook Lynn wants Lucy to help her send a clear message to Willow to stay away from her husband, or else!

Now below, check out the scenes before Obrecht was kidnapped where she visited Willow, Nina (Cynthia Watros) and Drew (Cameron Mathison) and suspects Willow is up to no good.

Then let us know, with Lucy taking Brook Lynn under her wing, what plot do you think the two will come up with against Willow? What do you think will happen to Obrecht? With Lucas also at Wyndemere trying to bait Sidwell into an attempted murder charge, will he winds up thrown in the secret room with Josslyn? Share your thoughts and theories on the latest GH via the comment section below.

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Beyond the Gates

2026 SDSA TV Award Nominations: All Five Daytime Dramas Score in Best Achievement in Set Decoration

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The Set Decorators Society of America has revealed its nominations for 2025-26 SDSA Awards for Television, which recognizes the work of the set decoration and production designers in primetime, streaming and daytime series.

This year, all five soap operas: Beyond the Gates, The Bold and the Beautiful, Days of Our Lives, General Hospital and The Young and the Restless all received nominations in the Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a Daytime Series category.

In its official SDSA rule book, to qualify for the category of a Daytime Series, which includes daytime dramas, daytime talk shows, daytime game shows, and daytime children’s programming, all episodes must air before 6:00pm and must have a credited Set Decorator. For daytime dramas, the content must contain multiple plotlines that are carried over from episode to episode.

Photo: JPI

WHICH EPISODES CAN BE INCLUDED IN THE COMPETITION?

The eligibility year for episodes runs June 1, 2025, and May 31, 2026.  Founded in 1993, the SDSA is an international nonprofit professional association dedicated to promoting excellence and preserving the legacy of the art of set decoration in motion pictures and television.

Several popular primetime and streaming titles that have wrapped their final seasons also received nods including Euphoria, Stranger Things, Hacks, Outlander, and The Boys. Popular titles such as Bridgerton.

Take a look below at the nominated scenic design teams from your favorite soaps:

Best Achievement in Décor/Design of a Daytime Series

Beyond The Gates: Set Decoration by Cynthia Slagter with Production Design by Bruton Jones

The Bold and the Beautiful: Set Decoration by Prim Rosales, Beth Wooke, Prerna Chawla, Charlotte Garnell, Chelsea Mondelli, Michelle Hall, & Linda Louise Sheets with Production Design by Lou A. Trabbie III

Days of Our Lives: Set Decoration by Adele Caine & Sarah Holmes with Production Design by Tom Early & Dan Olexiewicz

General Hospital: Set Decoration by Jennifer Elliot with Production Design by Andrew Evashchen

The Young and the Restless: Set Decoration by Jennifer Haybach, Justine Mercado, Maria Dirolf, & Monica Lowe with Production Design by David Hoffmann

So, which soap opera from the calendar year of basically June of 2025 to a week ago in 2026, do you think has had the best looking sets? Beyond the Gates, The Bold and the Beautiful, Days of Our Lives, General Hospital, or The Young and the Restless? Make you pick and drop it in the comment section below.

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General Hospital

Marc Forget Exits ‘General Hospital’

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The Thursday June 4 episode of General Hospital paved way for the end of the line for Jenz Sidwell’s (Carlo Rota) butler/fixer, Pascal (Marc Forget).

In the pick of the June 3 cliffhanger, Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) was the hero and stopped the evil-doer from fleeing Port Charles for his part in aiding and abetting his boss with the cover-up of the murder of Professor Henry Dalton (Daniel Goddard) among other crimes.

Today’s episode did indeed mark the final appearance of Marc Forget who joined the ABC soap opera when he debuted back in July of 2025. Viewers met met Pascal when Kelly Thiebaud returned to the soap opera as Britt Westbourne and she was being blackmailed to work on Faison’s final project while at the Five Poppies in Dalmatia.

Courtesy/ABC

A General Hospital rep confirmed to Soap Opera Digest, that the June 4 episode, “Will be the last viewers will see of Pascal for now, but notes that in the world of Port Charles, comebacks are always possible.” So, how did Pascal get written-off the canvas? Here’s what went down:

PASCAL GIVES LUCAS KEY INFORMATION BEFORE BEING DRAGGED AWAY

After Sonny intercepted Pascal on his desperate attempt to get out of town, Sonny informed him hat Sidwell would stop at nothing from trying to get retribution for whoever killed his son, Marco, and promptly turned around and said that he would help Pascal flee the country, only if he turned on Sidwell.

An absolutely terrified Pascal had evidence for Sonny that he could use against Sidwell. However, he feared he would get killed on sight if he tried to retrieve the incriminating photos of Sonny and Laura from the safe at Wyndemere. So instead, Pascal gave the combination to the safe to Lucas (Van Hansis), so he could get the blackmail photos himself. But, did Pascal just set up Lucas to be killed since he loathes him for being the man to win the heart of the late Marco?

In the end, Sonny had one of his henchmen drag Pascal away and whisked off to an airfield to fly away to parts unknown, and hopefully never to be heard from again. But what now? Is Lucas going to end up being pegged as Marco’s killer and taken down by Sidwell if he gets his hands on the incriminating photos for Sonny and Laura? Stay tuned.

So, what did you think of Marc Forget’s run as Pascal? Sad or happy to see the character go? Do you think he will be back down the line? Share your thoughts via the comment section.

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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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