When Jack Brennan was found dead and floating in the Metro Court pool on the September 1 episode of General Hospital, it unfortunately meant the end of the road for Chris L. McKenna, who had returned to the soaps to play the WSB Port Charles Bureau Chief.

As with any death on the soaps, and a litany of subjects in this whodunit, Brennan’s death opened the door to more story, as fans are still grappling with the decision to kill off the character.

The bittersweet exit was not the first time Chris had been written out of a soap. On The Young and the Restless, Chris played detective Mark Harding from 2014-2015, who ended up dead, and guess who was in that scene? None other than GH’s Steve Burton (Jason Morgan) when he was over at the CBS soap opera taking on the role of Dylan McAvoy.

Now. on an all-new episode of the That’s Awesome podcast with Burton and Bradford Anderson (Spinelli, GH) released on Friday, September 18, the duo welcomed Chris McKenna direct from Clearwater, Florida.

Courtesy/ABC

MAKING SURE PAIGE HERSCHELL WAS OK

During the conversation, Chris explained how his last day went and how he went about lifting the spirits of the GH cast and crew with very special attention to Paige Herschell (ex-Jacinda Bracken).

McKenna shared how he knew for a bit about his departure, before the rest of the cast knew he was exiting the show, explaining. “I had time to process it. It had been a surprise to many, to me, and to many people in the building when it first happened. But by this point, Paige Herschell found out at the same time that she wasn’t going to be coming back. She had her last day, the day before mine.”

“Paige hadn’t been through this before. I had,” shared the soap vet. “I had a show that was on the air and it was in primetime, and then it got canceled. I thought it was devastating, and that I was never going to work again. So, this has happened so many times to me (throughout my career), that I don’t get rattled anymore by it.”

Photo: ABC

WHEN YOU GET BAD NEWS …

McKenna said he wanted to go out on a high note: “It was important to me to make sure, first of all, everybody else felt comfortable because everybody felt bad and felt sad and felt upset. I was like, ‘It’s fine. We’re okay. I’m going to be fine. So, let’s make sure everyone’s okay.'”

Out of concern for his exiting co-star, Chris recalled, “I wanted to make sure that Paige got her flowers, and she had her attention and got her send off appropriately. I wanted to make sure I hugged her and told her to finish strong. It it was important to me, and also I was working with the kids (Scarlett, Danny). I try to be a mentor to some of the younger actors as well.”

LEAVING PORT CHARLES

The message Chris wanted to impart before he left the GH studios for the last time was, “I’ve been doing this so long, so I wanted to show them how to handle it. When you get bad news, it doesn’t have to devastate you, and it’s not the end of the world, and to make sure everybody’s laughing and having fun. I tried to make the the last day fun for everybody else, so that everybody could enjoy it with me.”

You can check out the full discussion with Chris with Steve and Bradford below.

Now let us know, are you still sad over the departures of Chris McKenna and Paige Herschell? What do you think about Chris’ motivational message to “finish strong?” Share your thoughts via the comment section.

General Hospital is welcoming yet another new face to the canvas when Australia native Wil Traval join the cast as a mysterious stranger named Jude, who will arrive in Port Charles come October.

Traval becomes the second new Australian-born actor to join the cast. It was back on July 13, that GH viewers first saw Dean Geyer in the role of Dr. Tristan Roberts, whose name is an homage to the late Tristan Rogers (Robert Scorpio, GH). Could Jude and Tristan be related?

If not that theory, might Jude join the mystery involving JJE (Jasper Jacks Enterprises), which is currently under the investigation by the WSB? Since Josslyn’s (Eden McCoy) father, Jasper Jacks, is from down under, could Jude be connected business-wise or otherwise, to the mysterious Hudson (Troy Lennon Appel) who came to Port Charles with several agendas?

Photo: : Brianna Alysse

FROM DOWN UNDER TO PORT CHARLES

Traval is a native of Victoria, Australia, who had a recurring role in Season 3 of The CW’s Dynasty. In the primetime soap reboot, Traval played Father Caleb Collins, whose faith was put to the test when he developed feeling for Cristal Carrington (Daniella Alonso).

The GH newcomer is no newcomer to TV and film roles with an extensive credits including: Netflix’s Messiah and Jessica Jones, ABC’s Red Widow and Grey’s Anatomy, Arrow, Chicago P.D., Grimm and Once Upon a Time, to name but a few.

In his homeland of Australia, Traval is best known for portraying Dr. Jack Quade in the medical drama All Saints, and Detective Peter Church in the crime drama White Collar Blue.

So far in the last couple of months, General Hospital had brought on the following casting additions, the aforementioned Geyer and Appel, plus Kayden Brenna Tokarski (Scout Cain), Kelly Kruger (Serena Baldwin), Alimi Ballard (William Baines), Kearran Giovanni (Dr. Nichols) and Blythe Howard, who will debut next week on the Wednesday, September 23 episode as Monet.

So, with all the newbies hitting the screens on GH, is hard for you to keep up, or are you excited to see how Jude fits into the storyline with the arrival of Wil Traval this fall? Let us know your thoughts via the comment section.

Kelly Monaco (ex-Sam McCall, General Hospital) has taken to her Instagram for the second time this week and now honors her late dear friend and General Hospital co-star, Billy Miller (ex-Drew Cain) on what would have been his 47th birthday on September 17.

In her post, Monaco wished Billy “a heavenly birthday” and shared a typewritten note from her beloved co-star after he exited General Hospital in the role of Drew Cain. The three-time Daytime Emmy-winning actor played the part from 2014-2019.

Monaco wrote accompanying the photo of Billy’s letter: “He (Billy) sent me this a few years ago, after he left (the show) wanting me to post it… I didn’t/ But… I know he wanted anyone who’s ever supported his work and or got to know him as a friend to read this letter.”

Photo: JPI

BILLY MILLER WON THREE DAYTIME EMMYS FOR HIS WORK IN SOAPS

Billy Miller was one of the most respected actors to ever grace the daytime screens for his portrayals as Richie Novack on All My Children from 2007-2008 and Billy Abbott on The Young and the Restless from 2008 until 2014 and of course, his final soap stop on General Hospital. He also appeared on primetime’s Ray Donovan and Suits.

TOUCHING GOODBYE LETTER AFTER EXITING GENERAL HOSPITAL

Here now, is what Billy shared in his letter after exiting GH: “Hello, friends… With a slight air of sadness it is time to ponder what ‘goodbye’ means. However, instead of dwelling on what is gone and sure to be missed, there is another way.”

“Maybe our goodbye is really a remembrance of love felt, an appreciation for lives shared and the lifelong reminiscences that come from embraces given and received, Maybe our goodbye is an earnest hope for the brightest path forward for us all,” expressed Miller. “Maybe our goodbye is honoring growth and lessons learned.”

The beloved star added, “Now, instead of sadness, I am filled with gratitude for all your support, encouragement and every emotion shared. I cherish the journey we have taken together, Thank you for allowing me into your homes and lives. With every ounce of myself, I thank you for being you. I would be remiss in this crazy, unpredictable world we all love so much if I did not hold out the possibility that maybe our goodbye is really… until next time.”

Sadly, Billy died by suicide three years ago on September 15, 2023, just two days shy of what would have been his 43rd birthday.  You can check out Kelly’s post below.

Now, share your remembrances today of Billy Miller and the touching letter he wrote after leaving General Hospital, that Kelly Monaco posted in tribute to her friend and co-star via the comment section below.

 

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