General Hospital
GH's Donna Mills Talks On Madeline The Murderer, Michael Easton's Exit & Queens of Drama Season Two!

Photo Credit: HutchinsPhoto.com
Viewers of ABC’s General Hospital learned during Friday’s cliffhanger that it looks like Madeline Reeves (Donna Mills), Nina’s (Michelle Stafford) greedy and evil mother was the guilty party who murdered Dr. Silas Clay (Michael Easton)! At the end of the episode, the audience began to see a flashback of Madeline visiting Silas on the day he was murdered. And, it was confirmed today on Monday’s episode that she stabbed the guy!
On-Air On-Soaps caught up with the ever-popular Donna Mills late last week at the Television Academy cocktail reception honoring the daytime community at the Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. The former star of the classic soap Knots Landing, where she is beloved for her portrayal of the manipulative Abby Cunningham, guest star on General Hospital, where she won a Daytime Emmy this year for her work, and the woman who stirs the pot on Pop TV’s docu-drama, Queens of Drama has a lot happening in her busy career of late.
Donna shared her thoughts on: the departure of Michael Easton, the Silas Clay murder mystery storyline, the head writing change at GH, being part of a series like Queens of Drama for the first time in her iconic career, what happened to Hunter Tylo during the show’s first season, and more!
Looks like Madeline has been revealed as the murderer of Dr. Silas Clay!

Courtesy/ABC
DONNA: Moi? What? (Laughs)
Did you have plenty of warning that this was going to be a murder mystery storyline? Did you know Michael Easton was exiting GH?
DONNA: I did not know what it was going to be. General Hospital’s executive producer, Frank Valentini sort of kept it a mystery for awhile. They did film different characters stabbing Silas, and when I came in to that I didn’t know Michael Easton was leaving the show. I had no idea, and so I said, “Michael, you must be going off to do a big movie or something, right?” Michael answered back, “No.” So, I hope Michael gets a big movie. He is a lovely guy.
With the new writers coming into the show, even if Madeline is given prison time, we don’t know what that means long term for you or your character, I would assume?

Courtesy/ABC
DONNA: I don’t know. I have no idea. I usually do a story arc then I will be off for a month or two and come back.
How do you feel about the head writing change which saw Ron Carlivati exiting the series, and now Shelly Altman and Jean Passanante taking over the reins? Ron brought you on to GH.
DONNA: Ron Carlivati was a big fan of mine, and I really liked him a lot! He is a really nice guy. But, I think the storylines got a little unreal. I think there was too much of that going on. So, I think it’s probably a good thing to bring it down to a little more reality again.
Queens of Drama is prepping its second season. It has been reported that the producers have been looking at some actresses, who have appeared on the soaps as possible new cast members. Have you had some input into the casting choices?

Courtesy/Pop
DONNA: They are going to cast one more, and they are going to cast a few guest stars that are going to come in and out. I did make a few casting suggestions and they did listen to what I had to say. (Laughs)
The final moments of season one when you walked out of the network pitch meeting after the other gals blindsided you, after you blindsided them, provided much drama. There was also the over-the-top red dress moment where you show up at the photo shoot when all the other gals agreed to wear black. It seems that Queens of Drama really played up the camp and an amped-up version of Donna Mills. Did you enjoy your first experience doing a docu-drama?
DONNA: I had a great time doing that show. I played it for the humor a lot of the times. The red dress incident I thought was so funny. It’s real life but on steroids. You gotta pump it up or it’s not going to be interesting. So, we pumped it up and it was funny. I have to say all the girls really liked each other.
What about Hunter Tylo (Taylor, B&B)? It seems like she had gone into hiding after the shocker of the QOD season, when all of a sudden during filming of the teaser for the pilot you were producing, she took a spill right in front of the camera, and unfortunately injured herself.

Courtesy/POP
DONNA: Well, Hunter disappeared. We all wanted to know how she was, and if we could come over and see how she was doing. And just what you saw on the screen is what happened. It wasn’t like she tripped. She just fell over and all of us were like, “What was that?” It was a very bizarre incident. I just hope Hunter is O.K.
UPDATED: So, what do you think of Madeline being confirmed the killer of Silas on GH? Good move for story? Would you like to see Donna continue as Madeline Reeves on the ABC daytime drama series when the new writer’s material begins to air? What did you think of Donna in season one of Queens of Drama? What did you think of the incident involving Hunter Tylo? Share your thoughts in the comment section below. But first, watch Madeline’s murderess confession from Monday’s episode below.
Donna Mills just commands the screen anytime she is on it. I’ve loved watching her on GH. I do understand the cast is very large, so I think it’s brilliant for the show to be able to bring big names like Mills in and out of the show. However, I would hope they’ve learned from experience (Ava) that writing someone into the terrible corner of murdering someone is hard to just wash away later if they plan to keep the character. But someone murdered Silas, and I guess Madelyn is the most obvious choice.
Donna Mills is indeed the Queen of Drama and she will be back in season two and be the star of the show.
Donna Mills has had a very successful career, she’s a good actress and of course Abby was a primetime soap legend.
But why is Madeline even a character we are talking about? Just another example of casting actors from other shows to play new characters and in this case building an entirely new family that linked to Dr.O, Nathan, Nina and now involves Franco.
Again, nothing against Ms. Mills, but she was brought on because RC was a fan and he wanted to see her on GH and then she was brought on to create this entirely new family. Why was she not brought on as a member of an existing family and tied to GH history? Why wasn’t she brought on and tied to Monica? She and Leslie Charleson worked together in daytime when they were both starting out. Oh yeah, then you’d have to see Monica and who would want that?
Well, the answer to that is a lot of viewers in the 18-49 demo who have left.
Soap Opera Network reports that that the bulk of W18-49 viewers for soaps are W35-49 and that #GH lows are from rapidly declining W35-49. Those viewers would have been teens and twenty somethings in the 80’s and 90’s.
GH is unrecognizable to them and like long time viewers of any soap, they want to see characters that they know and love. Without any consideration for actual math, people constantly post that veteran characters would only appeal to “old” viewers. The 35-49 portion of the all important 18-49 demo are people who would have been watching 20-30 years ago. They have left because they want to see GH and GH characters. Not vets from OLTL, Y&R, ATWT or Knots Landing, again absolutely no disrespect to Ms. Mills at all.
And it is a ridiculous argument when people claim that newer viewers wouldn’t enjoy veteran characters. Why not? They would be as new to them as any new character, they would be played by seasoned and talented soap veterans and they would see characters that have years of history, backstory, development and personal relationships.
And getting back to Leslie Charleson, Michael Fairman told Billy Miller that one of his favorite scenes was Jake and Monica. Billy told Michael that the best scene he’s had so far was with Monica. Billy just might know something about soaps and what works, Michael Fairman too.
I wouldve liked to seen Donna and Leslie in scenes together…maybe reveal Monica and Madeline as faternal lost twins…i know there is an age difference but it wouldve been nice seeing them play sisters again as a nod to them playing sisters on the old daytime serial ‘LOVE IS A MANY SPLENDOR THING’
lost faternal twins…i need to take longer naps before i write…lol
Hi, Jimh.
The age difference between Leslie and Donna is not that great. Only four years…..it could have worked. I actually, always liked your idea.
jimh….At the very least, there could have been a fun, harmless moment when the two ladies bumped into one another and had a “Don’t I know you from somewhere?” scene. It would have thrown a bone to veteran soap fans and shown some appreciation for daytime drama history. Same goes for Ilene Kristen and Robin Mattson, since they both played the same role on Ryan’s Hope! “Dueling Delias” could have been a hoot….perhaps they could have fought over a BLT at Kelly’s with dialogue along the lines of appropriating something that belonged to the other. Just saying….
Donna could have come on a Monica’s lost sister who fights for the Q mansion!
Well Monica got the mansion as a wedding present from ALAN. It was not from inheritance . Besides, Monica grew up in a orphanage. Then was fostered by Gail Baldwin and later was a mentor and sort of BFF with Gail.
Timm, I would rather have Erika Slezak in that role but I love your idea.
Did you forget YT. Anyone who wants to see history can go there and catch up. I really started watching when L&L and Lucky returned to the show. I watched other saps in the GH hay day. G.L etc . I love the Scorpios and the Q’s . The only prime time show I did love was Knots Landing and Donna was a big part of that. I like watching a show when the talented actors are on screen. We know on GH murderers get pardond . never pay Just the ones who will have to listen to KIKI scream about *you killed my father. You know the one I was o screen with twice. When she runs to the serial killer rapist to say sorry uck. For a soap it was kind of bloody. No love in the afternoon, just murder and mayhem in General Hospital. As for Queen. The show mostly was everyone fighting. Got on my nerves. will try again.
Madelline didn’t kill Silas. I think KiKi did it in a fit of rage over finding out her mom and boyfriend were hooking up again.
I would LOVE that scenario so they could send Kiki off to Pentonville. I cannot stand that character.
No way.
Silas couldve lived…while Ric cheated on Nina with Madeline, Mad couldve cheated on Ric with Silas…i know Silas and Mad never really liked each other but that could seem to change…let’s say Madeline got trapped in a burning car meant for Nina and Silas rescues her…Mad is grateful to Silas for saving her life and even grows to like him, especially after he performs life saving surgery on her as well…Silas ostensibly has an affair with Mad hoping the ruse will get her to reveal how she and Ric are attempting to get their hands on Ninas money…when Mad learns Silas tricked her, we later see Silas stabbed…we could still have all the same suspects…however, unbeknowst to all Silas is alive but has no memory who stabbed him and the police have him in hiding…after the killer is revealled and despite nearly being killed, Silas and Sam join together as private investagators…Silas still remains a doc…working together, Silas and Sam redeveloped feelings for each other…Sam is now torn between two lovers Silas and Patrick…then Jason too!!!…lots of drama possibilities???…also, Silas and Nina’s relationship shouldve been shown in flashback the way Luke’s life was shown…they couldve got young actors playing Silas, and Nina showing their romance, his affair with young Ava, and Maddie putting Nina in a coma ect.,…maybe i couldve came to like the Nina character had she been better developed…maybe…lol…oh, well i hardly watch GH these days and tptb will not look here and listen to us fans on what we feel is wrong with the show and what could save it!!!
Sounds really good, Jimh…LOL. There’s just one thing which would not make the affair work. Silas was not a sleeze . Rick is. Yes, kidnapping Avery was reprehensible by law….but, he did it to save a life. And, that’s what he did. Fundamentally and Hippocratically Silas was bound by that oath.
Silas was married to Nina but had an affair with Ava…to me that makes him a sleeze…but hitting the sheets with Maddie wouldnt…he would do it to get info out of her…nothing beyond that…lol
@jimh.
HaHa. You are so right. I forgot about Silas cheating. I guess he was a sleaze too, but he came a long way….Rick would actually sell his soul to the devil for a penny. I really don’t like any kind of cheater….so, you got me on this one, my friend.
It is so refreshing to hear that Mizz Mills is in on the joke…with the ampred up, camped up version of herself! Lol. It is also nice to hear GH actors talk about the quality (or lack thereof) of the writing on the show. Cant wait for Altman and Passanante to dig in and get this show back on track…ANY track!!
I didn’t understand what happened to Hunter. Maybe she had a health issue she didn’t disclose (her choice) and is in treatment. Hopefully she is okay.
Looking forward to season 2 of QOD!
Good Riddens to Hunter. Glad she not on B&B or QOD.
I bet she fell on purpose so she can sue them. She the Queen of Lawsuits. LOL!
Hey! someone had to kill him, why not Maddy lol
I dunno, still don’t think it was her, but it has to be someone, so yeah..
Actually, the most fitting perp would have been a deranged Stephen Clay stalker/fan named “Cartini” who mistook Silas for the fallen rock star. Furthermore, the perfect person to play that role would have been none other than a gothed-up Ron C., since he was the one who truly knifed Michael Easton in the back with his atrocious storyline!!!!
I like the way you think, Shay! And your analogy is spot on.
Thanks, Harry! I’m still frosted over Michael Easton’s dismissal….guess I’m not the only one!
right on shay.
Thank you, Janet!!!!
GOOD ACTRESS, BEAUTIFUL LADY……STORYLINE NOT SO GOOD…BRING BACK MICHAEL EASTON!!!!!
This was a pointless story with a pointless conclusion. Michael Easton was sacrificed for NOTHING.
Agreed, Mister Media! Additionally, choosing the predictable Madeline as Dr. Clay’s killer was a total cop-out and just an excuse to send Donna Mills packing. Whilst her part in the dreadful Nina saga was reprehensible, the family dynamics left to be explored amongst her wacky Westbourne clan could have provided so much enjoyable drama. That is where the emphasis should have been placed….with the Swiss Sibs, Liesl and Magda, and Dr. O’s kinder, Britt and Nathan….Nina was completely unnecessary to the scenario, and nothing but an utter bore who dragged down the rest of what could have been a fun and compelling story with two fabulous, yet polar opposite, leading ladies!!!!.
Wow Donna Mills even thought RC writing was to unreal, and he brought her on, so it’s refreshing to know that you can recognize like she was able to that things had to be taken care of. I hope she stays with the show and pops up here and there when needed and hopefully GH can get its act together and be great agian.
Well all I can say thank God they are throwing Madeline under the bus–rather than Ric– Donna Mills has another gig, her talents were woefully misused on GH–only scene I ever liked was when we found out she and Dr. O were sisters. Right now my hope is she killed Silas because somehow he figured out Nina’s baby lived and that child is Kiki– and note to new writers please change that character’s name to Lauren, or if she is Nina’s daughter perhaps she can get whole new name.
And a different actress for the role as well!!!
Actually I don’t mind the actress, she is growing on me– and horror of horrors I like the actresses who play Sabrina and Rosalie too– their stories have bit the big one but I don’t have issues with them like some GH fans.
I agree, Mary SF. Although I love Kristen I think nu Kiki has grown quite well into the role. I like her. Have also always liked Sabrina and Rosalie and the actresses who portray them.
Well, Mary. You have just filled my heart with joy and hope. I suppose you and I are the only remaining viewers who still think Kiki is Nina’s. It’s a great feeling not being alone. I was getting very lonesome with my Kiki-Nina-thoughts……LOL.
Oh CeeCee, I STILL believe that Kiki is really Nina’s bio-child….I simply don’t care about this storyline anymore, because I cannot abide either MS’s character or the nuKiki. It’s as simple as that. But if making it so will expedite the departure of both of these deplorable personalities from the GH canvas, then I’m all in….just let this reunited mother and daughter leave for parts unknown. The sooner the better!
Bring back Silas I like him and dont want him to leave the show.I wanted him to get back together with Sam. Silas come back.
I still like RC and don’t think he should have been let go. He gave such suspense. Fans are so inpatient now and I like a good drama and with the Jason story – sorry I loved Steve Burton but he was not given what he wanted and wanted perks and moved, and Jill gave it to him (don’t like him on Y&R either) but he has a right to want to do different roles and in this day and age (except for TG) – they don’t give them but Billy Miller is doing a good job and may make a new type of Jason. I like change and that is why I liked RC. I know everyone thought the stories were too long but the suspense made the conclusion way better. I have seen these two women writers before some good/somebad but I think they should have a man and a woman do the writing. Still love RC.
I liked her on GH and even more on that idiotic show, Queens of Drama. One of the stupidest shows on tv, but for some reason I found it entertaining!
Quite honestly, I am so dreadfully tired of people saying that the main characters are gone from GH. Hate to break it to all you whiners but the majority of the characters from the 80’s and 90’s are either dead or so old now a story would consist of them mixing Metamucil and lamenting on love’s long vacation. General Hospital is telling some great story right now in the present day. Sonny’s family dealing with the after effects of his bipolar disorder and it being passed on to his own son. That is stellar storytelling. Maurice Bernard is flawless. The big reveal is coming soon with for Jason/Jake. It’s called patience. Immediate payoff is never worth it. I think that I agree with too many plot devices being employed to extend this reveal but all the actors involved are doing a great job playing it. I, i know in the MINORITY, am going to miss Ron Carlivati as a writer for GH. He brought humanity to the characters he created and his humor in writing was off the scales. I happen to like Nina and Franco and Madeline and Nathan and their family extensions. With Luke gone the old Luke and Laura stories are out of tune with modern times. Let’s face it, Luke is pushing 70 now, he can’t go out and woo Laura back. I mean I don’t think Laura much cares any more. All the olden golden characters of old can’t revisit the old stories. How about instead of bitching and whining because you can’t have your way you start to support a show that you allegedly love and remain a faithful viewer. The reason why soaps get cancelled is not because of bad stories but because viewers are fickle and are not loyal. I have watched great soaps go into the cancellation heaven above and they were great shows but they were cancelled because people couldn’t support them. I have seen Another World, Guiding Light, As The World Turns disappear and I know many people were loyal to All My Children and One Life To Live but gave up on them. GH has great actors. They have some of the best people in the business. They tell good story. They are fresh and they utilize the older characters. Tracy Quartermain is proof. She is great. I think they need to bring Monica back into the fold but seriously there is not a lot she can do other than react to the actions of the current characters in her sphere. I give my support to GH because when I watch I enjoy just about every minute. Out of the 4 remaining shows on daytime I watch 3 and I am glad I do. They each add something to the genre known as daytime and I don’t want to see any more shows go away to be replaced by cooking or inane talk shows with people sitting around the table feeding their faces and talking about how Miley took three men to bed last night. Viewership is down on GH…..let’s show ABC we value GH and are going to ride it through no matter what….cause they are worth it.
Mateo…. A lot of good points. But some of the stories under RC just didn’t go over for me…mainly Fluke/Luke, killing off characters like Silas, Duke, AJ, and even Carlos (but that may be changing). Plus it is called General Hospital but you wouldn’t know why much any more. More like Mobster Inc.
On the other hand, like you, I still find a lot entertaining, especially since the way-too-long-Tony-farewell/ Fluke are over, and now we can get back to wrapping up some stories and onto others. Also, I don’t mind a lot of actors/characters that seemed to get dumped on a lot like Sabrina and Alexis. Plus I think Kiki and Morgan are rising to the occasion in the last few episodes. As are Franco and Nina in their quirky way. Love Dr. O. We need a good villainous when Helena isn’t around. And always love to see what you call the vets when they can squeeze in a little air time for them.
So now on to a post Tony/RC era. Am going to hope for the best with the new/old writers and hope they combine the best of the traditional GH, along with the new stories/characters/actors to keep the show alive.
Heres the thing about building a climax to a story, how long is too long? I agree that every week you cannot turn over a story and write a new one but Jason is past due. There has not been any new break throughs with that character in months! Billy Miller didnt sign a life time contract! Its time to flesh out who he really is and let this guy go and do some acting! He is a super talent and he needs to be on more often and he needs something juicy to bite into. Enough is enough!
I am sorry, as much as I am a fan of General Hospital , have been for the last 30 years, most storylines have to go. I agree the Sonny/Carly/Morgan Bi-polar storyline should be a great story but its because of legacy characters, not just because of Morgan. And , not all of the actors/characters from the 90’s are too old to come back and have a great storyline. Monica could be integral with the Jason reveal. As could having Robert back when Finola comes back. Ana is a legacy character and has been rocking her scenes. It would be great to see her and Robert go off again and try to find out what happened to their daughter, or be a family with Emma. And while the Fluke storyline did drag on for too long, Tony Geary should have had a proper send off. Not just going out into the fog. When actors left or got killed off the show, we used to see montages of them through the years. A good example, why did Duke get montages but Luke didn’t? A great montage was when Robin supposedly “died” and we saw Kimberly in flashbacks growing up on the show. I loved when they brought Wally Kurth back as Ned, his pairing with Olivia was great. Loved Jonathan Jackson back and as great as his scenes were with TG, I wanted to see more with Nikolas. So, not all of our faves are old and withering.
Mateo, there are so many missteps and errors in your assertions that I don’t even know where to start so I won’t.
But please refrain from referring to criticism as “bitching” and “moaning.”
quit your bitching and moaning!
I really wish Silas was alive somehow. I think letting Michael Easton go was a huge mistake,
GH can’t hold my interest to watch anymore, so I come here for the updates.
So Madeline WAS the killer of Silas after all?! No surprises there. BIG murder mystery it was not. She was the only one I suspected. I knew it had to be a woman because use of a knife is typically a crime of passion.
okay, i am one of those people who is so relieved that rc is gone. however, i will say that she, donna mills, along w nathan west, are the two things that i liked. i also liked britt when she was w nicolas, but now don’t miss her that she is gone. dr. o. i liked when she first came on, but now it is too silly and misused.
Can Prospect Park and ABC Disney end their lawsuit and allow Ron to write OLTL again?
It makes total sense that Madeline be Silas’ killer, she was never too fond of him in the first place. But this probably means that Donna Mills’ days on GH are coming to an end, which is a shame, because has has such a commanding screen presence, and was able to make Madeline an interesting character, even if the writing wasn’t always the strongest.
But thank god Ava wasn’t Silas’ killer, because if she killed the person who saved her from drowning, took care of her for months, and saved her again from terminal cancer, I would have been done with Ava for good. It’s bad enough she killed Connie and may get away with it, but if she had killed Silas too? No way.
I’m also happy Ric didn’t kill Silas, because after all the character assassination Ric has gone through in the past year, adding cold-blooded murder to that would have been a catastrophe.
General Hospital
‘General Hospital’s’ Dominic Zamprogna Shares He Was ‘Happy to Hear’ of The Triangle Storyline Developing Between Dante/Elizabeth/Ric

General Hospital’s Dominic Zamprogna (Dante Falconeri) opened up about the burgeoning love triangle forming between his Port Charles alter-go, Elizabeth Webber (Rebecca Herbst) and Ric Lansing (Rick Hearst) after recently aired scenes, plus his hopes for the future of a Dante and Liz pairing, during his appearance on the Sunday, April 23 edition of the That’s Awesome podcast with Steve Burton (Jason Morgan) and Bradford Anderson (Spinelli).
On last week’s episodes of GH, Ric has made the decision that he wanted to propose to his ex-wife, only when he showed up at Elizabeth’s front door, he misread the scenario he walked in with Liz tending to Dante’s injured leg from the softball game. From there, the legal eagle’s jealous streak is reemerging which may cause him to act out and do something unforgivable, or will he take the high road? Stay tuned.
Speaking with Steve Burton and Bradford Anderson about where Elizabeth stands in the annals of the long-running soap, Zamprogna said, “She’s up there with Steve and Maurice (Maurice Benard) as one of the most legacy-filled people on the show.”

Courtesy/ABC
HOW DANTE AND ELIZABETH CAME ABOUT
Dominic jokes it’s a far cry for where Dante and Elizabeth previously, recalling, “We had some scenes together years ago and we were both laughing. Becky’s like, ‘Well, I guess we’re not going be paired up anytime soon.’ I remember we laughed immediately after they yelled ‘cut,”‘and said to each other, ‘Well, so much for that!'”
Fast-forward to early 2025 and as Zamprogna remembered it, “Elizabeth Korte (co-head writer, GH) came up to me at the General Hospital Christmas party, and I think it was a year and a half ago and she said, ‘We’re going to have you in scenes with Elizabeth,’ My internal monologue is going, ‘I’m not with Lulu (Alexa Havins) anymore and Sam’s (Kelly Monaco) gone, so maybe they want to see if this works.’ I didn’t want to get scenes with Becky and try to find the chemistry. I just wanted to play whatever honestly was written and came across for both of us and hope it was what people liked, and I don’t know if it is … or not.”
Knowing how beloved Elizabeth is to the GH faithfuls, Zamprogna added, “She got a big fan base with Ric … and a big fan base with with Jason … and you know, you’re going to piss somebody off. But, didn’t Ric drug Elizabeth and put Carly in a panic room?”

Photo: ABC
DANTE AND ELIZABETH PAIRING COULD STIR UP STORY FOR OTHERS IN PORT CHARLES
In closing, Dominic felt that the wide-reaching tentacles of a Dante and Elizabeth relationship is something he is 100% down for. “The triangle thing; I was happy to hear it was with Ric and her, because I felt it’s important to have her the top of it as opposed to Dante, Lulu and Elizabeth.”
Zamprogna added, “When you get into relationships on a soap, things seem to fizzle out a little bit, The buildup is what’s the fun part, and the getting to know each other, and the people who are affected by this coming together. When with this case it’s going to affect: Ric, Sonny, Lulu. There’s so much more story here. To me, it’s going to be a fun story to play.”
You can check out Dominic’s visit to That’s Awesome with Steve and Bradford below.
Now weigh-in: Are you rooting for Dante and Liz, or Dante and Ric at this juncture of the story, or neither guy for Elizabeth? Let us know your thoughts and picks via the comment section.
General Hospital
GH and OLTL Alum Patrick J. Gibbons Reveals the Story Behind Writing Trina’s Song on ‘General Hospital’ (Exclusive)

At the conclusion of today’s August 21 episode of General Hospital, Trina Robinson (Tabyana Ali) sings a lullaby to baby Dez, that went into a montage to close out the episode as her father Curtis Ashford (Donnell Turner) reports to Pentonville and winds up in his jail cell.
However, in a fun fact, the song entitled, “A Lonely Heart To Give” was actually written by none other than former One Life to Live and General Hospital actor, Patrick J. Gibbons.
Daytime fans first met Gibbons as Sam Manning on One Life to Live. At the time, when he started on the soap, he was just 5-years-old. Gibbons played the part from 2010-2013 on ABC and Prospect Park’s editions of the show. Fast-forward to 2018, Gibbons shows up on General Hospital as Wyatt Hoover, the scout who seemed always be injured, but in the thick of the drama. Patrick had appeared on GH multiple times as Wyatt including: 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023.

Photo: ABC
FROM HIS GRANDMOTHER’S DEATH CAME THE INSPIRATION FOR HIS SONG
Now in 2026, General Hospital fans are getting to learn about another side of Gibbons’ talent as a songwriter and guitar player after “A Lonely Heart to Give” debuted today! Michael Fairman TV caught up with Patrick, who is now a senior at Penn State entering his final year as a finance major, to get the back-story of how his song wound up on GH!
Gibbons explained he wrote the song in honor of his grandmother who passed away a few years ago with whom he was, very, very close with. “Randomly, my grandmother had a downfall and passed away during the second semester of my sophomore year. I was in my dorm a lot and I was just playing with my guitar. And at the time, I was really into finger-style playing. I wrote the lyric and music to it (with a little help from my guitar teacher Lou), and my mom showed the rough demo to Frank Valentini (EP, General Hospital). He’s like an uncle to me. Frank loved it so much he said, “Finish that up. I want to hear the whole thing, and I want it on the show.”
MAKING MUSIC FOR GENERAL HOSPITAL
Gibbons and his parents took the next steps! “So now, all we needed was a female voice, because I thought that would fit the song well,” Patrick shared. “At the golf club we go to my parents were at a dinner. They liked the singer that was performing and spoke to her about the song, and she says she would like to bring it to her ‘boss’ who ended up being Eric Bazilian of the Hooters fame!” (Bazilian also wrote the smash hit song “One of Us” for Joan Osborne).
Next, “We went in the studio and recorded it and the song came together and it was beautiful. We loved it. They loved it at General Hospital and now they’re putting it the show and they are coming in with a piano, instead of a guitar. Paul Glass, the GH musical director, has been keeping us updated over the last six months of how it was coming along, and when it would air, and how GH put their own arrangement to it. I can’t wait to see and hear what they did with it.”

Photo: JPI
PATRICK’S ONE LIFE TO LIVE FAMILY
Everyone knows that the One Life to Live extended family share a very tight bond, and Patrick said he does stay in touch with a few of his former One Life to Live co-stars, especially those from the Manning family! “I stayed in touch with Kassie DePaiva (ex-Blair) and sent her little videos here and there. She was like my second mom for five years. We keep in contact with Kristen Alderson (ex-Starr) over X the most, and she can’t believe how big I’ve gotten. Like, none of them can! (laughs). I also loved working with Roger Howarth (ex-Todd) and Trevor St. John (ex-Todd and Victor Jr.), and to me since I was so young, they were just my friends, ‘Roger and Trevor,’ not Todd Manning or Victor Jr.”
It was a trip to California and a visit to Port Charles that ultimately led to Gibbons second soap role of Wyatt Hoover. Patrick explains, “In 2016, Frank Valentini invited us out to Los Angeles to visit the set of General Hospital. I think he heard me say, ‘This is so much fun. I miss being on the set.’ He goes, ‘You should come out. I’ll bring you on the show. We can make you a character.'”
A few years later, Patrick’s dream became a reality! “Then, by the summer of 2018, I was playing Wyatt, the scout, and shared scenes with Wes Ramsey (Peter August), and the best was when I shared a scene with Roger Howarth and Michael Easton (ex-John, OLTL and ex-Silas, Finn et al, GH), it was like chemistry from the old days.”

Photo: PGibbons
IT’S ALL IN THE NUMBERS
As to his future aspirations, it’s a career in the finance game that has piqued Gibbons’ real-life interest. But never say never to a return to acting. Patrick explained, “I’ve always enjoyed numbers. And on top of that, one of the biggest parts of finance is being personable and outgoing.”
He continued, “That’s one of the greatest skills I developed growing up. I really love the markets. I’m super interested. I’m never going to close the door to acting. I’m always open to that because I just love it so much. It’s such a great art.”
Take note! If there are any investment bankers or private equity folks among the GH faithful looking for a young analyst next year, Patrick’s DMs are open. You can find him on X at @PatrickJGibbons.”
So, what did you think of the song sung by Trina on today’s GH that was written by Patrick J. Gibbons? Did you enjoy Patrick’s performances as One Life’s Sam and GH’s Wyatt? Would you like to see him back on GH at some point? Let us know via the comment section.
General Hospital
‘General Hospital’ Alum Chad Duell Admits That He Didn’t Expect the Role of Michael Corinthos to be Recast, and Would Consider Working on Another Soap (Exclusive)

Chad Duell, the Daytime Emmy-winning actor, who stepped away from the pivotal role of Michael Corinthos on General Hospital, opened up about: his previous decision to leave the series after nearly 15 years, where’s he’s at now after time away from the demands of a daytime soap opera, and took a stroll down memory lane with some of Michael’s most-acclaimed storyline during his run, during a livestream chat on August 19 on You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel.
Viewers last saw Duell on-screen as Michael in January of 2025, and with his successor in the role, Rory Gibson making his debut at the GH Nurses’ Ball in episodes that aired later in May. It was clear that during the conversation, Chad was a bit surprised that the GH brass decided to recast him when he thought he was just taking some much needed time off.
Burn-out of the daily grind of being on a soap was definitely a part of Chad’s decision to take a break. Duell explained “People know when you’re doing something for so long or your character is kind of in the same place for so long or doing the same stuff over and over again, you do get a a little burnt out, you get a little stiff, stale, a little stiff at times. I didn’t want that to be any sort of lasting impression. I have 15 years of a body of work of I’ve done on that show, which is fantastic.”

Photo: ABC
WHILE CHAD WAS AWAY GH RECAST MICHAEL CORINTHOS WITH RORY GIBSON
Chad shared, his mindset when leaving GH was, “I’m taking some time away, we’ll see what happens.” Then he added, “Obviously, they decided to go in a different direction with Michael when I was gone. I didn’t think they were going to bring somebody back in my place. But you know, it’s the business. You never know what can happen.”
Duell also shared he has not watched a single episode of General Hospital since he left the series, but now feels he reenergized following the loss of his father and stepping away from the GH, “I’m in a place now mentally, where I’m ready to sink my teeth into it again.”

Courtesy/ABC
Even though he is no longer Michael on GH, Chad was very happy with his final storyline where Michael was set on fire when a bomb exploded at Sonny’s (Maurice Benard) penthouse. “It was fun to put him in a dangerous situation, because I was wanting Michael to be in something scary instead of trying to be a hero character or just things happening around him, but to be the center point of tragedy happening to him. (I always saw) Michael as the heart of the (Corinthos) family.”
When Michael was badly burned the show chose not burn his face, which normally a soap does when they are recasting role and switching actors. Chad weighed-in, “They didn’t burn my face because I told Frank Valentini (EP, GH) I’m willing to come back. It was just a little bit of a break. So, I assumed that if they would have burned my face, they could have brought somebody back looking different than me… if that’s what their plan was.”

Courtesy/ABC
MEMORABLE MICHAEL STORYLINES
One of Chad’s most memorable performances was the in the storyline of Michael’s rape while he was sentenced to prison in 2010 and the confession of it in 2011. “It was so well-written and I was very nervous,” recalled Chad. “When I get really nervous about something, it ends up being really good when I do it, because it just means I care a lot about it”
“I have to put a lot of effort and work into it, and I really want it to be good. I was working with Dominic Zamprogna (Dante) and Steve Burton (Jason) a lot during those scenes, and Laura Wright (Carly). It was great working with Steve and Dominic, especially, during that storyline.
A NEW SOAP ROLE FOR CHAD?
As to a future soap opera role, Chad is open to the idea and would love to jump back in to a juicy role, “I know people over at The Bold and the Beautiful, and The Young and the Restless. They know that if they’re interested, I would love to come in for a screen test or something, and they can see what I’m doing.”
Meanwhile, Chad has been busy putting out new music under the moniker Duelly and during the interview he explains how he creates his EDM tracks and much more. You can stream his latest single, Static in the Quiet Room on Spotify, Apple Music and You Tube Music.
You can check out the full conversation with Chad Duell below.
Now let us know: what show would you like to see Chad cast on down the line? BTG, DAYS, B&B, Y&R, or a new role on GH? What did you think of his thoughts on the casting switch while he was away in the role of Michael? What was your favorite Michael storyline during Chad’s 15-year run on the ABC soap opera? Let us know via the comment section.
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