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GH's Maurice Benard Relates: "We Can Be Doing More With The Mob, But They Know What They're Doing!"

Courtesy/ABC

Courtesy/ABC

General Hospital’s Maurice Benard just celebrated his 50th birthday,  and now the show in which he has starred for the last few decades, is about to have their own golden anniversary the first week of April!  The Daytime Emmy winner talked about his life as loveable mobster Sonny Corinthos, his Port Charles loves and storylines, the feature film he just completed shooting, and the big returns coming back to help ABC celebrate GH’s milestone in a new interview with marinij.com!

One of the more interesting responses from Benard happened when asked about how the latest regime of  executive producer, Frank Valentini and head writer, Ron Carlivati have de-emphasized the mob stories, which for years under  former GH head writer, Bob Guza had been the main focus of General Hospital.   The mob stories were also an issue for long time fans of the series, where many felt that too much airtime was given to the characters of Sonny and Jason (Steve Burton) and the people around them, at the expense of seeing the entire canvas of characters.

When asked if he was a fan of the move to lessen the grip on the mob stories being front and center, Benard replied, “At this point, I think we need to get back to it a little bit more. On the other hand, I think it’s great that we’ve been able to bring a little more balance to the character (of Sonny) and to put him in the position of having to fight for the woman he loves. I do think we can be doing some more with the mob, but they (the producers and writers) know what they’re doing.”

OK GH fans, do you agree with Maurice?  Would you like to get back to some more mob stories, where Sonny gets to keep fighting for his territory?  Do you think the balance has shifted to far away from the talented Benard?  Let us know your thoughts?

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This is worst SL that Maurice every had, I’m sorry but also worst actress. Can’t wait this stupid SL is so over and done.

Amen! Maurice’s talent is completely wasted acting opposite that ditzy wannabe Sullivan.

I think it’s a waste too, they keep it going, stop.

Hi Dinah-

I agree the story line could be a lot better, but Mr. Bernard is a Gifted actor who can make any scene interesting. The mob stories were actually not showing his talents, and I believe those mob centered stories the reason GH sunk so sadly in ratings.

I think the split personality SL will be here for a while, I you watched OLTL you know what I mean!

Have a blessed holiday season!

Dinah how about the storyline when he was romancing Emily Q. that was horrible. He needs to get his knickers out of the knot about the revolving door of past characters/read the entire interview. We are celebrating 50 yrs of GH and they contributed to it being a success also. The entire Quartamine family was detroyed long time actors lost their jobs Stuart Damon in particular all because of the obsession with the mob. He may have to realize that RC just does not do mob and he is now writing for GH so if you are unhappy then leave like SB did & BB.

Disagree. Don’t miss Jason or Sonny and his mob business one bit. Bring back more vets and give them more airtime, that’s whats got me watching!

Agree with you. No more mob stories.

Hi Marisa-

The mob stories almost buried GH, let’s hop we dont see them again in h next 50 years! Lol
With all the vets coming back im reliving my youth watching GH In high school and he 30 years ht followed!

Looking forward-

Patraig

Don’t want to see ore mob stories either! That is one of the reasons I stopped
watching GH about 2 years ago. It was too heavily into mob stories & I stopped
watching as I said. I like watching GH these days , the storylines are so much
better and exciting to watch! So again no more mob stories as much as before.

I’m with you.

Agree. no more General Mafia please. I love the show as is especially with the addition of the OLTL transfers.

There is no addition of the OLTL characters, Those characters recast or not are staying on OLTL…..I think GH fans would be more concerned about Maurice not being happy, He did not sound thrilled in that interview, and I’m sure he won’t be happy playing Connie/Kate’s little purse carrying lap dog for long either and if GH loses a talent like MB it will affect GH more than you guys think…..If I am right most of the Emmy’s that GH won in the last few years was during the Mob Story lines so I don’t think they should completely walk away from the Mob or from Sonny……JMO

Me too! Cut the mob stories to a minimum!

Agreed. Glad the mob stuff is gone. Let’s hope it stays gone. I love Maurice Benard, but hopefully they will find better storylines for him apart from people getting shot and this ridiculous Connie/Kate/Sonny love triangle.

Definitely think Sonny needs a professional focus. Feature more of the mob (many of us miss it) or give him a different direction. Focusing only on the DID story is not enough. Maurice needs to have a Sonny directed story again. He is far too good an actor to be without one like he has been for months.

As long as that doesn’t take over the entire show like before.

Of course he wants more mob, that equates to more air time for him. I would have been surprised if he had said anything but that and don’t blame him. For me, and for a lot of my friends we stopped watching the show because it became too much about the mob. The show is called General Hospital and not because the mob sends people to the hospital. Ron and frank are doing the best thing possible for the show. They need to keep up the good work.

That’s funny> My friends stopped watching because Sonny got dumbed down to holding Connies purse and by the way don’t think for Maurice Bernard. You don’t know that he wants more airtime. He has a summer tour coming up so Im sure its just the opposite.

I liked that they cut back the Mob story, I could never get into GH at all because of it.. It’s like when AMC became the Ryan and Greenlee show. I love what Frank and Ron are doing, bringing back the vets and having everyone having a storlyline..

I love the direction GH is going.The mob thing got old and the Sonny now is more caring.I just totally love GH.

Ditto!

This is the best GH has been in years. I think playing down the mob right now is great. We can get over Jason’s death and get to know Sonny as a human being again. The spotlight is on the 50th anniversary and the full canvas, including returning favorites. After that they can reintroduce the mob sans Jason.

I do miss a litle more mob action, or at least show Sonny working at his coffee importing, I am tired of seeing him pin over Kate. But Kelly has become and excellant actress, but I do miss the old Sonny, so I would agree with him. Just because he would be back in the mob does not mean he would have more airtime. I think everybody is given enough airtime, but some are not.

Right now there are to many stories going on but loving it. More Alexis, Sam, Molly, AJ, Tracy please!

The mob has been a part of GH since the 70’s,and it would be a mistake to eliminate it entirely from the show.

Not entirely. As long as it doesn’t take over the whole show again.

The mob stories are what keeps me from watching GH. Besides, I’ve never been a fan of the show in the first place. So, Maurice needs to shut up and do the work he’s given or he’ll be out of a job before you can say, “Jumping Jack Flash”!

And how long do you think he would be out of work??? Not long with his talent! I’m sure us AMC fans would love to see Nico come home!!!

At the end of the day, the show is called “General Hospital,” not Mob Wars. I liked the Sonny and Jason characters but their storylines had run their course. Show became focused solely on them and was rather boring and repetitive. I love the job Frank and Ron have done. Who doesn’t love seeing all our old favorites come back to PC? As someone said earlier, the show is now about all the characters on the PC canvas, not just Sonny and his family/friends. It’s just a shame John Ingle is no longer around. Would have loved to see what Frank & Ron could have done with ELQ.

I agree 100%.

I like all the different storylines now & don’t want an over kill of mob stories like
before.

Yes I loved the Mob stories. But I get. 2 see Maurice in he’s versality he’s talents are, being used. Let me put it out there I am a Big Maurice and Kelly Sullivan fan as well and this year their acting and the helping of Sonny and Kate”s DID has been interresting to watch because it brings out their talents

I stopped watching years ago because of the mob story… Now it is like a real Soap again. Romance, adventure, and a canvas full of interesting people. I like the mob being mentioned to keep Sonny being Sonny I don’t need to see it ever again. GH is Luke and lauras “turf” as they say

I agree. We need a variety of stories now. Mob stories got out of hand for me & I
stopped watching GH. Storylines are so much better now! And I am enjoying it
a lot.

Stopped watching because the mob were the saviors and the police were bumbling fools. Having a mob boss and a hit man as the holy men of Port Charles turned my stomach. I wouldn’t mind having a little of it – Sonny is a mob boss after all, unless he decides to go legit – but as the moral center of the show, it turned me off completely.

Yes, I started watching in 3rd grade – 1963 with my Mother. But, stopped because of the boring mob stories. I wasn’t a fan of the space cadet story either. I started back when you put Todd, Starr & John on. And, I am super thrilled to see the oldies I loved! Friday I saw Bobbie with Scotty. Loved it! I would love to see Elizabeth’s Grandmother back Audrey back! Why couldn’t she and Monica be on more. I would hate to see Audrey just be a babysitter but she could. Why don’t we see Monica kicking butt at the hospital? I really want to see Leslie back!

I agree 100 percent with your commemts.

Yes, just a little bit of mob stories. And nothing more than that.

There is no way in HELL…I want one more mob story…the last 15 years of GH has been mob centric and all about Sonny and Jason! Every promo was mob based, every relationship, every villain…we are over it and I am shocked to find Maurice isn’t over it too. I think they should get Sonny out of the mob!! Guza and his tunnel vision nearly got GH cancelled…I would take stories of character and love and friendship and family but not the Corinthos family over any one of the episodes that aired in the last 15 years. GH was horrible since 1998 and 1999 when it first started to completely lose it’s focus on being an ensemble soap opera. Sonny the Mob King and his ex wives, illegitimate children, and brain dead mob enforcer destroyed my GH I loved from the 80’s and early to mid 90’s. I thank god everyday that Ron and Frank came on board and Phelps, Guza, and Frons grip on GH was severed and now I don’t care if one more mob story ever takes center stage at GH again.

Amen!

I personally dislike mob stories and mob movies so I don’t need to see it. I like seeing Sonny and his women better but I’ve grown tired of the Connie/Katie switch every week; it’s gotten old.

With all due respect, GENERAL HOSPITAL is centered around a hospital, as it should be. Bob Guza was a great head writer, but in terms of the show’s legacy it seems like Ron Carlivati has tapped into everything magical and genuine about GH. I still feel like Ron/Frank are finding their bearings, but they’re getting there. Frankly, I don’t want any more mob stories (unless Susan Lucci guest stars as a lady mobster and takes down Sonny like no man ever could!). Maurice sounds like he’s coming down from a high of being a full frontal leading male star who has been relegated to ensemble cast member. Too bad for him (and I wouldn’t mind seeing more of him than we’ve gotten lately), but I’d just as soon prefer Jane Elliott and Robin Mattson and Genie Francis and Finola Hughes filling up the TV screen as much as Maurice Bernard and Tony Geary and Steve Burton. Not to take away from the men, but the women of this show are much more intriguing to me. And finally we have an executive producer who GETS Laura and a head writer who discovered she actually has a backbone.

I agree. I hadn’t watched in about 10 years until I heard what was going on. I am loving the improved GH with less mob stories. It will come around again, but he needs to relax for now and enjoy not being what GH is all about. Jane Elliot rules the screen and I can’t wait for more Robin Mattson and of course, Genie Francis.

The mon stories and the old regime in charge practically destroyed GH, I actually don’t fast forward through the show anymore, what a pleasure it is seeing Lynn herring, genie Francis , ken Shriner, finola Hughes , jack Wagner, and Ian Buchanan! Stories about people we care about and not constant fun fights and bombs going off, I got one dont miss Steve button , Jason was burnt out as a character and one dimensional or was that just Steve’s acting- check out young and the restless, brighter colored clothes, but way too much Jason ! No offense Steve , your still a hottie but maybe some refresher acting classes? You had more dimensions on that cheesey sitcom- out of this world!

Heath,
how long do you think the Vets are going to stay on for after the Anniversary? Probably not long…..Yes I’m sure it is great seeing all the old faces but the show still has to go on after they leave, that is what your writing team should be focusing on….

Yes, Jeffrey & Heath. The mob-centric GH was boring and the mob shootouts got old quick. RC & FV brought the history and fun back to GH, the romance & mystery. Past regimes made the big mistake of having the show focus on the mob at the expense if other characters. RC & FV gave made a concerted effort to return the show to its’ roots with lots of positive results. The show is must see again, something it hasn’t been for quite some time. I hope it stays out if the mob unless pehaps they bring back a redeemed Lorenzo Alcazar. That would be neat to see. Maybe if Ted King isn’t available, we can get Michael Easton as a recast. I saw this idea on Twitter last week and think it is a great one. 🙂

I think this is the worst storyline Maurice Benard has ever been in. He’s isolated and all he can ever talk about is is fake, made up history. How about letting him interact with the rest of the cast?

It’s a disgrace that Maurice can’t and won’t acknowledge Vanessa Marcil, who is back on the show, and Brenda Barrett who he has real history with.

I agree. They’ve got him in a box with Kate and he’s hardly in scenes with the family that has been his ‘heart’ for over 10 yrs. It’s strange that he hardly talks to Carly any more, or that he wasn’t at the sonogram viewing. He’s supposed to be the grandfather, why wasn’t he there as well as Luke, Laura and Olivia. Why didn’t Dante call Sonny when Lulu went missing? They ran out and got flyers printed up but they couldn’t call the powerful mob boss to get his men looking? It makes no sense.

Sonny needs to have some more mob in his life and he needs to have HIS history with GH characters recognized and continued on screen. This ‘stuff’ with Kate is killing him as a character. He earned his place on GH as a mobster and he’s quickly losing it to newbies while he carries the purse around of a character that was ‘made up’ and who just is not important enough for me and many others to care about because she IS made up.

Welcome to RC’s writing and more than likely it will only get worse with Sonny……

I came over with team Cartini. If GH focus goes back to all mob crazy, I’m not sure I can continue to tune in. That is prob the reason I didn’t watch before. I love the shows direction, and believe in team Cartini 100%! A cast is just that, a cast. No contract players should be sidelined.

GH used to be the most boring of all 3 shows. Now it is the best thing I have ever seen and when 2 comes around I am so completely excited that I do not care, I love all the stories. Go Cartini.

I agree.

And I ditto Jeffery McGraws comments!!

Maurice is 100% right. We need to see Sonny doing more mob business…
I like Sonny & Kate. But it’s time to give Sonny more to do. Some of us really miss the mob. Maurice doesn’t want the show b e all mob, just wants the mob to be shown at times. And I totally agree.

The mob storyline was so yesterday. Hello, the mob is dead. Let’s try to legitimize Sonny. He becomes a publishing icon with a shady past. The coffee business wasn’t doing it for me.

I am so glad the mob stories have been silenced. To much Sonny Jason and Carly. GH lost site of what made it a good show. Past shows of the 80’s had villians and mob stories but they would leave the show after story lines ended but this Sonny mob thing wore out its welcome many years ago. I so love the new GH a welcome to my eyes. Please GH staff keep up the balance and the great surprises along the way.

Glad the focus is off the mob. Totally. But do agree that Sonny needs to be shown in other aspects of his life.

Mo is being the good soldier here. It’s only natural that he would want a more mob-centric storyline, but at the end of the day-he wants what’s best for the show. It’s doubtful whether we’ll see a pure mob storyline again, but having Sonny as an eagle-eye for threats wouldn’t be a bad idea

It doesn’t matter if we agree or not. This is the story the writers are telling, and we can choose to listen or not. As he said, they know what they’re doing. If we don’t like it, we don’t have to watch. But it’s their story to tell. Simple as that.

Finally, a fan with perspective

The less I see of the MOB the better the show. The show is so much better now that it is not Sonny & Jason centric. Bring on more of the vets!

I totally agree with Maurice! There needs to be a balance of bad ass mob Sonny and Sonny who is evolving and hopefully in the near future fighting for the woman he truly loves BRENDA! Hate his current storyline, DID, and his current pairing. No chemistry, no banter, no adventure, etc… For that matter there is none of that with any of the couples on GH currently. That’s what I miss. LOVE the vets and hope many stay and get great SLs.

A liitle bit of the mob wouldnt hurt but i rarely watched it when it turned mostly into Gangster Hospital. I like what FV and RC have done and the ratings prove many others agree. I am getting a little tired of Kate and Connie going back and forth too quickly.It would be better if she’d stayed one personality a lot longer. Patrick and Elizabeth should have been paired while she helps him with drug addiction and to help him as he continues to grieve Robin until she returns to him, and Sabrina should have been paired with Milo while her friend Felix had the secret crush on him.
But the rest of the show is really good and i cant wait to c what happens next like it should be as long as i learn to stay away from spoilers which can hurt all the fun.

As someone who left GH just when the mob stories started, and came back with the hiring of Ron and Frank, my response would be “no, just no” to going back to the mob stories………

It’s really not Ron’s style anyway (unless of course, it was done aka David Vickers style)….

Oh my goodness. I can just see David running the mob while wearing a skimpy Speedo in the back yard taking in some rays.

I don’t miss Jason,and I would not miss Sonny. The show right now is the GH we all knew and loved.

I love where GH has been going this past year, keep it up.

If I remember correctly, Claire Labine never intended on Sonny becoming a lead character on the show, just a supporting low life criminal. The “Mob” aspect of GH ran people away after ten years of trying to tell us that Sonny who once hooked Karen on drugs and had her stripping, is some romantic mobster with a heart of gold crap. Jason was a brain damaged man who ended up holding Carly’s purse and taking in Sonny’s pregnant mistresses.

i don’t care to read any negative feed back on my post because it is just my opinion – after reading the interview with him on marinij.com, maurice seems not so 100% on board with where the new regime has taken gh at the present time especially with the mob & return of the vets……..i have watched gh since 1963 & i am so loving what the new regime has done with the show – to me it’s the best gh has been in the last 10 years………….

I have seen no mob stories in a long time, zero..
I liked the mob and hope it gets revived but with a lower key, not a constant thing..

The mob peoples are mostly gone, not in PC any longer..
But, I would like to see it revived somewhat.. I like the crime drama..

In past the mob was to upfront, but some mob would be great..

I find Maurice to be adorable, but have been so over Sonny and the mob for eons. After multiple decades of watching faithfully, the mob, and especially their molls drove me away 5 years ago. I just started watching again in the last few weeks with the return of the vets for the 50th. I refused to watch them waste the talents of Lynn Herring on that horrible vampire tripe, however. The DID story is too over the top. The Jess, Tess, and Mess story line on OLTL is what made me turn that show off, never to return years ago. I’ve done some YTubing to see what’s been going on in the last few years with my old favorites (most of whom were run off the show to make room for more mob and molls), and I won’t hold my breath contemplating about continuing to be a viewer after the anniversary. Some of the same show killing flaws still exist from my vantage point. We need antagonists and protagonists, and they’re still confused about that line on the show. Liz for example is always trashed and publicly flogged for minor indiscretions (when compared to others on the show), while child endangerers are painted as heroines who never have their dastardly deeds publicly exposed, much less being ostracized for them. For example, I’ll bet we’ll see a former prostitute and felon be qualified to take in orphaned Rafe (don’t have a clue who he is or why he’s on GH) when the upstanding cop wasn’t good enough. This will only solidify my point of view that the roles of antagonist and protagonist are still truly screwed up. For other characters, there is too much that has been swept under the rug. Luke for example is a rapist. I forgave him because Laura did. Now she’s back with Scotty (who’s rather gray when it comes to being good or bad), and he’ll be thrown under the bus for Luke. Not only did Luke cheat on Laura while they were married, but he also killed their grandson. To have Laura go back to that would really show regression of the character Laura, instead of progression. Much as I loved Felicia and Frisco years ago, why would Felicia go back to a man who always put her and her children last (while throwing Mac under the bus)? I’m enjoying much of the show, but don’t anticipate that I’ll be hanging around.

I like Maurice/Sonny and I love Steve Burton/Jason… but I am ok exploring more of Sonny outside of the mob or having him try to get into more legit businesses. However with Duke back he could give up on Anna and want to go back on the fringe with Sonny. The other thing is that we have a great Commish and I am hoping that she hires Frisco to get him to stay and then we need peple for them to tangle with. For some reason the Helena’s and Faison’s don’t engage with the cops that much. I also would love to see Tracy and Sonny get into some business together.

There are so many possible ways to use Sonny more if they want too. I really enjoyed when the 1% got together against Jerry Jacks. He could be involved in another major play against PC and help with all. He has the boxing gym and they could play that up more. I would love to see him get back with Brenda and go more legit. There is a wealth of opportunity and the mob can be in the background and eluded too.

Claire Labine and Wendy Riche new what they had in Sonny and Brenda. Claire wanted Sonny to leave the mob for Brenda and he should. He has no storyline. The mob may be tired but so is Sonny in this current, joke of a storyline.

Would rather see Sonny go into a legit business and be able to go toe to toe (legally) against people like Todd, the Quartermaines, etc in real business dealings. They could always do a storyline in a few years with the mob trying to draw him back in. But, I stopped watching when the show became almost all Sonny & Jason. Time for a break…and glad the new regime gets that.

Maurice,

I love ya and your portrayal, but dare I say the VAST majority of longtime GH viewers grew very tired of Mobcentric Hospital. (I’ve been an off again, on again fan for 41 years.) GH is *about* the goings on at a hospital in a metropolitan city. It’s about the Doctors, nurses and patients and the daily struggles of their lives. Anything that happened outside the walls of the hospital was always somehow connected to the hospital.

As for Sonny’s love story with Kate / Connie . . I personally have grown weary of the constant back and forth with these alters. It’s time for the show to pick an alter and move on to something else.

I feel that Sonny needs to stop chasing after a crazy woman! Connie doesn’t want Sonny, it’s time to move on! Sonny’s character has been pushed into the background because of this horrible pairing. His current acting partner does not match him in any way, shape or form. Sonny and Maurice deserve much better!

I am loving GH for the first time in decades. I think Maurice Bernard is one of the most talented actors in daytime, BUT….I am sooo glad the focus of the show has shifted back. During the Guza regime, a show called General Hospital, was NEVER about the hospital or its staff. Heck, they had to do a Soapnet spinoff so that we could even see the hospital (and Robin, Patrick, Ephiphany, etc). The current focus is not only a return of the vets, whom I love, but also a return the show itself. I have seen enough things explode. I have watched enough of Sonny’s inner circle be shot, killed, tortured. I have watched Bernard in the same 5 scenes enough. I have rediscovered GH again and it has become meaningful. Take Friday, for example, when Luke opened the door to see Bobbie, I felt like I had come home too.

I love the direction GH is going in with LESS mob. But I feel bad for MB because he really has been reduced to holding the purse (as someone put it so well) for the worst actress on the show. It’s a shame. I have been FFing through his scenes for months now!

I think there is room for Sonny–but they need to get rid of Connie/Kate and take him in an entirely different direction.

Maurice the ratings are stable for the show now. Going back to the mob will piss off fans and Gh will have the cancellation rumor going on again.

It would not be ”going back to the mob” but simply including it by keeping it in the background/there and active when needed..
The mob was a hung part of GH and should remain a part of PC for the mob fans..

It does not have be as active as it was in the past, but the mob should be in PC in some degree ..
Good crime stories and the suspense and action, is a good thing to keep me awake and it keeps GH out of the ordinary realm of soaps..

nice post su!!

I agree with Maurice, look we all just want balance and as long as the show can balance the cast and storylines then I don’t have a problem with mob storylines.

The mob writing under Bob Guza and how the mob writing would be under RC would not be the same ..

The mob written under FV and RC would be very different than the past Guza mob..

I would love to see the mob under the creativity of FV and RC..

While I have never thought GH should be heavily focused on the mob, I also don’t like the idea of Sonny being a total wimp chasing desperately after some stupid psycho like he is now. The Sonny I’ve watched for years when written in character would never put up with the crap he has from ConKate. He would’ve dumped and shunned her when he found her in bed with Johnny, not kept chasing after her for sympathy sex.
The writing for GH as a whole is well balanced right now, and I’m enjoying all the vets being back, but sadly, Sonny isn’t my main reason for watching anymore. Maurice’s current storyline is ridiculous and boring, and by far the worst material he’s ever been given on this show. He and Sullivan have ZERO acting chemistry, and she’s a TERRIBLE “actress” (I hesitate to even call her one for fear of insulting those who actually CAN act) who is completely out of her league working opposite someone as talented as Benard. All she does is drag him down, and he deserves much better. He’s far too talented to be playing acting coach with this twit. This crappy story needs to end, she needs to go, and Sonny needs to pull his head out of his backside and get it together. At the moment, he comes across as desperate, pathetic emasculated and stupid. I understand shifting the focus from the mob, but there’s a huge difference between doing that and writing Sonny like he’s not even in the business anymore, which is what GH is doing now.

As a viewer since 1973, I tuned out for the longest period of time during the Brian Fronz, Bob Guza, Charles Pratt, Jill Faren Phelps decade of mob, mob, mob, when the show centered around Sonny, Carly, Jason, Sam and everyone else related in any way–friends, enemies, lovers, kids, long-lost siblings of Sonny–ruled the show. It was silly anyway. Sonny came across as a big blowhard, always threatening and barely ever backing up his own word and constant shoot-outs and stabbings only threatened the latest mobster villain they’d throw at Sonny, more than one who returned with a twin. I LOVE the GH we have today thanks to Frank Valentini & Ron Carlivati and am more certain than ever that the show can and will survive without Sonny and the mob. As far as the mob being a part of GH since the 1970’s, the BIG difference between then and in recent years is that they were the bad guys (Frank Smith, later the Jerome family) and the mob violence was not glorified and hitmen mobsters (even hot ones like tight jean wearing Hutch) were not heroes and paid for their crimes. Luke & later Duke worked to get out of the mob, not embrace killing & violence as a life style!

Thanks! Maybe Maurice will take a hint and FINALLY leave GH, and take Laura Wright with him, as I have NEVER liked Sonny or Carly!

Knock knocking on Y&R’s door. If JFP could sell it to Sony & CBS he would be over there in a heartbeat. You know it is hard when you have been the “Big Fish in a Little Pond” for how many years now you are just a “Little Fish in a Big Pond.” Sorry Sonny never scared me for a moment he was and never will be a Tony Soprano. The way he treated women on this show I could not tolerate so even though FV &RC have tried their best to soften him he in my mind the character has no respect for women. I have absolutely nothing against MB I just know human nature.

Well, I will say I miss the mob stories from the 90’s (Labine’s era) – that was the Sonny I fell in love with. He was flawed but he always meant well. He so badly wanted to be good enough but he just couldn’t overcome his issues. You just couldn’t help but love him. He had a lot of depth – I credit that with great writing and superb acting. The mob stuff wasn’t 100% of the show since there was plenty of angst and love. It was a great balance! I miss that Sonny so much. I don’t care for his story now; I don’t recognize this Sonny. He’s been written into a corner and he’s stuck with that nutcase Kate, it’s demeaning. Sonny just wants love so badly and tries so hard to convince himself that whomever he’s with, he’s in love with. But that’s not true and deep down, he knows it. There’s only one person he loves and he was selfless enough to let her go. Hopefully, that changes soon when certain vets come back to PC (Hint – VM :))

I always loved the mob stuff so of course I want more mob again! Jason Sonny (and Carly) have always been my favorites, and with Jason gone I now wish they would show a little more mob stuff with Sonny and have Shawn invovlved instead. Don’t get me wrong I LOVE GH and I like most of the storylines that’s going on at the moment, and I’m not picky with storys since I LOVE SOAPS, especially GH(except 2011 GH, it sucked). But a little more mob again wouldn’t hurt, I know in the beginning when Cartini took over it was mob stuff, but now it’s like nothing. The mob have been a part of the show for years and they shouldn’t take it off completely

General Hospital

Nancy Lee Grahn’s Star-Studded ALS Fundraiser Reveals “I’ll Be There” Video Featuring Soap Opera Notables

Talk about your impressive line-up! It’s a soap fans dream and for a great cause. General Hospital’s Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis Davis) is prepping her one-night only ALS fundraiser which will feature many of her friends and co-stars.

The benefit is set for May 4th in Glendale, California. Slated to participate are Genie Francis, Jane Elliot, Peter Bergman, Maurice Benard, Eileen Davidson, Thorsten Kaye, Michelle Stafford, Stephen Nichols, Rena Sofer, Jason Thompson, Kelly Monaco, Melissa Claire Egan, Maura West, Kristina Wagner, Gregory Harrison, Trevor St. John, Kate Mansi, Kirsten Storms, Cynthia Watros, and many others.

On Wednesday, Grahn took to her social media and released an “I’ll be there” video shout-out featuring, Monaco, Elliot, Bergman, Bernard, West, Harrison, St. John and more. In a touching and important moment in the new video, Michelle Strogny, who is battling ALS, is featured.

Photo: ABC

Previously, in speaking with Soap Opera Digest on the impetus of the event, Grahn recalled, “I was actually doing Zoom events during Covid and I met this woman that I just fell in love with, Michelle Strojny. At the time, Michelle had been living with ALS for four years. Now, it’s five years. She is a mom of a teenage son, she has the most wonderful husband, and she has been dealing with this [disease] for quite a while. And obviously, there isn’t a cure yet. It’s not survivable yet. But as she says, it’s not incurable. Nothing is; it’s underfunded. But anyway, I just really dug this woman. She is so grounded and filled with grace, and she spends all of her time working to raise money for the cause. We did a fundraiser for her last year and then I thought, ‘You know what? The soaps don’t ever get together to do something for charity.’ Collectively, we have this amazing community and we don’t collectively use it for a good cause, and I think it’s such an easy thing for us to do and we could potentially really make a difference.”

As GH viewers know, Gregory Harrison is playing the character of Gregory Chase, who is also battling ALS in a touching storyline that is currently playing out shedding a light on this disease.

For information on Nancy’s event, including the stars who are s scheduled to participate click here. To purchase tickets to the event click here.

Check out the video featuring Nancy’s friends and co-stars below.  Now let us know, your thought son the line-up for the benefit and helping raise awareness and funds for ALS research via the comment section.

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General Hospital

‘General Hospital’ Writer Shannon Peace Let Go, and Shares on Sprina: “One of My Only Regrets is to Not Have the Opportunity to Develop That ‘Ship’ Further”

As General Hospital’s new head writing team of Elizabeth Korte and Patrick Mulcahy gets off the ground and running, there are still changes a foot on the writing team.

Now comes word via breakdown writer Shannon Peace that she is no longer on contract with the long-running ABC soap heading into its 61st season. Peace shared a heartfelt message on her Instagram, thanking the fans, and the show for the opportunity and the importance of diversity in the writers room.

Peace began, “After almost 3 years on staff and 106 episodes penned, I am no longer on contract with General Hospital. Writing for this country’s longest running television serial drama has been an education of epic proportions; I will forever be grateful that I earned my WGA card on a daytime fixture that holds memories for so many.” (Peace pictured below with GH EP Frank Valentini and script writer, Charlotte Gibson from about ten months ago).

Photo: SPeaceIG

Shannon added “Even more importantly, as the sole Black breakdown writer (and only POC in the writers room) during my tenure, I pushed for vital interactions and discussions that prioritized inclusion, visibility, and representation”

The writer pointed to the example of vital interaction when in story, “Stella and Portia’s frank July 2022 conversation about the role race played in Esme’s framing of Trina is just one example of the impact I’m gratified to have had.”

Acknowledging former GH co-head writers was also part of Peace’s farewell expressing, “Appreciation to my former bosses, Chris Van Etten and Dan O’Connor – not only taking a chance on me, but for valuing my opinion and championing my voice.”

Courtesy/ABC

Many GH fans know that Peace was key to the development of the love story between Trina Robinson and Spencer Cassadine as played by Tabyana Ali and Nicholas Chavez. Shannon gave a special shout-out to ‘Sprina’ fans, “I also want to thank fans who were supportive of my work, especially the recognition of my love for ‘Sprina’. One of my only regrets is not having to develop that ‘ship’ further.”

She concludes her statement with,”In the aftermath of a historic writer’s strike that shed new light on the troubling ways writers are regarded in daytime, my sincere hope is that General Hospital recommits to valuing staff writer efforts and input, with a more intentional focus on diverse viewpoints — and thrives for another 60 years.”

Accompanying her post, Shannon added, “Thank you all for the love and support these last few years. I hope GH fans get all they hope for and more!”

So, what do you think about GH not renewing Shannon’s contract? Will there be more continued changes afoot? What do you think is the future of ‘Sprina’ anyway at this point as viewers wait to see if Nicholas Chavez officially returns to the show?  Comment below.

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General Hospital

GENERAL HOSPITAL: Jason Learns Britt Died and Tells Anna He Has Been Working For Cates Since November 2021

On the Tuesday, March 26th of General Hospital, Anna (Finola Hughes) and the viewers learn about where Jason (Steve Burton) has been for over two and half years. However, Jason gets some news of his own.

Anna is visiting Jason at the PCPD interrogation room. She asks him if he shot Dante (Dominic Zamprogna), which he flatly denies. Anna believes him, but she tells Jason it doesn’t matter, because video footage shows him on the roof at the time of the shooting

When talk turns to Jason not willing to speak without his lawyer present, Anna can’t grasp why Jason would instead spend an hour alone talking with John Cates (Adam J. Harrington).

Photo: ABC

It is then that Anna brings up that John went by “Jagger” and that the two of them knew each other in high school. Jason doesn’t recall much of his time in high school following his brain injury, but then he gets furious realizing John knew about “Jason’s” past. That is when Jason slams the table and tells Anna, “I’ve been working for John Cates since November 2021.”

Next, Jason explains further that he has been working as an informant for the FBI. Anna wants to know how this came about and he tells her that after the tunnel collapsed, and he couldn’t make it to Britt (Kelly Thiebaud)… all of a sudden he sees Anna’s face drop.  Anna is the first person to tell him that Britt died and was murdered. She tells Jason the killer is in custody, but he continues to be shocked, overwhelmed with tears welling up in his eyes. Realizing he has to pivot to save his life, Jason continues telling Anna how he wound up working with John.

Jason explains that after the tunnel collapse in Greece, FBI agents grabbed him and placed him under arrest and took him to Quantico where he met John. At Quantico, John played a recording of RICO violations and offered Jason a deal if he agreed to be an informant against Pikeman, the illegal arms dealer.

Anna hears from Jason that he thinks Pikeman is selling illegal arms to anyone flagged by the NSA but has ties to the WSB which they needed a civilian to infiltrate their organization as a military soldier, a mercenary.

Jason tells Anna he was a part of the team brought into eliminate Sonny (Maurice Benard). Every time an attempt was made on Sonny’s life over the last two years, a different team was sent to do the job. Anna gets furious when she learns that John told Jason his job was to kill Sonny and she was with John at the warehouse that night. Jason ensured the sniper missed Sonny and left the rifle behind. However, they were supposed to meet an extraction team. Before he was shot, Dante saw it was Jason on the roof and when he turned around with his hands over his head, Dante was shot by the other guy. Jason says if Dante dies, he’ll be charged with capital murder and then will be useless to the FBI.

Photo: ABC

Meanwhile, John visits Bobbie’s and runs into Carly (Laura Wright). She learns Jason is in custody and is going to head to the PCPD. Before she does, Carly has some words with Cates when she learns not only does John have a vendetta against Sonny, but Jason too.  Carly tells John he should recuse himself from the case.

So, what did you think about the moment when Jason learned Britt died? What do you think of Jason’s return storyline thus far and what we learned about Jagger/Jason and more? Comment below. But first, check out a moment from today’s GH with Jason and Anna.

 

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