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General Hospital

GH's Nancy Lee Grahn on Cartini, Sexis & the final episodes of OLTL!

By Michael Fairman

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Photo Credit: Steven Bergman

Photo Credit: Steven Bergman

Daytime Emmy winner (and a pre-nominee again this year), General Hospital’s Nancy Lee Grahn talked about the recent head writing and executive producer change at the lone ABC soap that brought One Life to Live’s dream team, Frank Valentini and Ron Carlivati, known now to some as Cartini, to the daytime drama.

During her conversation with Nelson Branco for Soap Opera Unsensored, the outspoken Grahn revealed her thoughts on a myriad of subjects including: if she would be into revisiting an on-screen romantic entanglement with Maurice Benard’s Sonny Corinthos, heralding Garin Wolf when he first began taking over for the head writing position post-Guza, and how she felt One Life to Live went off the airwaves to soap heaven.  Here are a few interesting excerpts below!

Nancy on Sexis round two:  “I wouldn’t mind exploring that.   Clearly, Alexis is not the love of Sonny’s life. The problem with Sonny is that he has too many loves of his life!  I don’t think the chemistry between Maurice Benard and Laura Wright works; it’s not the same as it was with Mo and Tamara Braun.  He’s had so many lovers… how many times can he play Romeo? You can’t fight gravity… and I’m not talking about age… I’m talking about the gravity of life.  At some point, Sonny’s going to have to evolve and learn. You can’t keep doing the same thing over and over again without it destroying your life. Sonny needs something and someone different. The older you get in life, the “in love” aspect of love changes to the “quality of love.” He likes Alexis and respects her more than any other woman in his life. I think that’s important. Sonny respecting a woman has as great a meaning as him being “in love.”’

Nancy on touting Garin Wolf to her soap followers when he promised story for Alexis that never materialized:  “I had every reason to think that he was interested in writing for the character but it never happened.   I’m not saying anything other than that.  It’s just a fact.   I was touting him… and now the fans don’t trust me because I wasn’t on TV for nine months! (Laughs)  Now no one believes anything I say. (Laughs)  You can’t blame a writer all the time. Yes, Bob Guza and I didn’t get along, which is why I never had a story.  Yes, I was wrong about Garin, but my instincts about Ron Carlivati are that he really does want to write for Alexis and probably will.  And that comes from me watching the actresses and women on One Life.”

Nancy on the final episodes of One Life to Live as it bid farewell after 43-years on the air:  “I thought it was great. You could see the energy on the show.  They went out with their head held up high and with dignity.  The other day, I was talking to Michael Easton and we agreed, “When you go down, you have to go down fighting.”  And they did. And, so will we.  We’ve tapped the iceberg… now we’re hoping to steer the ship and get out of these dangerous waters. ”

So soapers, would you be interested in seeing Sonny and Alexis give romance another shot? (Oops, Shot! Watch out Alexis, you know what happened to Kate/Connie!) Let us know!

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Sounds like a good interview. If Nelson wouldn’t charge money to read his (mostly) filth, I think I’d be curious enough to read the whole thing.

But please for the love of all that is holy, do NOT pair Sonny with Alexis again. Been there, done that. This isn’t a clothing line of women waiting for the latest shirt to get dirty before the first clean one can have its turn again. ENOUGH. Alone or dead. The only 2 options for Sonny.

NOOOOOO, not Sexis!!! Give us Mac and Alexis… Oh, wait Felicia is coming back. Ok Mac and Alexis ONLY if Frisco is heading to Port Charles 🙂

I would not like to see Alexis and Sonny. I would like to see Alex and Mac slowly get closer in the wake of him losing Robin. I would like to see her there for him, and for something to slowly build. (We may not have much time-…) For a while I would ilk ego see Sonny not with anyone as Kate gets help (or goes out of town to get help=I’ve had enough of multiple personalities and mob wars.)

I agree about Alexis and Mac. Their romance would be a refreshing break from the usual violence. Alexis could stand to grow up herself and stop being attracted to bad boys that cause her pain like Sonny. It would be great to see Alexis realize Mac, the nice guy she overlooked, is the man of her dreams, and that Molly was right all along. Both Grahn and York deserve significant storylines.

NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have no doubt that Ron C. will FINALLY give Nancy a story. She makes a good point with ONE LIFE. There was ALWAYS story aplenty for the over-50 females on that show – Viki, Dorian, Nora, Echo, even Roxy. Here’s hoping Alexis gets out of menopausal storyline Siberia and comes back FRONT & CENTER! Today’s scenes with Carly at the hospital was a start.

I agree. That is what kept me coming back to OLTL. They respect and use there older actors, who are very experienced.

NO I don’t want to see Alexis with Sonny at all, I would be happy just to see Alexis on a daily basis!

That’s what I loved about OLTL! They had mixed aged actors on the show. GH always seemed to lean towards young actors & that bugged me.

I respectfully have to disagree with Ms. Grahn on Maurice Bernard and Laura Wright not having chemistry. I’ve never been a Sonny/Carly fan (ever) but when they had scenes during the hotel hostage crisis, Bernard and Wright’s scenes became one of the unexpected gems of the show. I always thought General Hospital missed the boat by *not* reuniting Sonny and Carly under these 2 actors. In fact, their reunion — along with that of a few other couples — are on my Wish List for General Hospital and I’ve had my fingers crossed that it’s coming down the pike under the new writer and executive producer.

Me too, for a reunion of Sonny and Carly. See my post below at 11:53am. None better paired with Maurice Bernand BESIDES Venesa Marcil is 2nd, Laura Wright.

I would love to see Alexis in a romantic relationship, but not with Sonny. NLG is one of the best actors on GH, and she deserves so much better than what she’s gotten in the past few years. I think her best pairing was with Rick Hearst. I wish they’d bring Ric back and right the wrong the writers made in breaking them up.

I love Nancy! I think she is right on the money about Sonny having too many loves of his life. I think that happens way too much sometimes on soaps. I think if a couple is interesting enough that they can be kept together without being boring.

nancy lee grahn is a wonderful actress but they dont use her enough. general hospital writers listen to me please. give her a big storyline she needs to be paired with robert scorpio they would be a hot hot couple. mac scorpio belongs with felicia i hope they reunite back together. robin is not dead. she is alive. maybe fiason or helena have her captive. decision time sometime in april for general hospital thats what my sources told me. we hope for the best regarding general hospital being renewed. if its cancelled shame on you abc. cancel the revoution because its boring and pathetic.

No, please don’t pair her with Sonny, it’s ancient history. Alexis deserves a really meaty storyline. I wouldn’t rule out a super scorcher with John McB. While I liked the John/Natalie pairing, if she’s not migrating to GH then he needs a love interest in Port Charles, and why not Alexis? His silent brooding might be a fun compliment to her sometime hyper/over analytical personality.

What I LOVE about NLG character, is how she thinks about life & romance. Lots of women are at a ‘crossroad’ when they hit 50! (Me for one)
She is ‘content’ with being alone, yet, there could be plenty of storyline for her which didn’t involve romance.
I just want to see this great actress more. Daily, in a storyline. Why does it have to be about a man?

However, with Felicia coming back, could she give Alexis a ‘run for her money’ with Mac?

As far as Sonny goes, hasn’t everyone realized Sonny’s greatest love is himself?

Yes, Sonny is the Erica of of GH. Erica’s greatest love is herself. Now, I’m going to place Erica’s name in the statement Nancy made.

(Erica’s) had so many lovers… how many times can (she) play Romeo? You can’t fight gravity… and I’m not talking about age… I’m talking about the gravity of life. At some point, (Erica’s) going to have to evolve and learn. You can’t keep doing the same thing over and over again without it destroying your life. (Erica) needs something and someone different. The older you get in life, the “in love” aspect of love changes to the “quality of love.”

LOL

Noone is more in love with themself on any soap more than Erica Kane! Someone should have said Nancy’s words to the writer’s over at AMC. And like Sonny/Maurice, there was a blacklash affect with fans and had repercussions
on Susan Lucci, the character, and her long deserved Emmy win. At the same time, Sonny is in no way stuck on himself like Erica was. Someone wrote:
” Sonny Corinthos can be cold, and hard. But, he can turn around and rip your heart out.” True. For a man to play such a cold an calculating part, he also plays Sonny vulnerable and can go there at any given moment. I feel that’s more realistic to real life personalities. Not like Lucci’s Erica, always on a high, winning. getting the man, self envolved, and wears her ego on her sleeve. That has had a blacklash against Lucci and the character YEARS AGO, but as a DIE HARD Susan/Erica fan I didn’t give it much consideration. I didn’t pay it much mind until I begun not being able to distinguish Erica from Susan. I can always tell Sonny from Maurice, always, in any interview. Fans spoke about it on the site page annoucing Lucci in Gloria Estafan’s video, I agreeed to a… degree (in which you can’t deny) but defended Lucci to industry politic’s and jealousy.

i want to see alexis & mac in a meaningful lasting relationship – end of story…………..

No… she can have a great story without a guy. Used to like Mac and Alexis but if Felicia is coming back would rather see Mac with her.

Always loved Nancy. She’s rgt about Sonny, they have to re-work the loves in his lives and thensome. I liked Alexis w/Ned or Rick, Mac was good too, hope they go back there w/Mac or whomever. Just give Alexis a storyline:) She’s rgt about OLTL and how they wrote for the vets. I loved when Vicki slapped the snot out of Echo (when she caught Charlie cheating on her) and when Nora and Bo reunited. So the proof is in the pudding. They’ll do rgt by Alexis too.

Sounds like the actors on GH are ready for a good fight! Bravo!!! I’m pull’n for you guys:)

All the best!!!

SEXIS ? AGAIN ?? Umm no thanks. Please please please writers … use your heads … think of a storyline for Alexis … there are soooo many good stories to write for her !!! As for love for Alexis … well I still want her with Mac. They are so great together and Nancy and John J York’s chemistry is great !!

I love NLG and Alexis, but her with Sonny? No way. They need to find someone (other than Mac) who will challenge her. She is such a strong woman, except in the man department. I hope they find someone for her soon and give her a good storyline because GH is always better when she’s on the screen. AI find it interesting what she said about the lack of chemistry between LR’s Carley and Sonny. She’s right. There is none, they are better off at odds with each other.

Translation: I want to be paired with Maurice Benard so I can have a storyline! Because from what I see it is all about Sonny again and that is their perogative!!

I love Nancy/ Alexis, but I DONOT want to see her mix back with Sonny. I don’t thimk there is enough physical chemistry to hold the viewer’s interest. As for Maurice not having any chemistry with Laura Wright, I have to respectfully disagree. At least for us the viewer’s they come across as having a great amount of chemistry. In fact, Maurice has had NO BETTER chemistry with any woman other than Venesa/ Brenda, BUT Laura Wright.

What I would really like to see… a court case where she goes up against Nora Buchanan !!!

Oh, that’s a good 1!

Oh my GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, That would be Great…! I love both of these woman. Love them, love them. No Fluff, no phony, just plane ole good acting, and enjoyment of their character’s without the fluff and phoniness.

I have just read your comment to my second posting of the day… and i am happy that you approve of this suggestion, as I am sure many people thought this when they read Nancy’s comments.

Great idea! Alexis can defend Sonny against the murder of Cole and Hope and Nora can prosecute (except Hillary has signed with B & B). If Nora can’t do it, what about Tea (Florencia Lozano) acting as prosecutor?

I would welcome Tea with big open arms too. Love them both.

to bad, nora is a headshrinker now,I would love to see nora and alexis or nora and diane in a courtroom battle,and what would top that off ? tia ,throwing the court room doors open, screaming ,my client has evidence that ,who ever they are arguing about is innocent,one life to live best court room dramas.

I like Laura Wright also, so much that I am visting her winery in California for my B-Day, I went to her website and nothing but Kudos for their wine! I respect people who know this industry and venture out and do other things. To me she has made Carly tolerable.I think if they want to pair someone with Alexis bring back Rick.

I like Laura as Carly, and I agree with you, she has made Carly tolerable. I didn’t care for Sarah Brown and Tamara OPPOSITE Maurice/Sonny. Not at all…, especially Sarah. Tamara was obviously the most tempered Carly, the BEST behaved. But Laura compliments him BETTER and BEST on screne, and her acting abilities have lived up to the standards that Sarah Brown set for Carly, followed by Tamara. Yes, the pretty girl too (Laura) can act.

I love NLG, but as her character had story over the last 5 yrs, Bobbie, Monica, Lesley and Audrey have been Back burnered. I will love to see more Alexis and Diane but not at the expense of the ladies that have made GH for the Last 35 plus years!

I don’t want her with Sonny. I want her with Sam’s father!!!!! I want him to be her greatest love. I really hope they explore that storyline soon, it could also result in really nice SamLexis scenes.

Great idea? Who is Sam’s father. Wasn’t it a 1st love or some boy Alexes said?

wasnt sams father some kid at the school alexis went to when she was a kid ?her father put sam up for adoption ,I heard a daddy for sam could be around the corner .it should be .give alexis a good story and a father for sam.

The pairing I always dreamed of seeing for Alexis is the pairing that Guza would never do, and that was Jax and Alexis. Their chemistry was so strong and their love and dedication to each other was wonderful. “Jaxis” actually had many fans rooting for them and hoping that someday they would actually be paired romantically. Sadly, Guza and his team just never gave it a chance.

Sonny & Alexis were fun to watch…. the first time! But it would not be the same, a second time around. Back then, Alexis was nervous to be around Sonny, a lot of the attraction came from not really knowing who Sonny was, more like just the idea of who he was… plus those eyes and dimples! 🙂 But now she has had her eyes opened, wide open, to who he is and what his life is like and how he treats people over time… and they have a grown child. It is completely different when they’re in a room alone now. That giddiness she got around him before is complete gone.

Nothing like those eyes and dimples, dark hair and eyebrows, SAME with Venesa Marcil. Those eyes, her dimples, dark hair and eyebrows. Those two had so much chemistry. I’m sure if Maurice wasn’t already married, he and Venesa would of hooked up. Do U remember how they use to look at one another, how Venesa would look at Maurice? Sorry, I’ve seen her in other shows with men, she didn’t look at other men like that, not even Jax. They had REAL CHEMISTRY and was/are good friends, in real life. Didn’t hurt that both of them were so beautiful and are the MOST BEAUTIFUL soap opera couple EVER!!!! And the Hottest…!

Nora v. Alexis…now THAT would be a really great episode!

I’m hoping that they either bring Melissa Archer on board, or hire someone to play the part of Natalie, as well as Lliam. McBain just got his family back…they need to have them together. Plus, Easton and Archer play so well together!

They’re using Nancy like they used Tea and Nora, a lawyer that’s present on the show, gets some air time:) I wonder who’s the prosecuting lawyer, Diane? THink NLG’s prayers have been answered.

NLG looks great, great actress. Remembered her from Santa Barbara–when i was 1st introduced to her talents:)

I want to see the menapause storyline back,,, it can not be over with. I would love to see Alexis with Ned again or Ric

with john mcbain heading to town ,alexis may be out of a job,all the crime in port charles will be over with ,ok,at least the killings wont be on for the whole hour,hey maybe she can spend more time with her kids and maybe bring christina back from college.

I think Alexis & Sonny would make a SUPER couple.

Alexis needs a new man in her life as in a new character.

ditto. I agree. Its not happening with Mac.

i don’t think alexis needs to be with a man, at all. of the ones currently on screen or from the past array of characters, the only one i could see having a chance at all is ewan. he’s smart, caring, and it looks like he’s not related to her at this point. and she’s always needed a shrink. lol

really though, alexis is too smart for men. especially soap opera men. she only gives in when her hormones are overwhelmingly drawn to someone, and (probably because of her horrible background) it’s always to a horrible person. she knows that. she’s fine, in fact, better off alone.

they should bring stefan back from the dead so she has someone intelligent and interesting to talk to, (and for MANY other reasons), but she doesn’t need a romance.

love sonny and alexis

General Hospital

GENERAL HOSPITAL Preview: Carly and Lulu Make Plans to Rescue Their Children; Anna Looks Determined to Secure Her Freedom

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This week on all-new episodes of General Hospital, the race is on! Can Lulu (Alexa Havins) and Dante (Dominic Zamprogna) get to Rocco (Finn Carr) and Britt (Kelly Thiebaud) in time to ensure their safety from Cullum (Andrew Hawkes)? Can Carly (Laura Wright) with the help of her brother, Lucas (Van Hansis) rescue Josslyn (Eden McCoy) from captivity at Wyndemere? These questions may be answered, plus the return of the one and only Anna Devane (Finola Hughes) are on tap!

In the just released General Hospital spoilers video for the week of June 22-26, Lulu tells her mother, Laura (Genie Francis), “Dante and I have to get to Rocco before Cullum!” Meanwhile, Rocco (Finn Carr) looks angered and emotional as Britt walks through their cabin hideout. Does Rocco know his parents are on the way to find them, or has Cullum already tracked them down to the British Virgin Islands?

Back in Port Charles, Carly is informing Lucas that his niece, “is a WSB agent.” She knows Josslyn (Eden McCoy) is being held against her will at Wyndemere, and she has to find a way to get her out. Lucas agrees with Carly’s plan of, “We go in and we don’t leave without Josslyn!” Elsewhere, Josslyn is looking worried for her future as she is stuck in captivity thanks to Cassius, Cullum and Sidwell!

Courtesy/ABC

FINOLA HUGHES RETURNS

The final moments of the teaser promo reveal Anna in a psychiatric clinic in France. We have not seen her for months after Cullum, Sidwell and Pascal fed her hallucinogenics to make her believe her arch nemesis, Cesar Faison was alive!

Now, the doctors walk towards her hospital bed, where we see the super spy calmly knitting. Is Anna back to normal and playing everyone to get out of her predicament, or does she still remain deeply traumatized … or both?

Take a look at the rest of the official GH spoilers for the week below.

MONDAY, JUNE 22
Willow gets an unwelcome surprise. Trina sticks to her guns. “Nathan” wants reassurance. Ethan advises Ava. Brook Lynn receives an update.

TUESDAY, JUNE 23
Dante cautions Liz. Laura learns a secret. Brook Lynn confides in Michael. Sonny challenges Ava. Chase makes a decision.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 24
Anna meets with her doctor. Carly makes a stunning confession. Britt extracts a promise. Cullum pulls a fast one. Gio and Emma hit the pool.

THURSDAY, JUNE 25
Josslyn clashes with Cassius. Lulu and Dante make a discovery. Chase receives a warning. Jordan seeks help. Alexis is summoned to the PCPD.

FRIDAY, JUNE 26
Anna takes a huge risk. Britt is in grave danger. Willow is in disbelief. Danny must act fast. Curtis jumps to the wrong conclusion.

Check out the latest General Hospital promo entitled, “Rescue Mission” below.

Now weigh-in: Do you think Anna is still mentally off-balance, or OK, and just pretending to be troubled to get out of France and get back to Port Charles? Will Josslyn finally be rescued, or will Carly and Lucas find themselves locked up with her? And, who will get to Britt and Rocco first? Cullum, or Dante and Lulu? Share your thoughts and theories via the comment section below.

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General Hospital

Maurice Benard Gives High Praise to ‘General Hospital’ Writers; Teases Upcoming Sonny Scenes with Anna, Jason, Justine and Ric

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With the highly-anticipated returns of Finola Hughes (Anna Devane) on this week’s June 24 episode of General Hospital, Steve Burton’s (Jason Morgan) upcoming return on July 13, which also serves as the ABC daytime drama’s 16,000 episode, things are about to fire on all cylinders in the story, as noted today by series star, Maurice Benard (Sonny Corinthos).

On Father’s Day, the three-time Daytime Emmy-winning actor and mental health activist took to his Instagram and expressed in a video that he has some unbelievable upcoming senes with the aforementioned Burton and Hughes. Add to that Nazneen Contractor (Justine Turner) and Rick Hearst (Ric Lansing), where Benard gave credit where credit is due to the GH writing team, which is led by co-head writers, Elizabeth Korte and Chris Van Etten..

In this video, Benard said, “I just want to get on here and say that I did some work with Steve Burton, Finola Hughes, Rick Hearst, Nazneen Contractor, and they’re all just fantastic. Truly fantastic. But, I want to say the writing was just exceptional. It truly was. It was exceptional. So, thankful for that kind of writing. I know writers don’t get the credit a lot, but I just want to say to the General Hospital writing team, keep rolling!”

GENERAL HOSPITAL PREVIEW

So now the question becomes, with a major tease like that, what is about to go down between Sonny, Anna, Jason, Justine and Ric? Will we finally get to the end of the line for Sidwell (Carlo Rota), as previously teased by the GH co-head writers? Will we learn what happened to Jason and Anna, fully? Will Justine and Sonny becomes closer or stop their liaisons? And what of Ric? Will he be true blue to his brother or double-cross him? There is a lot at stake as we move further into the summer and one that looks like it could be one of the more exciting ones in years!

FINOLA HUGHES CONFIRMED AMAZING SCENES WITH MAURICE BENARD

As a punctuation point to his video, Benard also shared this written message in the post: “I just did some wonderful scenes with Steve Burton, Rick Hearst, Finola Hughes and Nazneen Contractor and  and unbelievable writing, freaking amazing scenes that you will see in the near future on General Hospital.” In fact, Finola Hughes jumped in the post comment thread and responded, “I loved our scenes so much xxx”

Fans will most likely see all the scenes Benard referred to later in July, since GH tapes approximately six weeks ahead of air.

So, are you excited to see what Maurice is talking about? Are you hyped for what’s to come on GH? Any clue on what you think will go down between the main characters on the soap with the returns of Anna Devane and Jason Morgan to the mix? Weigh-in via the comment section below.

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General Hospital

‘General Hospital’ Alum Chad Duell Announces Upcoming Release of His First Single, ‘If You Need Me’

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In a surprise move, Daytime Emmy winner, Chad Duell (ex-Michael Corinthos, GH) is getting ready to unveil a new chapter of his career in music.

The former GH star, where he played the son of Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) and Carly Spencer (Laura Wright) for 15 years, has announced his new single, “If You Need Me” will drop on Friday, June 26. The single is now available for pre-order on Spotify and major music streaming platforms and is distributed by DistroKid.

Taking to his Instagram story over the weekend, to announce the pre-save of his new single, Chad expressed, “I’ll make a full post about what I’ve been up to and my music once it goes live next week, but you can pre-save my first single so it goes straight to your Spotify once it drops next week.”

Photo: CDuellIG

SINCE LEAVING GENERAL HOSPITAL

Previously, since his departure from the ABC soap opera. Chad starred alongside Zach Mendez in the world premiere of of Yum Yum at Annapolis, a new play written by Bruce Reisman. Duell last appeared on General Hospital on the January 21, 2025 episode.

The part was recast with Rory Gibson who debuted as the new Michael in May of 2025 during the Nurses’ Ball episodes and who has remained in the role since that time.

In an interview earlier this year on The Able Show, Duell said on his decision to exit the soap opera, “I was blessed to be part of that (show) for as long as I have, but what happens sometimes is if you’re doing the same thing, especially in a creative field for such a long time, you can get a little burnt out in a way. It can make you a little depressed, so that’s kind of what happened. On top of that, I had other things going on in my life at the time. My father passed away recently and I just needed a reset. So, I stepped away. A lot of times you have to go through some stuff to really step into that next level. I needed to kind of feel uncomfortable.”

So, what type of musical genre will Chad’s new song be? Country? Pop? Rock? Dance/Club? Something else? Let us know your thoughts via the comment section below, and if you are eager to hear the new single next week via the comment section below.

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

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