General Hospital
How DISNEY Went Overboard During General Hospital's New Year Eve Episode With References To The College Football Playoff Games!

Courtesy/ABC
It wasn’t just us, but now mainstream media has caught on and is having a bit of a field day with just how many references to ESPN’s New Year’s Eve College Football Playoff games were referenced by the characters of General Hospital in just one episode, in a case of not so subtle promotion and product placement.
ESPN’s parent company ABC tried to get the word out at the last minute to drive even more eyeballs to the games between Clemson vs. Oklahoma and Alabama vs. Michigan State on Thursday seemingly using last Wednesday’s GH as a one way to try to do that.
Deadspin counted at least 7 times that the words “College Football Playoff” were mentioned by the characters of Port Charles. (Check out their video). They went on to say about the characters mention of the playoffs that each of them had an awkward shoehorn of dialogue talking about how much more fun watching football is than going to a party or, in this case, the playoff logo prominently featured in the background.”
So it was Dante (Dominic Zamprogna), Valerie (Brytni Sarpy), Michael (Chad Duell) and Kristina (Lexi Ainsworth) as the four characters who had to say the key words the most in the episode.
Now, we are all for anything that helps GH as long as they got something out of the deal then having to write into the dialog characters speaking about “College Football Playoffs”. We actually liked most of the New Year’s Eve episode as it was very poignant.
What did you think about the references and the mentions during the episode? Did ABC/Disney go to far ? Comment below!
abc disney does exactly what the hell they want & guess what??? there is nothing we can do about but complain…………….
I found it typical and heavy-handed (…as most synergy between Disney/ABC/ESPN usually is!) I worked for them for two miserable yrs, so I know the value they place on cross-over synergy; sometimes it can be successful, and other times, it can appear so forced it takes you out of the action and backfires.
I seem to remember P&G pulled this crap with both ATWT and GL toward the end of their runs, prominently placing their Dawn, Bounty, Pantene, Pringles, etc. front-and-center (…and even having the camera close-in on the product!) I felt so manipulated, I swore off P&G products for about a year, esp. after having the characters use the tag-lines “Cut the grease” and “Quicker-picker-upper” into their dialogue. It broke the fourth wall along with my respect for the brand!
When has Disney NOT used its properties to promote synergy? GMA is a 2 hour daily Disney movie and television promotion. It’s sickening.
I was bored and didnt pay attention to it that much but it doesnt bother me one way or the other!
It certainly wasn’t as blatant as that thinly-veiled campaign to slap down John Stamos and his brand of greek yogurt during the 2014 Nurses’ Ball when Ron C. repeatedly threw shade upon of the character of Blackie, whilst he simultaneously promoted a rival line of said dairy item with not-so-subtle product placements.
Well it distracted from the story and I turned GH off, so I’m going to say that it wasn’t good for GH or ESPN
So you are saying you turned off the show because they said College Football Playoff a few times? So what…so they went overboard to shamelessly promote the games…if you are a true GH fan, that has no bearing on the show.. it’s a few words.
The writers pen more lackluster words every single day…..and we still tune in because we love the show. It’s really a non- issue.
It wouldn’t have been so bad except some of those shows pushing the games aired AFTER New Years.
was not a fan of it. the dialogue was weird. this tells me that the network has been dictating GH creative. I think one of the reasons the quality of GH has gone down is were seeing ABC’s vision instead of the GH showrunners. Varni vision. with GH’s ratings being down and demos dismal,this is not gonna help. I saw all the backlash the episode got on social media. There are lots of problems with GH,and I’ve noticed very little change under the new writers. That tells me that Ron Carlivarti wasn’t the only problem. There’s too many new characters that I don’t care about. The Jason reveal was a dud. Now the show is really boring. After Jason Thompson leaves,GH could be looking at record low ratings. Y&R now has GH’s two most popular actors that drove story for years.
@Robert….That notion first became profoundly obvious some years back when Jason Thompson’s Patrick was doomed to that deplorable Disney-esque drivel with Cinder-brina. No self-respecting soap writer would have come up with such a hokey, childish fairytale-inspired storyline without the heavy hand of the Mouse shoving him all the way! It was especially telling when even though that entire scenario went down like a lead balloon, it took many, many months to correct its course, and yet, to this day, old Sappy still lingers, along with a good number of other marginal characters that few seem to enjoy. If that mere fact doesn’t illustrate who’s really calling the shots at GH, nothing does, since it makes absolutely no sense to keep players on the Port Charles canvas that regularly inspire viewers to tune out in droves!!!!
YR did same for Thursday Football
I love my DVR. It allows me to fast forward through stupid scenes, including that total non-believable scene between Dante and Valerie, arguing over the teams before hitting the sheets. Whatever!
It v just hurts the ratings of the show more
exactly. this is the last thing the show needed
Unfortunately I haven’t won the Powerball yet, so I still have to go to work everyday just so I can continue to eat and make my house payments.
I FF all those characters, and others .. just like you, the DVR is my friend! 😀
FF dangerous, will not get counted for ratings. ..
I hate Disney.
I hate football.
🙂
I had the misfortune of catching this. It was the weirdest dialogue I’ve ever heard on a soap, and it was pathetically shameless, forced cross promotion. I realize that both are Disney-owned properties. But come on, it’s two audiences that could not be any more different.
I highly doubt that there is any kind of sizable crossover between the audience/demographics that watches a daytime soap opera vs. the audience that watches college football or NFL games. Downright lame job by ABC/ESPN/Disney, and yet another example of how far GH has fallen. What’s next, the shills of Port Charles making hardwood references during a mob shooting to alert us to the NBA Finals, in June on ABC?
My thoughts exactly!!!
As with most things on TV, it could have been alright if it had been written well. Unfortunately, it wasn’t.
I’ll keep holding my breath waiting for ABC to promote GH during its prime time lineup–the way NBC has with Days of Our Lives for years now!
I did notice the heavy handed promotion. Funny. ABC did not seem to think there was much audience for its messages when it cancelled AMC and OLTL.
I thought it was kind of a goofy drinking game. You know, have a shot every time you hear “college football playoff”…
Since I’m more of a baseball fan and don’t follow football unless it’s Ohio State, I didn’t even notice. But if this is the worse ABC can do in promoting what seems America’s sport’s obsession, just this once, I can live with it. It still seems a bit of a stretch to promote football on a soap. Wish the trade off would be to bring back OLTL or AMC. Just kidding, sorta.
I noticed it and laughed. What I dont understand is this. Most of us DVR our soaps. We dont watch commercials. Why doesnt the soaps do more product placement? I dont mind it. If Coca Cola is a sponsor, why not have Sam drinking a Coke at Kellys? We are not watching the commercials so why not put the products in the show? NO, dont be so obvious and mention the product seven times, just be normal. Its odd to see a character grab a soda out of the fridge and it just says COLA on the can. Its a COKE! Millions drink it!
I remember back in the day when Disney first acquired ABC and every family oriented sitcom had to go to Disneyland in their episodes. This is not the first time GH has done vulgar product placements… Characters going to the movies, and guess what movie posters were prominently displayed? You guessed it… Disney movies!
Being from Canada I didn’t get the reference– didn’t even realize it was a real thing — just thought it was just part of the show– LOL. Now if they were talking about the new Star Wars movie– I would have caught that cross promotion.
LOL Franco just did that today – mentioned Star Wars to Elizabeth when he asked if she let her sons see the new Star Wars!!! I dislike Disney also.
It reminded of that time, I think it was the National Orange Council, or whatever the hell the group was called, did a product placement on GH, and all of a sudden every character had to drink orange juice that day, and tell us how great and healthy it was, lol.
It’s cheesy and silly, and one of those things you roll your eyes at, but it doesn’t bother me, or make me not want to watch the show. If ABC doing product placements from advertisers, or advertising their own stuff on the show allows GH to stay on the air, I say do what you gotta do.
I didn’t mind the mention of the playoff as much as the generic “Yay my team won” or Go “my team” that was kind of funny.
It was AWFUL. Talk about stilted and obvious. Blatant, in your face. Actors should go to union about collecting fees for doing commercials too. It was an AD. This was a long way from a subtle product placement. And it was boring to watch too. Surprised it didn’t make the Soup as well. Or did it?
I AGREE IT WAS AWFUL&PATHETIC! GH needs to be cancelled ASAP!! THE SHOW IS BEYOND BEING SAVED & THE RATINGS SHOW IT BIG TIME! AND NOW WITH JASON (THOMPSON) leaving it does not look good or bode well for GH at all! And this coming from a person who cannot stand GH. I’m sorry for the few GH fans that are still watching. But you’ve got to face facts the show is horrible & going further downhill fast! If only we can get OLTL BACK!!! THAT SHOW MY BELOVED SHOW SHOULD NEVER,EVER,EVER HAVE BEEN CANCELLED!
The Soup, sadly, has been cancelled
If people are actually bothered by a mention of a college football playoff game, even if overdone, then people are taking GH and TV way too serious.
sort of like the Truman show wasn’t it??
awkward product placements… but if it keeps the soaps alive, why not…
– after all they are ‘soap operas’ – originally created to sell soap!!!!!
Good point!
They’ve done this before with awkward product placements. I can remember a very stupid scene in OLTL a few years ago where Natalie touts the ease of do-it-yourself tax preparation program. Had nothing to do with anything going on plot wise. And GH has hawked Hershey chocolates during Valentine’s Day. The Shriners Hospital plugs were a little overdone too during Spencer’s burn treatments, but at least that was for charity! What can we do but cringe? I guess the money they get from the product placements helps the soaps pay for themselves.
I wish that the writers could learn how to do product placement right. In this case it needed to be characters who had in the past actually showed they gave a hoot about sports at all other wise it comes of odd and forced. Like some one else said when OLTL had Natalie Buchanan an heiress doing her own taxes via turbo tax it partly rang false because someone with that much money wouldn’t be doing their own taxes. Using one of the McBain boys or Williamson sisters would have seemed more real. Integrating the playoffs on GH without it being odd would have been hard because they barely mention NY sports teams much less college teams. If writers know ahead of time that they are going to be forced to mention something they need to lay the ground work in slowly. Have a funny scene where Michael and Jason try to teach Monica about football and have Alice come in knowing everything because with Alice’s wrestling background she would. Let Bobbie and Valorie talk about how Pat loved sports and give Val positive screen time with a family member who’s husband she doesn’t want to screw.
I didn’t even notice. During football season, everywhere you go, you will hear people talking playoffs, bowls and their favorite teams I’m not sports fan, so I just turn it off
I’m glad to see Robin and Patrick leaving but will miss Emma. Now if they would get rid of Valerie, the new commissioner, Dylan Q. (Sp) Franco, and a few others,
I guess I don’t know what the big deal is over the football thing. Not sure it would have even been an issue had it not been made into an issue. As it is, there is product placement in all kinds of shows and movies. I don’t like it, or dislike it, as long as it doesn’t interfere with the story. And quite frankly, football viewing and chatter in a bar probably isn’t that unusual.
It was absolutely ridiculous the amount of times it was mentioned, since there was no other mention of football by any character on GH during the year. As someone mentioned ESPN does what they want even if it has no place on a soap opera.
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 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 they were previously, “We had some scenes together years ago and we were both laughing. And 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 2025, and “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, Zamprongna 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 down 100% to play. “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 and 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? 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 of them 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.
-

General Hospital1 week ago‘General Hospital’s’ Maurice Benard Talks: New ‘Sonny’ Storyline, His Contract, and Three Characters He Would Want to See Back in Port Charles
-

Days Of Our Lives1 week agoHow John Oliver’s ‘Days of Our Lives’ Guest Star Turn as ‘Devlin St. John’ Came to an End
-

Breaking News6 days agoJohn Oliver Recaps His ‘Days of Our Lives’ and ‘General Hospital’ Soap Opera Experience on ‘Last Week Tonight’
-

Days Of Our Lives5 days ago‘Veronica & Julian’ Feature Starring ‘Days of Our Lives’ Alums Nadia Bjorlin and Kyler Pettis Releases Key Art and More (Exclusive)
-

General Hospital4 days ago‘General Hospital’ Alum Bryan Craig Cast in ‘The Weapon’
-

Breaking News7 days agoHayden Panettiere, ‘Guiding Light’ and ‘Nashville’ Alum, Dead at 36
-

Recaps1 week agoTHE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS: Sharon, Nick and Marie Struggle in Aftermath of a Relapse; Jade Harlow Shares She’s ‘Really Proud’ and ‘Grateful’ to ‘Show How Addiction Can Touch Anyone’ (Exclusive)
-

News1 week agoB&B’s Don Diamont Recalls His Soap Start on ‘Days of Our Lives’ and Confrontation with Exec Prod Al Rabin (Exclusive ‘Soapy’ Preview)














