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Ron Carlivati Interview – General Hospital – Paley Center For Media

General Hospital head writer, Ron Carlivati spoke with Michael Fairman at the Paley Center For Media in Beverly Hills GH 50th celebration about crafting the shows 50th anniversary episode, bringing back all-time favorites and The Nurses’ Ball. In addition, Carlivati gives a tease and some insight into the complex returns of Michael Easton, Kristen Alderson and Roger Howarth. Plus, the story behind resurrecting Stavros Cassadine, and ushering in the new Lulu!

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awesome interview michael!

i agree!

I am totally in love with Gh and cannot wait until he next episode everyday.This show is on fire.

Same thoughts here!

Sorry. His “moment” was a joke to me. And the “Big 3”? Seriously? Guess I don’t share Mr. Fairman’s admiration for this writing team.

I agree, why are they the Big 3?? Who cares if they are there or not/

Big 3? Apparently he means the Big 3 who are gonna hog up all the airtime from the GH actors when they get back? FV/RC fought tooth and nail to get back ME, RH and KA but they didn’t bother to fight to keep Burton. The pets are back.

Big 3 as in the ones Prospect Park is citing in suing GH and ABC for damages, I guess.

Wow. Meow. You may not like them, but a lot of people do. If they weren’t popular, there wouldn’t have been a brouhaha about them or the characters roiling and boiling for the past three months.

The denial, it burns…

Popular? You don’t know that. You know that for a fact? There was a big brouhaha because they are FV’s pets and he likes writing for them, not the GH actors. HA Steve Burton was way more popular than these three clowns so why wasn’t there a fight to keep him? They wanted him out that’s why.

They r suing for the charaters they played…not exactly for the actors! And if pp wants any of these actors…they could keep the characters off the canvas until the actors are avaiable…thats if they want to return to OLTL.

Loved the interview… thank you Michael!!! Loving Ron’s loyalty to GH and that he is a true fan! He sounds like he is having fun!!! He’s doing a great job! Thanks Ron!!!

The big 3? As if those transplants the starts of the show. Disgusted to hear anybody refer to them as the big 3!

Sorry you feel that way…..is it that time of the month? Maybe you should watch something else.

Nasty.

Sorry you’re such a b! tch! I guess I can’t have an opinion of my own with out you making a time of the month comment. I watch for the big 15, You know the actual GH stars, same as 90% of the audience and I’ll continue to enjoy them just fine despite the little 3.

Pay no attention to negative replies like Judys…i may not agree with your reply but i wouldnt include a tasteless remark just because you dislike something and i disagree unless they say it first…

You can’t make everyone happy. *rolls eyes*

Kudos to RC and FV for doing a fantastic job.

If Mr. Fairman were ever to interview Mr. Valentini, could he inquire as to whether there is ever manipulation of posts and likes on Facebook? There have been anecdotal reports of deleting posts and buying likes to support storylines. I wonder if Mr. Valentini has any comment on this.

Yes!! My post about Sabrina have been deleted on facebook. I totally believe they manipulate facebook posts in favor of storylines or characters (sabrina) they like. Also some of the post on facebook about Sabrina, when you click on some of the ppl making these post, their fb page has no information and was just made.

thanks Michael for the interview. the 50th Anniversary episode was the best! I love love GH now. Don’t want to miss even one day

Kelly Monaco fans are not happy. Her airtime has been almost zero on this show since Steve left. I will not count that ridiculous vampire crap. So it looks like Sam is stuck taking care of Rafe to introduce the Rafe/Clay storyline in May with Sam being used as a prop. According to FV/RC, Kelly is okay to be used promoting GH, but not good enough for airtime.

Yep, that’s it exactly. She’s never, ever, ever going to have a storyline again, and will henceforth be used only when the morning shows need a spokesperson.

Give me a break. The writer are rotating storylines so that everyone gets an opportunity to be in the spotlight with their own front-burner story. Right now, Kelly is backburnered, and she will rotate back around again later.

That’s the beauty of soap/anthology storytelling. Everyone gets a chance to shine, and different stories get to be told.

good reply

Agree with most of what you said in your two posts Pen. Glad to hear you think ME will not be a recast for Jason Morgan… there’s been a lot of references to Jason and hopefully it is because he’s a missed character… he and SB! Yes… I am an SB fan and proud of it! I will still keep hoping someday he comes back as Jason Quartermaine… lots of great stuff that could be done with that.

I agree with the back burner / front burner of storylines and characters and that is part of it but setting the table so to speak for new story lines sometimes means stepping back and layering in different complexities and that is what is going on here! Kelly will be back in the midst of a lot of story very soon!

I personally don’t miss Jason or SB, but that’s my personal view; I understand others do miss him. But I don’t think they plan to bring him back anytime soon.

I also think the reasons he’s being referenced now is to allow Sam a final mourning and goodbye, as it were, before she moves on (with, I again devoutly hope, ME’s character, if the story works).

Give me a break…..Everyone DOES NOT get a chance to shine. What happened with Reeves and Barash? Where was their chance? I’m sure their fans were happy that they got squeezed right out of GH. This Clay/Rafe story coming will be about Clay and Rafe not Sam. Easton is one of FV’s pets and apparently FV will try anything to get his pets (ME, KA, RH) back but didn’t bother to keep SB from leaving. The mob is gone but yet Maurice is already whining he wants to see more mob stuff. Hes gonna wait along time for that. Sam involved in TWO stories? Rafe and dad stuff? That’s not fair to the other actors,is it? HA I’ll have to see to believe there will be a Sam’s dad storyline. With ME, KA and RH coming back I don’t see it.

I disagree Betty… the fact that she is taking Rafe is all a part of a new storyline with ME coming back. I am so hoping he is not being recast as Jason Morgan… but someone else that will be involved with Sam and Danny and Rafe. The whole notion that they explored with Steven Clay being Rafe’s real bio father is going to be played out further by ME either as a relation of Steven Clay, or Steven Clay or someone who just looks like Rafe could be his father. She will have a big story very soon!

There’s also the storyline involving the reveal of her father’s identity, as well as the story with ME.

I’ll say right now — he’s not going to play Jason Morgan. For one thing, neither he nor the writers are insane enough to even attempt such a boneheaded move. It would be ridiculous, terrible storytelling. Not to mention, what actor would want to step into a character so closely identified with a certain actor? Not Easton. He had the chance to do that once and (wisely) turned it down. He’s too good an actor for that, and besides, what would then happen if Burton returned (which is unlikely)? They’d have to go through all the character bullcrap all over again.

Anyway, back to Sam: yes, the guardianship of Rafe is setup for at least one frontburner storyline for her that I devoutly hope involves Easton’s character closely. Her paternity will be another.

Frankly Im ticked off and not amused. I do NOT see Michael Easton as all that important nor bringing KA back.

The producer failed however to bring back the most interesting of Cassadines Stefan. Obviously he is catering to his OLTL crew and stomped on the hearts and minds of those who followed this program. Stefan unlike the frozen popsicle is not a cartoon but interesting with good bad and shades of grey. Shame on this producer for ignoring some genuine talent and characters of interest. Nothing was hotter than watching Stefan and Helena intertwine and the story of Helena’s maltreatment of her son was never explored and should be.

Until this is corrected, Im not amused.

What if Micheal Easton came back as Stefan? I doubt he will…but i was wondering ‘what if?’ he did? KA is most likely to play a character with better connections to the show like Scott Baldwins daughter Serena. I think FV and RC liked working with these actors on OLTL and wanted to continue working with them on GH. Id feel the same with people iv liked and would want to work with them again!

I’m sure the production is falling over themselves to accommodate your directive.

FYI, Robert Kelker-Kelly agreed to come back for this short stint only — he’s retired and flies planes now. Perhaps at some later juncture he might change his mind and be available if a Stavros story arc happens, but until and if it does, I think it’s really cool that he was there for the time he was.

At any rate, it’s a story that isn’t going to be told for the moment, and there are plenty of other stories to unfurl. It’s too bad you’ll be unamused, but then…you can’t please everyone, can you?

I have an idea, why not backburn Laura Wright and Maurice for a few months. Right? It’s only fair to give other actors their fair chance. Let’s rotate those storylines. HA, yea, right.

Just watched the 50th anniversary episode again and it truly was perfect!!! Thank you so much RON!!! Thank you so much GH… 50 years looks great and I hope there will be 50 more!!! So well done!!! Emmy worthy for sure!!! Thank you again Michael for having ths episode here for us to come back to again and again!!! Loved it!!!

How come Lulu has amnesia and cant remember her family, doctor, friends and the baby but can remember everything else? She knows she can go to a bar…so does she remember her age? She remembers how to talk, go to the bathroom, put on makeup, brush her hair ect? Dante shouldnt be so desperate! He should be grateful Lulus alive and show some compassion knowing Lulu has amnesia and stop trying to rush her…her memory will not return that quickly…at least not in the soap world!

No where else to say this… but…WELL DONE!!!… RC and other writers on the handling of the Luke and Laura relationship scenes on Tuesday’s show!!! While I am a HUGE Luke and Laura fan… it was really well done!!! Handled beautiflly with so much love and care of two iconic and favorite chracters!!! Now at least Luke can be with Tracy!!! I just wish it weren’t Scottie for Laura… maybe she will wise up someday or maybe somewhere down the way Luke and Laura will fit back together again… we can hope! Again beautifully handled in every way!!! Congratulations RC and company!!!

I love Frank and Ron! They are great, and am a big One Life fan. I heard One Life was nominated for best show for the episode that aired Jan 12, 2012, and if I am not mistaken, current One Life EP, Jenifer Pepperman directed that episode, how come no one mentioned that?

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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Peter Reckell returns for a second visit with Michael Fairman following the wrap-up of his recent run as Bo Brady on Days of our Lives.Leave A Comment

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