General Hospital (commonly abbreviated GH) is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-running American soap opera currently in production and the third longest-running drama in television in American history after Guiding Light and As the World Turns.[2] Concurrently, it is the world's third longest-running scripted drama series currently in production after British serials The Archers and Coronation Street, as well as the world's second longest televised soap opera still in production after Coronation Street. General Hospital premiered on the ABC television network on April 1, 1963 and has almost always aired at 3 p.m. (Eastern time) since its debut. Broadcast weekdays and currently repeated nightly on SOAPnet, it is the longest-running serial produced in Hollywood, and the longest-running entertainment program in ABC television history. It holds the record for most Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Drama Series, with 10 wins.
The show was created by husband-and-wife soap writers Frank and Doris Hursley, who originally set it in a general hospital (hence the title) in an unnamed fictional city; this city was named Port Charles, New York in the 1970s. Upon its beginning, General Hospital starred John Beradino and Emily McLaughlin, and both actors stayed with the show until their deaths in the 1990s. They were joined a year later by Rachel Ames who remains to date the longest serving actress on a ABC soap opera, having been on the show from 1964 to 2007. General Hospital was the second soap to air on ABC (after the short-lived Road to Reality, which aired for several months during the 1960–61 season). In 1964, a sister soap was created for General Hospital, The Young Marrieds; it ran for two years, and was canceled due to low ratings. General Hospital also spawned a prime time spinoff with the same name in the United Kingdom from 1972 to 1979, as well as the daytime series Port Charles (1997–2003) and the prime time spinoff General Hospital: Night Shift (2007–2008) in the United States. Currently taped at The Prospect Studios, General Hospital originally aired for a half-hour until July 23, 1976. The series was expanded from 30 minutes to 45 minutes on July 26, 1976, and then to a full hour on January 16, 1978.[3]
Ever since the late 1970s, most of the storylines have revolved on the environment of Quartermaines and the Spencers. From 1979 to 1988, General Hospital had more viewers than any daytime soap opera. It rose to the top of the ratings in the early 1980s in part thanks to the monumentally popular "supercouple" Luke and Laura, whose 1981 wedding brought in 30 million viewers and remains the highest-rated hour in American soap opera history.[4][5] In 2003, TV Guide named General Hospital the 'Great Soap Opera of All Time.'[6] In 2007, the program was listed as one of Time magazine's "100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME."[7] In April 2009, General Hospital began broadcasting in High Definition.
General Hospital became the oldest American soap opera on September 17, 2010, when As the World Turns ended. On April 14, 2011, ABC announced the cancellation of both All My Children and One Life to Live, leaving General Hospital as the only soap opera airing on the network after January 13, 2012.[8] On April 11, 2012, ABC renewed General Hospital.[9] However, its current 3 p.m. (ET) timeslot is slated to be given to ABC stations for local programming starting September 10, 2012 (with many airing Katie Couric's new syndicated talk show, Katie, in that timeslot).[9] This could result in General Hospital moving into the 2 p.m. (ET) timeslot.[9]
John Beradino and Emily McLaughlin celebrating 10th Anniversary of the show, 1973.
Launched in 1963, the first stories were mainly set at General Hospital in an unnamed mid-sized Eastern city (the name of the city, Port Charles, would not be mentioned until the late 1970s under Gloria Monty), revolving around Dr. Steve Hardy (John Beradino) and his friend, Nurse Jessie Brewer (Emily McLaughlin). Steve was Chief of Internal Medicine on the hospital's seventh floor and dedicated his life to healing and caring for the sick, ably assisted by Nurse Jessie. Jessie's turbulent marriage to the much-younger Dr. Phil Brewer (originally portrayed by Roy Thinnes; lastly by Martin West) was the center of many early storylines. In 1964 the woman who would finally win Steve's heart, Audrey March (Rachel Ames), a former flight attendant came to town. Audrey's older sister, Lucille March was a nurse at General Hospital. Lucille married hospital janitor, Al Weeks. Audrey married Dr. Tom Baldwin and had his son (played as an infant by the daughter of Rachel Ames). In 1973 Audrey married alcoholic Dr. Jim Hobart before finally realizing she loved Steve.
Other nurses that had an impact at General Hospital during the 1960s and 1970s included Meg Bentley. Meg was the mother to her young son Scotty and stepmother to troubled teen Brooke Clinton. Meg married attorney Lee Baldwin, Tom Baldwin's brother. Lee adopted Scotty. When Meg died Lee became Scotty's only family. Several years later, Lee met and married Caroline Chandler. Caroline died within a few years, with Lee later marrying Gail.
Diana Taylor was a young nurse torn between two men, Dr. Peter Taylor and Dr. Phil Brewer. Bouncy Sharon McGillis married shy Dr. Henry Pinkham. Jane Harland was married to businessman Howie Dawson. They had a daughter. Howie's mother, Mrs. Dawson, lived with them. At one point in about 1972, Howie soon became involved with Brooke Clinton. When Brooke spurned his advances Brooke was found murdered the following day.
Augusta McLeod came to General Hospital in 1973 and set in motion events that would impact General Hospital for years to come. It was Augusta who brought Phil Brewer back to GH to break up Peter and Diana Taylor. Augusta was pregnant with Peter's child. December 6, 1974, Phil Brewer was murdered by a geode (paper weight). Jessie Brewer was on trial for her life after having been caught with the deceased Phil holding the murder weapon. She was acquitted. Augusta McLeod was sent to prison for murder. She gave birth to her son which was given up for adoption.
The end of the hour wedding on November 17, 1981 of Luke and Laura, played by Anthony Geary and Genie Francis, was the most watched event in daytime serial history.[5]
During the 1980s the series featured several high-profile action, adventure, and some science fiction based story lines. Location shooting at sites including Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota; Niagara Falls; Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee; Atlantic City, New Jersey; Big Bear and Avalon (Catalina Island), California; and San Antonio, Texas are just some that propelled the story.
In the 1990s, General Hospital entered a transitional phase as the action/adventure storylines of the 1980s became less popular. The show gained critical acclaim for its sensitive handling of social issues, most notable of which were the heart transplant storyline which involved the death of eight-year-old BJ Jones (daughter of Dr. Tony Jones and R.N. Bobbie Spencer) in a bus crash and the subsequent donation of her heart to her dying cousin Maxie Jones. Shortly afterwards, Monica Quartermaine (Leslie Charleson) began a long battle with breast cancer, which led to her adopting Emily Quartermaine, a young girl who had been orphaned when her mother died of breast cancer. Her adopted daughter was later murdered by an unknown killer, leaving Dr. Monica Quartermaine heartbroken. General Hospital was also praised for yet another storyline in the love story of teenagers Stone Cates (Michael Sutton) and Robin Scorpio (Kimberly McCullough). After a struggle that lasted throughout most of 1995, Stone died from AIDS at the age of 19 and his death was followed by storylines in which 17 year old Robin had to deal with being HIV-positive as a result of her and Stone's relationship. The storyline got Sutton a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor and won McCullough an Outstanding Younger Actress award. ABC featured an "Afterschool Special" revolving around the AIDS story.
On Saturday, December 14, 1996, General Hospital aired its one of three primetime episodes, General Hospital: Twist of Fate, which picked up where that Friday's episode had left off. The special centered around Laura's supposed death at the hands of Stefan Cassadine.
The series' 11,000th episode aired on February 20, 2006.[10]
On April 23, 2009, General Hospital became ABC's first regular daytime drama to be taped and broadcast in high definition, though the 2008 season of its primetime spinoff General Hospital: Night Shift was in high definition. This is the second daytime drama to move to high definition after CBS's The Young and the Restless.
On February 23, 2010, the series aired its 12,000th episode.[11]
On December 1, 2011, ABC confirmed that former One Life to Live executive producer Frank Valentini and head writer Ron Carlivati would replace Phelps and Garin Wolf respectively, though Wolf would remain on as a regular writer. The change took effect on January 9, 2012.[12] The first episode from Valentini aired in February 1, 2012, though Carlivati's material started airing on February 21, 2012.
| Start date |
End date |
Time slot
(eastern) |
Run time
(minutes) |
| April 1, 1963 |
December 27, 1963 |
1:00 pm |
30 |
| December 30, 1963 |
July 23, 1976 |
3:00 pm |
| July 26, 1976 |
January 13, 1978 |
3:15 pm |
45 |
| January 16, 1978 |
present |
3:00 pm |
60 |
General Hospital has aired on ABC Television and has been filmed in Hollywood, California since its inception. The show was filmed in the Sunset Gower Studios from 1963 to the mid-1980s. It relocated in the 1980s to The Prospect Studios, where it remains.
- Producers: Frank Valentini (Executive Producer), Mary O'Leary, Mercer Barrows, Michelle Henry, Deborah Genovese
- Directing Team: Scott McKinsey, Matthew Diamond, Craig McManus, William Ludel, Phideaux Xavier, Owen Renfroe, Penny Pengra, Larry Carpenter, Christine Magarian, Ron Cates, Ronald C. Cates, Peter Fillmore, Dave MacLeod
- Head Writer: Ron Carlivati
- Breakdown Writers: Jim Reitzel, Tracey Thompson, David Goldschmid, Garin Wolf, Shelly Altman, Jean Passanante, Chris Van Etten, David Rupel
- Script Writers: Susan Wald (playwright), Elizabeth Page, Mary Sue Price, David Kreizman, Scott Sickles, Katherine Shock, Karen Harris, Nathan Fissell, Elizabeth Korte
- Casting Directors: Mark Teschner, Gwen Hillier
- Former Notable Crew Members: Gloria Monty, Jill Farren Phelps, Robert Guza, John William Corrington, Lewis Arlt [1], Lynda Myles [2], Alan Pultz, Judith Pinsker [3], Joseph Behar [4], Stephanie Braxton [5], Norma Monty, Frank South [6], Ralph Ellis [7], Shelley Curtis [8], Hope Harmel Smith
Many sites in Port Charles include:
- General Hospital is a major employer in the city, and one of the largest medical facilities on the East Coast. With contributions from Sonny Corinthos and Carly Jacks, extra wings dedicated to AIDS research and pediatric head neurology have been constructed. In 2009, a vicious fire destroyed a majority of the hospital, which was promptly rebuilt. The hospital re-opened in April.
- The Metro Court is the most prominent hotel in Port Charles, owned by entrepreneurs Jasper Jacks and Carly Jacks. When the Port Charles Hotel was destroyed by a fire in 2004 due to faulty wiring, the Metro Court was built on its site. The hotel boasts a skyline restaurant, a world-class spa, and multiple penthouse suites.
- Kelly's Diner founded by the late Paddy Kelly, is a vintage restaurant in the heart of Port Charles. Operated by Mike Corbin, the diner has been serving its devoted patrons since 1978. The lofts above Kelly's have been home to hundreds of tenants over the years, although the rooms are currently vacant.
- The Haunted Star is a yacht owned and operated by Luke Spencer, who received the vessel as a wedding present in 1983. In 2003, the ship was turned into a casino by Luke and investors Skye Chandler and Tracy Quartermaine.
- Jake's is a bar located in downtown Port Charles, just a block away from General Hospital. Since the early 1990s, the bar has been a hotspot for the local nightlife. Coleman Ratcliffe has owned the bar since 2002. In 2012, it was renamed after a vintage nightspot that has been closed since the early 80's, The Floating Rib.
Prominent families include the Scorpios, the Quartermaines, the Cassadines, the Spencers, and the Corinthos'.
- Drama Series: Gloria Monty 1981, 1984; Wendy Riche 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000; Jill Farren Phelps 2005, 2006, 2008
- Lead Actor: Anthony Geary (Luke Spencer) 1982, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2008; Maurice Benard (Sonny Corinthos) 2003
- Lead Actress: Finola Hughes (Anna Devane) 1991; Laura Wright (Carly Corinthos Jacks) 2011
- Supporting Actor: Peter Hansen (Lee Baldwin) 1979; David Lewis (Edward Quartermaine) 1982; Gerald Anthony (Marco Dane) 1993; Steve Burton (Jason Morgan) 1998; Stuart Damon (Alan Quartermaine) 1999; Rick Hearst (Ric Lansing) 2004, 2007; Jonathan Jackson (Lucky Spencer) 2011
- Supporting Actress: Jane Elliot (Tracy Quartermaine) 1981; Rena Sofer (Lois Cerullo) 1995; Sarah Brown (Carly Benson) 2000; Vanessa Marcil (Brenda Barrett), 2003; Natalia Livingston (Emily Quartermaine), 2005; Genie Francis (Laura Spencer), 2007;
- Younger Actor: Jonathan Jackson (Lucky Spencer) 1995, 1998, 1999; Jacob Young (Lucky Spencer) 2002; Chad Brannon (Zander Smith) 2004
- Younger Actress: Kimberly McCullough (Robin Scorpio) 1989, 1996; Sarah Brown (Carly Benson) 1997, 1998; Julie Marie Berman (Lulu Spencer), 2009, 2010
- Lifetime Achievement: Rachel Ames (Audrey March Hardy) 2004; Anna Lee (Lila Quartermaine) 2004 (posthumous)
- 2011 "Outstanding Stunt Coordination"
- 2011 "Outstanding Achievement in Technical Direction/Electronic Camera/Video Control for a Drama Series"
- 2011 "Outstanding Original Song for a Drama Series"
- 2011 "Outstanding Achievement in Lighting Direction for a Drama Series"
- 2011 "Outstanding Achievement for a Casting Director for a Drama Series"
- 2011 "Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction/Set Decoration/Scenic Design for a Drama Series"
- 2010 "Outstanding Drama Series Directing Team"
- 2009 "Outstanding Drama Series Writing Team"
- 2008 "Outstanding Achievement in Casting for a Drama Series"
- 2007 "Outstanding Achievement in Casting for a Drama Series"
- 2006 "Outstanding Drama Series Directing Team"
- 2006 "Outstanding Achievement in Casting for a Drama Series"
- 2006 "Outstanding Achievement in Hairstyling for a Drama Series"
- 2005 "Outstanding Drama Series Directing Team"
- 2004 "Outstanding Drama Series Directing Team"
- 2004 "Outstanding Achievement in Makeup for a Drama Series"
- 2003 "Outstanding Drama Series Writing Team"
- 2004 "Lifetime Achievement 2003 "Outstanding Achievement in Multiple Camera Editing for a Drama Series"
- 2002 "Outstanding Original Song"
- 2000 "Outstanding Drama Series Directing Team"
- 1999 "Outstanding Drama Series Writing Team"
- 1999 "Outstanding Achievement in Makeup for a Drama Series"
- 1999 "Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama Series"
- 1999 "Outstanding Original Song" (TIED with As the World Turns)
- 1998 "Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama Series"
- 1996 "Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama Series"
- 1995 "Outstanding Drama Series Writing Team"
- 1995 "Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama Series"
- 1982 "Outstanding Drama Series Directing Team"
- 1981 "Outstanding Drama Series Directing Team"
- 1996, 1998, 2002, and 2004 "Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Daytime Serials"
- 1995, 1996, 1998 and 2012 "Daytime Serials"
When ABC premiered General Hospital on April 1, 1963, the network placed it in the 1 p.m./12 Noon Central timeslot against local newscasts on NBC and CBS affiliates. But on December 30 of that year, General Hospital assumed a place on the daytime schedule that, except for 18 months between July 1976 and January 1978 when it ran as one half of a 90-minute bloc with One Life to Live between 2:30/1:30 and 4/3, it has maintained to this day, 3/2 Central. On September 10, 2012, General Hospital will lose its longtime timeslot, when ABC cedes the 3/2 Central block to its local stations.
During the 1960s, General Hospital earned decent ratings against the likes of To Tell the Truth and The Secret Storm on CBS, but there was a decline as the 1970s came, especially when NBC's Another World became highly popular; for two years, it also faced CBS' The Price Is Right, already a major hit. After continued mediocrity in the Nielsen ratings, ABC was prepared to cancel General Hospital, but decided to give it a second chance in 1977 when it expanded the show to a full hour, from an experimental 45 minutes. However, the expansion came with an ultimatum to the producers that they had six months to improve the show's ratings. Head writers Douglas Marland & Gloria Monty were hired as executive producers, and on their first day, they spent an extra $100,000 re-taping four episodes. A miracle occurred thanks to Monty and the show became the most watched daytime drama by 1979, marking a rare instance of a daytime serial's comeback from near-extinction. During the wedding of Luke and Laura Spencer on November 17, 1981, about 30 million people tuned in to watch them exchange vows and be cursed by Elizabeth Taylor's Helena Cassadine (later played by Constance Towers).
From 1979 to 1988, General Hospital remained number one in the ratings, competing against two low-rated soaps on NBC -- Texas and Santa Barbara -- and Guiding Light over on CBS (although Guiding Light experienced a renaissance for a brief period in the middle of 1984, and became the #1 soap, dethroning General Hospital from the top ratings spot). For the most part, however, General Hospital continued to triumph, even after the departure of popular actors Anthony Geary and Genie Francis in the mid-1980s. Although The Young and the Restless took General Hospital's place as the highest-rated serial in 1989, General Hospital continued to maintain excellent ratings.
Even at its peak in the 1980s, General Hospital had been pre-empted in at least two markets in the United States. With the show still number one in the Nielsens, WDTN in Dayton, Ohio canceled General Hospital in May 1983 in favor of Woody Woodpecker and SuperFriends cartoons. Later, the station would air such shows as Hour Magazine, Geraldo and Maury in General Hospitals time slot until September 2000, when the station's new owners, Sunrise Broadcasting, canceled Maury, due to what it called "community standards", and brought General Hospital back. In Vermont and Plattsburgh, WVNY dropped General Hospital from the schedule in the 1980s and would only bring it back in 1995. During that hiatus, General Hospital still aired on Montreal's CFCF-TV, whose signal was decently available in Vermont and Plattsburgh.
Ever since the 1991-1992 season of General Hospital, the show has had a steady decline in ratings. On and off, it would rank between third and fifth place in the Nielsen Ratings, with CBS's The Young And The Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful coming in first and second place, respectively. General Hospital remained in between third and fifth place in the ratings during that time. During the 1990s General Hospital was put up against competition such as CBS's As the World Turns and NBC's Days of our Lives.
After months of speculation and cancellation rumors, Deadline.com reported (and the network confirmed) on April 11, 2012 that ABC made the decision to renew General Hospital, and cancel the lifestyle show The Revolution.[9][13] While the news was confirmed by ABC, the network has yet confirmed its daytime schedule for the 2012-13 season [9] nor has it specified for how long the soap opera has been renewed.[14] The show's current 3 p.m. (ET) timeslot will be returned to ABC's owned-and-operated stations and affiliates after September 7, 2012 (with many of them airing Katie Couric's new syndicated talk show, Katie, in the timeslot following ABC Daytime afternoon programming upon its September 10 debut).[9] This could result in General Hospital moving into the 2 p.m. (ET) timeslot.[9]
- Years as #1 series
| Year(s) |
Household Rating |
| 1979–1980 |
9.9 |
| 1980–1981 |
11.4 |
| 1981–1982 |
11.2 |
| 1982–1983 |
9.8 |
| 1983–1984 |
10.0 |
| 1984–1985 |
9.1 |
| 1985–1986 |
9.2 |
| 1986–1987 |
8.3 |
| 1987–1988 |
8.1 (Tied with The Young and the Restless) |
- Highest-rated week in daytime history (November 16–20, 1981)
- (Household ratings, Nielsen Media Research)
| Serial |
Household rating |
(Time slot) Network |
Millions of households |
| 1. General Hospital |
16.0 |
(3-4pm) ABC |
17.5 |
| 2. All My Children |
10.2 |
(1-2pm) ABC |
11.7 |
| 3. One Life To Live |
10.2 |
(2-3pm) ABC |
11.6 |
| 4. Guiding Light |
7.9 |
(3-4pm) CBS |
8.2 |
1962-1963 season
1963-1964 season
1964-1965 season
1965-1966 season
1966-1967 season
1967-1968 season
1968-1969 season
1969-1970 season
1970-1971 season
|
1971-1972 season
1972-1973 season
1973-1974 season
1974-1975 season
1975-1976 season
1976-1977 season
1977-1978 season
1978-1979 season
|
1988-1989 season
1989-1990 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 8.0
- 2. General Hospital 7.4
1989-1990 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 8.0
- 2. General Hospital 7.4
1990-1991 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 8.1
- 2. General Hospital 6.7
1991-1992 ratings
1992-1993 ratings
- 1. The Young and the Restless 8.4
- 3. General Hospital 5.8
1993-1994 ratings
- 1. The Young and the Restless 8.6
- 3. General Hospital 4.7
1994-1995 ratings
- 1. The Young and the Restless 7.5
- 3. General Hospital 5.6
1995-1996 ratings
- 1. The Young and the Restless 7.7
- 5. General Hospital 4.7
1996-1997 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 7.1
- 4. General Hospital 4.8
1997-1998 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 7.0
- 4. General Hospital 4.7
1998-1999 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 6.9
- 4. General Hospital 4.6
|
1999-2000 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 6.8
- 4. General Hospital 4.0
2000-2001 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 5.8
- 4. General Hospital 3.7
2001-2002 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 5.0
- 4. General Hospital 3.4
2002-2003 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 4.7
- 3. General Hospital 3.5
2003-2004 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 4.4
- 3. General Hospital 3.2
2004-2005 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 4.2
- 3. General Hospital 3.0
2005-2006 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 4.2
- 3. General Hospital 2.7
2006-2007 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 4.2
- 3. General Hospital 2.6
2007-2008 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 4.0
- 4. General Hospital 2.3
2008-2009 season
- 1. The Young and the Restless 3.7
- 3. General Hospital 2.1
2009-2010 season As of ratings for November 15–19, 2010
- 1. The Young and the Restless 5.0 (As of November 19, 2010)
- 6. General Hospital 2.3 (As of November 19, 2010)
|
The popularity of General Hospital has gained it many parodies and references in other mainstream programs. For example, in the early 1990s, some episodes of General Hospital were featured as "shorts" during the fourth season of the parody show Mystery Science Theater 3000. The series was also parodied/homaged in the song General Hospi-Tale by The Afternoon Delights, and in the film Tootsie, which took place among the cast and crew of a fictional soap opera program. In the Fox medical drama House, Dr. House enjoys Prescription: Passion, which is a poorly acted, over-the-top parody of General Hospital that he watches constantly, even when he should be working. In the season three episode, "Half-Wit", House hides his blood test results under the name, "Luke N. Laura", referring to General Hospital's legendary couple. MAD TV did a sketch on the series with actors Jacklyn Zeman, Rebecca Herbst, and Jacob Young (the second Lucky). The movie Young Doctors in Love featured a large part of General Hospital's cast from 1982. In a 2010 episode of The Colbert Report, comedian Stephen Colbert poked fun at the show, responding to a clip of Maurice Benard's Sonny shooting Dominic Zamprogna's Dante, saying "Sonny shot Dante! No!"[15]
General Hospital has many famous fans, including Wayne Gretzky and his wife, Janet Jones, along with The Sopranos actor Vincent Pastore, who would join the show in late 2008 for a short guest stint. World renowned skier Kristi Leskinen is a devout fan of the show, along with actor Jason Gray-Stanford and singer Billy Currington. driver Mike Metzger is also a fan of the program, and rarely misses an episode. Elizabeth Taylor, a huge fan of the show, asked for a role on the soap opera and joined the cast temporarily as Helena Cassadine to be a part of Luke and Laura's 1981 wedding. Princess Diana was a devout fan of the show, and went as far as to send two bottles of Bollinger champagne to Anthony Geary and Genie Francis in time for Luke and Laura's 1981 wedding. Geary turned his into a lamp.[16] Diana's wedding to Prince Charles earlier that year outrated Luke and Laura's in number of viewers. General Hospital helped launch the singing career of Rick Springfield, who had watched the show for many years before joining the series in 1981. While never having sang on the show, his name recognition brought him substantial notoriety in the music community. On the July 5, 2010, episode of The Colbert Report, comedian Stephen Colbert told his audience that being on sick leave allowed him to catch up on General Hospital.[15] The fictional diagnostician Gregory House on the popular TV series House, M.D. is portrayed as an avid fan of General Hospital.
The success of the long-running soap opera has had one sister soap, one spinoff in the United States, and two primetime spinoffs in the United States and the United Kingdom.
The Young Marrieds was ABC's first attempt at a sister soap for General Hospital. It ran for only two years, racking up a total of 380 episodes. Despite its moderate popularity, it was aired against CBS's top-rated The Edge of Night, which it could not compete against. The series finale aired on March 25, 1966, with the show's main protagonist contemplating suicide. It ended in a cliffhanger, leaving the audience wondering if the man had killed himself or not. The Young Marrieds was set in the fictional suburb of Queen's Point, which was considered by the writers to be a suburb of Port Charles.
The UK series General Hospital did not feature any characters from the American show, but was modeled after its format. It started as a half-hour program broadcast in the afternoons, which was unusual for UK serials that normally aired in prime time. In 1975 it was expanded to an hour-long format and moved to Friday evenings.
Port Charles was a daytime drama that initially featured interns in a competitive medical school program, and was known for having more action actually in the hospital than General Hospital itself. It also included the characters of Scott Baldwin. Serena Baldwin, Lucy Coe, Kevin Collins, and Karen Wexler, all of whom originally appeared as characters on General Hospital. As the show evolved, it tended more towards gothic intrigue, including supernatural elements such as vampires and life after death. It also switched formats from an open-ended daytime serial to 13-week story arcs known as "books", similar to Spanish language telenovelas.
General Hospital: Night Shift is the second American prime time spinoff of a daytime drama (the first being Our Private World, a spinoff of As the World Turns). Its first season aired from July 12, 2007 to October 4, 2007 on SOAPnet, a cable channel owned by ABC.[17] The series follows the nighttime adventures of familiar and new characters around the hospital. As of March 2008, the first season of the series was "SOAPnet's most-watched series ever", with ABC Daytime and SOAPnet President Brian Frons noting that Night Shift drew more than 1 million new viewers to the channel during its first season.[18]
General Hospital: Twist of Fate was a primetime special that aired on Saturday, December 14, 1996. The episode picked up where that Friday's show had left off. The special centered around Laura's supposed death at the hands of Stefan Cassadine.
On April 2, 1998, General Hospital aired a primetime special in celebration of the program's 35th anniversary. Hosted by Anthony Geary, the show focused and recapped on many popular storylines including Monica's breast cancer, BJ's death, and Stone's battle with HIV. To date, this is the only anniversary special that was broadcast in primetime and that didn't include any of the current storyline.
- ^ http://www.tv.com/shows/general-hospital/
- ^ "Longest Running TV Drama". Arts & Media. Guinness World Records. 2009. http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/records/arts_and_media/tv_shows/longest_running_tv_drama.aspx.
- ^ Boca Raton News, Friday, November 4, 1977 (via Google News archive): http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=X94PAAAAIBAJ&sjid=mowDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4399,2284786&dq=general+hospital+expands&hl=en
- ^ Wolf, Buck. "Luke and Laura: Still the Ultimate TV Wedding." ABC.com November 16, 2006.
- ^ a b West, Abby. "Luke and Laura: 17 Great Soap Supercouples". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20174499_9,00.html. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
- ^ "General Hospital Soap Opera - LoveToKnow Soap Operas". Soap-operas.lovetoknow.com. http://soap-operas.lovetoknow.com/General_Hospital_Soap_Opera. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
- ^ Poniewozik, James (September 6, 2007). "The 100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME". Time (Time.com). http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1651341_1659192_1652529,00.html. Retrieved March 4, 2010.
- ^ ABC DAYTIME SHAKEUP: Network Cancels BOTH "All My Children" & "One Life To Live", Replaces Them With Lifestyle Series, Deadline Hollywood, April 14, 2011
- ^ a b c d e f g Deadline (2012-04-11). "ABC's The Revolution Cancelled, General Hospital Renewed". http://www.deadline.com/2012/04/abc-the-revolution-cancelled-general-hospital-renewed-gma-afternoon/. Retrieved April 11, 2012.
- ^ Wheat, Alynda (February 17, 2006). "What to Watch". EW.com. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1160337,00.html. Retrieved June 13, 2009.
- ^ "Watch GH's New Opening Credits | SOAPnet". Sn.soapnet.go.com. http://sn.soapnet.go.com/news/article/gh-gets-new-credits-sequence. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
- ^ http://abc.go.com/shows/general-hospital/GH-Valentini-Carlivati
- ^ Zap2It (2012-04-11). "'General Hospital' safe but 'The Revolution' canceled". http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2012/04/general-hospital-safe-but-the-revolution-canceled.html. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ^ http://www.tvguide.com/News/General-Hospital-Interview-1046065.aspx
- ^ a b Colbert Report 7/6/10
- ^ "Luke, Laura together again". USA Today. October 24, 2006. http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2006-10-24-luke-and-laura_x.htm. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
- ^ "GH Spinoff Planned For SOAPnet." - SoapCentral.com February 12, 2007.
- ^ Nordyke, Kimberly. "SoapNet renews Night Shift." The Hollywood Reporter. May 27, 2008.
- Gary Warner, General Hospital: The Complete Scrapbook, Stoddart (November 1995), ISBN 1-881649-40-7
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![Laura Wright - Stronger as One [OFFICIAL]](http://web.archive.org./web/20130301014300im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/NJJWwb_QN6A/default.jpg "Laura Wright - Stronger as One [OFFICIAL]")
