General Hospital at 63: Celebrate Its Most Iconic Moments From 1963 to Today
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On April 1, 1963, what is now the longest-running American soap, General Hospital, debuted on ABC. The show was created by real-life spouses Frank and Doris Hursley, who had previously written for shows like Lassie and Search for Tomorrow. The Hursleys conceived of GH as a continuing medical drama set at a hospital in what was then an unnamed city, which focused on the intertwined personal and professional lives of characters like Steve Hardy (John Beradino), the workaholic chief of staff, unhappily married nurse Jessie Brewer (Emily McLaughlin) and her philandering husband, Phil Brewer (Roy Thinnes).
GH premiered the same day as another soap, NBC’s TheDoctors, which went off the air in 1982 — but GH is still going strong. When it was on the verge of cancellation in the late 1970s, its new executive producer, Gloria Monty, set in motion a ratings bonanza by introducing the wealthy Quartermaine clan — Edward (David Lewis, then John Ingle), Lila (Anna Lee), Alan (Stuart Damon) and Tracy (Jane Elliot) — and turning the focus to younger characters like Laura (Genie Francis), Scotty (Kin Shriner) and Bobbie (Jacklyn Zeman). By 1981, as Laura and Luke’s (Anthony Geary) pairing became a cultural phenomenon, the show was the most-watched soap on TV.
Today, the show holds the record for the most number of Daytime Emmys for Outstanding Daytime Drama with a whopping 18. In its current cast, 9 actors — Maurice Benard (Sonny), Jane Elliot, Genie Francis, Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis), Finola Hughes (Anna), Eden McCoy (Josslyn), Kelly Thiebaud (Britt), Maura West (Ava) and Laura Wright (Carly) have won Daytime Emmys for their work on the show. Famous GH alumni include Mark Hamill (ex-Kent), Demi Moore (ex-Jackie), Rick Springfield (ex-Noah), Rick Martin (ex-Miguel), John Stamos (ex-Blackie) and Amber Tamblyn (ex-Emily).
In celebration of the show’s 63rd anniversary, join us for a look back at some of the most unforgettable and iconic moments in Port Charles history.
(From l.) Dr. Steve Hardy (John Beradino), Nurse Jessie Brewer (Emily McLaughlin) and aspiring cardiologist Dr. Phil Brewer (Roy Thinnes) were at the center of the action when the show premiered. Jessie spoke the very first line of dialogue on the show: “Seventh floor, nurses station.”
Courtesy Everett Collection
In 1964, Nurse Lucille’s (Lucille Wall) younger sister, flight attendant Audrey (Rachel Ames), blew into town. She became a nurse, too, and caught the eye of Dr. Steve Hardy. The coupe ultimately married three times before his passing in 1996.
ABC/George Long
Alan Quartermaine (Stuart Damon, r.) and his wealthy family settled in Port Charles in 1978. He wed fellow doctor Monica Bard (Leslie Charleson), but the union was a tempestuous one. She carried on an affair with her ex, Rick Webber (Chris Robinson), and when she gave birth to a baby boy, Alan Jr. (AJ), in 1979 — delivered by Rick’s wife, Lesley, no less! — she mistakenly believed that Rick was the boy’s true father.
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In 1979, law student Scotty Baldwin (Kin Shriner) and teenager Laura Webber (Genie Francis) tied the knot after overcoming obstacles such as Bobbie Spencer’s dogged efforts to split them up. Their ceremony was conducted in the park and was attended by the man Laura would ultimately marry, fall in love with, Luke Spencer.
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Action and adventure bonded Luke (Anthony Geary) and his WSB agent bestie, Robert Scorpio (Tristan Rogers). Along with Laura, they infiltrated Cassadine Island in 1981 and managed to deactivate the ruthless family’s weather-control machine, saving the world.
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Luke and Laura’s courtship culminated in a splashy 1981 wedding that was watched by over 30 million viewers — and was memorably crashed by Laura’s vengeful ex, Scotty.
ABC PHOTO ARCHIVES
The month after Laura wed Luke, her mom, Lesley (Denise Alexander) remarried Rick.
ABC PHOTO ARCHIVES
Reporter Jackie Templeton (Demi Moore) stumbled upon the dead body of Alan’s mistress, Susan Moore — the biological mother of Jason Morgan and Drew Cain — in 1983. Turns out, she was killed by Lila Quartermaine’s first husband, Crane Tolliver.
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While Laura was presumed dead, Luke fell into a romance with con woman Holly Sutton (Emma Samms). Luke was subsequently presumed dead in an avalanche, so Robert stepped up and married a pregnant Holly to block her deportation. They fell madly in love, which made things more than a bit awkward when Luke resurfaced.
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In 1985, Robert’s life was upended by the arrival of his ex-wife, Anna Devane (Finola Hughes), and the daughter he never knew he had, Robin (Kimberly McCullough).
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Aztec princess Felicia Cummings (Kristina Wagner) and policeman Andrew “Frisco” Jones (Jack Wagner) became one of the show’s most beloved supercouples. Their first wedding took place in 1986.
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Anna found love with dashing Duke Lavery (Ian Buchanan), who became her husband in 1987.
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Social-climbing Lucy married into the Q clan in 1990 when Alan was forced to legitimize his relationship with his latest mistress to avoid plunging the family into further scandal. Lucy donned a red gown with a matching and quite dramatic hat when the dress she’d ordered didn’t show up. By the next year, he was remarried to Monica.
ABC/Craig Sjodin
Luke and Laura returned to town with their young son, Lucky (Jonathan Jackson), in 1993 after spending years on the run from mobster Frank Smith.
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The Nurses’ Ball, hosted since its inception by Lucy, was introduced in 1994.
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In 1994, Tony (Brad Maule) and Bobbie Jones) were devastated when their young daughter, B.J. (Brighton Hertford), was rendered brain-dead after a school bus crash. In a landmark tale for the show, her heart was transplanted into her ailing cousin Maxie (Frisco and Felicia’s daughter), saving the other girl’s life.
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Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) became a viewer sensation when he hit the Port Charles scene in the early 1990s — especially when he was paired with Vanessa Marcil’s Brenda Barrett, pictured in Puerto Rico in 1994.
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In 1995, Ned Ashton (Wally Kurth) married the girl of his dreams, Brooklyn native Lois Cerullo (Rena Sofer).
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Robin’s poignant love story with Stone Cates (Michael Sutton) came to a tragic end in 1995, when he lost his life to AIDS. Shortly before his passing, she learned that she was HIV-positive.
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Carly Roberts (then-Sarah Brown) blew into town in 1996 harboring a ginormous secret: she was the daughter Bobbie (Jacklyn Zeman) had given up for adoption years ago. Carly’s affair with Bobbie’s husband, Tony, created a huge scandal.
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The Cassadines came roaring back to prominence in 1996 with the introduction of Stefan Cassadine (Stephen Nichols, r.) and his nephew, Nikolas (Tyler Christopher) — Laura’s secret son!
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One of the show’s most popular young couplings was Lucky and Elizabeth Webber (Rebecca Herbst), Audrey’s granddaughter. In 1998, Lucky helped Liz through the trauma of being raped, which ultimately led to his horrifying discovery that his father had once raped his mother.
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Sonny and Carly reluctantly tied the knot in 2000 so that they couldn’t be forced to testify against one another, but much to their surprise, they fell genuinely in love.
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Sonny and Carly’s (then-Tamara Braun) firstborn entered the world in dramatic fashion in 2003 after Sonny accidentally shot her in the head while gunning for Lorenzo Alcazar.
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In 2004, Jason Morgan (Steve Burton) claimed to be the father of Sam McCall’s (Kelly Monaco) baby (really, Sonny was the bio dad). It was an unlikely start to one of the show’s most popular romances of the 2000s, and though she lost her baby was stillborn, their love endured.
ABC/ADAM LARKEY
The timing had never been right for Liz and Jason, but in 2006, while she was on the outs with Lucky and things were rocky between him and Sam, they made love for the first time, conceiving a son, Jake.
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In 2008, Robin went into labor during her wedding to Patrick Drake (Jason Thompson). After baby Emma made her grand entrance, the couple made it all the way to, “I do.”
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In 2010, Sonny found out that undercover cop Dante Falconeri (Dominic Zamprogna) was his son — just moments after he shot him!
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In 2011, Sam and Jason finally married, but at the last minute, they ditched a traditional wedding in favor of eloping.
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It was the end of an era for Tracy (Jane Elliot) and Monica — and for viewers — when the Quartermaines’ patriarch, Edward, passed away in his sleep in 2012. Matriarch Lila had died in 2004.
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In 2013, Alexis Davis (Nancy Lee Grahn) thought she was making the acquaintance of “Derek Wells,” but that was just an alias for a back-from-the-dead Julian Jerome (William deVry), and not only that, but they’d met before and shared a night of passion when Alexis was a teen, resulting in a daughter, Sam. The pair’s stormy love affair saw them both marry and divorce in 2016.
Howard Wise/jpistudios.com
Robin was presumed dead in 2012 and grief-stricken Patrick found love again with Sabrina Santiago, but on their wedding day in 2013, Robin arrived at the church for an emotional reunion with her husband and daughter Emma (then-Brooklyn Rae Silzer).
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Carly (Laura Wright) was poised to marry Franco Baldwin (Roger Howarth, r.) in 2014, but he had other plans. At the altar, he exposed her affair with Sonny and her role in helping Sonny conceal that he’d murdered Michael’s (then-Chad Duell) father, AJ. To say Michael didn’t take the news well would be an understatement. Also pictured: Kristen Alderson as Kiki Jerome
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In 2014, baby Avery made one of the more unusual entrances on soaps: a deranged Nina Reeves (then-Michelle Stafford) drugged Ava Jerome (Maura West) to induce early labor, delivered the girl and then fled to Canada with her.
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Maxie Jones (Kirsten Storms) found true love with Detective Nathan West (Ryan Paevey), and they wed in 2017. Sadly, he was killed in the line of duty the following year while she was pregnant with their son, James.
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Tensions were high in 2017 when Jason returned after a 5-year presumed death to discover that Sam was married to a man she believed to be him! It was ultimately proven that this man was Jason’s secret twin, Drew Cain (Billy Miller), who had been brainwashed with Jason’s memories.
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Notorious serial killer Ryan Chamberlain was revealed to be alive in 2018, when he managed to take twin brother Kevin Collins (both Jon Lindstrom) hostage and assume his identity.
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In 2020, the Corinthos family said good-bye to Sonny’s father, Mike (Max Gail), who died from complications of Alzheimer’s disease.
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Valentin Cassadine (James Patrick Stuart) had been harboring feelings for Anna for years, and they finally became lovers in 2022.
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The ink was barely dry on Portia Robinson (Brook Kerr) and Curtis Ashford (Donnell Turner)’s marriage license when Portia’s years of lies came crashing down as Trina forced her to come clean and admit that Curtis might be Trina’s father, leaving the man who raised her, Marcus Taggert, utterly crushed.
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In 2023, Spencer Cassadine (Nicholas Alexander Chavez) and Trina Robinson (Tabyana Ali) consummated their romance in high style on a jaunt to New York City.
When Sam was tragically murdered in 2024, mourners filled the pews at her funeral
At the Nurses’ Ball in 2025, Brook Lynn Quartermaine (Amanda Setton) was forced to fess up to Dante that she had given birth to his son in their youth when that son was revealed to be Gio Palmieri.
When Monica passed away in 2025, Tracy delivered a stirring eulogy.
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In 2026, Willow Tait (Katelyn MacMullen) was acquitted of shooting her louse of a husband, Drew (Cameron Mathison) … and she celebrated by jabbing him in the neck with a drug that mimicked the effects of a stroke!
