Chad Duell, incinerated on “General Hospital”
In 1978, I worked for a fan magazine company called Sterling’s, which published titles like Daytime TV magazine. My office mate and friend (we shared a TV set) Anne-Marie Allocca insisted that I give up watching my then-favorite soap, Another World (which was 90 minutes in those days), and start watching her favorite, AW’s time-slot competitor General Hospital.
Well, AM, what a great favor you did for me. At that point, executive producer Gloria Monty, a genius I was privileged to interview many times, had recently teamed up with the great headwriter Douglas Marland, whom I personally came to adore, to create a new kind of soap opera that attracted millions of younger viewers. With appealing young characters like Luke Spencer (played by Tony Geary), Laura Vining (played by Genie Francis) and Scott Baldwin (played by Kin Shriner), and the rich and slightly kooky Quartermaine family, the show became a national phenomenon.
But that was a long time ago. Today’s GH is a thoroughly different show. Over the last month, I’ve grown increasingly appalled by its violence and ugliness. Let’s look at the catastrophes that lately have befallen the citizens of Port Charles.
First, the popular character of Sam McCall (played for 20 years by Kelly Monaco) died on the operating table when she was donating an organ to Lulu Spencer (played by Alexa Havins Bruening). Sam’s dead body (yikes!) was shown on screen for three days! Then tragedy struck again as policeman Dex Heller (played by Evan Hofer), was knifed to death onscreen. Is this supposed to be some sort of coincidence? Earlier last year, Johnny Wactor, the attractive actor who played Brando Corbin on GH, was brutally murdered on the streets of Los Angeles.
But the worst was yet to come. The character of Michael Corinthos (played by Chad Duell) was shown in flames. Yes, he was on fire! But obviously, GH didn’t consider this titillating enough for its audience! At the end of Friday’s show, Bible-thumping Cyrus Renault (played by Jeff Kober, always an interesting actor) was shown injecting digitalis into Michael’s IV as Michael lay unconscious in the hospital.
What gives, GH? Specifically, GH as produced by Frank Valentini and written by Chris Van Etten and Elizabeth Korte? We watch soap operas for romance, the warm feeling of family love, and the complexity of human interactions. For the last few weeks on GH, these have been superseded by an egregious display of death and violence.
Here’s a word I’ve never used in 40 years of writing about soaps—how revolting.
There was nothing quite like old school GH. Rick and Leslie Webber, Alan Quartermaine sneaking around with Susan Moore behind Monica’s back, Heather being suspected of murder, Luke and Laura, Robert and Holly. They didn’t feel like soap characters, they felt like friends.
My apologies, I got lost in nostalgia.
GL–I’ve been watching soaps so long I always get lost in my memories. I agree with you here–GH was a lot more fun and enertaining to watch years ago. I too, since when I was a teenager have always thought of soap characters as being friends.
Thank you Marlena for reliving those wonderful office days at Sterling Magazines. Oh how I miss the days of interviewing the talented daytime actors and being the first female editor of Daytime Magazine. General Hospital will always hold a special place in my heart. The first magazine I ever edited was a special edition devoted to Luke and Laura! Write on Marlena!
It was a pleasure to work with you Anne Marie at Sterling’s. We were all so young and we all really enjoyed what we were doing every workday. Plus you did a terrific job as editor of Daytime TV!
I’d say this grim mentality began consuming GH when Bob Guza became headwriter. I don’t think it is as prevalent now, because the show is on autopilot whereas he had a genuine in glorifying the mob and denigrating any characters who weren’t cool gun-toting dudes or their molls. The material is very dark but at least it has given Tracy some good stuff and has allowed Carly and Jason to see the consequences of their actions.
You have great insight into “GH” So glad this mess gives a spotlight to Jane Elliot.
As a self-described soap writer myself, sometimes you have to shake things up. That may require shocking, violent deaths, even of beloved characters. You may even need to shake up the cast like Gloria Monty did in 1978, by firing many of the actors/characters and starting fresh – the Quartermaine’s, the Webbers, and the Spencer’s for example, which in effect created a whole new show. The show that existed for 15 years prior was about the happenings of the 7th floor, Nurses Station and their patients, at an unnamed metropolitan hospital and the staff therein is all but a memory.