Many years ago, Blackgama, an association of mink ranchers, started a print advertising campaign that became a cultural touchstone: “What becomes a legend most?” The answer: featuring a star like Lauren Bacall or Barbra Streisand modeling one of its coats. In our daytime soap world, there are numerous legendary performers — both alive and dead. I … [Read more...]

Over the last four decades, Marlena has written many, many stories on “General Hospital” (which premiered in 1963). Now that NBC is moving “Days of Our Lives” to its streaming service, Peacock, as of next month an alarming question arises: Will ABC send its soap standard bearer “GH” to streaming as well? Marlena certainly hopes not! So perhaps … [Read more...]

On ABC’s General Hospital, mob boss Sonny Corinthos has killed many people. But Maurice Benard, the actor who makes his tight-lipped menace so convincing, has a bigger heart than the character he plays. In his new autobiography, Maurice Benard: Nothing General About it, Benard, a soap superstar, chronicles an actor’s life of love and pain in … [Read more...]