ABC’s General Hospital will celebrate its 62nd anniversary on April 1 (2025), and the Powers That Be have used the milestone installment to celebrate the contributions of stalwart star Genie Francis (Laura Spencer Collins) and the late, great Leslie Charleson (Monica Quartermaine).

Genie Francis On General Hospital’s Special 62nd Anniversary Episode

It falls to Francis’ alter-ego to officially open the hospital’s new ‘Dr. Monica Quartermaine Cardiac Wing,’ an honor which the actress doesn’t take lightly…well, maybe just a touch. “It’s always nice when they acknowledge the fact that I’m sort of an antique here,” she quipped in the recent issue of TVGuide (Number 12, Issue #3793-3795). “I’m historical. I like the feeling of that.”

Francis added: “I take great pride in giving the speeches because there’s a lot of truth in them and how I feel about this place and how I feel about the people in it.”

As noted in the publication, the episode was written before Charleson’s January 12 passing, with the hope that the actress would be well enough to appear. Now, the team is planning a memorial for Monica that will air at a later date.

Francis remembered her costar as someone who was “always so kind to me. Most of us have come and gone, me included. Even Tony [Geary, ex-Luke Spencer] came and went. But Leslie was there nonstop. She was a real pillar of this show and of that hospital, which is a lovely thing. I’m glad they did this in her honor. I think it’s beautiful.”

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