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Things Only Massive General Hospital Fans Would Know

Dorathy Gass

July 15, 2019

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As one of the longest-running American soap operas ever, General Hospital (GH) is a daytime drama rich in history. The show has accumulated a ton of fans over the years thanks to their stellar writers, crew, and talented actors; however, how many viewers can say they truly know all about the show? Below is a list of things that only massive GH fans would know.

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12. Emergency Hospital

While GH is a good name for the show, as much of what goes on in storylines centers around the hospital, how many fans know it was not the soap opera’s original working title? Prior to the show debuting, a working title that emerged was Emergency Hospital. No word on the reason behind the change, but perhaps GH just sounded better?

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11. Port Charles Is Born

While GH debuted in 1963, storylines mostly unfolded in and around the hospital setting. It wasn’t until the late 1970s, well over a decade after the show first aired that the name of the little town, Port Charles, began getting mentioned. Until that point in time, the location of the hospital remained unknown to fans.

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10. GH’s Timing

When the soap first aired, it was given a 30-minute time slot, which continued until 1976, when GH’s broadcast was increased to 45 minutes. Two years later in 1978, the show would hit an hour, and it has never turned back since! How did GH fans live with only 30 minutes of show daily?

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9. Anna’s Recast

Anna Devane is a soap opera character that simply cannot be recast; however, back in the early ‘90s someone did fill in for actress Finola Hughes for a short while. Camilla Moore stepped into the role in late 1991, while Hughes worked on another project and negotiated her GH contract at the time. By the end of January 1992, Moore was gone from GH screens and Finola jumped back into the role for a brief time before moving on to another project.

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8. Laura’s Teen Years

Hard for some fans to believe, but Laura would take another life in the land of Port Charles at the young age of 16. While she’s would move on to kill others as the years would go by, the first time it happened was during her teenage years when her mom and boyfriend engaged in an affair. When Laura found out, she pushed him down the stairs, and the rest is history.

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7. Where Did The Haunted Star Come From?

While still involved in GH storylines (here and there) to this day, many forget the origins of the Haunted Star. It’s been a casino, a night club, and a place where couples get “busy;” however, the yacht first emerged in 1981 as a wedding gift to Luke and Laura for their pending nuptials.

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6. Those Front Gates

Some GH fans get chills whenever they see those old front gates emerge from the intro during the earlier years of the show. While the gates symbolize GH’s front area, the gates used for the old opening sequences were actually the USC Medical Center, and it is still quite the landmark. In fact, in today’s day and age, there are many who travel to this location to get a snapshot in front of them.

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5. Emily Was Not Really A Quartermaine

Emily was such a huge part of storylines before her passing in 2007. Very close to Jason, despite his last name change, and a vital part of the Quartermaine family, it’s easy to forget that she wasn’t biologically a Quartermaine. Monica developed cancer in 1994 and befriended a fellow patient called Paige Bowen. Bowen was Emily’s biological mother, and with no other family to turn to, Monica and Alan adopted the young girl when her mom passed away. The rest of the Quartermaines welcome the child with open arms as soon as she stepped foot in the mansion.

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4. Life Imitates Art

While other shows have addressed mental health issues in the past, most times it can take a mocking undertone, or create an outrageous character. When Sonny’s bipolar condition emerged on screen in the 2000s, a more realistic story unfolded to viewers. That could be because life imitated art with actor Maurice Benard suffering from the illness in real-life.

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3. Baby Drama

Lucas has had to deal with a ton of drama thanks to Brad and his baby switch scheme. Sometimes life in the land of soaps tend to go full circle; after all, when Lucas was born, he was adopted by Bobbie and Tony Jones at the time, with Cheryl Stansbury as his biological mom, and with many thinking Robert Scorpio was his dad … until it was revealed that Julian Jerome was. There was also a point in time when Bobbie and Tiffany (Cheryl’s sister) fought for custody of the boy. Some things never change!

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2. Rebuilding A Hospital

Remember when the hospital burned down in 2009? Thanks to the Quartermaine family, it was rebuilt at that point in time, which makes a ton of sense as to why the family remains so closely invested into the building, and continues with a lot of decisions about the hospital, ensuring someone from the family sits on the board at all times.

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1. Super Fans

Yes, GH has an incredible fan base, and quite the celebrity fan base that loves to watch the show, and partake in storylines. Elizabeth Taylor was a huge fan of the show, and was even the very first actress cast in the Helena Cassadine role in the ‘80s. Roseanne Barr and hubby (at the time) Tom Arnold also made guest appearances in 1994, and a character was created for James Franco during his GH stint that lasted from 2009 to 2011 in the form of Franco Baldwin.

Dorathy Gass

Dorathy Gass is an avid fan of daytime drama and has been watching Days of Our Lives, General Hospital, and Young and the Restless for over two decades now. As a full-time freelance writer, she gets to combine her love of soap operas and writing through her Fame 10 articles. Also a mother of two busy girls and a mommy blogger, she's been published multiple times over in Huffington Post Parents and Scary Mommy.