GENERAL HOSPITAL:
an illustred history (1)


1963-1979



When the show began, it evolved mainly around the constant crises of Nurse Jessie Brewer and her unfaithful young husband Dr. Phil Brewer. Also in the story was Dr. Steve Hardy and his romantic problems with ex-stewardess Audrey March. Other core characters in the early years included Dr. Tom Baldwin, his lawyer brother Lee, Lee's wife Meg, and her son Scotty.

Jessie Brewer, R.N., everybody's friend and confidante of General Hospital, had met and married, a handsome young intern seven years younger than she, and sacrificed to help him become a practicing cardiologist. Their child was born with a serious heart ailment, and cardiologist Phil Brewer was helpless to prevent his own baby's death. The tragedy ended when Phil and Jessie were finally divorced.

Jessie's closest friend and ally has always been, Dr. Steve Hardy. Reserved and wise, Steve, the son of a missionary family and born and raised in China, was devoted to his work at the hospital. But he also needed love. That need was fulfilled, for a while, in his marriage to one time swinging airline stewardess Audrey March, sister of Lucille Wall, the good -hearted senior nurse. Audrey had gotten tired of all the men and the parties and had wanted children with Steve. When she failed to become pregnant, Audrey mistakenly believed Steve to be sterile and became pregnant through artificial insemination. But the unborn child died in an auto accident when Steve was at the wheel, and their marriage subsequently ended in divorce. Audrey, ever obsessed with motherhood, went to Vietnam to care for orphans.

Audrey March returned from Vietnam to become a nurse at General Hospital and married Dr. Tom Baldwin, whom she married just to prove to herself that she didn't love Steve. Audrey realized she didn't love Tom, a self-destructive loser type, and wouldn't have sexual relations with him, but he forced himself on her anyway, and she became pregnant. When Audrey realized that she still loved Steve Hardy, she sued Tom Baldwin for a divorce and left town to have her child.



1963
When General Hospital premiered in 1963,
Jessie Brewer (Emily McLaughIin, center), Phil Brewer (Roy Thinnes, left)
and Steve Hardy (John Beradino, right) were in charge of the hospital.
Phil later died, but Jessie and Steve
remain forces to be reckoned with by the staff of General Hospital.




Steve Hardy








Jessie Brewer


When she returned to the hospital she told everyone that the baby had died, in order to keep Tom from invalidating their divorce. After Audrey and Steve decided to remarry, Audrey had to keep spinning a bigger web of deceit, hurting their relationship. The remarriage between Steve and Audrey never took place, because Tom did find out about his son, whom Audrey was secretly hiding at home, and Audrey had return to him to keep her child But of course a loveless marriage can't work, so Tom, threatens himself this time with the loss his son in a divorce action kidnapped young Tommy- with the help of adult babysitter Florence Andrews and ran away leaving Audrey in shock.

Tom Baldwin's handsome, fortyish attorney brother, Lee, had once fallen in love with Jessie Brewer, but after losing her to Phil he married Meg Brooke, a nurse with a young son and a problem stepdaughter. After her mastectomy, Meg had a mental breakdown and was committed to a sanitarium. Later, she was cured but developed high blood pressure, for which beautiful and independently single Dr. Lesley Williams (Denise Alexander) began treating her. Meg finally died, leaving Lee a widower with a stepson, Scotty Baldwin.

Phil once again showed up at General Hospital, seeking to win Diana back. Augusta had written to Phil in Nairobi informing him that she was carrying Peter's baby, but now she begged Phil not to tell Peter because of her pride. Caring only for himself, Phil went to Peter and told him that he was soon to be a new father, casting a new cloud over the Taylor's marriage. One night, nurse Jane Dawson found Jessie Brewer hugging Phil's limp body. "I'm sorry," Jessie kept saying, over and over. Phil had been murdered!

Who did it? At least five people had reason to want to see him dead. It was Jessie who was finally charged with Murder One-although the blunt instrument that had cracked Phil's skull was never found. Before Phil's death Jessie had come down with San Joaquin Valley Fever, but had courageously refused to leave her nursing chores to recuperate. Jessie now had to face two crises.



1964
Audrey March (Rachel Ames), an stewardess-turned-nurse
with a malaria stricken patient,
Randy Washburn (Mark Miller) shocking everyone.




1964
Jessie and Phil Brewer (Robert Hogan)
were suffering problems of their own.
His many extramarital flings had ended their marriage.




1965
Jessie and Phil




1969
Jane (Shelby Hiatt) wed Howie (Ray Girardin)
but he was very irresponsible and their marriage bombed.
She confided in the nurses.




1969
Peter Taylor (Craig Huebing) fell In love with head nurse Jessie Brewer.
They married with Steve Hardy as best man.
Their happiness was short-lived,
though when Jessie's former husband Phil Brewer came back to town.




1972
Mary (Ann Helm) came to Port Charles
and admitted her husband was in jail.
Lawyer Lee Baldwin (Peter Hansen) came to her rescue.




1974
Steve was often known as the hospital confidante.
He knew everything about the goings on in the hospital.
Here Lesley Williams (Denise Alexander) confides in Steve
about the whereabouts of her daughter that she gave up.




Gail and Lee Baldwin.


Just before Jessie Brewer was to be tried for the murder of Phil Brewer, Diana Taylor suddenly. confessed that she was the murderess! To make sure that she was believed, she turned over a blood-stained geode, the murder weapon, to the police. She was tried, convicted and sentenced. Frantic Peter Taylor was convinced that Diana had confessed only to protect him, and he pleaded with her to believe that he wasn't the killer. Peter and lawyer Lee Baldwin went over and over the details of the night of the killing. Dr. Jim Hobart had already told the police that he had been with Phil that fateful night, but he had been to drunk to remember who else he had seen or what had happened. Finally Jim remembered-he had seen Augusta with Phil that night. Badgered by Peter, Augusta confessed to killing Phil!



1975
In 1975 the General Hospital staff was plagued by this question:
who murdered Dr. Phil Brewer ? (Martin West center foreground).
The five prime suspects were portrayed by,
from the left Judith McConnell, Graig Huebing,
James Sikking, Emily McLaughlin and Valerie Starrett.


It had been in self-defense. He had been striking her during an argument, and, terror-stricken that he would harm the baby she was carrying, she struck him on the head-so hard that he died. Augusta went to prison, had her baby, which was placed in a foster home, and, upon release, left town. Peter told Diana that the baby was his, and she forgave him.

Barbara and Jason Vining were shocked when they were told that young Laura was really Lesley Williams's daughter. Lesley launched a custody suit, and the judge, realizing that all parties had been wronged, put off making a decision until Laura got to know her real mother and could voice her own feelings. Laura was to live with Lesley and Cameron for a one-month trial period. Of course, Laura was terribly fascinated with the Faulkners' glamorous way of life-plane trips to exciting places, luxurious restaurants but during an illness Laura called out for her "real" mother, Barbara Vining. Cameron and Lesley now knew the truth about Laura's feelings, but Lesley pleaded with him not to tell the judge.



Gerald Gordon played the role of Dr. Mark Dante


The Webbers then came to General Hospital. Steve's old colleague Dr. Lars Webber and his wife had been killed in an auto accident many years ago. Their oldest child, Terri gave up her plans for a singing career in order to care for her two younger brothers, Rick and Jeff. Terri had married a General Hospital psychiatrist, Dr. David Arnett, who died. Rick, a promising young surgeon, had been engaged to an insecure but beautiful interne named Monica Bard, who had grown up in a foundling home.



1977
Mark Dante (Gerald Gordon) came to Port Charles
as a neurologist ready to operate on Steve Hardy.
First he calmed a distraught Audrey, then took up with Terri Webber.
That didn't last too long, though,
since he had a wife in a wheelchair
whom he felt very attached to and guilt-ridden over.


Rick had gone to Africa and was later presumed killed. The day that the Webbers had found out about Rick's supposed death, Monica had received a letter from Rick breaking off their relationship, and on the rebound Monica had married Rick's younger brother, Jeff, also an intern. Monica never told Jeff that Rick had broken up with her.

Meanwhile, a dangerously neurotic young girl, working as a domestic for Peter and Diana named Heather Grant-fell in love with Jeff, and seduced him. After Jeff's recovery, Heather told him that she was carrying his child, but Jeff refused to consider divorcing Monica, with whom he was still passionately in love.

Desperate to be free of her situation, Heather at first tried to sell her baby, Steven Lars, to Peter and Diana Taylor; and then, when that failed, headed for New York with her baby, with dreams of becoming a model. When Jeff sued for custody of little Steven Lars, Heather, in need of money, again tried to sell her baby to Diana and Peter, this time anonymously. The Taylors had no idea that their newly adopted little son, whom they called P.J., was really Heather and Jeff's little boy. Heather told the unforgivable lie to Jeff that his son had died! Newly drawn to Heather over the presumed loss of their son, Jeff, after divorcing Monica, asked Heather to come back to Port Charles with him as his wife.

Shortly after Cam died, Lesley discovered she was pregnant with his baby. In her hour of distress, Rick comforted her and the two fell in love. Monica had always loved Rick Webber and schemed to break up the relationship. However, after she became the cause of Lesley's tragic miscarriage, she promised to stop interfering. Rick and Lesley were finally wed and settled down with her daughter Laura.

David Hamilton, an old buddy of Rick's, moved in with Rick, Lesley and Laura. Secretly he hated Rick because David's late wife had loved him. He made advances to Lesley. When she rejected him, he turned to Laura, a teenager enchanted by the older, worldly man and let herself become entangled in a torrid love affair. When Rick found out about it, he ordered David to leave town.

Laura, who had given her body to David, begged him to take her with him. Then she overheard him tell Lesley that he had only made love to Laura to make Lesley jealous. Laura was stunned. Confronting David, she threw a statue at him, causing him to hit his head on the hearth. A horrified Laura fled the apartment. Minutes later Lesley found David on the floor dead! To save her daughter from jail, Lesley confessed to the murder and was indicted. Laura was so distressed that she blocked the whole death scene from her mind and later ran away to New York without testifying at her mother's trial. Lesley was sent to prison.



1978
Originally married to Jeff Webber,
Monica (Leslie Charleson) really had her heart set on landing Rick,
but he was believed to be dead.
So, now is had met handsome Dr. Alan Quartermaine,
who had everything she wanted-looks, ioney and brains.
The two married and with ups and downs have stayed together.




1978
Once the Spencers rolled into Port Charles
things were never the same again.
Bobble Spencer (Jackie Zeman) went on to become head surgical nurse.
Brother Luke (Tony Geary) "raped" Laura Baldwin
then admitted it was an accident.
He ended up on the run,
but later saved Port Charles several times.


Young Scotty Baldwin had been in love with Laura before her affair began with David and now, frantic with concern for her whereabouts, Scotty and his friend, Bryan Phillips, went to New York to look for her. They fund Laura involved in a drug and prostitution ring! Posing as street hustlers, Scotty and Bryan rescued her and brought her back to Port Charles, where she finally confessed to killing David. Lesley was freed.

The whole Webber family suffered unendingly. Unable to rid herself of her guilt over lying to her husband Rick for so many months about David's true killer, Lesley could not have sexual relations with him. And Laura, who was sentenced to six month's probation under her mother's watchful eye, felt like a prisoner in her own home. Her only source of comfort was Scotty, who was still in love with her even though he had been having an affair on the rebound with vivacious but gold digging student nurse named Bobbie Spencer. To take up with Laura again, Scotty ended his affair with scheming Bobbi, only to be told that she was pregnant by him. That turned out to be a lie. Bobbie was determined to make.

Scotty marry her and she enlisted the aid of her brother, Luke, a brash and streetwise young man with underworld connections but who was devoted to his family. In one vicious scheme after another, Luke helped his sister Bobbie in causing a rift between Scotty and Laura. Before long, however, Luke began to take an interest in Laura himself.



1979
Law student Scotty Baldwin (Kin Shriner)
risked everything to marry Laura Vining (Genie Francis).
She only hurt him In the end.




1979
Scotty Baldwin practically threw his wife Laura at Luke.
When they revealed their love,
Scotty was astonished.




1979
Scotty's best pal Bryan (Todd Davis, left)
stood up for him at his wedding to Laura.
Claudia (Blanca Ferguson) and Louise (Louise Hoven), too.




1979
Rick Webber's (Chris Robinson) marriage to Lesley
was a match made in heaven.
They got along well, until her untimely death years later.


Monica had already married insecure and jealous Dr. Alan Quartermaine, the son of wealthy Edward and Lila. Sensing that his wife Monica had been unfaithful with Rick, who she had always loved, Alan Quartermaine undermined Rick's career at the hospital at every turn. Meanwhile, Rick Webber, still frustrated by Lesley's frigidity, returned Monica's interest and they had an extramarital affair. But just as he was about to leave Lesley for Monica, Rick learned that Lesley's daughter Laura had been in a serious car accident. Rick saved Laura's life and the emotional experience brought Rick and Lesley together again, while a frustrated Monica was forced to return to the sham of her marriage with Alan Quartermaine.

Monica soon learned that she was pregnant-with Rick's baby, she believed. One day, while Monica and Lesley were trapped by a blizzard, Monica deliriously shouted that the baby was Rick's. A shattered Lesley told Rick that she planned to divorce him. Rick now wanted to marry Monica and start a family with her and their baby. But Alan swore that if Monica ever tried to divorce him and embarrass him in the eyes of the world, he would use the Quartermaine fortune to take her child away from her.

Alan's spoiled and money hungry sister, Tracy, had wanted nothing better than for her brother and Monica to break up, for she wanted the Quartermaine fortune to go to her own son Ned, not Alan and Monica's baby. Now Tracy began to prove that Monica's newborn baby, Alan Jr., was really fathered by Rick. As brother and sister battled each other, their mother Lila discovered an interesting fact: Alan Jr.'s birthmark looked exactly like Alan's. Monica was stunned! Further medical tests proved that Alan was really the father. At first Monica tried to keep the truth a secret from both Alan and Rick, but the truth came out and Rick, realizing that Monica was a heartless manipulator, went back to Lesley. Again, Monica had to face boredom with Alan.

Heather schemed to get her son back from the Taylors by driving Diana insane! Without realizing the danger, Diana had named Heather and Jeff baby P.J.'s legal guardians should anything happen to Diana and Peter. Heather began by making anonymous threatening phone calls to poor Diana. Peter hired private detective Joe Kelly to discover the caller's identity. At the same time, Steve Hardy also hired Joe Kelly to locate Steven Lars (P.J.!), who was, after all, his grandson. Still trying to drive Diana crazy, Heather spiked her drink with LSD, but accidentally ingested the drug herself. Now Heather went insane! Unable to bear Heather's cruel deceit any longer, her mother, Alice Grant, told Peter that his son was none other than Steven Lars. The shock was too much for Peter, who suffered a heart attack and died. Dreadful Heather, now institutionalized, was responsible for the tragedy.

The widowed Diana became frantic that she would lose P.J. to his real father, Jeff Webber, and so began a campaign to try to marry him. Meanwhile, Heather, coming out of her LSD-induced psychosis, became suspicious that her husband was involved with another woman and fled the asylum. She spotted Jeff kissing nurse Anne Logan, Audrey Hardy's pretty young niece, and swore to get even.

Diana Taylor was found murdered! On the floor beside her, written in her own blood, was scrawled the name "Anne." Jeff believed that unstable Heather had committed the heinous crime, intent on framing Anne. At first Jeff refused to let Heather near their son, and then finally he divorced Heather and left Port Charles with Steven Lars.

Heather was being investigated by detective Joe Kelly, who found strong evidence connecting her to Diana's murder. Finally Heather admitted that she had indeed intended to kill Diana the night of the murder, but she couldn't remember actually pulling the trigger of her gun. Joe Kelly, who was falling in love with Heather, now believed her innocent and eventually discovered that Heather's mother, Alice Grant, had killed Diana. It turned out that Alice had followed Heather to Diana's that awful night, saw Heather point the gun at Diana, then saw Diana pull out her own gun. Fearful that her daughter would be killed, Alice shot Diana. The judge sentenced Heather to six months's probation for attempted murder and, citing extenuating circumstances, set Alice free.





1979
Dan Rooney (Frank Maxwell)
came to Port Charles with financier Lamont Corbin.
Lamont left, but Dan took on the job of hospital administrator.



An Illustred History (2)

General Hospital's History

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