Leslie Charleson, “General Hospital'' actress, dies at 79

Leslie Charleson, who for nearly 50 years played a dedicated cardiologist and the passionate matriarch of a wealthy family on the ABC soap opera “General Hospital,” became one of daytime television's most enduring cast members, appeared in Los Angeles on Sunday. He died at the hospital. . She was 79 years old.

“General Hospital” executive producer Frank Valentini confirmed her death in a statement on social media. Program spokeswoman Marianne Price said the cause was complications from a long-term illness, but the cause could not be determined.

Mr. Valentini said Ms. Charleson was “the matriarch of the entire cast and crew,” just as Ms. Charleson's character, Dr. Monica Quartermaine, was the central character of the Quartermaine family on the show.

She joined the cast in 1977, playing a cardiologist at the hospital where “General Hospital” is set. Since 1963, the series has followed the lives of the hospital staff and residents of the fictional town of Port Charles, New York.

Ms. Charleson, who appeared in more than 2,000 episodes, became a fan favorite after marrying into the wealthy and unstable Quartermaine family as the wife of Dr. Alan Quartermaine, played by Stuart Damon.

Over the decades, the story revolved around their tumultuous marriage, which included fights, infidelity, breakups, and even an attempted murder.

“I'm going to do a real slap in the face” in 2023 to commemorate the show's 60th anniversary, she told People magazine. “At the dress rehearsal, we were miming the slap, but when we went to record it all went out the window.”

She received four Daytime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. She also played the role in the spin-off series Port Charles, which aired from 1997 to 2003.

Leslie Ann Charleson was born on February 22, 1945 in Kansas City, Missouri. Her first television appearance was in 1964 on the original ABC soap opera “A Flame in the Wind.” She later became part of the cast of CBS. Daytime series “Love is Many Wonders.''

She also appeared in popular prime-time series such as “The Streets of San Francisco,” “Happy Days” and “The Rockford Files” in the 1970s.

However, she was best known to television viewers as the daytime lead on “General Hospital.” In a 1981 interview with Soap Opera Digest, Ms. Charleson described her character as “dedicated to everything.”

“Her dedication to her social life may be a little over the top, but it's true,” she said. “When she loves, it's passionate. She puts in her effort, sometimes at the expense of others.”

She is survived by her brother Malcolm Charleson and longtime family friend Christa Dragna Zampino, said Ms. Price, the show's spokeswoman. His sister Kate Charleson, also an actress, died by suicide in 1996.

Although most of the plots involving the character, Dr. Monica Quartermaine, were related to her marriage and co-workers, one of her more notable storylines was when she learned that she had breast cancer. It happened when I found out.

“We all had a vested interest in keeping it honest and real because we all had gone through it or knew someone close to us who had,” Charleson told Soap Opera Digest. It is,” he said.

She added, “I wanted to portray it in the most honest and real way possible.”