Leslie Charleson, who played cardiologist Monica Quartermaine on the ABC daytime drama General Hospital for nearly five decades, died on Sunday. ABC confirmed Charleson's death to NPR in a statement.
"Her enduring legacy has spanned nearly 50 years on General Hospital alone and, just as Monica was the heart of the Quartermaines, Leslie was a beloved matriarch of the entire cast and crew," wrote General Hospital executive producer Frank Valentini. "I will miss our daily chats, her quick wit and incredible presence on set."
While General Hospital is the longest-running scripted drama in the U.S., Charleson was one of its longest-tenured cast members. Born in Kansas City, Mo., in 1945, Charleson broke into show business at a young age. Her first gig? A car commercial alongside her mother, who dabbled in acting.
"All I had to do was just pretend to be asleep in the backseat," Charleson remembered during an interview with the New York City talk show Something to Offer. "I just remember my mother turning around and saying with a big smile, 'If you don't close your eyes, Leslie, you're never going to see 8 years old. Do it right now.'"
As she got older, Charleson's acting ambitions grew. In the 1960s and '70s, she appeared in dramas like A Flame in the Wind (later known as A Time for Us), As the World Turns and Love is a Many Splendored Thing before landing the role of Monica on General Hospital.
During a 2022 appearance on fellow actor Maurice Benard's podcast, Charleson said that her first day on set coincided with the death of Elvis Presley. "I remember tears coming down my cheeks as I was driving for the first time to the studio," she said.
Additionally, Charleson told Benard that she was originally disliked on-set because another actress playing Monica had been "rudely fired," and her hiring as the replacement did not go over well. However, Charleson thrived in her portrayal of Monica Quartermaine, a razor-sharp cardiologist with an embattled personal life full of marriages, divorces, heartbreak and affairs.
In the '90s, her character underwent a breast cancer diagnosis. In a 1994 interview with The Los Angeles Times, Charleson said she pitched the cancer storyline because she felt the show had a responsibility to tackle serious topics. Throughout her time on General Hospital, Charleson received four daytime Emmy nominations as outstanding lead actress in a drama series. She also appeared on shows like Dharma & Greg and Friends.
In a statement to NPR, close friend and entertainment journalist Rosemary Rossi described Charleson as warm and genuine. "Her arms and heart were always open. Everyone who was ever in her orbit felt that," she said. "Yes, she was a soap opera icon, and she leaves that legacy. But her real legacy is the people she touched along the way. And heaven now knows, there were a lot of them."
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