TeleNext Media, Inc.

Rumors swirled this morning that ‘The Young and the Restless” star Emme Rylan, formerly known as Marcy Rylan, was headed to “General Hospital” as the new Lulu, and it turns out, the rumors are true! Rylan, who played “Guiding Light’s” Lizzie Spaulding from 2006-2009, will assume the role from two-time Emmy award winner Julie Marie Berman, who announced just last week that she has decided to leave the role of Luke and Laura’s daughter after a seven year run.

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Craig Sjodin/ABC

Soap Opera Network has learned that during the week of March 18, ABC’s “General Hospital” will be departing the “One Life to Live” characters consisting of Starr Manning (Kristen Alderson), Todd Manning (Roger Howarth) and John McBain (Michael Easton). As previously reported, ABC Daytime and Prospect Park have been in a dispute over the characters and their appearance on “GH” vs “One Life to Live,” which Prospect Park is rebooting for the web along with “All My Children” later this spring. The actors are under contract to ABC, while Prospect Park holds the license rights to the characters.

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ABC

When Ingo Rademacher (Jasper “Jax” Jacks) was announced as a celebrity dancer on “Dancing with the Stars” for the competition series’ 16th season, many avid “General Hospital” fans wisely guessed the actor’s dancing chops would be tested as part of a cross-promotional opportunity between ABC’s primetime juggernaut and the networks daytime soap staple.

Entertainment Weekly is exclusively reporting that Rademacher and Vanessa Marcil (Brenda Barrett) are returning to “GH” for more than a few weeks as the daytime drama series prepares to celebrate it 50th anniversary on Monday, April 1. Although a first airdate is not known at this time, Weekly  says the duo are expected to hit the air before the soaps anniversary episode airs.

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People Magazine

Brandon Barash has announced on Twitter that he’s departing ABC’s “General Hospital.” In his message to fans, Barash tweeted, “With a bittersweet, heavy heart I announce my time at ‘GH’ has come to an end, as I have chosen to move on&pursue my NBA career. I love u all.”

The actor’s exit was confirmed to Soap Opera Network by his management team. A last airdate for Barash is unknown at this time, although the actor allegedly told fans at a recent event that he last taped at the series more than six weeks ago.

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JJL Entertainment

Actor Jeffrey James Lippold will appear on the Monday, March 4 episode of ABC’s “General Hospital” as a Sergeant working at the Port Charles Police Department. The actor will appear in scenes with Finola Hughes as her character, Anna Devane, deals with the aftermath left behind by Caleb Morley. Look for Anna to make a tough decision about her future as the head of the PCPD.

According to his Twitter page, Lippold is an “Actor, Stunt Man, Sambo Champion, All Around Martial Arts Wizard, MMA Champion Sparring, Former NAVY Amphibious MEF RECON Corpsman/Bushmaster, & Anti-Bully!” The actor tweeted a picture of himself in uniform.

Lippold starred in the films “Samurai Avenger: The Blind Wolf” and “XII.”

Craig Sjodin/ABC

EXCLUSIVE: Despite an earlier report stating otherwise, based on information from Robin Strasser‘s (Dorian Lord) telephone hotline, a senior level Prospect Park insider tells Soap Opera Network, “production has NOT been pushed back. This has been long planned to make way for a piece of the storyline that involves new sets and use of certain characters and not others.”

It is understood that the new sets “and certain characters” revolves around the storyline surrounding Roger Howarth‘s return as Todd Manning. Howarth will begin filming at the “OLTL” studio in Stamford, CT beginning Monday, March 18, for four weeks before returning to “General Hospital.”

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Joshua Zuckerman Photography

Michael Easton (John McBain) posted an update for fans wanting to know where he currently stands in the dispute between ABC’s “General Hospital” and TOLN‘s “One Life to Live.” In a Facebook message, the actor said, “THANK YOU…your kind words of support mean the world to me. No word yet on when we might return to work but the fridge is stocked, the bills are paid, and I get to spend lots of precious time with my little girl.”

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Robert Milazzo/ABC

SEE UPDATE: EXCLUSIVE! ‘One Life to Live’ Production NOT Delayed; New Sets Being Built for Soap

According to Robin Strasser (Dorian Lord) via her fan hotline (212-414-5300), ”One Life to Live” will now begin filming new episodes for Hulu, Hulu Plus and iTunes on Monday, March 18. Previously, the series was scheduled to commence filming on Monday, March 11. The actress brought the news to light despite being unwell at the time. Early this morning Strasser tweeted, “What a difference a week makes when you’re feeling weak (lol) not sick of word play-just saying.”

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American Media, Inc.

As People Magazine gets ready to release its special collector’s edition honoring 50 years of  ”General Hospital” on Tuesday, March 12, the editors of Soap Opera Digest have collaborated on their own special tribute issue for the ABC Daytime drama series. Going on sale on Monday, March 25, the full sized Digest issue will include “revealing interviews, backstage gossip, photos, memories and more!”

“General Hospital” premiered on April 1, 1963. The series has been placed on various all-time best soap opera lists including those by such publications as Time Magazine and TV Guide Magazine.

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Disney/ABC Television Group

Ratings Report for the Week of February 18-22, 2013

NOTE: Please do not copy and paste the entire ratings.  Thank you.

Numbers are based on Live+Same Day ratings

(Compared to Last Week/Compared to Last Year)

Total Viewers
1. Y&R 4,726,000 (+126,000/+142,000)
2. B&B 3,625,000 (+105,000/+541,000)
3. GH 2,885,000 (+243,000/+531,000)
4. DAYS 2,734,000 (+288,000/+245,000)

Households
1. Y&R 3.4/10 (same/same)
2. B&B 2.6/8 (same/+.3)
3. GH 2.1/6 (+.1/+.3)
4. DAYS 2.0/6 (+.1/+.2)

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