Frank Valentini

Now that she’s wrapped up her 21-year stint as “Days of our Lives’” Samantha Brady, Alison Sweeney (Samantha Brady) is heading to a different soap opera: “General Hospital!”

Tongues were left wagging after “General Hospital” star Kimberly McCullough (ex-Robin Scorpio) tweeted out a photo of a script on Sunday night along with the tease: “A day in the life of a soap actor. Say ‘soap-y’ I dare you.” Was it a “GH” script? Did the tweet mean she was returning to Port Charles?

When a fan commented on a recent update of the “General Hospital” opening sequence featuring the inclusion of Michelle Stafford (Nina Clay), Nathan Varni, Manager, Current Series, ABC, responded to the viewer with news that there will be multiple new openings showcasing the talented cast of the daytime drama series in the near future. If you’re wondering how soon that’ll be, a representative for the soap tells Soap Opera Network, “Viewers will start seeing the new openings in early July.”

After “General Hospital’s” A.J. Quartermaine was shot and put into critical condition by Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) a few weeks ago, fans began speculating if this could be the end of the line for the long-time Port Charles resident. Even so, it comes as a shock today that A.J.’s portrayer, Sean Kanan, has confirmed that he will be leaving “GH” at the end of this month to return to his role on “The Bold and the Beautiful.”

Viewers may have been stunned with the reveal that “General Hospital’s” new Chief of Staff was going to be none other than villainess Dr. Liesl Obrecht, but the devilish doc’s portrayer, Kathleen Gati, was equally surprised upon hearing the unexpected news!

Sometimes when one comments about a specific topic or thing on social media websites such as Facebook or Twitter, things they say can get misconstrued by others. This was the case last night when “General Hospital’s” Sean Kanan (AJ Quartermaine) tweeted, “Such an honor to be a part of this iconic piece of American television history. Thanks @valentinifrank for everything,” following yesterday’s 13,000th episode cake cutting party.

As previously reported, “Grey’s Anatomy” star Chandra Wilson (Dr. Miranda Bailey) will appear on the Wednesday, January 29 episode of ABC’s “General Hospital” as Tina Estrada, a patient of Dr. Kevin Collins (Jon Lindstrom), who goes to General Hospital for her regularly scheduled appointment. According to the network, Tina comes face to face with an unfamiliar nurse in the episode and demands to know why HE is in her doctor’s office. The “nurse” is actually reformed serial killer Franco (Roger Howarth), as noted in the picture above, who is hiding out from the police after a warrant is issued for his arrest in the disappearance and possible murder of Carly Corinthos Jacks (Laura Wright).

Yesterday, it was announced that veteran soap actor Rick Hearst would be returning to ABC’s “General Hospital” for the first time since 2009 as his character Ric Lansing. Hearst is scheduled to first air on Monday February 24, but isn’t expected to speak until Tuesday, February 25, according to ABC Soaps In Depth. In honor of his grand return, the actor took to Twitter to thank the fans, “GH” executive producer Frank Valentini and head writer Ron Carlivati for making it all happen.

There’s so much excitement happening over at “General Hospital,” it’s tough to keep up! And when Soap Opera Network recently spoke with actress Finola Hughes (Anna Devane), she teased that the strong, layered storylines fans have been enjoying as of late will continue to pack a punch throughout 2014. But just what will this year have in store for the lovely lady? Read on to find out!

There have been a slew of stories celebrating soap operas’ recent turnaround in the ratings game as of late, but it’s an unexpected trend worth repeating: Soaps are back, baby! And “General Hospital,” which was marching toward an ABC death similar to “All My Children” and “One Life to Live,” is doing particularly well. Soap Opera Network sat down with the sudser’s very own William DeVry (Julian Jerome), who discussed some particulars of why “GH” is on such an upswing. And while he was at it, he revealed some details on what’s to come in Julian’s life, as well!