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!

“I’m Lucas Jones. I’m your son,” says an angered Lucas (Ryan Carnes) when he seemingly confronts his biological daddy this week on “General Hospital.”

While character and storyline details are not yet known, a rep for ABC’s “General Hospital” confirms that Shirley Jones, former star of “The Partridge Family” and “Shirley,” will appear on the daytime soap opera in an episode airing next month.

On Saturday, March 8, 2014, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles (HFH GLA) will host the 5th Annual General Hospital Fan Build, where fans of the daytime soap opera get an opportunity to spend a day building a home with several of their favorite cast members. The event, which is part of Habitat’s entertainment partnership program, was started up by “General Hospital’s” Brandon Barash (ex-Johnny Zacchara) and Lisa LoCicero (Olivia Falconeri) in 2009 as a way to reward fans for their loyalty to the show, while at the same time doing a good deed.

TVGN is proving why it’s now the “the new way to watch soaps.” With the network already picking up encore airing rights to “The Young and the Restless” this past summer, and “The Bold and the Beautiful” earlier this month, the network plans to provide soap fans with even more “soap” for their viewing pleasure courtesy of the new documentary, “Who Shot the Daytime Soap?” Airing Monday, December 16 at 8:00 PM ET/PT, preceded by airings of “B&B” at 6:30 PM ET/PT and “Y&R” at 7:00 PM ET/PT, the documentary tackles the history of daytime soap operas as told by those who were there during the good times, the bad times and the new times.

Ryan Carnes is set to reprise his role as Lucas Jones, the adopted son of Bobbie Spencer and Tony Jones, on ABC’s “General Hospital.”

With an estimated value of $5,500, a lucky individual and their partner could win a dinner date with “General Hospital’s” William deVry (Julian Jerome) and former “Port Charles” and “The Young and the Restless” actress, Rebecca Staab. Now through Thursday, December 12, the married couple is auctioning off a meal that includes Sea Save founder, Georgienne Bradley, which will take place at the elegant Geoffrey’s Malibu, “a unique place, rich in its own history, it embodies the natural beauty from which it sprang, while offering an invitation to everyone who cares to celebrate life.” The highest bidder will be provided with insight into the entertainment industry, according the description on the CharityBuzz website as listed by the two soapers.

Port Charles is about to get a new resident in the form of daytime actor William deVry, who took to Facebook to announce that he has joined the sudser in a contract role. “Finally! I just got word I can tell you I just finished my first day of work on ‘General Hospital,’” the actor wrote. “It is a contract role. Very rare these days indeed. And I come to town as the character of Derek Willis.”

With news that Eden Riegel would be reprising her role of Bianca Montgomery on TOLN’s “All My Children,” for what Deadline calls a “cameo guest arc,” the actress has taken to Twitter to thank fans for their kind words and to welcome her “daughter” to the show.