In December 1981, General Hospital fans were shocked when Genie Francis, one half of the daytime soap power couple Luke & Laura, suddenly quit the show.
Only 19 and already hugely successful, many people believed the actress had it all. The truth is, she was struggling with drugs and alcohol and beginning to cause strain behind the scenes. The final nail in the coffin, GOenie tells prah: Where Are They Now, was a harsh remark allegedly made by someone on the General Hospital team the night Genie ended up in the hospital. “It was an awful moment in which I was told, ‘You know, what they said about you?’ And I said, ‘No, what’d they say?’ They said that it didn’t matter if you lived or died because Tony (the actor who played Luke) was the whole show,” Genie says.
Here, Genie opens up about leaving the show and why she decided to return 12 years later.
Published 04/14/2016
