‘General Hospital’ Star Genie Francis Looks Back on Four Decades of Roles, From ‘North and South’ to ‘Days of Our Lives’ (Exclusive)
Genie Francis may be best known for playing General Hospital‘s Laura Collins and famously being part of the “Luke and Laura” phenomenon, but the actress has a slew of other credits to her name too, both in primetime and daytime. Here, she looks back at a few of them with ReMIND.
“Thank you for bringing back all of these wonderful memories,” she enthuses.
Family as Alice Dennison (1976)
“It was my first job. I remember being very nervous. I knew I nailed it in my audition, and they asked me at the end, ‘Do you know how to ride a skateboard?’ And I said yes without hesitation. Never been on one in my life; I knew to lie. That was a Friday. I went home, I got my brother’s skateboard, and I skateboarded all Friday night into the dark, all Saturday into the dark and all Sunday.
“And I got the message on Monday that I’d gotten the job. I had gotten familiar enough with the skateboard that I could skate a little bit, but I couldn’t go down the slalom. They had a body double for me to do that part of it. I got a lovely, lovely letter from a man named Glenn Jordan thanking me for doing the job, and telling me that he believed that I would have a rich and wonderful career. I still have that note.”
North and South miniseries, Books 1 and 2, as Brett Main (1985 and 1986)
© Warner Bros./ Courtesy: Everett Collection
“I have nothing but joy when I think of it, and I just did the other day. It’s the biggest production value that I’ve ever had a part in, and I remember all of the prep that we had to go through — I had, like, 26 changes in those dresses. I worked with Johnny Cash, who could only work for two days, so I worked 24 hours consecutively with him. We were in Reader, Arkansas, because that’s where the trains were and he was playing the abolitionist, John Brown.
“We were up all night, and I remember at one point, I was sitting on those silly little chairs they give you, and I woke up because I was passed out and my neck was hurting and I’ve got this bonnet on my head that’s tied around my chin. That was the hardest day of work I’ve ever put in in my life, because it was literally 24 hours long and I was in a corset and wigs and all that regalia, and with Johnny Cash. So, when I woke up suddenly in my chair, I looked over at him, and he had this sort of stone face when he looked at me, like, ‘Poor kid.’ I think he probably felt bad, but he didn’t really want to say anything, but he stayed up all night with me.
“Jean Simmons was my mom and Patrick Swayze, who played my big brother [Orry Main], was extremely big brotherly with me in real life. He taught me some stuff about dancing, and he was so encouraging and so wonderful. I think one of the best scenes I’ve ever played in my life, I played in that show with Patrick, when she goes to her brother and he smacks her in the face, and she says, ‘That’s it, I’m out of here.’ That was one of the best things I’ve ever done. I have that on my reel, actually, from years ago. It was just great. We learned how to dance in that period of time; we all took lessons together as a cast. I learned how to ride a horse and ride side saddle. And then in Part 2, I had to jump on the back of the horse, bareback. Looking back on it, I’m glad I did. It’s all very exciting.”
Bare Essence as Tyger Hayes (1983)
©CBS/Courtesy: Everett Collection
“I liked doing the miniseries, I did not like doing the series. What I remember mostly about the series was how tired I was. I don’t know what age I was — I think I was 20 — but kids that age really need sleep, and I remember just being exhausted because I was working 13-hour days. I just remember when we got the cancellation, I was happy because I could sleep. And that’s weird, but that’s how I remember it, because I was so incredibly tired working those hours.”
Days of Our Lives as Diana Colville (1987-89)
“Drake [Hogestyn, John Black, who passed away in September 2024] was the best. He was the best. Oh, my God, he went too soon. I loved working with the guy. He was funny. He did a lot of ad-libs and sometimes they’d have to stop because they’d be like, ‘No, you can’t say that on TV.’
“I remember one time, we were doing something where we were sneaking into something and he was putting me into some kind of a suit. I don’t know what suit it was. And as he’s putting this thing around me, he ad-libs and goes, ‘Suck it in.’ Meaning, suck in your gut. And as soon as they said, ‘Cut,’ I looked at him and I said, ‘Suck it in? Are you kidding me, Drake?’ And he’s like, ‘Oh, sorry.’ He was such a funny, great guy, and he talked about his beautiful wife [Victoria] all the time. He was so incredibly in love with her. And then he talked about his kids. He wanted a house on the beach, and he did get it. So, he was just all about Victoria, his wife, and how much he loved her. And that was a beautiful thing to see.”
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