Remembering ‘General Hospital’ Star Denise Alexander: Here Are Her 5 Best Dr. Lesley Webber Storylines
Denise Alexander, who starred as Dr. Lesley Webber on General Hospital from 1973 to 1984 as a contract player, and again from 1996 to 2021, recurring, died on March 5 at the age of 85.
While the actress had other soap roles on her resume, including Susan Martin on Days of Our Lives and Mary McKinnon on Another World, she’ll be remembered most fondly for her time on GH, playing Rick Webber’s (Chris Robinson) wife and Laura Webber Collins’s (Genie Francis) mother.
Here’s a look back at 5 of Alexander’s most memorable moments as Lesley.
1 Lesley Confesses to Murdering David Hamilton – But the Real Killer Is Her Daughter, Laura
Some kids are lucky to get “don’t slam the door” as they head out into the world each day. Laura Webber had a mom who gave up her own freedom to protect her daughter. In 1978, Laura had planned to run away with her older lover, a man named David Hamilton (Jerry Ayres). However, Hamilton was only using Laura. He had no real feelings for her.
When he ripped up Laura’s love letters in her face and told her that it was her mother Lesley who really turned him on, Laura snapped. She pushed David; he fell and died. Laura blocked the ugly incident from her mind, but Lesley came upon the scene and destroyed evidence of the couple’s affair. She also confessed to killing him to protect her daughter.
The district attorney felt something didn’t add up, but Lesley was still convicted and went to jail in order to ensure Laura’s safety. The truth came out, however, as it always does. Lesley went back to work at General Hospital and Laura got probation. There’s nothing like a mother’s love, is there?
2 Laura Tells Lesley That She Remembers Killing David, Before Lesley Went on Trial
Unbeknownst to Lesley, shortly before it was time to testify at her own murder trial, Laura actually had remembered that she had accidentally killed David. She kept this secret for months. While the truth about Laura’s role in David’s death was revealed, it wasn’t until later that Laura confessed to Lesley that she had recalled everything before Lesley testified.
If you expected Lesley to immediately forgive Laura, you’d be wrong. Lesley’s a saint but she isn’t made of stone. She felt hurt and betrayed that Laura hadn’t come clean. Lesley was sick with worry – not for herself, but for her daughter. Laura explained to her mother that she kept quiet because she was afraid of being shipped off to reform school. “I feel hurt, angry and so used,” a crying Lesley told Laura. Fortunately, in time, mother and daughter reconciled.
3 Lesley Delivers Monica’s Baby in a Snowstorm
In late 1979, Lesley and her pal Dr. Gail Adamson Baldwin (Susan Brown) paid a visit to a pregnant, bed-ridden Dr. Monica Quartermaine (Leslie Charleson). A snowstorm trapped the women inside the mansion and knocked out the power — and then Monica went into labor! Lesley and Gail helped deliver the baby. While Gail had stepped away, a delirious Monica blurted out to Lesley that the baby was Rick’s!
A stunned Lesley helped bring little Alan Jr. into the world. Later, Alan (Stuart Damon) and Monica’s family heaped praise on an exhausted Lesley at the hospital. However, Tracy (Jane Elliot), Alan’s sister who suspected that the child wasn’t Alan’s – and therefore was ineligible to inherit Quartermaine money – read more than exhaustion on Lesley’s face. She saw a woman who looked as if she’d been kicked in the gut. That’s because she had been.
4 Lesley Is Reunited With a Presumed Dead Laura After Nearly Two Years
In late 1983, Genie Francis returned to GH after a two-year absence. It turned out that Laura hadn’t drowned after all in January 1982; she’d been kidnapped by the Cassadines and kept against her will on the family island. In time, Laura escaped. After being reunited with Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary), her husband, Laura’s next reunion took place with Rick (Chris Robinson) and Lesley, her parents.
Luke, then Port Charles’s mayor, opened the door to his spacious living room so that Rick and Lesley could be reunited with their daughter. Lesley’s line called for Alexander to say, “Laura” upon seeing her, but the talented actress opted to mouth the name of her daughter and not speak it. Lesley didn’t dare voice the miracle that was before her. However, the look on her face, her trembling arms, and the tears in her eyes revealed the truth – Lesley’s baby was alive.
5 Lesley Slaps Monica Across the Face After AJ’s True Paternity Was Revealed
It was the summer of 1980 and Monica Quartermaine let Rick Webber, Lesley’s former husband, go on believing that he had fathered her son, Alan, Jr. Thanks to the Bombay Phenotype Syndrome however, it turned out that Alan Quartermaine, Monica’s husband, was the true dad. Alan announced this at a fundraiser at the Quartermaine mansion, putting the kibosh on Monica and Rick’s future. (While Monica didn’t know the truth the whole time, she did remain silent once she discovered it.)
After Rick sped away from Monica, Lesley confronted her rival in the Quartermaine courtyard. “You lied about that baby in order to steal my husband!” Lesley proclaimed. Monica, believing the best defense was a strong offense, taunted Lesley, telling her that Rick had never loved her. She said that Rick thought she was “dull” and “respectable.”
Monica added that she and Rick would lie in bed and laugh at Lesley, calling her a poor fool who was incapable of passion. Just then, Lesley hauled off and slapped Monica across the face. (How’s that for some passion, bitch!). The following year, Rick and Lesley remarried. True love had prevailed.
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