leslie's articles & interviews

Quotes by and about Leslie and Monica

Soap Opera Digest - February 6, 1979
"Leslie Charleson: The Woman Behind Dr. Monica Quartermaine of GH."

"When Leslie took over the role, Monica's character seemed to change. She is now a more self-sufficient, self-reliant woman and Leslie is quite pleased. She feels her character is multi-faceted and hopes she stays that way."

General Hosptial Magazine - December, 1987

Leslie about joining GH: "I had no idea what I was walking into. And the storyline! Monica had married Jeff Webber because she *really* loved Rick Webber but thought Rick was dead...After three weeks I was so confused that I stopped one day and turned to the director and said, 'What the !@#!*!! ...it was the 'S' word...is a Monica? Is it something that is eye level? Is it green? What is it?' It took a while."

General Hospital Magazine - December, 1987
"For Stuart Damon, Life As A Quartermaine Is Strictly A Laughing Matter"

From Stuart: "Leslie and I know each other so well and we giggle and laugh and have fun all the time - but the wonderful thing is we can giggle and laugh and still get the job done. We know when we have to be serious. The sexual part of Alan and Monica's relationship is the part that always amuses us - we do laugh a lot - but we seem to pull it off and I guess that's all that counts."

Soap Opera Digest - September 15, 1992
"Les Is More" (Leslie Charleson Interview)

Stuart Damon: "I wouldn't trade her for anything. We're great soul mates because we're such silly fools."

Soap Opera Digest - September 15, 1992
"Les is More"

Leslie: "I was beginning to say, 'You don't need to send me a script.' It was either 'Will he live, Dr. Welby?' or 'He's innocent, Mr. Ironside!' I'm blonde. I'm going to be good or a victim."

Soap Opera Digest - September 28, 1993
"The Doctor Is In" (Stuart Damon Interview)

Leslie: "A long time ago, someone was talking about getting obscene phone messages and I said, 'I never got one.' I felt so left out. So, when I got back to my dressing room there was this phone message with heavy breathing, which turned into a hacking cough. That was my obscene phone call from Stuart so my feelings wouldn't be hurt."

Soap Opera Digest - October 22, 1996
"Burton of Proof" (Steve Burton Interview)

Steve Burton: "Whenever I see Leslie Charleson cry, I start crying."

Soap Opera Weekly - April 15, 1997
"The Hero Has Two Faces"

"Take General Hospital's recent sexual harassment storyline, where Monica had an affair with the considerably younger Pierce Dorman. Once the relationship went sour, Dorman started directing all kinds of ageist remarks to Monica -- and, ostensibly, to her portrayer, Leslie Charleson. "Tuc and I had a whole bunch of scenes to do one day," Charleson recalls, "and I finally said, 'I don't want to do this anymore. You keep calling me an old bat.' I mean, okay, I thought I was strong and I have a fairly healthy ego, but you really get caught up in everything, and it is offensive. It gets to you, because they aren't pulling any punches. When he says, 'Nobody's going to believe an over the hill woman like you,' it's like, 'I"m going to my dressing room now... and I'm not coming out till this storyline goes away!"

Soap Dish - June 17, 1997
"Tickling Our Funny Bones: Soap Stars and Sitcoms"

Leslie on Happy Days: "I gave Ronny Howard his first television kiss," says Charleson with laugh."

Soap Opera Digest - May 27, 1997
"Batman's 10 New Archenemies"

#3 GH's "Santa Monica": "Tired of playing the martyr and absorbing all the world's problems, Monica's personality splits and Santa Monica emerges -- vowing to make every family in town as messed up as hers. Can Batman stop her before she steals Dr. Dorman's heroin and dumps it in the PORT CHARLES water supply?"

Soap Opera Weekly - June 24, 1997
"Freeze Frame - Golden Moments for May - Monica Sticks It To Dorman on GH"

"Leslie Charleson hit the bull's eye with every vocal and physical nuance as she subjected Dorman to Anatomy 101 a la Monica, starting with the possibility of brain surgery, which she noted was not her specialty. "As I remember there is some section around here (pointing to a diagram) that regulates moral behavior. I think with a little tinkering I can wipe out that whole nasty area and you'll be left with a whole blank slate." "You're going to give me a lobotomy?" asked Dorman, unable to fully conceal his terror. "Granted, I'm not a neurosurgeon, but I can connect the dots here," Monica said with a smirk, adding that he might also lose the ability to walk, to read. "And you may have a tendency to drool." We did..."

Soap Opera News Weekly - June 24, 1997
"Curtain Call - Soap Opera News Weekly gives GH's Leslie Charleson this week's standing ovation"

"Leslie Charleson's shining performance as Monica reached her breaking point is another resounding illustration of the Emmy-nominated General Hospital star's talent."

Soap Opera Magazine - August 21, 1997
"Out and About at the GH Fan Club Weekend"

Leslie on her 20th anniversary on GH: "'Twenty years feels like twenty seconds,' said Charleson."

Soaps In Depth - November 4, 1997
"In The Spotlight"

"Leave it to Charleson to put on a good confrontation. If you glimpsed a resume spanning her 20 years on the show, you'd find entries which read "Gives it to them, but good." No one can finesse a verbal fight like she does, and the obligatory "Got get 'em girl!" If showdowns could be measured on the Richter scale, the one Monica directed toward Carly would be considered on the level of "the big one." Charleson's talent won't back down in the face of adversity. It only gets stronger. With experience like hers, it's no wonder we love to watch her strut her stuff. Monica's show of disdain toward her newfound foe wasn't flippant, but as direct and unwavering as a surgeon's hand upon a scalpel. Her attitude toward the manipulator-in-maternity who spiked her son's drink was pointedly articulated by barbs such as "I'm monumentally unimpressed." Charleson has a rare gift for putting a spin on putdowns. And seeing that she's a Quartermaine, her talent has many opportunities to shine through."

Soap Opera Digest - November 25, 1997
"Behind the Scenes - Surgeon General"

"Mitch Longley talks about his Port Charles character, Dr. Matt Harmon, getting to finally operate with the aid of a special chair. Mitch, who also got to work with Leslie Charleson that day, said, 'It was certainly a privilege to work with a class act talent like Leslie.'."

Soap Opera Weekly - December 23, 1997
"The Best & The Worst Review for 1997 - BEST REVENGE: Monica and Dorman/GH"

"After Monica broke off their affair, hell had no fury like the scorned Pierce Dorman. Despite the public humiliation to which he subjected her, and the destruction of her personal relationships, Monica bravely looked the other way and tried to repair her shattered life, until she learned that Dorman had been responsible for Emily's drug use. Although murder could surely have been an option, Monica needed to see him suffer. In what was virutally an out-of-body experience for someone as controlled as Monica, she kidnapped Dorman, took him to a seedy motel room, tied him to a chair, injected him with sodium Pentothal and put him on trial. Monica methodically enumerated Dorman's crimes; by the time the terrifed bully could bear no more, and begged for mercy, Monica went to her little black bag, took out a scalpel and waved it in his face while "prepping" him for brain surgery. Dorman sweated bullets---and we cheered.""

Soap Opera Magazine - February 24, 1998
"CloseUp with GH's Leslie Charleson (She's tapped into her off-screen pain to make on-screen magic)"

"I'd like to see Monica have an adventure. She hasn't had one since a long time ago with Sean Donely. I'd like to do something that isn't cerebral, like a good shoot-em up."

Soap Opera Weekly - April 7, 1998
"GH 35th Anniversary - Code Blue and Red-Hot Love"

"I'm a Quartermaine, and not only are the Q's one of the best families created for television, but it has the best actors portraying the parts. Stuart Damon and I count on each other with the characters, and there's the trust that we built up, the communication. I know going to work that between the two of us, we'll make something work. David Lewis (ex-Edward) will always have my heart. I really miss him. I also feel privileged to be around Anna Lee (Lila). She is my idol. When Gloria Monty came in the first time around, it was magic. Gloria made the show, and she made history. She also made a mistake in coming back, but we survived. The breast cancer storyline which I suggested, was the hardest and the fondest as well. It's been a blink of the eye, but it's been a hell of a good run!"

Soap Opera Update - April 7, 1998
"GH Celebrates 35 Years"

"One of the funniest scenes was when Alan and Monica were sent to therapy and the therapist handed each of them a rubber bat and told them to go at it - and they did! I think it was the most satisfying scene I have ever done and it has probably saved me a lot of money in analysis! I got a lot of hostility out that day.""

Daytime Digest: Inside General Hospital - July, 1999
"What Are Your GH Favorites Really Like? Brad Maule Gives Us the Inside Dirt"

Brad on Leslie: "Biggest laugh -- littlest body."

Soaps in Depth - Woman On A Mission -April 4, 2000

Leslie: "Whatever Monica latches onto, she latches onto tenaciously. She's a woman of her own mind, her own goals, her own desires, but she doesn't lose sight of what's important. She is passionate in everything she does. And that has never changed. In fact, I'm protective of that. It has allowed her to go to uncharted places in her life…and to have a terrific excuse for doing so."