The Cast

Port Charles was a spin off of the legendary daytime drama General Hospital. It debuted in a two hour primetime special on Sunday, June 1st, 1997. It was centered around 7 interns working at the General Hospital, Joe Scanlon, Karen Wexler Cates, Julie Morris Devlin, Matt Harmon, Chris Ramsey, Jake Marshak and Eve Lambert. General Hospital cast members Lynn Herring (Lucy Coe) and Jon Robert Lindstrom (Dr. Kevin Collins) also made the jump over to the new sudser.

The Interns

For the first 3+ years, the daytime drama got mediocre ratings, and aired in a half hour time slot on ABC. Several of the original cast members left the show, some killed off. A few high points came in 1998, when Kin Shriner (Scott Baldwin) earned a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor, and in 2000 when the show won it's first and only Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup. But Port Charles was about to make history.

On Monday December 4th, 2000, Port Charles debuted a new storytelling format. The stories would be told in the form of 13 weeks arcs, or books, each with a title and signature song. This was a format known to some Spanish Soaps, but this was a first for any American soap.

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The first "book" was entitled Fate, and the signature song was "I'm Not In Love" by Olive. This new format debuted with an audience of over one million. The story focused on Doctors Eve Lambert and Ian Thornhart being held hostage, and falling in love. The complication was that Eve was married to Kevin Collins at the time. This pushed him back to old flame Lucy Coe, the main character of the series.

Eve and Ian

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The second book, Time in a Bottle, premiered on March 5, 2001. The signature song was Time in a Bottle by Jim Croce. This book featured the debut of the not-quite-normal side of Port Charles. The story featured the couple of Frank Scanlon and Karen Wexler time traveling and falling in love.

Frank and Karen

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Port Charles hit a peak with it's third book, Tainted Love. Premiering on June 4th, 2001, and featuring the song of the same name, this dove headfirst into the supernatural, making a mark for the half hour sudser. It featured the arrival of a vampire named Caleb, who fell in love with Kevin's daughter Olivia "Livvie" Locke, and turned Jack and Gabriela into vampires. Port Charles experienced it's highest ratings ever during these three months, and the show was recognized and acclaimed. TV Guide called it "Exciting...Intuiging...Sexy," and called the young cast "electric." The New York Daily News called it a "daring new storyline." PC was finally in the limelight. The book ended with Caleb meeting his supposed demise on the roof of the hospital. But the vampire story was far from over. Many fans consider Tainted Love to be their favorite story arc.

Caleb and Livvie

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The 4th book, Tempted, premiered on September 3rd, 2001. The title song was Tempted by Squeeze, and it continued the vampire storyline. Everyone in Port Charles assumed Caleb to be dead, and he used their insecurities to turn the couples against each other, giving him the strength to become corporeal again. He manipulated Livvie into helping him, but she doublecrossed him and the book ended in a suspenseful showdown during which Livvie killed Caleb.

The end of Tempted

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The 5th book, Miracles Happen, featuring the song by Myra of the same name, premiered on December 3rd, 2001 and lasted only 5 weeks. It focused on Rafe, an angel/vampire slayer sent to reunite the couples Caleb divided. By New Years Eve, everyone was more or less happy, except for Alison Barrington, who was on the outs with boyfriend Jamal Woods and was falling for Rafe. Rafe returned to heaven temporarily during the surprise wedding he arranged for cousin/fellow slayer Lucy and her love Kevin. He also arranged for the return of Lucy's daughter Christina, who had been kidnapped by her biological mother almost two years before. This book is a fan favorite because it featured happiness for all of the favorite couples.

The Newlyweds, Kevin and Lucy

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The 6th book, Secrets, which premiered on January 2, 2002 and featured the song Secret by Madonna, focused on 4 angels, Rafe, Casey, Paige, and Amy, who returned to Earth to complete their lives' journeys. The catch was they only had 13 weeks. Rafe and Alison fell in love, and quickly become a fan favorite supercouple. Casey fell for Ricky Garza, Paige reunited with old love Kevin, and Amy got close to Ian. It was revealed midway through the arc that there was a "5th Chair" in heaven that would be filled by someone that was close to one of the angels on earth. In a shocking turn of events, Eve Lambert, played by original cast member Julie Pinson, died in an offscreen car accident and filled the spot.

The angels, the angelic Eve; Rafe and Alison.

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A few more personal milestones came for the Port Charles cast in spring 2002. Brian Presley (Jack Ramsey) was nominated for a Daytime Emmy in the Outstanding Younger Actor category for his work as a vampire in Tainted Love. He also proposed to costar Erin Hershey (Alison) that spring, and they were married on July 27, 2002.

Brian and Erin Hershey Presley

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Superstition, the 7th arc, began on April 1, 2002. Superstition by Stevie Wonder served as the theme song. Alison was sad from losing Rafe, and she got out her great great great grandmother Rebecca's old candles. Little did she know, they were enchanted, and caused all sorts of trouble in Port Charles. It lead to everyone believing that Alison killed Kevin, and she was hospitalized during the trial. Meanwhile, Rafe returned, but without his memory. Livvie, who was angry about her father's "murder," convinced Rafe that he was her boyfriend, and kept him away from Alison, her former best friend. At the end of the arc, Rafe found Alison in the hospital, and although he did not remember her, his kiss woke her up.

Alison and her candles, the end of Superstition.

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Torn began on July 1s,t 2002, with Torn by Natalie Imbruglia as the theme song. Livvie continued her deceptions by marrying Rafe, while elsewhere, a mysterious cloaked Avatar, who later turned out to be a possessed Frank Scanlon, terrorized the town. Livvie had Frank impregnate her and told Rafe it was his child to stop him from leaving her. Meanwhile Alison and Lucy learned that Rafe sold his soul to return. Livvie's schemes worsened when she stabbed Kevin with a drug meant for Rafe that drove him crazy, driving him away from wife Lucy. At last Rafe remembered Alison, but their reunion was interrupted when Livvie shot him. He died in Alison's arms, and a heartbroken Ali boarded a train to leave Port Charles. The avatar is defeated, and Alison gets a surprise when she finds Rafe running behind the train, having been sent back to be be with her. Their joyful reunion was the end of the storyline.

Karen and the avatar, the end of Torn.

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Naked Eyes, which premiered on September 30, 2002, saw the return of Caleb, disguised in the form of rock star Stephen Clay. The original song Naked Eyes by the Stephen Clay Experience was the theme for this exciting arc. The whole town works to prove that Stephen is indeed Caleb. Meanwhile, a mysterious girl named Tess who is identical to Livvie arrives in Port Charles and falls for Jack. Livvie loses her baby in an attempt to murder Alison, and Alison's mother Elizabeth comes to Port Charles, where she is soon seduced and bitten by Caleb. Meanwhile Kevin's insanity drives Lucy into the arms of Ian Thornhart, and Rafe and Alison prepare to marry.

Stephen Clay, AKA Caleb

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On December 30, 2002, Port Charles kicked off it's 10th book, Surrender, set to another original song, with a special one hour episode. It was a first for the show, and would go on to receive the show's first Daytime Emmy Nomination for Best Show. Port Charles was the only ABC soap to receive a nomination in that category in 2003. The special episode focused on Rafe and Alison's wedding coming to a screeching halt when evidence surfaces that they could be brother and sister. Meanwhile, Caleb and Elizabeth get married, and Livvie and Tess become one. When Caleb leaves Elizabeth alone on her wedding night to see what happened, she turns Ian into a vampire.

Rafe and Alison deal with devastating news, Livvie/Tess, Ian gets vamped.

Thankfully, one month later Rafe and Alison discovered that her mystery sibling was a girl, and therefore not Rafe. Lucy and Ian tried to deal with his vampirism, and Tess became the dominant personality and fell for Caleb. Then Rafe and Lucy cured all the vampires except Ian and a newly revamped Livvie by throwing them in Caleb's healing spring.

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In the spring of 2003, Port Charles became the upset of the Emmy nominations. In addition to scoring a first ever Best Show nod for the one hour episode, three actors receieved nominations. Erin Hershey Presley (Alison) was nominated for Outstanding Younger Actress for her work during her breakup with Jamal in Secrets. Kelly Monaco received a Supporting Actress nod for her work as Livvie/Tess, and Thorsten Kaye (Ian) got in the Lead Actor category for his work after Eve's death. Several of the original songs also received nominations, and Port Charles was in the limelight. Rumor had it that a Best Show win could save PC from it's rumored cancellation, but the prize went to As The World Turns. None of the actors won either.

The lovely nominees: Erin Hershey Presley and Kelly Monaco at the Emmys, Thorsten Kaye.

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Desire, the 11th arc, debuted on April 2nd, 2003. It revolved around the new vampire king, Joshua, becoming obsessed with making Alison his bride. This forced Alison, Rafe, Caleb, and Livvie to work together, because Joshua had also poisoned Livvie's fangs so she could not make Caleb a vampire again after being turned human by the slayers. For a while Alison was under Joshua's spell, but in the end he was thwarted by Caleb and Rafe. Another interesting point was the developing friendship between Caleb and Alison, which left many fans fearsome of a possible pairing. Meanwhile, Lucy became very ill after falling into the healing springs, and was near death. But sadly, Karen died after being hit by a car, and her death allowed Lucy to live.

Alison's vampy almost-wedding, Karen's demise.

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The sad news came on June 27th, 2003. Port Charles was cancelled. The ratings hadn't been solid for a long time, but fans knew that if the show had won the Daytime Emmy the previous month that it would have survived. The final airdate was said to be October 3rd, at the end of the 12th book. With it's unique filming schedule, filming for 6 months then going on hiatus, the cast had long since wrapped on the 12th book, and three months had passed where they could have been looking for new jobs. Fans rallied, but nothing could be done. The cast was just as saddened, and the final fan club party in August 2003 was said to be a bittersweet event. The irony is, that on the episode that aired the day the cancellation was announced, Chris Ramsey was saying how he was the only one of the original 7 interns left. Here is a copy of the original press release from Brian Frons:

"This was an extremely difficult decision. We were very pleased with the creative execution of the show, but the 30-minute format in this time period posed significant financial challenges, which ultimately led to this decision. Port Charles allowed us to develop a wonderful stable of talent in front of and behind the camera, and it is our plan to place as many as possible through our other ABC Daytime shows. I am extremely grateful to everyone who played a role in developing, creating and making this show on a daily basis." — Brian Frons, president, ABC Daytime

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The final book, The Gift, premiered on July 7th, 2003. It revolved around Caleb's magical ring, which was revealed to have the power to grant wishes. A newly vamped Jamal wished for a new lady in his life, and the mysterious Imani, who was revealed to be a werewolf during the finale, arrived in town. Meanwhile, Lucy chose Ian over Kevin for what appeared to be the final time. As for Rafe, Alison, Caleb, and Livvie, they dealt with new problems that arose from Alison and Caleb's growing friendship. Livvie even paralyzed her father Kevin in a failed attempt to kill Alison. That September, a shocking twist happened when Livvie made a wish on the ring. She wished for Caleb to have the most passionate night ever, but the problem is, he was with Alison at the time. Neither appeared to have any control over themselves, and they made love in the barn where Rafe and Alison had first connected. Afterwards, Alison was horrified, but decided to keep it a secret from Rafe, knowing she couldn't have hurt him more if she tried. Meanwhile, Caleb revealed that he was in control of himself during their night of passion. The final episode on October 3rd revolved around the weddings of the two couples, with neither Rafe nor Livvie knowing about their lovers' night together. Alison and Rafe shared a magical wedding inside a bed and breakfast surrounded by family and friends, while Caleb and Livvie had an untraditional vampire wedding outside. After they were declared husband and wife, Caleb told Livvie about the consequences of her wish, and revealed that there was another part to it, which resulted in Alison being pregnant with his child. The camera zoomed in on the rejoicing Rafe and Ali while Caleb made his confession, and then the show was over.

The two weddings

The final frame of Port Charles. Fade to black.

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The Port Charles finale left many unanswered questions. However, the day after, October 4th, SoapNet aired a 12 hour marathon featuring the favorite episodes of Jon Robert Lindstrom (Kevin), Lynn Herring (Lucy), Jay Pickett (Frank), Kiko Ellsworth (Jamal), Brian Presley (Jack), Erin Hershey Presley (Alison), and Kelly Monaco (Livvie). It was a nice farewell to a wonderful show. In December, SoapNet added PC to it's daily lineup of cancelled shows, showing two episodes a day starting with Fate. And then in March, PC was remembered in the Emmy nominations, with both Brian Presley and Thorsten Kaye receiving their second nominations in the Younger Actor and Lead Actor categories, respectively. Neither won, but Port Charles will always be a winner in the hearts of the fans.

1997-2003

*To find your SoapNet schedule for the reruns of Port Charles, click here.