Kelly Monaco, who plays the role of Sam McCall in the American soap opera General Hospital, is set to exit the ABC show owing to storyline progression. First appearing in 2003, Monaco went on to star in over 2200 episodes in what is considered the longest-running serial produced in Hollywood.
General Hospital premiered on the ABC television network on April 1, 1963, created by husband-and-wife Frank and Doris Hursley. It is considered the oldest American soap opera running.
In the series, Sam McCall is the daughter of mob boss Julian Jerome (William deVry) and attorney Alexis Davis (Nancy Lee Grahn). A con artist trying to reverse her family’s bad luck, McCall is the illegal adoptive daughter of Cody McCall (Stanley Kamel) and Evelyn Bass. Monaco's performance received a Daytime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in 2006.
The news of Monaco's exit from the show comes amid the return of multiple former cast members, such as Jonathan Jackson as Lucky Spencer and Rick Hearst as Ric Lansing.
