All The Emotional Goodbyes We Plan To See In General Hospital's Jacklyn Zeman Tribute

"General Hospital" charges ahead into 2024 with surprising twists, special guests, and a bittersweet tribute. On January 4, the show will air a primetime special, "General Hospital: 60 Years of Stars and Storytelling," which will give a fascinating glimpse behind the scenes that illustrates fully how the sudser is made. It will also present fun bloopers, and interviews with cast members past and present including Maurice Benard (Sonny Corinthos), Laura Wright (Carly Spencer), Rick Springfield (Dr. Noah Drake/Eli Love), and Amber Tamblyn (the original Emily Quartermaine).

In an article published on December 21, Wright told People that the special "definitely celebrates the storytelling and the writing, all the actors throughout the years, who have come on who were lucky enough to use General Hospital as a springboard into other things." She further explained that most facets involved in creating the show will be illuminated, and happily remarked, "There's so many surprises, people are gonna be like, 'Oh my gosh!' "

The storyline on the show will also reveal that beloved character Bobbie Spencer — played by Jacklyn Zeman since 1977, who tragically died in May 2023 — has passed away, and on January 10 and 11, everyone in Port Charles will pay a heartfelt homage to the beloved character and her portrayer. One element fans have been waiting for is the return of Bobbie's son, Lucas Jones, played by fan favorite Ryan Carnes.

"General Hospital" star Laura Wright, whose character Carly Spencer was Bobbie Spencer's daughter, also told People, "When we shot the memorial, the entire cast was there. And it wasn't just for Bobbie; it was for Jackie as well." She noted that the on-set tribute was very true to life: "It was about Jackie and everyone was so present ... It was like we as a cast got to really say goodbye." Other cast members whose characters had a close relationship to Bobbie will be honoring her, including Rebecca Herbst (Elizabeth Webber), Kin Shriner (Scotty Baldwin), Kirsten Storms (Maxie Jones), and Lynn Herring (Lucy Coe).

In June 2020, Zeman raved to Soaps in Depth about her real-life relationships with Herring and Genie Francis, who plays her ex-sister-in-law, Laura Collins, remarking, "Their characters are completely different and always interesting. And the longevity! We've all been on since we were very young — and when you get to see a character and a person grow like that over the years, I find that really interesting."

While Bobbie has particularly clashed with Lucy over the years, it will be fun to see her rein it in and honor Bobbie properly. The return of Lucas Jones will also be bittersweet, as we haven't seen him in quite some time. It's too bad he didn't have any poignant scenes with her before Zeman passed away, but his tribute will no doubt be heartfelt.

After taping was completed for the "General Hospital" tribute to Jacklyn Zeman, the cast and crew were stunned to see a beautiful rainbow appear above the studio. A photo of it was posted on the show's Instagram page on November 30 with the caption, " ... and then a rainbow appeared over Prospect Studios." Regarding that profound occurrence, Laura Wright told People that Zeman sent it for them, observing, "It was incredible. Everyone leaving the studio wasn't surprised. They were like, 'Oh my gosh.' "

Another exciting element that the magazine reported on was an upcoming storyline. The legendary Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary) was brother to Bobbie and married to Tracy Quartermaine, but he was killed off-screen in January 2022. On the November 8, 2023 episode, Tracy and Bobbie went off to Amsterdam to continue to deal with his tangled financial affairs. People's exclusive revealed that Carly and Bobbie's best friend Felicia Scorpio (Kristina Wagner) will encounter a mysterious stranger with a profound secret, leading them to an adventure in Amsterdam. There, they'll have to pick up where Bobbie left off.

Our fingers are crossed that the mystery reveals that Luke is actually alive, and we'll see Geary return one last time to pay tribute to his on-screen sister. It wouldn't be fair to have him appear at the memorial service, as Geary's presence would overshadow the somber affair, but a return afterward would be a happy and welcome surprise!