Who Was Gail Baldwin on GENERAL HOSPITAL?
Port Charles mourned the passing of Gail Baldwin on GENERAL HOSPITAL in the episode that aired on Jan. 3, 2019, but some newer viewers might not even be aware of who this character was since she hadn’t been seen on-screen since 2004. The character first appeared in 1977 when actress Susan Brown joined the soap. She portrayed Gail on both GH and its spin-off, PORT CHARLES, and was one of the soap’s most beloved vets. Her history is being revisited in the special 56th Anniversary episode on April 2, but we’ve got all the details for you right here!
Dr. Gail Adamson came to Port Charles in 1977 to work as a psychiatrist. It was then revealed that she was Monica Quartermaine’s foster mother. Gail and Lee Baldwin bonded when they discovered they were both mourning the death of their spouses, and she contacted his son, Scotty Baldwin, to bring him to town to help Lee move past his grief. She was also very supportive of Lee during his struggles with alcoholism.
Gail was horrified to learn that her late husband, Greg, had raped Monica when she was younger. This caused a rift between the two women, but they eventually worked through it and Gail found herself counseling Monica about her tumultuous love life as she was torn between Rick Webber and Alan Quartermaine. The shrink was also on hand to help deliver Monica’s son, A.J., during a terrible snowstorm.
Gail and Lee were married in 1980 and got themselves mixed up in Scotty’s love life (heck, Lee even burned up the divorce papers when Laura tried to split up with his son!). Lee ran against Luke Spencer for mayor and hired Scotty to run his campaign. But when Scotty took this as an opportunity to destroy his rival for Laura’s affections, Lee fired him. Luke won the election but resigned soon after. Lee became mayor and Gail, the First Lady of Port Charles. When his term ended, the couple left town to travel, but Gail returned to stay with the Quartermaines to help Monica deal with the return of her scheming sister-in-law, Tracy.
In 1994, Gail and Lee were surprised to learn that Karen Wexler was their granddaughter from an affair Scotty had with his secretary, Rhonda. Then Scott returned to town with his daughter, Serena Baldwin, and Gail and Lee were thrilled to be reunited with their family. When Dr. Julie Devlin was revealed to be a serial killer attacking patients at the hospital, Gail struggled to get her committed to Ferncliff to get her the help she needed.
In 1999, Gail was terrified when Lee suffered a pulmonary embolism, but thankfully, he made a full recovery. She was delighted when they added another granddaughter to the family after Scott and Lucy adopted a baby girl, especially when they named her Christina Gail Baldwin. Tragically, Karen was killed by a hit-and-run driver, leaving Gail utterly devastated.
Gail made another appearance with Lee to attend Lila Quartermaine’s funeral in 2004, but wasn’t seen again. Lee passed away off-camera in July of 2017, and Scotty informed Monica of Gail’s death in January of 2019. Her loved ones were informed that Gail’s will had some specific stipulations, but had to wait until they found out exactly what they were. Gail may be gone, but she will never be forgotten.
For more GH news, keep reading the ABC edition of Soaps In Depth magazine.
Love GH? Be sure to join our We Love General Hospital Facebook group to chat about all the latest storylines and juicy gossip!
