maurice benard memoir General Hospital
Credit: Image: Jill Johnson/JPI

General Hospital actor opens up about his experiences.

Updated April 17: Soaps.com congratulates General Hospital’s Maurice Benard (Sonny Corinthos) on becoming a New York Times best-selling author! The publisher of his memoir Nothing General About It: Love (and Lithium) Saved Me On and Off General Hospital, HarperCollins, announced the news on their social media, “Congratulations to @MauriceBenard—Nothing General About It is an instant New York Times bestseller!” Earlier this month, Soaps.com interviewed Maurice Benard, who opened up about his memoir, being bipolar, finding joy and learning from Sonny.

On September 19 we reported that General Hospital’s Maurice Benard (Sonny Corinthos) took to Instagram to reveal the cover (see below) of his memoir Nothing General About It: Love (and Lithium) Saved Me On and Off General Hospital. Along with photos of his castmates, Benard expressed, “I’m so emotional and proud to be able to finally let everyone read about the story of my life in Nothing General About It. I’ve been passionate about Mental Health for the past 30 years because the most important thing to me is that this book helps people reach a positive State of Mind. There is also Romance, Family and let’s not forget Buddy the Goat.”

On August 5 we reported that there’s a release date out for the memoir of actor Maurice Benard, who plays mobster Sonny Corinthos on General Hospital, entitled Nothing General About It: Love (and Lithium) Saved Me On and Off General Hospital, and Soaps.com has it. The book will chronicle his life both at home with his family and at work on the General Hospital set, where he has played Corinthos for 25 years, while dealing with a diagnosis of bi-polar disorder.

More: Photo gallery, Maurice Bernard as Sonny Corinthos

Benard, who got his start in soap operas playing Nico Kelly on All My Children, tells his story looking back to his childhood growing up in a small town and reflects on the difficult relationship he had with his father while recalling when the first signs of the bi-polar disorder began to manifest with jolting mood swings. As the actor struggled to make it in the business he also fought to overcome breakdowns and setbacks, all while attempting to hold onto a relationship with his wife.

More: Interview, Maurice Benard talks playing Sonny vs. John Gotti

A loving husband and father of four, Benard recalls in the book how he was medicated, spent time institutionalized, and fought to control manic episodes at work. He also talks about the importance of the enduring love of his wife and the support of his colleagues throughout his journey in the memoir, which provides insight and advice for those dealing with mental illness and stresses the need to fight for yourself through the most difficult and dark times. Additionally, the candid book will contain an insert featuring about 50 photos.

Outside of General Hospital, Benard recently appeared in Nightmare Cinema with Young and the Restless newcomer, actor Mark Grossman (Adam Newman) and has also been filming Equal Standard with Ice-T in New York.

Nothing General About It: Love (and Lithium) Saved Me On and Off General Hospital is due out April 7, 2020 by William Morrow publishing company and is now available for pre-order on Amazon.