GH Alum Suffers the ‘Most Heartbreaking Loss’ — But Remains Determined to Celebrate Her Late Father, ‘My Favorite Man in the World’
Thursday, September 24th, 2020
Image: Jill Johnson/JPI
General Hospital actress recalls her father’s warrior spirit and mad salsa moves.
It’s been a heartbreaking time for General Hospital alum Lilly Melgar as she has had to say goodbye to a beloved family member. Melgar, who played Lily Rivera Corinthos, late wife of Maurice Benard’s Sonny Corinthos, from 1994 – 2003, shared the devastating loss of her father, who died on September 22, with her followers in a post that began, “To my favorite man in the world!!! … the sweetest soul … the man that was ALWAYS there for me NO MATTER WHAT …. you did good daddy!”
Toward the end of her touching tribute to her dad, which included references to his “warrior spirit,” and “mad salsa moves,” she shared, “My ‘cool’ daddy is now basking in the warmth of Heaven,” and thanked him for being “BEST father/grandfather a girl could ever ask for!!!”
Our hearts broke for Melgar’s loss as she opened up to say, “This is the most heartbreaking loss, the most devastating experience …. we will never be the same after this.” To honor her dad, the actress shared two beautiful black and white photographs that she felt embodied everything about him. His spirit certainly comes through in the photos, which you can see in her post below.
Showing support for Melgar, former co-star Benard remarked, “Beautiful,” after reading the tribute, while General Hospital alum Tamara Braun (Carly Corinthos, Kim Nero, Ava Vitali, Days of our Lives) expressed, “Oh Lilly. I am so sorry for your loss. I’m so happy you had such a loving and wonderful father in your life. Sending you tons of love and support.” Close friend Martha Madison, who once saved Melgar’s life, and who plays Belle Black on DOOL, also reached out with some comforting words: “Love you so much! Heaven is a more beautiful place today. Xxo”
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Lilly Melgar (@lillymelgarofficial) on
Soaps.com extends condolences to Lilly Melgar and her family at this difficult time.
Feel free to browse the General Hospital cast gallery below. Get your free daily soap-opera fix for General Hospital — and all of the other daytime dramas — delivered straight to your email inbox by signing up for Soaps.com’s newsletter.
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<p>Marcus Coloma took over the role of Nikolas Cassadine in October 2019 after the character’s three-year absence from the canvas. Actor Nick Stabile briefly played Nikolas in 2016. Tyler Christopher originated the role in 1996, playing him on and off until June 2016. Coloma previously starred in Point Pleasant, South Beach, and Make It or Break It.</p>
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<p>Ashton Arbab first came to General Hospital for a few episodes in March 2019. He returned in June of the same year when Dev Cerci became a recurring character.</p>
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3/49
<p>Bradford Anderson has been playing Damian Spinelli since 2006. The actor also appeared as Spinelli in the ABC soap opera’s spinoff General Hospital: Night Shift. The actor and his General Hospital co-star Steve Burton interview soap opera actors on their podcast, That’s Awesome, and travel the country performing thei live act at fan events.</p>
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4/49
<p>Briana Henry began playing Jordan Ashford in September 2019. She took over the role from Vinessa Antoine who last aired in the same month. The University of Southern California alum previously played Esmeralda on The Young and the Restless and Lauren on Undateable.</p>
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<p>Carolyn Hennesy has played Sonny Corinthos’ formidable attorney, Diane Miller, since 2007. She has also had memorable recurring roles in Jessie, Revenge, True Blood, and Cougar Town. Hennesy won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting or Guest Actress in a Digital Drama for The By.</p>
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<p>General Hospital recast the role of an adult Michael Corinthos with Chad Duell in 2010. The character was previously played by Drew Garrett and, before him, Dylan Cash, who played a younger version of Carly and Sonny’s son. Duell won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting actor in 2015.</p>
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<p>Port Charles introduced Curtis Ashford, played by Donnell Turner, in 2015. Turner also had short stints as a doctor on Days of our Lives and Dr. Aiden Williams on The Young and the Restless. The actor and motivational speaker previously worked as a double for Eriq LaSalle on ER and Shemar Moore on Criminal Minds.</p>
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<p>Since 2015, Eden McCoy has played Carly Corinthos and Jasper Jacks’ daughter Josslyn Jacks. The actress has also appeared in several Disney and Nickelodeon series and is a beach volleyball player.</p>
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9/49
<p>Emme Rylan stepped into the role of Lesley Lu “LuLu” Spencer in 2013. Lulu was previously played by Daytime Emmy Award-winning actress Julie Marie Berman who played Lulu from 2005 – 2013. The General Hospital star previously played Lizzie Spaulding on Guiding Light and Abby Newman on The Young and the Restless.</p>
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10/49
<p>Finola Hughes has played General Hospital’s iconic Anna Devane since 1985. Though she’s come and gone over the years, even spending some time on All My Children as both Anna and her twin sister Alex, Hughes brought her alter ego back to Port Charles on a regular basis in 2012. She won a Daytime Emmy Award for her role as Anna in 1991.</p>
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<p>Genie Francis has been in and out of Port Charles as the one and only Laura Spencer since 1977. She also enjoyed runs on Days of our Lives, Loving, All My Children, and The Young and the Restless. She won a Supporting Actress Daytime Emmy for her work as Laura in 2007.</p>
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<p>Haley Pullos has grown up before viewers’ eyes playing Molly Lansing-Davis. It’s a character she has inhabited since 2009 while also taking recurring roles on The Expanding Universe of Ashley Garcia, Instant Mom, and others.</p>
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13/49
<p>Ingo Rademacher first came to General Hospital as Jasper “Jax” Jacks in 1996. He left and returned to Port Charles in between stints as a recast Thorne Forrester on The Bold and the Beautiful, Hawaii Five-O, and Titans. Rademacher is also an active lifeguard in Los Angeles.</p>
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<p>Jacklyn Zeman has been playing nurse Bobbie Spencer since 1977. She began her career as a dancer, studying at New York University. Before General Hospital, Zeman appeared as Bobbi on The Edge of Night and Lana McClain on One Life to Live.</p>
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<p>James Patrick Stuart originated the role of the feared Valentin Cassadine in 2016. He previously portrayed Will Cortlandt on All My Children, and also had recurring characters on Supernatural, 90210, and Emily’s Reasons Why Not. Stuart is a voice-over actor and singer.</p>
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16/49
<p>Jon Lindstrom first appeared as the evil Ryan Chamberlain on General Hospital in 1992 and then Ryan’s twin brother, Kevin Collins, in 1993. Lindstrom’s other daytime credits include Kevin on Port Charles, Mark McCormick on Santa Barbara, Paul Jarre on Generations, and Craig Montgomery on As the World Turns.</p>
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<p>Josh Swickard has been playing Detective Harrison Chase since 2018. BEfore that, he had roles on Liv and Maddie, K.C. Undercover, and School of Rock.</p>
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18/49
<p>Katelyn MacMullen portrays former cult member Willow Tait on General Hospital. The character, which MacMullen originated on October 18, 2018, is now married to Michael Quartermaine. </p>
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19/49
<p>Kathleen Gati has been playing the villainous turned sympathetic Liesl Obrecht since 2012. The actress, who had a successful acting career in Hungry, also played Taffy Winslow on All My Children and Aunt Juliette on The Young and the Restless. Her recurring primetime roles include 24, Arrow, and Fear the Walking Dead: Flight 462.</p>
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20/49
<p>The first trans actor on a soap opera, Cassandra James stepped into the role of Dr. Terry Randolph in 2018. The outspoken activist also had a role in General Hospital alum Vinessa Antoine’s series Diggstown.</p>
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21/49
<p>Cynthia Watros stepped into Nina Reeves’ shoes on General Hospital in 2019 after Michelle Stafford left the role, earning her a spot in our <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/wp-admin/_wp_link_placeholder">best recasts ever list</a>. The soap vet also won a Daytime Emmy for her work as Annie Dutton on Guiding Light, played Kelly Andrews on The Young and the Restless, and filled in as Vicky Hudson on Another World for a couple of episodes. Primetime fans might remember her from House, Lost, and The Drew Carey Show.</p>
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22/49
<p>Kelly Monaco joined the cast of General Hospital as Sam McCall in 2003. Before that, she played Livvie Locke on Port Charles. The actress awon the first season of Dancing with the Stars and appeared in the single-season reality show Dirty Soap.</p>
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23/49
<p>The sometimes unethical Scotty Baldwin has been played by Kin Shriner since 1977. The character appeared in both General Hospital and Port Charles. His other soap opera roles include a temporary recast as Jeffrey Bardwell on The Young and the Restless, Keith Morrissey on As the World Turns, Dr. Brian Carey on The Bold and the Beautiful, Mike Gallagher on Rituals, and Jeb Hampton on Texas.</p>
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24/49
<p>Kirsten Storms began portraying an adult Maxie Jones in 2005 and made appearances on the primetime spinoff General Hospital: Night Shift. Before playing in Port Charles, Storms was well known for her work as Belle Black on Days of our Lives and Zenon Kar in Disney’s Zenon movies.</p>
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25/49
<p>The fourth actress to play Carly Benson Corinthos, Laura Wright joined General Hospital in 2005. She won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in 2011. The soap opera vet also played Ally Rescott on Loving and The City, and Cassie Layne on Guiding Light.</p>
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26/49
<p>Leslie Charleson has been battling Quartermaines and healing Port Charles residents as Monica Quartermaine since 1977. During that time, she crossed over to both Port Charles and Night Shift. The actress also portrayed Alice Whipple on As the World Turns and Iris Donnelly on Love Is a Many Splendored Thing.</p>
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27/49
<p>Emmy Award winner, Lexi Ainsworth, has been playing Kristina Davis on GH since 2009. She’s been on and off the ABC soap. Ainsworth practically grew up on the show, but before that, she attended many acting camps and began dancing ballet at age six. </p>
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28/49
<p>Lisa Locicero is remembered for her role on Loving, in 1995 as Jocelyn Roberts Brown. She stayed when the soap was spun off as The City, and once the show ran its course, she moved on to film. Locicero was seen in The Family Man, Rush Hour 2, and in 2008 she began playing Olivia Falconeri on GH. </p>
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29/49
<p>A household name, Maurice Benard has been portraying Sonny Corinthos since 1993, but this wasn’t his first foray into soaps, having started out as Nico on All My Children in 1987. The actor shares a diagnosis with his character – both having Bipolar disorder. Bernard was diagnosed at 22 and has become a spokesperson for the disorder. He also wrote a book called <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/general-hospital/news/562867/interview-gh-maurice-benard-talks-memoir-sonny-corinthos/" target="_blank">Nothing General About It:</a> How Love (and Lithium) Saved Me On and Off General Hospital and chatted recently with Soaps.com about that.</p>
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<p>Max Gail is best known for his role as Detective Stan “Wojo” Wojciehowicz from Barney Miller. You can hear the theme song running through your head as you remember watching. He directed many episodes, he was also Harold on D.C. Cab, and he came to General Hospital as Mike Corbin, Sonny’s father in 2018. Gail is Daytime Emmy award winner. </p>
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31/49
<p>An author, a poet, Michael Easton is a man of many talents. Known for his role as Taner Scofield on Days of our Lives, Easton turned to a fan-fave role as Caleb Morely – a vampire – on Port Charles for two years. Before heading to GH, he was John McBain on One Life to Live (from 2003 to 2012) until the soap went off the air and then he started to appear on General Hospital as McBain until legal issues with Prospect Park that caused him to have to vacate the role. Of course, he returned to portray Dr. Silas Clay shortly thereafter and the rest is history.</p>
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32/49
<p>For those who weren’t aware, Nancy Lee Grahn played Julia Wainwright Capwell on Santa Barbara from 1985 to 1993 – so well known for that role, fans of the now defunct soap were happy when Grahn turned up on General Hospital to portray Alexis Davis. But it should be noted that she also had a role of a secretary on One Life to Live, before becoming GH’s main lawyer. </p>
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<p>Parry Shen hails from Queens New York. He took the role of Brad Cooper on GH in 2013. He’s also been doing some voice work in video games such as Sleeping Dogs, and Mortal Kombat X. Shen has had roles on NCIS, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and Beverly Hills 90210 to name a few. He’s also a writer!</p>
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34/49
<p>Paging Nurse Elizabeth Webber! We can hardly recall a time when Rebecca Herbst wasn’t playing one of our fave GH nurses. She’s been doing it since 1986. California native, the actress was a competitive figure skater as a child and teenager. She has three children with her husband, Michael Saucedo (Juan Santiago). </p>
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<p>Risa Dorken is Amy Driscoll, GH’s resident nosy nurse! Born in Minnesota, she grew up with dance and vocal lessons and wound up acting. In a bold and brave move, Dorken opened up about her <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/general-hospital/news/564529/gh-risa-dorken-bipolar-disorder-diagnosis/" target="_blank">Bipolar Disorder diagnosis</a> recently, helping others struggling to share their experiences and know that they are not alone.</p>
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<p>Everyone knows Roger Howarth as One Life to Live’s Todd Manning. He started on OLTL in 1994, even earning himself a Daytime Emmy. But he left that ABC series in 2003 to become Paul Ryan on As the World Turns for a time, before returning to his roots. He was recast as Franco. Some recall he did a stint on Guiding Light as Jory Andros and for many episodes in 1992, he was Kent Winslow on Loving. </p>
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<p>This Duke University grad, Ryan Carnes, portrays Lucas Jones on General Hospital. He started in 2004 and left for a short time to portray a recurring role on Desperate Housewives. Remember Justin? Carnes has done a few stints in television shows such as Rizzoli & Isles, and The Closer.</p>
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<p>Scarlett Fernandez has been on General Hospital for almost four years. She made her debut in October 2016 and is not like her alter ego, bad girl, Charlotte Cassadine. </p>
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<p>Sofia Mattsson, or otherwise known as Sasha Gilmore, was born in Sweden. She moved to USA to model and to act, following her sister, Helena, from American Horror Story. </p>
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40/49
<p>Sonya Eddy is Epiphany Johnson, a mainstay at General Hospital, the lovable nurse. She had a role on Gilmore Girls, Beverly Hills, 90210, and Married…with Children. She also voice acts. Some may have heard her in Guild Wars 2. She voiced the roles of Lyra Lancetooth and Riel Darkwater.</p>
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<p>Who hasn’t heard of Steve Burton? He’s a GH legend who has been playing Jason Morgan on the ABC soap since 1991, with a few breaks. He also portrayed Dylan McAvoy on Young and the Restless, and some may not know that he does voice acting. He’s the voice of Cloud Strife in many Square Enix products such as Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. Little known fact? He was also Harris Michaels on Days of our Lives in 1988!</p>
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<p>Sydney Mikayla portrays Trina Robinson on General Hospital, but she also has a cool role in Netflix’s animated series, Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts. She voices the Wolf. Her mother, Sonya is also a Broadway actress and supported Mikayla’s career early on.</p>
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<p>Australian-American actor, Tristan Rogers is a General Hospital legend. He originally appeared in 1980 as Robert Scorpio and has come and go a few times, appearing on Young and the Restless, as Colin Atkinson. Recently, Rogers won his first <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/soaps/news/572525/general-hospital-tristan-rogers-daytime-emmy-win-studio-city/" target="_blank">Daytime Emmy</a>.</p>
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<p>Emmy-award-winning Vernee Watson, from New Jersey, made her way into television and movies starting in 1970. Soap fans may have seen her in Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, or Christmas With the Kranks as Dox. She has been in countless TV productions and now portrays Stella Henry on General Hospital. She began this role in 2017, where she won two Daytime Emmy awards, one for a Guest Performer and another for Supporting Actress.</p>
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<p>Musician, actor, Wally Kurth is known for dividing his time between General Hospital as Ned Quartermaine and Justin Kiriakis on Days of our Lives. Some may remember his days on As The World Turns as Sam Hutchins, while others will recall his band, Kurth and Taylor performing songs for General Hospital and on their own. Here’s a sample, in <a href="https://soaps.sheknows.com/days-of-our-lives/news/6057/days-of-our-lives-wally-kurths-band-kurth-taylo/" target="_blank">the form of a video</a>.</p>
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<p>Wes Ramsey became popular playing Sam Spencer on the now defunct soap, Guiding Light. He was also on Charmed, before playing Van in 2010 for four years in Venice: The Series. He has been portraying General Hospital’s Peter August since 2017.</p>
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<p>William Lipton plays Cam Webber on General Hospital and has done so since 2014. The actor stated in an interview with <a href="https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/abc/william-lipton-reveals-how-general-hospital-changed-his-life-173456" target="_blank">Soaps In Depth</a>, “This is the first big, longlasting thing I’ve done, and I’m so happy because it’s such a great community to be a part of.”</p>
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<p>William deVry is no stranger to soaps. This Canadian born actor has played Tim Dolan on Port Charlies, before stepping into the role of Michael Cambias on All My Children. He left there and moved to the CBS soap, Bold and the Beautiful, where he portrayed Storm Logan, who died and gave his heart to his sister, Katie. Currently, deVry is Julian Jerome on General Hospital, a role he took on in 2013.</p>
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