Yahoo Lifestyle General Hospital Photo Flashback: Hey, Remember Demi Moore’s Run as Jackie Templeton?
Demi Moore’s Golden Globe acceptance speech was instantly iconic, as she recalled being pigeonholed for so long as a “popcorn actress.” Weeks later, she earned her first ever Academy Award nomination, for her lead role in The Substance.
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But which of you out there remember “the substance” of Moore’s first major acting role, on ABC’s General Hospital? Let’s see if TVLine’s photo flashback can spark your memory.
(Content Warning: Big hair.)
Moore made her GH debut on Jan. 4, 1982 — two months ahead of the release of what was her first meaningful acting role, in the killer fish flick Parasite. Moore’s character, reporter Jackie Templeton, first appeared aboard The Haunted Star, the seized Cassadine yacht that Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary) turned into a floating nightclub, to interview Luke’s wife Laura (Genie Francis) about her viral (well, as viral as anything was in the 1980s) Ms. Star Eyes modeling campaign.
Press play above to watch Moore’s first scene, opposite Genie Francis.
Not two weeks later, Laura Spencer vanished, last seen being approached by someone one foggy night on the docks. The disappearing act facilitated Francis’ exit from GH and thus marked a tricky segue for the sudser, which was riding quite the high amid Luke-and-Laura mania. An audience of 30 million had watched the couple’s wedding, featuring curse-casting lookie-loo Helena Cassadine (guest star Elizabeth Taylor), in November 1981.
Adding to the mystery of Laura’s vanishing — and vexing Luke whenever he’d catch a glimpse of her — was the introduction of a look-alike-ish Laura Templeton, as in Jackie’s sister (played by a pre-Northern Exposure Janine Turner).
Laura Templeton also went missing. It was eventually discovered that David Grey, a mysterious hypnotist hell-bent on stealing the Treasures of Malkuth — yes, the Treasures of Malkuth! — from the Port Charles museum, was responsible.
Moore’s Jackie was first paired up with Tristan Rogers’ super-suave, “shedule”-saying Aussie spy Robert Scorpio, while her sister Laura was briefly eyed as a new love interest for Luke — though the audience simply wasn’t having it.
In late 1983, Genie Francis reprised her role as Laura for a short stint — to establish that Luke’s wife had been kidnapped by Stavros Cassadine, reunite the tragically separated supercouple, and then usher them both off the canvas, as Geary’s own original GH run came to an end.
(A decade or so later, we and Luke would learn that Laura failed to share a few things about her time on the Cassadine island!)
Jackie Templeton left Port Charles in early 1984. Moore’s film career in turn began in earnest, with Blame It on Rio, St. Elmo’s Fire and (one of my favorites) About Last Night. “She’s living inside my heart nowwww…”
The character of Jackie returned to Port Charles in October 2020, recast with All My Children alum Kim Delaney, whose run with the ABC serial lasted about eight months.
What do you remember about Jackie Templeton’s GH debut ahead of Laura’s vanishing, the other Laura’s arrival, and that crazy-ass David Grey?
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