Leslie Charleson Cause Of Death Revealed

A cause of death has been revealed for Leslie Charleson, who played cardiologist Monica Quartermaine on the ABC daytime drama General Hospital for nearly 50 years. Charleson died of sequelae of blunt head trauma, a consequence of a previous head injury she had suffered, according to documents obtained by TMZ.

Charleson died January 12 at a hospital in Los Angeles at the age of 79.

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The four-time Daytime Emmy nominee joined GH in 1977 to replace Patsy Rahn as Monica and played the beloved character for the next 46 years. She exited the show because of health issues and was last seen on the ABC soap in December 2023.

Charleson began her television career appearing in soaps A Flame in the Wind and As the World Turns. She guest-starred in numerous television series including most recently Friends; Dharma and Greg; as well as 1970s series Adam-12; Emergency!; Ironside; Mannix; Marcus Welby, M.D.; Happy Days; Cannon; The Streets of San Francisco; and The Rockford Files. She had a supporting role in the 1973 sci-fi film The Day of the Dolphin and co-starred opposite Shelley Winters in the 1971 TV movie Revenge!.

Charleson used her platform to advocate for breast cancer awareness, particularly because her character was diagnosed with it in the mid-90s.

Lynette Rice contributed to this report.

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