http://abcmedianet.com/web/dnr/dispDNR.aspx?id=071310_01

IN CELEBRATION OF VANESSA MARCIL'S RETURN TO "GENERAL HOSPITAL"

AS BRENDA BARRETT ON AUGUST 11, SPECIAL BRENDA PROGRAMMING

TAKES OVER ABC DAYTIME AND SOAPNET THE WEEK OF AUGUST 9

"General Hospital" Will Own the ABC Daytime Drama Block from 1:00-3:00 PM, ET

On August 10 With Classic Episodes Featuring the Men in Brenda Barrett's Life

Additional Programming and Digital Events Include Special Retrospectives,

A SOAPnet Marathon of Classic Brenda Episodes, Hosted Wraps, a Countdown

Of the 25 Key Brenda Moments, Timelines, Photo Galleries and Trivia Quizzes

In celebration of Vanessa Marcil's return to "General Hospital" as Brenda Barrett on Wednesday, August 11, special Brenda programming takes over on ABC Daytime and SOAPnet the week of August 9. "General Hospital" will own the ABC Daytime drama block from 1:00-3:00 PM, ET on Tuesday, August 10, with classic episodes featuring the men in Brenda's life (Sonny, Jax and Jason). Additional programming and digital events include special retrospectives, a SOAPnet marathon of classic Brenda episodes, hosted wraps, a countdown of the 25 key Brenda moments, timelines, photo galleries and trivia quizzes.

When we last saw Brenda, Jax had left her at the altar and, as a result, she left town. Now Brenda's return to Port Charles comes at a time when the three most important men in her life - Sonny, Jax and Jason - are all in crisis. Brenda's in trouble herself - when is she not? - possessing an explosive secret. She has no idea of the havoc this indiscretion will wreak or that she'll send the lives of loved ones hurtling into chaos.

The Brenda Barrett ABC Daytime and SOAPnet programming event includes:

July 17: SOAPnet's 25-day countdown to the return of Brenda Barrett begins: Each day leading up to her arrival, a key Brenda moment will be revealed:

Every day, starting on Saturday, July 17 and leading up to her return on August 11, fans will see key Brenda moments on SOAPnet. Some of the moments will include Sonny learning Brenda is wearing a wire; Sonny and Brenda's famous kiss on the beach; and Sonny leaving Brenda in the rain. The complete list of 25 Brenda video moments will be available on ABC.com and SOAPnet.com starting August 10.

August 6 & 9: Original "General Hospital" episodes feature Sonny remembering special moments with Brenda Barrett:

3:00 PM ET ABC / 10:00 PM ET SN: Facing estrangement from all his major relationships, especially from his children, Sonny finds himself reminiscing about Brenda and longing for a past, simpler life that allowed him to love as completely as he did once with her. On Friday, August 6, we leave Sonny on the docks thinking about Brenda -- and he flashes back to the time he helped her lug a heavy suitcase.

Mistaking Claire Walsh for Brenda on August 9, Sonny tries to distract himself from his memories of her by pursuing Claire. However Sonny still cannot get her out of his mind - and he remembers the first time he told Brenda he loved her.

August 10: "General Hospital" takeover event with all three hours of the ABC Daytime drama block dedicated to "Brenda Barrett's Men: A Special 'General Hospital' Marathon," hosted by Vanessa Marcil on ABC and SOAPnet:

1:00 PM ET ABC / 8:00 PM ET SN - "General Hospital" Episode #8602 (OAD November 5, 1996) -- As Brenda prepares to marry Jax at the Quartermaine mansion, Sonny interrupts with Miranda, who's still married to Jax.

2:00 PM ET ABC / 9:00 PM ET SN - "General Hospital" Episode #8831 (OAD September 24, 1997) -- After being left at the altar by Sonny, Brenda reminisces about the key moments of their relationship.

3:00 PM ET ABC / 10:00 PM ET SN - "General Hospital" Episode #10138 (OAD October 29, 2002) -- Brenda and Jason's Las Vegas wedding.

August 11: Brenda Barrett Returns to "General Hospital":

3:00 PM ET ABC/ 10:00 PM ET:

Brenda appears on the "General Hospital" landscape as the face of fashion house Cartullo, only to be attacked by a dangerous stalker.

August 15: SOAPnet marathon: "The Best of Brenda and Sonny," with special appearances by Vanessa Marcil and Maurice Benard:

3:00 PM - "General Hospital" Episode #8105 (OAD December 2, 1994) - In Puerto Rico, Sonny and Brenda escape on a boat and end up washed ashore on a beach, where their relief turns to passion. The two then hurry back to Miguel's (Ricky Martin) concert to warn him that he and Lois are in danger.

4:00 PM - "General Hospital" Episode #8688 (OAD March 7, 1997) -- Trapped in a cave and thinking they're going to die, Sonny and Brenda admit their feelings for each other and make love as Jax and Jason search for them.

5:00 PM - "General Hospital" Episode #8829 (OAD September 22, 1997) -- Brenda is stunned at her wedding when Sonny leaves her waiting alone at the altar.

6:00 PM - "General Hospital" Episode #9002 (OAD May 26, 1998) -- Brenda pays a surprise visit to Sonny and finally gets him to admit why he didn't show up for their wedding.

Additionally, beginning the week of July 12, ABC.com and SOAPnet.com will start rolling out content that will allow fans to reminisce and catch up on all things Brenda. The site will include photo galleries, story histories and trivia questions. The complete list of the key 25 Brenda video moments will be available starting August 10. Fans can log onto www.abc.com/generalhospital and www.soapnet.com for more info.

Vanessa Marcil created the role of Brenda Barrett in 1992 and won a Daytime Emmy® for her portrayal in 2003 for Outstanding Supporting Actress. Named one of People magazine's "100 Most Beautiful People," Marcil has been seen in many successful TV series, including "Las Vegas," "Without a Trace," "Lipstick Jungle" and "Beverly Hills 90210."

"General Hospital" airs at 3:00 p.m., ET, 2:00 p.m., PT on the ABC Television Network, and on SOAPnet at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT. Winner of a record-setting 10 Emmys for Outstanding Daytime Drama, the program celebrated 47 years of broadcasting on April 1, 2010, and is the longest-running dramatic serial on ABC, having aired over 12,000 episodes. "General Hospital" consistently rates as one of the top-rated Daytime programs in the key demographic of Women 18-49.

"General Hospital" was created by Frank and Doris Hursley. Jill Farren Phelps is the executive producer. Mary O'Leary, Mercer Barrows and Michelle Henry are producers. Robert Guza, Jr. is the head writer. Full episodes of "General Hospital" are available on ABC.com the day after airing on the network for users to watch online.

SOAPnet owns the world of character-driven soapy drama, from daytime and primetime dramas to reality shows and movies. The network features same-day episodes of popular daytime dramas including "All My Children," "Days of our Lives," "One Life to Live," "General Hospital" and "The Young and the Restless"; favorite primetime series "Gilmore Girls," "The O.C.," "One Tree Hill" and "Beverly Hills 90210"; and original programs including "Being Erica." Wrapped in a 24-hour environment, SOAPnet is the one destination for stories focused on real emotions and revealing truths about intriguing yet flawed characters.

One of the only things I liked about Brenda was that she never had much use for Jason and saw him as the brain dead thug he was. Then they had to ruin that, because everyone has to love Jason unless they're pure evil. So now we get to see Jason having flashbacks of her and all the forced nonsense piled on them in 2003.

I love it! The whole thing is just so batshit insane and needy and desperate that I love it.

LOL! Very true. It better work because this is GH's last card to play.

I read it on a Lucky/Liz board I post on. Im not surprised though bc the last time Vanessa came on, they dropped Liz's romance with Jason and had him marry Brenda and get involved with Courtney. Liz did nothing but serve tables and pour coffee at Kellys. She was used alot in the summer with her triangle with Zander but was dropped to what amounted to a recurring character when Brenda came back

Yeah, it is probably easier for Guza to keep her off the canvas for awhile. I wonder who else among the supporting cast will have an unwilling long vaca.

I dont see him getting rid of BH of KmC....I could see KeMo and LisaLo going though. And of course Dahlia Salem will probaby go (</3) and if there was a true soap god out there, Julie Marie Berman would be out on her ass.

I was thinking that VM's return could be the perfect excuse to get rid of the useless characters, but god knows Guza will get rid of the wrong people.

Looking at the canvas, LL is the most obvious contract actor in danger. Guza clearly put Olivia's romance with Sonny on hold so that he could set up the romance with Brenda.

This sh!t is hilarious and expected. If we didn't already know the contempt ABC/Frons has for AMC and OLTL, we know now.

But I'm sure I'll be watching.

Edited July 13, 201015 yr by Y&RWorldTurner

Looking at the canvas, LL is the most obvious contract actor in danger. Guza clearly put Olivia's romance with Sonny on hold so that he could set up the romance with Brenda.

Right. And right now she's broken up with Johnny, and hasn't been sharing nearly as many scenes with Dante....Her friendship with Carly is nonexistant pretty much...It seems to me that Guza is slowly cutting her ties to the show.

This Brenda Marathon is a test run for future marathons that are going to fill those extra 20 days per the other thread.

99% of which will be GH marathons...

"Mistaking Claire Walsh for Brenda"

(Doing my Grace Adler dance): Told ya so! Told ya so!

If this delays her return I am all for a Brenda day marathon

There IS a bright side.

She's the new Linda Dano.

I read that Rebecca Herbsts maternity leave was extended, not by choice though. She joked that "some of us don't work when Vanessa is around." Expect other actor's airtime to be cut to accomodate the Queen

I love her!

[!@#$%^&*] Brenda

Awww... Someone knows what this is gonna do to his homegirl that I hate with a passion!

Tee hee hee hee heeeeee!

And for that reason and that reason alone, I ADORE this Brenda-thon. Yeah, it screws over my other show, AMC, but I can take it on the chin if it means that Ally Rescot (don't wanna steal BC's Cassie Layne) gets her ass in check.

(Doing my Grace Adler dance): Told ya so! Told ya so!

Awww... Someone knows what this is gonna do to his homegirl that I hate with a passion!

Tee hee hee hee heeeeee!

And for that reason and that reason alone, I ADORE this Brenda-thon. Yeah, it screws over my other show, AMC, but I can take it on the chin if it means that Ally Rescot (don't wanna steal BC's Cassie Layne) gets her ass in check.

(Doing my Grace Adler dance): Told ya so! Told ya so!

Okay, okay. Y'all keep laughin'!

I, honestly, would rather have had Claire gutted by Franco BEFORE this nonsense so we wouldn't have had these comparisons. It's gonna be sad for me watching Brenda put "THE" Claire Walsh in her place.

Awww... Someone knows what this is gonna do to his homegirl that I hate with a passion!

Tee hee hee hee heeeeee!

And for that reason and that reason alone, I ADORE this Brenda-thon. Yeah, it screws over my other show, AMC, but I can take it on the chin if it means that Ally Rescot (don't wanna steal BC's Cassie Layne) gets her ass in check.

I stole Cassie Layne from Y&RWorldTurner, so credit goes to him for his renaming of "The Laura Wright Character."(© R Sinclair)

And if there's anything I am looking most forward to is Brenda putting Cassie/Ally/TLWC in her place. Can't wait.

And is it too much to hope that Lisa Lo will make her hair bright orange again like Jocelyn and befriend Brenda?

Edited July 13, 201015 yr by bellcurve

Okay, okay. Y'all keep laughin'!

But it is all kind of tragic, isn't it?

Not only will they suffocate the other two in this "Brenda-thon", they will cut them to 4 episodes a weak.

It's like... So... I don't know what to say.

And one can't really care about any of these shows because it's like watching asylum people party.

Awww... Someone knows what this is gonna do to his homegirl that I hate with a passion!

Tee hee hee hee heeeeee!

And for that reason and that reason alone, I ADORE this Brenda-thon. Yeah, it screws over my other show, AMC, but I can take it on the chin if it means that Ally Rescot (don't wanna steal BC's Cassie Layne) gets her ass in check.

But it is all kind of tragic, isn't it?

Not only will they suffocate the other two in this "Brenda-thon", they will cut them to 4 episodes a weak.

It's like... So... I don't know what to say.

And one can't really care about any of these shows because it's like watching asylum people party.

LOL. As long as GH doesn't plummet to Y&R-like depths in the production realm I should be fine. I watch the show for the aesthetics first and everything else second, to be honest.

Sylph, I thought you'd be dancing on my "Claire Walsh is Love" grave, considering how gun-ho I've been about promoting Dahlia Salem and the Claire Walsh character to anyone within an earshot of me. You are surprisingly restrained. But I can fully, totally admit to feeling sad about Claire leaving GH, but even worse, leaving after Brenda has arrived.

---

I wonder if Vanessa Marcil will get "Special Guest Star" billing too or whether her shot will be the opener in the main titles?

Edited July 14, 201015 yr by bellcurve

Yeah. Overkill. To have on both SN and ABC.

ABC only for one day I can see. I mean. AMC, OLTL, and GH have been all kinda boring to me here lately anyways. One day of classic GH (90s early 2000s) is not going to irk me too much. The whole eppy does not revolve around her. And, I old episodes of soaps I haven't seen.

Of all of them (including SN's) I'm most looking forward to the 1994 eppy. GH was great in 94/95.

Edited July 14, 201015 yr by weareclouds

To me, this just has failure written all over it.

Awww, DP, you know I you... But, even so, my joy over what Brender/VM's return will do to that horrid character... it can't be contained! WOOOOO HOOOOOOOOO!!!

Again, ABC and GH will shove Snarly aside! She'll be where LW's character needs to be -- with Ingo's Jax. Oops, wait! Jax might drop her for Brender, too! I mean, it's only fitting that Jax and Skye are circling around each other when it was Brender Jax dropped Skye for! So, sorry... LW's character might not even be in Jax's orbit . Although, I need to check myself, since Frons insists on showing Sonny/Brender shows, Carly might not get a total wipe out. He might put his second favorite back into a CarJacking.

Laura Wright is a shitty actress. She was awful on GL and is even worse as Carly on GH. I have never accepted her as Carly.

Edited July 14, 201015 yr by Ruxton Hills