Luke Spencer and Laura Webber Spencer are fictional characters and the signature supercouple from the American daytime drama General Hospital.[1] Luke is portrayed by Anthony Geary, and Laura was portrayed by Genie Francis. Though other supercouples came before them, Luke and Laura are the most well-known outside of the soap opera medium, and are credited with defining the term "supercouple" and leading other soap operas to try and duplicate their success.[2][3][4]
Despite having been raped by a drunken Luke, Laura later falls in love with him. Originally, critics of the soap opera genre panned the unlikely pairing for detailing a rape victim to have fallen in love with her rapist.[4] The pairing became popular in spite of Luke's past misdeed when the story shifted to focus on love and redemption.
The series scripted the couple to wed on November 16, 1981; the event was watched by 30 million viewers and remains the highest-rated hour in American soap opera history.[1][5][6][7] Viewers watched as the show designed their marriage to last for two decades and gave them two children. Today, their union still has a presence in fictional town Port Charles. On Internet message boards, the couple is often referred to as "L&L" or "LnL" (for Luke and Laura).
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In 1978, General Hospital was close to cancellation due to low viewership. At that time, they were ranked lowest in the Nielsen ratings. To save the show, ABC executive Jackie Smith hired Gloria Monty as the show's executive producer and Douglas Marland as head writer.[8][9][10] Monty wanted to attract a youth based audience as a way of garnering higher ratings. To do this she and Marland brought troubled teenager Laura Vining (Genie Francis) to the forefront of the series.[9][10][11] The character went from appearing a couple of times a week, to having fifty pages of script a day.[11][12] "Gloria put sex and romance into Laura's life," Francis said, "and it bowled me over. Here I was doing things in front of 20 million people that I had never done in my life."[13] Her early stories included killing her older lover, David Hamilton, for cheating on her with her mother and a popular romance with Scotty Baldwin.[14] In response, General Hospital's ratings rose as younger viewers began watching for Laura. Teenagers connected with her because she was their age and experiences some of the same problems they did, yet also lived "the life of a 28 year old".[11]
Anthony Geary joined the cast in 1978 in what was meant to be a 13 week stint as Luke Spencer.[15] His sister, Bobbie Spencer, brought him to town to help her break up Laura's marriage to Scott Baldwin. By the end of Geary's contract, Luke was supposed to be killed off.[11] Like Laura, Luke appealed to teenage viewers because of his "edgy volatility".[16][11] Since viewers expressed interest in Luke and Laura, the writers decided to have Luke die in Laura's arms, after which she would reunite with Scotty.[17] Due to the positive viewer response, the story moved towards a romance between Luke and Laura.[11][17][18]
Pat Falken Smith replaced Marland as head writer of General Hospital in 1979 since he wanted to go slower with Luke and Laura's story than Monty did.[19] Smith wrote a controversial rape storyline between Luke and Laura.[10] To prepare for the story, Geary and Francis both met with a social worker before taping the rape scenes.[18] Originally intended to be a brutal attack, Monty rechoreographed the scene's blocking in order for the encounter to come off as a seduction. She also took strong language and violence out of the scenes.[18] General Hospital's music director at the time, Jill Phelps, chose to use the Herb Alpert song "Rise" during the rape scene and other related instances afterward.[11][20] "Every time Laura thought of the terrible rape by Luke, it was played to evoke that memory," Phelps said. "Consequently, we used it constantly for a while. Then we turned the story around so that he was no longer the rapist and that was no longer the appropriate piece of music."[20] The song already ranked on the Billboard Hot 100, but the exposure "Rise" gained from appearing on General Hospital helped bring it to number one.[20] After the story aired in October 1979, it was looked back on as a rape and Laura was shown getting rape counseling.[17] The writers decided to have the characters look back on the incident as a seduction instead of a rape because the pairing resonated with the audience.[8][11] "From that point on, we played [Luke's] regret and his total devastation," Geary said. "That's a story nobody wants to tell-that the rapist's life is as devastated as the person he rapes. His great love and regret and guilt are what caught the audience so off guard."[10]
The rape was revisited in 1998 when Luke and Laura's son, Lucky, finds out about the incident.[21] This time the writers scripted it as rape instead of a seduction. Lucky struggled to come to terms with the reveal while Luke and Laura dealt with the unresolved issues surrounding the rape.[21][22][23] In a 2000 interview with Soap Opera Digest, Geary said, that for the taping of the scenes "Alan Pultz, who had directed the rape originally, used his original notes and directed me that day to recall all of that. I was able to finally put out what I think is Luke's definitive statement: that it was rape, it was ugly, he'd probably never recover. I was grateful that the directors and the writers were interested in what Luke's experience was and didn't try to spin it for audience control."[23]
After the rape storyline, the focus of General Hospital began to center on Luke and Laura's romance. Before, the show used to revolve around hospital stories including alcoholism, obesity, mental disorders, and cancer.[9][10][11] Luke and Laura's adventure based plots took the show away from the hospital. In the summer of 1980, the couple spent the summer on the run, an "unprecedented" type of storyline at the time.[8] Monty imbued that plot with elements of Frank Capra's 1934 film, It Happened One Night and the 1941 Humphrey Bogart film The Maltese Falcon.[8][11] She later used Dr. No and Tarzan as the inspiration for their plot to stop Mikkos Cassadine from taking over the world.[11] As the show became laden with "comic-book fantasies", ratings remained high, but the viewer demographics became younger.[10]
In a 2008 interview with Soap Opera Digest, Kin Shriner (Scotty) said Monty planned to continue the Scotty, Laura, and Luke triangle for a longer period, but his 1980 departure forced a story change. He returned to the show a year later.[24] Former head writer Thom Racina intended to hold off the couple's marriage and allow them to be separated by Scotty for six more months. Elizabeth Taylor called General Hospital's studio after reading about the wedding being postponed in a soap opera magazine. She made a deal to appear on the series if Luke and Laura married.[25] Taylor appeared in five episodes as Helena Cassadine, the widow of Mikkos, who the couple killed.[26] Luke and Laura's wedding, which aired on November 16 and 17, 1981, achieved the highest ratings in the history of daytime television.[10][27] Shortly after the wedding aired, Francis left the show, taking a portion of the audience with her. To hold onto the younger viewers, the show began focusing more on "action-adventure" and less on "complex characterizations and psychological drama".[10] Francis returned briefly in 1983 to facilitate Geary's exit.[9] Both actors returned in 1984 to reprise their roles for six weeks. ABC brought them back hoping to raise General Hospital's ratings. Their return story involved a location shoot in Cuernavaca, Mexico and an adventure involving Holly Sutton and Robert Scorpio.[28] The story aired from late-October through early December 1984,[28] after which the actors departed again and did not return until the 1990s.[9]
Monty, who left the series in 1986, returned in 1991 with the hope that she would again raise the ratings of the show. She brought Geary back to General Hospital that same year as Luke's look-a-like cousin Bill Eckert. The actor had refused to return to the show as Luke without Laura.[9] The unpopularity of that character led to ABC firing Monty, killing off Bill, and bringing Luke and Laura back, played by Geary and Francis.[9][27][29] Upon their return, the actor's took more control of the writing for their characters. Geary, along with a writer friend of his, Irene Suver, developed the story for Luke and Laura's return.[29] Geary's contract allowed him to rewrite his dialogue at his discretion.[30] Francis and Geary were also known for fighting over story direction with executive producer Wendy Riche and the show's writers. The departure of head writer Richard Culliton days after a tense meeting with Geary caused rumors to circulate that the actor threatened to quit if Culliton was not fired. "The meeting did not go well, but I made no ultimatums and there was certainly no violence," Geary said. "I really don't know if I had anything to do with his departure, but I wouldn't shed any tears if I did."[31] Francis supported Geary in what they considered as standing up for the "integrity" of their characters and protecting the "Spencer franchise".[31][32] "Sometimes people think we're difficult because of that, but we're only difficult because we want to live up to the high standards we've set," Francis said. "I actually like it when Tony gets out of line... He can go to horrid places I can't."[31]
While working at General Hospital, teenage Laura Webber meets and falls in love with Scott Baldwin (Kin Shriner. When Laura is seduced by the much older David Hamilton, in a plot to get revenge on her mother Lesley Webber (Denise Alexander), Scott breaks up with Laura and begins an affair with former prostitute, and now nurse, Bobbie Spencer (Jackie Zeman). When Laura discovers the truth about David's plot, she accidentally kills him, eventually leading to Scott rekindling their relationship. Bobbie, very much in love with Scott, gets her brother, Luke Spencer, to help her break up the couple. Laura is put on probation for David's death until she turns eighteen or is married. When Scott becomes overwhelmed by Laura's desire to marry, he gets drunk and Bobbie makes it look like the two have slept together. When Laura discovers this, she ends up injured in a car accident. Luke, who has developed feelings for Laura, convinces Bobbie to drop her vendetta.
In July 1979, Scott and Laura marry. Scott begins law school, while Laura begins working at the Campus Disco, which is managed by Luke. Luke has become involved with mobster Frank Smith (then George Gaynes), who orders him to murder anti-mafia senatorial candidate Mitch Williams on election night. Luke, distraught over his unrequited love for Laura and the fact that he would likely die during the murder attempt, vows to hold Laura before he dies. As the Herb Alpert song Rise plays, Luke rapes Laura on the floor of the Campus Disco. A conflicted Laura, admits to being raped, but does not name Luke as her attacker. When election night arrives, Laura throws Luke's keys away to keep him from killing Mitch. Instead, Luke's best friend Roy DiLucca (then Asher Brauner) performs the hit and is presumed dead after being shot by Mitch's security detail. Frank, furious at Luke's actions, demands that Luke marry his daughter Jennifer Smith (then Lisa Marie).
In order to get out of his marriage to Jennifer, Luke orders Laura to tell Scott that he raped her. She refuses, and begins to get jealous when she observes Luke flirting with Jennifer. She decides to quit her job, and on her last night shares a kiss with Luke. Horrified, Laura slaps him, but later accidentally becomes locked in his office, only to overhear Luke and Frank discussing mob business. When Frank discovers her, he forces Laura to continue to work at the disco. Laura tries to convince Luke not to marry Jennifer, while Luke becomes concerned that Laura would reveal the truth about the rape and Frank Smith to Scotty, likely leading to Luke, Laura, and their families being killed by Smith.
Realizing that Laura returns his feelings, Luke traps her on a sailboat and forces her to admit her love for him. Rather than making love to her, Luke again orders Laura to turn him in for raping her. Laura refuses, while Luke realizes he should marry Jennifer, since he is in too deep with the mob to ever be with Laura. Laura writes Luke a love letter, which Scott finds on the day of Luke's marriage to Jennifer. Scott interrupts the ceremony on Frank's yacht, and knocks Luke overboard, leading everyone to believe he had died. Eventually, Luke reveals he is alive to Laura and that he has stolen Frank's encoded black book, which holds the details of all of his criminal dealings. Realizing that they could be free of the mob and be together if they could decode the book, the two flee Port Charles as Frank Smith's men pursued them.
While on the run, the two share a fun dance at Wyndahm's Department Store, before ending up in the rural town of Beecher's Corners. The two pose as newlyweds and are able to evade Frank's men and eventually find enough evidence to have Frank arrested. They celebrate by making love, and decide to return to Port Charles. When they return, the press bombards them with questions, and Laura, still traumatized from the press attention she had gotten after David Hamilton's murder, declares that she still considers herself Scott's wife. A heartbroken Luke rejects her, despite the fact that Laura has decided to divorce Scott.
While Laura attempts to find Scotty, who has fled to Mexico, she continues to pursue Luke and moves into the same apartment building as him. Meanwhile Luke takes a job with wealthy Edward Quartermaine (then David Lewis) and his niece Alexandria (Renee Anderson), who are searching for the Ice Princess, the world's largest uncut diamond. Also in pursuit of the diamond is Mikkos Cassadine (John Colicos), a wealthy Greek tycoon bent on world domination. Luke and Laura reconcile and decide to get married when Robert Scorpio (Tristan Rogers), an agent for the World Security Bureau (WSB), informs Luke that the statue the diamond is hidden in also contains a formula for a dangerous substance called "carbonic snow" that was powerful enough to freeze Port Charles.
Alexandria, who is revealed to be working with Mikkos' brothers Victor and Tony (Thaao Penghlis and Andre Landzaat), acquires the diamond and decides to deliver it aboard Titan, the Cassadine's yacht, and brings several Port Charles residences with her. Luke and Robert stowaway on the yacht and are shocked to discover Laura has done so as well. The trio arrive at Mikkos' private island in the Atlantic, and discover that he is planning on using the Ice Princess to hold the world for ransom, threatening to send the world into a new ice age. He also reveals that Port Charles is to be used as an example, and soon the city is plunged into a blizzard, despite it being the middle of the summer. Alexandria and Tony are killed when they try to stop Mikkos, though Luke is able to figure out the correct password to turn off Mikkos' machine. After struggling with Luke, Mikkos is killed, and Luke, Laura, and Robert are hailed as heroes when they return to Port Charles. As Luke and Laura prepare to marry, Lee Baldwin (Peter Hansen) reveals he drunkenly burned Scotty and Laura's divorce papers. Lee attempts to find Scott in Mexico, but when they are unable to, Laura decides to have a Mexican divorce, a risk since the divorce would be invalid should Scott ever contest it.
Luke and Laura marry on November 16, 1981, in a lavish ceremony officiated by the mayor of Port Charles, with hundreds of residents from Port Charles and Beecher's Corners in attendance. Bobbie and Laura are able to come to an uneasy truce, since they both love Luke. However, Mikkos' widow Helena Cassadine (portrayed by Academy Award winning actress Elizabeth Taylor) arrives and secretly places a curse on the couple during their reception, as she blames the duo for her husband's death. Later, Scott arrives and after catching Laura's bouquet declares that he is contesting his divorce. As had occurred at Luke's aborted wedding to Jennifer, the men begin to fight, but this time Luke is the victor.
Scott is able to be talked out of contesting his divorce, but in 1982, Laura mysteriously disappears off of a pier in Port Charles and is presumed to be dead. Jackie Templeton (Demi Moore) reveals that her sister Laura Templeton (Janine Turner) disappeared under similar circumstances. The two friends discover that a thief named David Gray was behind the disappearances. While Laura Templeton was not harmed, Gray revealed that he had killed Laura Spencer, leading Luke to kill him during a fight. Luke, though still uncertain about his wife's ultimate fate, begins an affair with scam artist Holly Sutton (Emma Samms). Their affair is cut short when Luke is presumed dead in an avalanche and Holly falls in love with Robert, despite Luke revealing that he is alive. Increasingly lonely, Luke decides to run for mayor of Port Charles, and wins the election. While celebrating his victory, Laura Spencer reveals that she is alive and had been kidnapped by the Cassadine family. Mikkos' son Stavros Cassadine (then John Martinuzzi) had spared her life since he had fallen in love with her, and forced her to marry him, though the marriage was invalid because she was already married to Luke. Stavros came to town to claim his wife, but was killed after falling down a flight a stairs after a struggle with Luke. The couple attempted to settle into their roles in politics, but found the roles stifling. In 1984, Luke and Laura decide to leave Port Charles and their enemies behind and travel the world, but not before Laura reveals that she is pregnant. Later that year, Laura's mother Lesley appears to die in a car accident that was arranged by the Cassadine family.
While traveling, Laura has Luke's son Lucas Lorenzo Spencer, Jr., who they nickname Lucky (played by Jonathan Jackson). From prison, Frank Smith (now Mitchell Ryan) tracks them down and bombs the Triple L Diner in Canada where the family had been hiding, killing one of their friends. Lucky arrives in Port Charles alone and meets Luke's aunt Ruby Anderson (Norma Connolly), and is shortly joined by his parents. Frank's son Damian Smith (Leigh McCloskey) convinces Luke that his family will remain unharmed if he joins Frank's protege Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) in a scheme to smuggle in illegal aliens. Luke and Sonny agree to break Frank out of prison, though the friends also agree to kill Frank once they do. Frank, however, uses Laura as a shield and is able to escape. Luke and Laura attempt to track Frank down, and enlist the help of Jennifer Smith (now played by Roseanne Barr), who has since married slimy Billy "Baggs" Boggs (portrayed by Barr's then husband Tom Arnold). Luke is finally able to kill Frank, though his children would continue to torment the couple.
Laura reveals that she is pregnant again, and gives birth to a daughter named Lesley Lu Spencer and nickname Lulu. Luke's involvement in Sonny's business leads to a brief separation, and they continue to be threatened by Damian Smith. When Damian is murdered, Laura is arrested for the crime. She is exonerated, and it is revealed that her lawyer Justus Ward (then-Joseph C. Phillips), who was the illegitimate grandson of Edward Quartermaine (now John Ingle), was the killer.
Lulu is diagnosed with aplastic anemia and needs a bone marrow transplant, but none of her family members are a match. Laura reveals that while she was being held captive by Stavros Cassadine, she had a son name Nikolas (Tyler Christopher). Nikolas arrives in Port Charles with his uncle Stefan (Stephen Nichols) and is able to use his bone marrow to save his sister's life. Stefan and Nikolas decide to stay in Port Charles, creating tension in the Spencer family, especially when Stefan begins to romance Bobbie. Stefan had been Laura's only friend during her captivity and the two had developed romantic feelings for each other, and when he married Bobbie, Laura knew it was to make her jealous.
Stefan reveals that Helena (now Constance Towers) had ordered him to kill Lesley, but he instead saved her, though she was in a catatonic state. When mother and daughter are reunited, Luke conspires with Tom Hardy (Matthew Ashford) to fake their deaths to keep them safe from Helena. When their ruse is uncovered, the mourning Nikolas, Bobby, and Stefan turn against the family. Stefan threatens to reveal to Luke that he could be Nikolas' father, and forces Laura to leave town with Lesley. A fearful Laura takes her mother and Lulu to Switzerland, under the guise of getting better care for Lesley.
Laura returns in 1998, to discover that Nikolas has been shot in front of Luke's club as a result of Luke's ties to Sonny Corinthos. She also discovers that Nikolas told Lucky about Luke raping her, devastating Lucky who has fallen in love with rape victim Elizabeth Webber (Rebecca Herbst). Though Lucky slowly works towards repairing his relationship with his parents, Laura and Luke eventually separate when the truth about her past with Stefan is revealed, leading to Stefan and Bobbie divorcing. The marriage is further tested when Lucky appears to die in a fire, which the couple blame on Sonny. Helena, however, has kidnapped Lucky and begins to brainwash him. Laura begins a relationship with Stefan. However, when Luke learns that Lucky is alive, they suspect Stefan may have been involved in his disappearance and Laura ends things. The two focus all their energies on finding their son, and when they do, they work together to help him recover from Helena's manipulations. Along the way, they must again deal with Jennifer Smith, now played by Sally Struthers.
The kidnapping of Lucky was a distraction for Helena's real plan, the revival of her presumed dead son Stavros (now Robert Kelker-Kelly), who had been cryogenically frozen. Stavros once again pursues the Ice Princess in another plot to take over the world, while Luke and Laura continue to reach out to Lucky (then-Jacob Young). The family is able to reconnect, and Stavros falls to his death in a seemingly bottomless pit after struggling with Luke. When Stefan disappears and is presumed dead, Luke is the main suspect until Felicia reveals that she and Luke were having sex when Stefan went missing. Laura begins a new relationship with her first husband Scott Baldwin, and the couple divorce. Unable to deny the history between them, Luke and Laura eventually reconcile and plan to marry again. Lesley's philandering former husband and Laura's beloved step-father Rick Webber (Chris Robinson) returns to Port Charles, and Laura begins to have disturbing flashbacks to when she was a young teen and in love with Scott. Laura starts to believe that Ric had killed his former lover Theresa in the attic of their family home. Before her wedding, while trying to recover her memories of that night, Laura appears to kill Rick who she thinks is attacking her. Scott reveals that Laura had killed Theresa when she discovered the two in a compromising position and that he and Rick had drugged her and covered up the murder.
Laura, unable to cope with her role in two deaths, loses touch with reality. In 2002, Luke is forced to commit Laura to an insane asylum, and as his presence only makes things worse for her, he gives Nikolas power of attorney over all of her medical decisions. Eventually, Laura slips into a catatonic state.
By September 2006, Luke is married to Edward's manipulative daughter Tracy Quartermaine (Jane Elliot). However, Robert's daughter, Dr. Robin Scorpio (Kimberly McCullough), announces a potential drug therapy that can help Laura recover. Despite knowing that it could lead to permanent catatonia, Luke decides to go ahead with the treatment as all of Laura's children desperately need her. Lucky (then-Greg Vaughan) is recovering from a drug addiction and had an affair with Felicia's daughter Maxie Jones (Kirsten Storms), Lulu has recently had an abortion, and Nikolas is raising a young son on his own. On October 26, 2006, Laura awakens, and is surprised that so much time has passed. While Laura bonds with her children, Luke flies to the Dominican Republic and appears to divorce Tracy in order to give Laura the wedding they had been planning before her mental illness. Laura is able to remember killing Rick, and apologizes to her mother and family for what she put them through. Feeling stronger, Laura gets her children to start revealing their secrets so she can help them.
Luke is revealed to be keeping secret that the drug therapy is only a temporary solution, and Laura will eventually return to her catatonic state. Lulu is able to convince her cousin Carly Corinthos (Laura Wright) to postpone her marriage to Jasper Jacks (Ingo Rademacher), allowing her parents to use the supplies already in place. On November 16, 2006, Luke and Laura remarry on their 25th wedding anniversary.[33] A drunken Tracy has to be removed from the ceremony, and scheming Maxie manages to sneak into the ceremony and catch Laura's bouquet, much like Scott had 25 years before. On November 20, Luke reveals that Laura's illness is no longer mental but physical and she will soon revert to her catatonic state. Laura decides she wants an early Christmas as she may not be around for the real one, and is able to comfort Lulu when she reveals the truth about her abortion. When Luke arrives with the tree, Laura is confused, confirming that her catatonia is returning. After being escorted back to the asylum, Laura reveals to her daughter that she doesn't think she really killed Rick Webber and asks her to prove her innocence. After saying goodbye to her family, Laura returns to her chair and sits with Luke as he tearfully watches her slip back into silence.
Lulu begins investigating Rick's death, and starts to suspect Tracy's brother Alan Quartermaine (Stuart Damon) and his wife Monica Quartermaine (Leslie Charleson) of the murder, since Monica and Rick had been lovers. However, when Alan dies from a heart attack, Lulu intercepts a letter from Alan to her father revealing that Scott actually killed Rick. Lulu teams up with her boyfriend Logan Hayes (Josh Duhon) to prove Scott's guilt, while Scott attempts to gain guardianship of Laura. After telling Lulu that Luke raped Laura, Scott is able to gain custody of her, only to have Luke kidnap Laura and send her into hiding. Logan reveals himself to be Scott's son, and his relationship with Lulu begins to unravel after interference from Maxie. Laura, meanwhile, is returned to Shadybrook and Nikolas is again given guardianship. Desperate to get Lulu back, Logan attacks Maxie and when he realizes that Lulu has witnessed this he breaks into the penthouse she is sharing with her new boyfriend Johnny Zacchara (Brandon Barash). Lulu is forced to kill him with a wrench, and after fleeing from police with Johnny, Lulu begins to lose her grip on reality and is eventually placed in the same asylum as her mother.
While at Shadybrook, Laura reveals to Lulu that she has been waking up but wants it kept from the family in case she relapses. Laura helps Lulu work through her guilt over Logan's death, though Lulu again questions her sanity when doctors reveal that the Laura she has been talking to is a figment of her imagination. Scott finds Lulu talking to her still catatonic mother, and begins threatening to have her arrested for Logan's death. Upon hearing her daughter in danger, Laura really wakes up and convinces Scott to leave with her to protect her daughter. Laura and Scott head to Los Angeles, where their first honeymoon took place, as Tracy and Luke pursue them. Laura and Luke are able to reunite, but their happiness is short lived when Laura learns that their last wedding was a fake and that Luke is still married to Tracy. Laura returns to Port Charles and after a joyful reunion with her family, decides to move to Europe with Scott to continue treatments to insure that she doesn't relapse.
Luke and Laura's 1981 wedding brought in 30 million viewers, which remains the highest rated soap opera episode in American daytime television history.[1][5][6][7] Elizabeth Taylor made a cameo appearance during the event,[16][34][35][5] and Princess Diana reportedly sent champagne.[5] The couple was subsequently credited with having brought "legitimacy to daytime serials" by crossing boundaries and becoming celebrities in the mainstream media. "[They took daytime] out of the closet so people were not ashamed to say 'I watch a soap.' General Hospital and Luke and Laura...were like the super couple," said Lilana Novakovitch, a Canadian agent for soap opera stars.[16] "They ended up being on the cover of People magazine, Newsweek magazine; they gave credibility to soap opera fans."[16]
Soap Opera Digest columnist Carolyn Hinsey stated that she was at her Indiana University sorority house when the wedding took place. "Laura Spencer — like the actress portraying her, Genie Francis — was only 19 at the time and leading a much more glamorous life than the girls in Indiana could imagine," she said. "The relationship had creepy overtones, given that Luke had raped Laura two years earlier, and yet it captured the imagination."[5]
| “ | There had never been a more influential soap opera moment than Luke and Laura's wedding. There never will be again. You could walk down the hallway and talk to anyone on our daytime staff, and they could tell you where they were when Luke and Laura got married. | ” |
Francis said, "I didn't really understand how big it was. I really enjoyed all my time at work. The hard time was when I was not working. Fortunately, there were not many of those hours."[5] Geary stated, "It just wasn't anything that I was prepared to deal with as an actor, because I was in daytime. We were international celebrities but still considered small-screen."[5] Geary continued, "People didn't take it seriously and those that did took it too seriously. It was a very, very odd place to be."[5]
The widespread media attention of Luke and Laura's wedding set the pairing up as "the model" for other soap opera supercouples.[2][3][36][4] Shows wanted to duplicate their success, and, with the exception of rape for most of the couples, started incorporating the same type of action stories, romantic themes, and tales of intrigue which had originally contributed to Luke and Laura's popularity.[2][3][4]
Today, Luke and Laura are regarded as daytime television's quintessential and most iconic couple.[2]
Luke Spencer and Laura Webber Spencer are fictional characters and the signature supercouple from the American daytime drama General Hospital.[1] Luke is portrayed by Anthony Geary, and Laura was portrayed by Genie Francis. Despite having been raped by a drunken Luke, Laura would later fall in love with him. Though other supercouples came before them, Luke and Laura are the most well known outside of the soap opera realm, and are credited with defining the term "supercouple," which caused other soap operas to copy the successful formula.[2][3][4]
Originally, critics of the soap opera genre panned the unlikely pairing for detailing a rape victim to have fallen in love with her rapist.[4] However, the duo became wildly popular in spite of Luke's past misdeed.
The duo wed on November 16, 1981, with 30 million viewers tuning in. The episode remains the highest-rated hour in American soap opera history.[1][5][6] They were married for two decades and had two children. Even today, their union still has a presence in Port Charles. On Internet message boards, the couple is often referred to as "L&L" or "LnL" (for Luke and Laura).
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| The plot summary in this article is too long or detailed compared to the rest of the content. Please edit the article to focus on discussing the work rather than merely reiterating the plot. (July 2007) |
In the beginning, Laura was not paired with Luke, but with Scott Baldwin (played by Kin Shriner). Though Laura loved Scotty, she had been led astray and seduced by a much older man, David Hamilton who was using her to get back at her mother, Lesley Webber (Denise Alexander) and rejected Scott, who took up with the scheming ex-prostitute turned nurse Bobbie Spencer (Jackie Zeman). Discovering the truth about David, Laura accidentally killed him and fled to New York while her mother took the rap for her crime. Scott eventually found Laura and the two reconciled, much to Bobbie's dismay. Laura confessed to her crime and Lesley was released. Since there were mitigating circumstances surrounding the case, Laura was only sentenced to six months probation...
Luke Spencer was introduced when Bobbie became determined to break Laura and Scotty up by having Laura break her probation and therefore get sent to Juvenile hall. Bobbie claimed Laura had attacked her, but no one believed her lie. As a result, Bobbie felt she needed help and re-established contact with her brother Luke in order to help her with her schemes to break up Scott and Laura. They were successful at getting Laura's probation period extended until she turned 18 or was married. As a result, Laura began pressuring Scotty to marry her and broke up with him when it seemed that he was never going to marry her. Scotty got drunk and Bobbie took advantage of this by making it look like she and Scotty had slept together. A distraught Laura ran off and was injured in a car accident. Luke and Bobbie felt guilty and decided to give up their vendetta against the couple. Of course, by this time it was becoming apparent that Luke was beginning to fall for his sister's foe.
Scott and Laura were married in July 1979, and while Scott was at work and law school, Laura was left at the house, bored. She encouraged Luke, who was now the manager of the Campus Disco, to offer her a job. He did so, and she began to feel more confident about herself. Laura went on a shopping spree to buy Scotty the law school textbooks that he desperately needed; Scott was not happy when he found out that she had charged $500 over their credit limit. Scott and Laura got into a fight and she left for work. While Laura was working at the Disco, Luke had fallen in love with her. At the time, Luke worked for mob boss Frank Smith (originally portrayed by George Gaynes of the Police Academy film series). Smith ordered Luke to execute a "hit" on senatorial candidate Mitch Williams, who had crossed Smith by vowing to bring down the Port Charles mob. Luke didn't want to, but he knew that if he didn't, he would be fired or possibly killed. Luke also knew that if he did perform the hit, then Mitch Williams' security agents would probably kill him as well. Luke was very depressed, and on the night Laura waited at the Disco for Scott to pick her up, Luke became very distraught and vowed to hold her in his arms before he died. On the floor of the Disco, as the Herb Alpert song "Rise" played in the background, a drunken Luke raped Laura.
Although Laura admitted that she had been raped, she never named Luke as the rapist. Laura stayed with Scott but ended up falling in love with Luke, as well. Since everyone had come to the erroneous conclusion that Laura had been raped in the park, Laura decided to keep working at the disco in order to allay any suspicions that Luke was her rapist.
On election night, the night that Luke was to assassinate Mitch Williams, Laura saved Luke's life by throwing away the keys to his car. This prevented Luke from performing the hit. Luke's best friend Roy DiLucca decided to perform the hit himself (Mitch Williams survived, Roy was presumed dead after Mitch's security agents shot at him, only to "return from the dead" twenty years later). Thus Luke was saved from his predicament, only to fall into another when Smith told Luke he would spare his life if Luke married his daughter, Jennifer.
Despondent over Frank Smith's order that Luke marry his daughter Jennifer, Luke ordered Laura to tell Scott that he raped her. Laura flatout refused. Laura became upset every time she saw Luke with Jennifer and decided to quit the disco. On her last night at work, Laura once again saw Luke flirting with Jennifer and ran off to Luke's office crying. Luke followed her, and the two ended up sharing a kiss. Laura slapped Luke and ran off. Later that night when everyone else had left, Laura accidentally locked herself in the office. Hearing voices, Laura hid in a closet and unwittingly became embroiled in Luke's mob activities after overhearing a conversation between Luke and Frank Smith. When Smith realized that Laura had overheard everything, he ordered Luke to keep Laura working at the disco, thus Luke and Laura were now forced to continue working together.
As Laura tried time and time again to convince Luke to back out of his marriage to Jennifer, Luke became increasingly concerned that Laura would tell the truth about everything. Luke wasn't really concerned about being named as the rapist, but knew that if Laura told Scotty the truth then she would also have to explain why she covered it up for months and that explanation would no doubt involve informing the police about Frank Smith's criminal doings. The consequences of this would be severe: both Luke and Laura and their families would probably be killed by Smith.
Luke had to come up with a plan, so he trapped Laura on a sailboat and attempted to seduce her, while Bobbie distracted Scotty and Jennifer. A cat and mouse game ensued as Luke tried everything to get Laura to admit that she loved and desired him. The plan worked, and just as the couple were about to make love, Luke pulled back and told Laura to go and tell Scotty that "the night at the disco was rape". Laura was left stunned and frustrated, but decided to keep mum about everything. Afterwards Luke told Bobbie that he was now more certain than ever that Laura was in love with him, but he could never have her because they were in too deep with the mob.
Eventually, Laura wrote Luke a love letter that Scott eventually found on the day that Luke was to marry Jennifer. He pulled Luke out of the ceremony on Frank Smith's yacht, beating him up. Luke fell overboard and was presumed to have drowned, but Luke eventually resurfaced and told Laura that they could finally be together, now that Scott knew about their relationship. Luke told Laura they could start a new life together if they could decode the black book he had stolen from Smith - which contained the coded names of all of Smith's mob contacts. Solving the codes in the book would allow Luke to send Smith to jail, and he and Laura would finally be free of the mob.
Luke and Laura went on the run from Frank Smith's men, stopping on the way to have some fun dancing at Wyndham's Department Store and falling deeper in love during the process. The pair took refuge in the rural town of Beecher's Corners, posing as newlyweds Lloyd and Lucy Johnson, and staying with Whit & Agnes Whittaker on their farm. Unfortunately, two of Smith's hit men, Hutch and Max, pursued them. Hutch located the couple, but bided his time before carrying out the hit. He soon found himself befriending the pair, and his feelings were too conflicted for him to complete the contract. Max, disguised as Sally, found them and was about to kill Luke, but was killed by Hutch first. Eventually Luke and Laura found the evidence they needed to have Frank Smith put away for his mob activities. Celebrating their success, the two made love. However, upon their return to Port Charles, they were met by a bunch of journalists who quizzed the two on their details of their personal relationship. Laura, who had been attacked by the press previously during the storyline where she had accidentally killed her former lover David Hamilton, found the hounding of the press again too much to take and flipped out. She told the press she still considered herself to be "Mrs. Scott Baldwin". Luke was heartbroken and immediately rejected Laura. In the months before their summer on the run, Luke had spent months trying to get Laura to admit her love for him. Now the tables were turned as Laura tried for months to get Luke to admit that he loved her.
Laura attempted to find Scotty, who had run off to Mexico, so that she could get a divorce and marry Luke. However Luke remained hostile towards Laura, even as Laura made several maneuvers to remain in Luke's life. Laura decided that she had to show Luke that she had matured and thus moved out of her parents' home and into an apartment, which just happened to be conveniently located in the same building as Luke's apartment. Since Luke lived on a floor above Laura, he was forced to walk past her apartment everyday. This ensured that the two kept bumping into each other.
Luke eventually went to work for Edward Quartermaine and his niece Alexandria Quartermaine, who were in search of the Ice Princess, the world's largest uncut diamond that had been spray-painted black and mounted on a base to be displayed as a statue. Luke promised the Quartermaines that he would get the statue before their rivals, the Cassadines could.
Eventually, Luke and Laura reconciled and decided to get married. Around the same time, World Security Bureau (WSB) agent Robert Scorpio had arrived in town and warned Luke that the Ice Princess mystery was far more serious than previously thought. Hidden inside the base of the statue was a formula that could create a substance called carbonic snow. The Cassadines planned on using carbonic snow in their sinister plot to take over the entire world. It was revealed that Alexandria was in league with the Cassadines and after the Ice Princess had made its way into the hands of several Port Charles citizens, Alexandria and the Cassadine brothers (Victor and Tony) finally got their hands on it and prepared to take it to Mikkos Cassadine, the eldest Cassadine brother (portrayed by classical actor John Colicos).
Alexandria, Victor and Tony invited several guests on an ocean cruise aboard the Titan (Later the Haunted Star). As the Titan left Port Charles, Luke and Robert sneaked on board and were surprised when they found that Laura had also stowed away. Eventually, they arrived at Mikkos' island in the Atlantic. Luke and Laura found the island a rather passionate setting and made several attempts to make love, only to be interrupted by Robert. Laura soon fell sick with a fever, and when Robert attempted to make Luke leave her behind, he refused and let Robert know that Laura was more important to him than their mission. Eventually Laura recovered and the three set about finding a way to stop the Cassadines.
Meanwhile, Mikkos unleashed his ultimate plan: he planned to hold the world for ransom. If world leaders did not accept his demands for total world domination, he would use his carbonic snow in his weather machine in order to send the Earth into a new ice age. In order to show that he was capable of doing this, he selected Port Charles as a test subject and soon the city was plunged into a blizzard -- even though it was still summer. As temperatures in Port Charles continued to plummet, Mikkos managed to capture Luke, Laura and Robert. When his brother Tony and Alexandria Quartermaine expressed doubts about the plan, Mikkos had them killed.
Eventually Luke, Laura, Robert and B-movie actress Tiffany Hill managed to defeat Mikkos, and Luke was able to figure out the password in order to turn off Mikkos' machine. In the course of the struggle, Mikkos was killed. Luke, Laura and Robert were thus hailed as heroes by the citizens of Port Charles. There was one more obstacle that Luke and Laura had to face after Lee, Scott's father, drunkenly burned Laura and Scott's divorce papers. Lee was anxious to make it up to Luke and Laura, so Luke, Lee, and Joe Kelly went to Mexico to get another copy of the divorce papers. However, upon their arrival in Mexico, they learned that the original divorce papers had been lost. When Luke, Lee, and Joe failed to find Scotty, Lee suggested that Laura get a Mexican divorce. This was a risky venture, because if Scotty ever contested the divorce after Luke and Laura were married, then Laura would be a bigamist.
Luke and Laura were married on November 16, 1981, in a lavish, public ceremony officiated by the mayor of Port Charles at his official residence. Dozens upon dozens of residents from Port Charles and Beecher's Corners were in attendance. Originally Laura's former rival for Scott's affections, Bobbie, was none too happy with the marriage but eventually declared an unofficial truce with Laura. The two have since become close friends. Similarly displeased with the prospect of the couple's marriage was Mikkos' widow, Helena Cassadine (portrayed by legendary film actress Elizabeth Taylor in a highly-publicized appearance). She arrived in Port Charles days before the wedding, blaming Luke and Laura for her husband's death. Unknown to anyone, she placed a curse on the two lovers during the wedding reception. Since then, Helena has been the Spencer family's most ruthless and consistent enemy (and perhaps the most notorious villain in GH history).
The one outward blemish on the wedding festivities was the unexpected arrival of Scott, who caught Laura's bridal bouquet and proclaimed that he was contesting his divorce from Laura. Luke was enraged by Scott's appearance and the two began to fight, in a scene reminiscent of Luke's aborted wedding to Jennifer Smith over a year earlier. This time, however, it was Scott who was soundly beaten by Luke.
While Scott was talked out of contesting the divorce, happiness for Luke and Laura proved to be short-lived, for early in 1982 Laura went missing and was eventually presumed dead. David Gray was the man responsible for Laura's disappearance. Luke spent a year chasing David attempting to find out the true outcome of Laura's disappearance. Luke was not sold on the fact that Laura was dead without any body as evidence. Luke tried desperately to move on with his life and entered into a love affair with Holly Sutton (Emma Samms), but the romance was short-lived and ended when Holly fell in love with Luke's best friend, Robert Scorpio, after Luke was presumed dead in an avalanche. Increasingly lonely as the second anniversary of his marriage to Laura approached, Luke ran for Mayor of Port Charles, and won. On his inauguration day, Luke received the surprise of his life when Laura appeared. Laura revealed that she had been kidnapped by the Cassadines as revenge for Luke thwarting Mikkos' plot to freeze Port Charles. Laura revealed that Stavros, Mikkos's son had fallen in love with her and spared her life in return so that she would marry him. Luke told Laura that none of this mattered and that her marriage to Stavros was invalid because Laura was still married to Luke. Soon afterwards, Stavros arrived in town, and after holding Luke and Laura hostage and attempting to rape Laura, he was attacked by Luke and knocked down a stairway to his death (although he would be revived in cryogenic freeze in 2001). Luke and Laura then settled into their respective roles as mayor and mayoress. However, the free spirited duo soon found the roles stifling, and decided to leave Port Charles in order to see the world.
In 1984, Robert helped Luke when he was accused of murder in Mexico so that Luke would be free to be with Laura. When Luke was finally cleared, he returned to Laura, who announced the joyous news that she was pregnant. The Spencers immediately shared their news with their friends. With the revelation, Luke and Laura made what seemingly would be their last appearance on General Hospital. In the following years, passing references to the couple would be made by several characters.
While Luke and Laura were off-screen, the couple had a son, Lucas Lorenzo Spencer, Junior (nicknamed Lucky). Amidst much fanfare in both the real world and the fictional realm of Port Charles itself, Luke and Laura returned to Port Charles in 1993, with their son Lucky, played by Jonathan Jackson. The catalyst for their return was that Frank Smith had renewed his old vendetta against the couple. Frank Smith's men found Luke and Laura at the Triple L Diner in Canada and attempted to kill them by blowing up their truck, an act which led to the death of one of Luke and Laura's Canadian friends.
In August 1994, Luke and Laura had a daughter, Lesley Lu (Lulu), named after Laura's mother, Dr. Lesley Webber and "Lu" after an alias Laura had assumed while she and Luke were on the run from Frank Smith. They had to deal with Frank Smith for several more years, and then, when the character of Frank Smith was killed off, his son Damian and daughter Jennifer (portrayed by comedienne Roseanne Arnold, and later by All in the Family actress Sally Struthers).
But even though Frank Smith was safely out of their lives for good, Luke and Laura's life did not calm down. In 1995, Laura resented Luke's growing friendship with mobster Sonny Corinthos (who would eventually inherit Frank Smith's organization). After an enemy of Sonny's attacked Spencer Family home, she and Luke separated for a while because she could not stand any more danger and knew Luke would bring that to their family. They later reconciled on their 14th wedding anniversary.
The following year, Laura was accused of murdering Frank Smith's son, Damian. Although she was exonerated, she was soon shocked to learn that the true killer was her attorney Justus Ward (portrayed by Cosby Show actor Joseph C. Phillips), who agreed to represent Laura in order to prevent her from going to prison for his crime. Justus' father Bradley was the son of Edward Quartermaine and the recently-deceased Mary Mae Ward (portrayed by Rosalind Cash). The Ward family previously owned the Spencer home, and Mary Mae had become a surrogate mother to Laura upon her return to Port Charles. While the Spencers (and the Quartermaines) agreed to remain quiet about Justus' guilt, Luke and Laura never forgave Justus, and his close friendship with the Spencer family came to an end.
Luke and Laura immediately faced another crisis when their daughter Lesley Lu was diagnosed with aplastic anemia. Lesley Lu desperately needed a bone marrow transplant, but none of the Spencers, including Laura, Luke, Lucky, and Bobbie were a match. Eventually, Lulu got her transplant from a totally unexpected source. It turned out that when Laura had been held captive and married to Stavros Cassadine, she had had a son by him, Nikolas. Nikolas' bone marrow was a match and the transplant was performed that saved Lulu's life. However, the revelation that Laura had borne a son that she never told Luke about was a great shock to the Spencer marriage, particularly since that son was a Cassadine. Furthermore, Nikolas and his uncle, Stavros' brother Stefan, moved to Port Charles, and acted as a continual reminder of Laura's concealing of the truth. Stefan managed to take advantage of Bobbie's loneliness after her divorce from her husband Tony and turn Bobbie against Luke and Laura for a period of time. Bobbie and Stefan even married, but Laura knew that he only married Bobbie to make Laura jealous.
Luke and Laura soon discovered that back in the year 1984, Stefan had been ordered by his mother Helena to murder Laura's mother Lesley to avenge the deaths of Mikkos and Stavros. Stefan had gone against his mother's wishes however and had rescued Lesley from the car accident that had been presumed to be the cause of her death. Lesley was now in a catatonic state and after being reunited by Stefan, Laura and Lesley were presumed dead in an explosion. However it was soon revealed that their deaths had been faked by Luke in order to hide from Helena (and discredit Stefan at the same time). Upon their return in 1997, Luke and Laura were met with unexpected hostility from the citizens of Port Charles, and particularly Bobbie, Nikolas and Stefan.
Stefan decided to drive Laura out of town with the one piece of information that he knew would destroy her marriage to Luke. Stefan reminded Laura that years before, Stefan and Laura had been lovers behind Stavros' back when Stavros was holding her captive, and that Stefan could possibly be Nikolas' biological father. This was enough to get Laura to pack her bags, and she fled to Switzerland, giving the excuse that her mother would get better treatment over there that would help her come out of her catatonia. She spent the next year in Switzerland, not returning until early 1998.
Early in 1998, Luke and Laura were forced to revisit their past again when Lucky learned of the long ago rape incident at the disco, from Nikolas of all people. Luke and Laura were estranged from Lucky for months, as their son's romantic illusions about his parents had been shattered. Lucky did not know which was worse, the idea of his father raping his mother, or the fact that his mother had lived with her rapist for all of these years (Lucky's disgust was heightened by the fact that he had fallen in love with Audrey Hardy's granddaughter Elizabeth Webber, who had been raped herself). Even though Luke and Laura were eventually reconciled with Lucky, their own relationship was in bad shape. Luke hit the roof when he realized that Stefan and Laura had been lovers and that Stefan was possibly Nikolas' father. At the end of 1998, Luke and Laura separated.
Luke and Laura would be further driven apart by the presumed death of their son Lucky in a fire the following year. Both were devastated, and separated during the tragedy. When it was revealed in 2000 that Lucky was indeed alive due to a plot by their nemesis, Helena Cassadine (now portrayed by Constance Towers), Luke and Laura did not reconcile and instead divorced. Laura would consider reuniting with her first husband Scott Baldwin for a while but eventually she realized that she would always love Luke. By 2002, Luke and Laura had reconciled and made plans to remarry.
In 2002, a mentally disturbed Laura killed her stepfather Rick Webber, during a psychotic episode shortly before she and Luke were to remarry. She was sent to a mental hospital near Port Charles. While Luke was Laura's original guardian ad litem, Nikolas successfully petitioned the court to have himself appointed in Luke's stead. Luke mourned over the loss of Laura's mental stability for several years, while dealing with their reckless daughter, Lulu. Laura "appeared" in episodes after her breakdown as a motionless figure, seen from the back, staring off in a catatonic state, though in one scene shortly after Luke left the room, Laura's hand was shown to move.
In mid-September 2006, a new storyline was introduced, whereby Dr. Robin Scorpio (Robert's daughter) announced a potential alternative treatment called LS-49 which might bring Laura back. It was an experimental drug being tested by a doctor in Paris that Robin knew from medical school. She told Luke that there were patients who were responding to the drug but others who had not been responsive outnumbered those who did. Dr. Patrick Drake was wary of the drug, saying it was too big of a risk and might send Laura into permanent catatonia. Luke indicated he did not want to cause any further lack of dignity to Laura via failed treatments, but later changed his mind due to their daughter Lulu's distraught condition after her recent abortion. After flying out to Paris to meet the medical doctor who was studying LS-49, Luke arrived back in Port Charles and gave his consent to Robin to administer the experimental drug to Laura with Patrick Drake protesting the entire time. Luke failed to give prior notice to Lucky, Lulu, or Nikolas and they were outraged that Luke had no right to give his consent. Nikolas made it clear they were her children and Luke and Laura were not even married anymore.
On Thursday, October 26 2006, the experimental drug touted by Dr. Robin Scorpio surprisingly brought Laura back from her catatonic state after four years, as Genie Francis returned to GH as "Laura Spencer". On November 16 2006, the show aired a 25th anniversary episode celebrating the 1981 wedding of Luke and Laura. Francis' return was only a 6 week stint, intended to coincide with the anniversary of the highly-rated wedding episode.
The re-marriage storyline was complicated by the fact that Luke was already married to Tracy Quartermaine (after a series of events involving alcohol, gambling, and one of Luke's attempts to obtain large amounts of money Tracy stole from him). Luke told family and friends that he and Tracy had gotten a quick divorce in the Dominican Republic. Yet unbeknownst to anyone (except Tracy), there was no such divorce. However, Tracy fully realizes that Laura will always be Luke's one true love, but she refuses to divorce him, because -- improbably -- she has fallen in love with Luke herself.
When Laura overheard Luke and Lulu discussing her condition, Laura began having vague memories of the attack where she killed her stepfather. Curious, she went to the attic and remembered everything. When Luke discovered that she must have overheard, he rushed to the attic to make sure Laura was OK. Upon his arrival, Laura told Luke she remembered everything. Not wanting to take chances with her sanity, Luke took Laura back to Shadybrook to make sure she was fine. After a session with a psychiatrist, Laura was cleared, though Luke still worried about her mental state.
Luke and Laura returned home where Lulu, Lucky, Nikolas, and Lesley were waiting. Laura apologized to her mother for killing Rick, but Lesley said it was all water under the bridge. She was just happy to have her daughter back. Laura announced to her family that she remembered everything and didn't want anymore secrets kept from her. Lucky began by telling his mother about his addiction to pain killers and his marital problems. Laura gave Lucky her support and told him that she was proud of him.
Meanwhile, Luke had known all long that Laura's recovery was only temporary and she would soon return to her catatonic state. He was warned by Robin early on that if the medication did work, it would allow Laura to come back for only a short period of time. He kept this information to himself (without Laura's children or the viewers at home hearing those bits of conversation) clinging to a glimmer of hope that Laura would be an exception to the after effects of LS-49. Devastated, Luke was determined to make Laura's remaining days as happy as possible.
When Lulu found the invitation to her cousin Carly Corinthos' wedding to Jasper Jacks, which was to be held on the same day as Luke and Laura's wedding, she immediately called Carly. When Carly and Jax arrived, everyone found out about the scheduling dilemma. Carly graciously stepped aside to give to her uncle and aunt their day and even offered them her and Jax's entire wedding, flowers, caterers, and all. Laura and Luke thanked Carly and Jax and took them up on their generous offer.
On November 16 2006 (exactly 25 years after their first wedding), Luke and Laura were ostensibly remarried in front of all their friends and family in a lavish ceremony in Lila Quartermaine's garden.[7] The festivities were enjoyed by all except Tracy, who was visibly intoxicated and had to be physically removed before the ceremony was completed. However, the minister officiating the ceremony was actually an actor hired by Luke. Thus the marriage had no legal consequences, and Luke did not commit bigamy.
The wedding guests were composed of a mixture of long-time family and friends who were present for the first wedding (e.g. Lesley, Bobbie, Robert, and several of the Quartermaines) and newer relatives and acquaintances (e.g. Carly, Elizabeth, Emily Quartermaine, and Laura's three adult children). It was a particularly festive occasion, with Luke and Nikolas surprisingly demonstrating family affection for one another.
Just as the original reception was marred by the arrival of Scott Baldwin, a minor cloud was cast on the anniversary reception when Bobbie's niece Maxie Jones ingratiated herself into the festivities. Maxie had recently had an affair with Lucky (where she purposely enabled his drug addiction by supplying him with the drugs herself), and claimed to be pregnant with Lucky's child (although, as Lulu correctly suspected, Maxie was lying). In an odd example of déjà vu, the unwelcome Maxie caught Laura's bridal bouquet, just as Scott had done 25 years earlier.
On November 20, Luke revealed to Laura that their happiness would be short lived and that her catatonia was now a physical illness. Laura wanted an early Christmas because she feared she would not make it. While talking to Lulu, Laura told Lulu about their excitement about her birth and made the Spencer Family complete. Lulu was flooded with guilt about her abortion, and Laura sensed something was bothering her daughter and pressed her to tell her what was wrong. Lulu then tearfully told her mother she had an abortion because she didn't want to bring a baby into this world who wasn't loved or wanted, just as she felt she had never been loved or wanted. Laura comforted her daughter, telling her that she was wanted and loved, and supported Lulu's decision about the abortion. When Luke brought in the Christmas tree, Laura asked why there was a Christmas tree in the house, proof that she was relapsing. On November 22, after saying tearful good-byes to her children, Laura slipped back into catatonic state in front of Luke's eyes. After Luke realized that Laura had left him, he exited the room and sobbed.
In her last conversation with Lulu, Laura expressed her belief that she was not the person who killed Rick Webber, a distinct possibility since there was no known witness to the actual killing. As a result, Lulu began investigating Rick's death, aided by her stepbrother Dillon Quartermaine and teen computer hacker Damian Spinelli (both of whom have crushes on Lulu). Among those that the trio have suspected of being the true murderer were Monica Quartermaine (with whom Rick had a torrid extramarital affair), Alan Quartermaine (who attempted to kill Rick and Monica on more than one occasion), and Scott Baldwin (Laura's first husband). On March 5, 2007, Lulu and Dillon intercepted a letter that Alan had sent to Luke upon his death. In the letter, Alan identifies Scott as Rick's killer.
Claiming that he could better safeguard Laura's interests than Luke or Nikolas, Scott petitioned the court to have himself appointed as Laura's guardian ad litem. Under a subpoena to testify, Nikolas was forced to admit in open court that -- many years earlier -- Luke had raped Laura. Learning of this for the first time from her brother's testimony, Lulu struggled to accept (as Lucky had done years earlier) that her father raped her mother, who decided to remain with him anyway. In the midst of this turmoil, Scott was awarded guardianship of Laura. Before he could make any meaningful decisions, however, Tracy helped Luke to take Laura away from Port Charles.
After Lulu and Logan broke up due to Logan's bet with Maxie Jones, Logan pursues a second chance with her but Lulu does not agree. Scott Baldwin finds out that Logan is actually his long lost son and wants to make the situation right with him so he makes a deal with Lulu. Scott tells Lulu that if she gives Logan a second chance, he will bring her father, Luke, back to Port Charles and sign guardianship of her mother, Laura, back over to Nikolas Cassadine. Lulu agreed so Luke came back to Port Charles and Lulu has followed through on her end of the deal by giving Logan a second chance.
Many events have happened in Nikolas, Lucky, and Lulu's lives where Luke and Laura have not been there to help.
Nikolas Cassadine has a son with deceased fiance, Courtney. He has also been poisoned by Jerry Jacks and almost died. He and Emily got together again. Nikolas struggled with anger issues and black outs. He had many on the night of his and Emily's Black and White Ball in Wyndemere, where he announced their engagement and presented a grant to General Hospital in Alan's name. That same night, while Nikolas was in the middle of one of his black outs, Emily was strangled and killed by Diego Alcazar. These black-outs were found to have been caused by a tumor in Nikolas' brain. It enabled him to have visions of Emily and to spend time with her after her death. Because of this, he refused to have the surgery that could save his life and instead accepted illegal drugs from Dr. Ian Devlin which would prolong his condition.
Lucky had a drug addiction and an affair with Maxie Jones. He and his wife, Elizabeth Webber, divorced but later reconciled and re-married. Lucky knows Elizabeth had a one-night-stand with Jason Morgan and to deal with the pain, had an affair with Sam McCall, and later found out at the black and white ball by Jason that Jake Spencer is really Jason's son. Lucky and Elizabeth are currently divorced and Elizabeth has custody of Cameron and Jake. Elizabeth and Jason are currently seeing each other in secret and keeping the lie of Jake's paternity as is for now. Lucky is now back with Sam following their break-up when Lucky found out that Sam was responsible for hiring two hit-men to pull a gun on Elizabeth and her children to scare them, and that she witnessed Jake's kidnapping but willingly took no action. All in an attempt to get back at Jason and Elizabeth for having a child together while she was with him.
Lulu became the stepsister of Dillon Quartermaine with her father Luke Spencer's marriage to Tracy Quartermaine. She lied to him about his wife's Georgie Jones relationship with Diego Alcazar. They slept together and Lulu got pregnant. After much struggling she had an abortion. Then had trouble telling her mother Laura Webber Spencer when Laura woke up in October 2006. She eventually did tell her though. She again struggled with it when she was looking for Damian Spinelli with Jason Morgan in Dec 2006.
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   | soap.central.com - soapcentral.com | www.soapcentral.com |
| | Official ABC Page - General Hospital - Home - ABC.com |
| | usatoday.com - Luke and Laura reunite on 'General Hospital' - USATODAY.com |
| | Luke and Laura: Still the Ultimate TV Wedding - Luke and Laura: Still the Ultimate TV Wedding - ABC News |
| | Keep Genie on General Hospital Petition - Lets Keep Laura Spencer on General Hospital! Petition : [ powered by iPetitions.com ] |
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