He was General Hospital’s resident bad boy trying to go legit. But just how much do you remember about the perpetually put-upon Zander Smith, who was played to perfection by Chad Brannon from 2000 to 2004?
Introduction
Zander made is debut August 11, 2001, and was initially a drug dealing stooge for mobster Joseph Sorel. A misunderstanding resulted in Emily Quartermaine, Lucky Spencer, Elizabeth Webber, and Nikolas Cassadine thinking that Zander murdered an undercover police officer named Ted.
The quartet inadvertently framed Zander for the murder when they planted the body in his car. A frightened Zander wound up taking Emily hostage and after she realized the error of her ways, she not only helped to clear Zander’s name but she also fell in love with him!
Strained Relations
Zander had a very fraught relationship with his father Cameron Lewis – an emanant psychiatrist who treated Alexis Davis, the lawyer who represented Zander in court. The contention between the men steamed from the death of Zander’s brother Peter, whom Zander had always been led to believe he accidentally shot and killed.
In a shocking turn of events, Cameron would later confess that Peter had committed suicide using Zander’s gun, and the revelation caused Zander to spiral though he did recover and forge a cordial bond with his dad.
Friends In Low Places
After getting out from under Sorel’s thumb – who was later killed by his daughter Angel – Zander found himself out of a job and in need of employment. Enter another mob boss – Sonny Corinthos – and Zander soon found himself shadowing Carly Roberts with whom he eventually became good friends.
When Sonny threw him to the wolves a few years later, an understandably hurt Zander sought out enemy agents with offers to sell the goods on his former boss and became the protector of Sonny’s biggest rival: the elegantly cool and extremely lethal Faith Rosco.
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A Lasting Reminder
Although Emily was the great love of Zander’s life, he would lose his place in her heart when she fell head over heels for Nikolas, the dark and brooding Cassadine Prince. Turning to other sources of comfort, he began a relationship with Elizabeth Webber.
Even after she married Ric Lansing, Elizabeth still had a soft spot for Zander and when her marriage was on the rocks, it was her old pal whom she turned to for comfort. That extramarital comfort also produced a child, whom Elizabeth would christen Cameron, honoring Zander’s wish to have his son take his grandfather’s name.
Mischief Maker
Although Zander tried awfully hard to leave the criminal life behind, he always found himself drawn back into that violent world and his extreme fluctuations in temperament didn’t exactly help him lead a normal law-abiding life.
Zander’s long list of misdeeds includes being privy to the torture of AJ Quartermaine that resulted in AJ signing over his parental rights to Michael as well as becoming an accidental murderer and firebug when he set the Port Charles hotel ablaze.
But it was his penchant for hostage-taking that would prove his downfall. After he took Emily prisoner – and not for the first time mind you – he wound up being shot to death by police officers. General Hospital airs weekdays on ABC. Check your local listings for airtimes.
Video Credit: General Hospital
Video Credit: General Hospital
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