General Hospital regularly and wisely taps into the show’s rich 57-year history to tell stories. As viewers have recently seen, the show has brought back Robert Scorpio’s ex-flame, Jackie Templeton, to Port Charles. Previously played by Demi Moore, the role of the savvy reporter is now being played by Kim Delaney.
Who Is Jackie Templeton?
Last seen in 1983, here are some fun facts you may or may not know about Jackie Templeton.
Casting Call
According to an ABC primetime special in 1998, honoring GH’s 35th anniversary, the soap was looking for either a Margot Kidder (Superman) or Karen Allen (Raiders of the Lost Ark) type to play Jackie. Moore beat out 1,000 other actresses for the part. She was paid $750 per episode.
When Jackie Met Laura
Jackie and Laura (Genie Francis) actually did meet prior to Francis’s exit from the ABC serial. In January of 1982, Jackie interviewed Laura for the magazine she was writing for at the time as Laura was becoming a famous model and the Miss Star Eyes spokeswoman.
Laura and Jackie Templeton met onboard The Haunted Star, the Cassadine ship formerly known as the Titan, where Luke and Laura lived after they got married. Laura’s pals, including Tiffany (Sharon Wyatt), kept interrupting the interview, so Laura suggested to Jackie they leave the ship and get some coffee at Kelly’s Diner.
“Luke! We Have To Find My Sister!”
Jackie has a younger sister, Laura (Janine Turner). Around the same time that Laura Spencer went missing, Jackie’s sister also did a vanishing act. This gave Luke (Anthony Geary) and Jackie something in common — find Laura! While Laura Templeton soon showed up, it would be almost two years before Laura Spencer made her way home. By this point, Jackie was gone from the canvas.
Scorpio Rising
Initially, viewers were not interested in seeing a Laura-less Luke be paired with anyone — even the dynamic and attractive Jackie. The writers shifted Jackie into a romance with Robert (Tristan Rogers). Alas, that ended after Robert wed a pregnant Holly (Emma Samms) after Luke (the dad) was presumed in an avalanche.
Unable to process that Robert was being gallant, Jackie called him a lousy, two-timing rat! “I’ll never understand,” Jackie added. “Congratulations on two things — one, on your marriage such as it is and, two, for making me realize how lucky I am to have you out of my heart and out of my life.” (Ouch.)
Jackie V. Holly
After Robert wed Holly, Jackie Templeton went in for the (figurative) kill with Holly, using her reporter’s recorder like a weapon on occasion. Jackie sat down at Holly’s table once (uninvited) and grilled Holly with biased questions related to Robert’s job that Holly refused to answer. Jackie shut the recorder off and posed one final question. “Off the record, Holly,” Jackie asked, “What would you have named the baby — ‘Robert’ or ‘Luke?'” Snap! General Hospital (GH) airs weekdays on ABC. Check your local listings for airtimes.
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