General Hospital History Lesson: Scotty Baldwin’s Dark Origins

For many General Hospital fans, Scotty Baldwin has become synonymous with the word spoiled. He spoiled Laura and Luke’s budding romance when they returned from their summer on the run.

Spoiler

He spoiled their 1981 wedding when he caught the bridal bouquet. And he spoiled Lulu’s idolization of her parents’ marriage when he brought to light Luke’s long-ago violent assault of Laura.

Throughout the 1980s, Scotty, once the doe-eyed champion of the underdog, evolved into a sleazy, acid-tongued ambulance chaser, jaded by life and terribly bitter. Most viewers openly embraced the change, and for many, the evolution probably seemed inevitable, especially considering the characters’ earlier, formative years.

Recent devotees of GH will probably be surprised to learn that Scotty’s character is almost as old as the serial itself. Although actor Kin Shriner has played the character since August 2, 1977, Scotty debuted in 1965 (just two years after the premiere episode) along with his mother, Meg Bentley, and his step-sister, Brooke.

At 17, Brooke was a wild hellraiser who resented her stepmother so extremely that she seduced and fled the state with Dr. Noel Clinton, a man that Meg had agreed to marry!

In time, Meg would meet the love of her life: legal eagle and addiction counselor Lee Baldwin. The two married, and Lee legally adopted Scotty and raised him like any father.

Despite a great deal of love and affection, the Baldwin marriage was rocky. Iris Fairchild, an old acquaintance of Meg’s from nursing school, arrived in town and immediately caused discord.

Iris had a severe drinking problem, and Lee, a recovering alcoholic, not only offered to sponsor her in recovery but he hired her as his personal secretary. Jumping to conclusions, Meg was certain they were having an affair.

Lee proved his fidelity, and just as he and Meg reunited, they were dealt a one-two punch. Scotty was deathly ill and in need of a kidney (which Lee supplied), and Meg was diagnosed with breast cancer. After a radical mastectomy, Meg suffered a nervous breakdown and had to be institutionalized.

Supposedly cured, Meg was released but now suffered from a severe case of hypertension, an illness exacerbated by Meg’s delusional belief that her new physician was pursuing Lee, Dr. Leslie Williams (who, in an ironic twist, would soon be revealed as Laura’s birth mother,).

Nearing a hysterical state, Meg confronted Leslie and, during the argument, dropped dead from a stroke! Grieving spouse Lee refused to succumb to his desire to drink and instead doubled his efforts to continue to raise Scotty in the way that his mother would have approved.

So, by the time Scotty began to court young Laura, he had lost his biological father and mother, step-sister Brooke (who was murdered in 1973 by lover Burt Douglas), and even his step-mother Caroline (Lees’s second wife who died in Florida).

With a backstory so full of pain and loss, is it any wonder Scotty has become the character he is today?