Damian Spinelli (Bradford Anderson)

Damian Millhouse Spinelli (aka "The Jackal") is a character on General Hospital, played by actor Bradford Anderson since November 13, 2006. Spinelli was also one of the characters in the first season of General Hospital: Night Shift, which premiered on July 12, 2007.

Background
In September 2006, General Hospital put out a casting call for a "college-aged kid" who was a cross between Seth Green and Spicoli, a character played by Sean Penn in Fast Times at Ridgemont High. The part was won by Anderson, who says he tries to emulate Spicoli's speaking style when playing the character. Spinelli's dialogue, a rapid-fire mix of surfer lingo and Internet slang, has offered comic relief, and an unusual "tech-savvy" character to the show, that has been called "one of the quirkiest characters daytime has ever seen." Anderson says that he generally doesn't improvise the part, instead sticking to the script that is supplied a couple days before filming. The name of the specific writer or writers who create Spinelli's dialogue have not been identified.

Anderson initially played the character on a recurring basis, but the character has proved popular and actor Bradford Anderson was offered a multi-year contract, which he accepted in May 2007. The character was added to the opening credits sequence on July 6, 2007.

There have been disputes about whether to spell the character's name "Damien" or "Damian." In the show's closing credits he is referred to as "Damien," but in a scene from General Hospital, where Spinelli is holding a business card, it is spelled "Damian."

Spinelli is one of Jason Morgan's closest friends and is in love with Maxie Jones.

Storyline
The character of Damian Spinelli was introduced to the show in 2006, as the computer hacker responsible for creating a flash drive containing falsified evidence against Sam McCall. Spinelli is hired by Lorenzo Alcazar to create the flash drive, which in turn is handed over to corrupt Port Charles District Attorney, Ric Lansing, who has a grudge against McCall's beau-at-the-time Jason Morgan. Jason and Sam find Spinelli and convince him to confess to creating the flash drive. Spinelli agrees, and hides at a safe house with Sam while Jason waits for the right time to make his move. But before this happens, they are ambushed by Alcazar's hitmen. In the ensuing fracas, Spinelli disappears.

He reappears a short time later, working in a study group with Lulu Spencer. The two are kidnapped by Alcazar, who was planning to kill them, but they are rescued by Jason. Spinelli runs again, but Lulu helps Jason track him down at his grandmother's house in the city of Oakfield, Tennessee. This is the first mention in the show of Spinelli having any family.

Spinelli is convinced to return to Port Charles, and provides Mac Scorpio with the evidence to exonerate Sam. He also helps Jason and Sonny Corinthos keep tabs on Alcazar; is helping Lulu to prove that her mother, Laura Spencer did not kill Rick Webber; and provides an ailing Alexis Davis with marijuana to ease the pain caused by her chemotherapy treatments for lung cancer.

Metro Court hostage crisis
In the 24-inspired storyline during the February 2007 sweeps, Spinelli helps as Jason Morgan's sidekick in an attempt to rescue the hostages who are being held at the Metro Court Hotel. It is also revealed that he has a major crush on Lulu Spencer, and that he has a very vivid Walter Mitty-like imagination. His fantasies usually revolve around his desire for "The Blonde One", Lulu, portraying himself as a swashbuckling hero figure who rescues her from danger. In an August 2007 episode, Spinelli's fantasy involved him being attended by three beautiful blonde women, all of whom he rejected so that he could attend to Lulu.

Lulu used to live with Spinelli and Jason after having her heart broken by Logan. Later, she left to try to help put her torn-apart family back together. Spinelli also hit Logan Hayes once he found out that Logan hurt Lulu.

Georgie's death and the Text Message Killer
Jason and Spinelli talked frequently about his good friend, Georgie Jones. "Stone Cold" told him that it was obvious that Georgie had a crush on him. Spinelli was stunned, but elated. He told Jason that Georgie was beautiful and smart and could have anyone she wanted. He was confused why someone as wonderful as "Wise Georgie" would love someone like him.

Spinelli found Georgie's dead body while walking through the park on December 17, 2007 and discovered that she was killed by the Text Message Killer. He tried fruitlessly to revive her as he called the police sobbing, asking them to come quickly because "someone beautiful has died". After he was questioned by the police, a depressed Spinelli trudged back to the penthouse and told Jason that Georgie had been murdered, while downing shots of alcohol. He talked to Jason about who she was and the guilt he felt stemming from his inability to protect her. He lamented that he lost the one person who thought he was special. Jason tried his best to comfort his grieving friend. Later, Spinelli lit a candle and made a remorseful offering to Georgie's spirit so she would know he would miss her. He also comforted Maxie and Dillon and attended Georgie's funeral.

The police had made Spinelli a major suspect in Georgie's murder, before other evidence pointed to different people. The evidence came in the form of e-mails that she had never sent, stating that except around girls, Spinelli was the smartest, sweetest guy she had ever met and she thought she was falling in love with him. Lucky Spencer told Spinelli he was determined to prove that he killed Georgie. Spinelli was incredulous at the idea that he could have killed his closest friend. Jason told Lucky to back off Spinelli and promised to help him get out of the trouble he was in. Spinelli later asked to keep the e-mails, which he dubbed "Georgie's secret pain." Later he tried to write a reply, but was discouraged by the fact that Georgie would not be able to read it.

Maxie and Spinelli
Spinelli is distraught for not knowing about Georgie's love for him until it was too late. He still mourns Georgie's death and the loss of their potential romantic relationship, which makes him only more determined to prove that Cooper is the Text Message Killer. However, after Cooper's apparent suicide, his girlfriend Maxie Jones enlists Spinelli's help in uncovering Coop's killer. She believes that whoever killed Coop killed Georgie as well. The unlikely duo work together to find the killer, initially arguing constantly, but eventually developing a friendship. During a stakeout at Logan's house, Maxie kisses Spinelli to deflect the suspicion of a nearby police officer. The kiss marks the beginning of Spinelli's developing feelings for Maxie. He repeatedly has Sam Spade-like fantasies, with himself playing the detective, and Maxie the femme fatale blonde. He no longer calls Maxie the "Bad Blonde One", but instead "the Wounded Blonde One". They successfully track down the Text Message Killer, Diego Alcazar, and engage in a physical confrontation, which ends with Diego falling off a ship and hanging himself from being tangled up in ropes.

After Dr. Ian Devlin's shooting of Michael Corinthos III, Spinelli and Maxie again work together to find evidence, and engage in a physical confrontation with the killer, who is himself shot and killed by Jason. It is during this trip that Spinelli reveals to Jason that he has fallen in love with "Maximista." Spinelli seeks romantic advice from Jason, Diane Miller, and Sam McCall.

When Spinelli asks Jasper Jacks for help in becoming a ladies' man, this results in Spinelli appearing at the Metro Court Hotel as a "mini-Jax," Australian accent and all. Kate Howard's rival, Giselle, becomes instantly smitten with the newly polished "Damian", but the facade crumbles when Maxie shows up and disapproves, causing Spinelli to lose his cool. He gets drunk and is discovered on the Port Charles pier by Claudia Zacchara, who brings him to Jason's penthouse. Spinelli succumbs to disease while quarantined with Jason and Claudia. As he laments about his self-perception as a loser, Jason explains how much he counts on Spinelli, and is honored by Spinelli's trust. Spinelli's illness also causes Maxie to divulge to him how much she counts on him, which lifts Spinelli's spirits.



After conspiring with Lulu and Johnny to cover up Lulu's murder of Logan Hayes, Maxie was threatened by Johnny's father, Anthony. Upon her release, she went to Spinelli and told him the truth. After Spinelli vows to keep Maxie safe, she kisses him. The two make love, but Maxie instantly regrets it, feeling that she has used Spinelli for comfort sex.

Maxie and Spinelli remain close. One evening, they go on a stakeout to spy on Andre Karpov's lawyer, who, according to Spinelli's false theories, is having an affair with Jason. Spinelli gets out of the car to investigate further and Maxie tries to stop him. A car comes out of nowhere; Spinelli pushes Maxie out of the way and ends up being hit by the car. Maxie rushes him to the hospital where Dr. Matt Hunter removes his ruptured spleen. Although the surgery itself is successful, Spinelli develops a post-operative infection. His fever becomes worse, presumably due to the use of counterfeit medication. At Maxie's insistence, Dr. Patrick Drake becomes his doctor, after which Spinelli recovers from his fever and is given a clean bill of health. Jason takes him to the penthouse to recover; Maxie promptly shows up and announces that she will stay to take care of Spinelli while Jason is busy.

While Spinelli is recovering, he eavesdrops on a conversation between Maxie and Jason, in which she admits that Spinelli brings out the best in her and makes her see herself in a better light. She implies that she is in love with Spinelli. The following morning, Spinelli attends Johnny Zacchara's murder trial, at which Maxie has to testify, out of loyalty to her. Maxie is forced to admit under oath that she threatened to ruin Logan's relationship with Lulu unless he had sex with her; she is made to look like a slut in front of the jury and Spinelli. When she is dismissed from the courtroom, she runs away from Spinelli, who attempts to talk to her.

After Maxie was attacked by the Russians because she saw them burn down Kelly's and beat up Mike, Spinelli finds her in the exact position and place he found Georgie's body after she was strangled by the Text Message Killer. Spinelli carries Maxie to General Hospital where Dr. Matt Hunter tells him she'll be fine but she'll just have a headache. Spinelli sits at Maxie's bedside and confesses his love for her. Mac comes to the hospital and forbids Spinelli from seeing Maxie. Spinelli vows revenge on whoever hurt his Maximista. Later at Crimson, Mac finds Maxie and Spinelli talking and gives Maxie an ultimatum to either stop seeing Spinelli or move out. Defying her stepfather and choosing Spinelli, she moves into an apartment with Lulu and Johnny.

Winifred and the Hospital crisis


While helping Maxie rewrite a Crimson article that she failed to back up on her computer, Spinelli finds that his computer has been hacked. Later on the pier, she finds a girl named Winifred Leeds with similar computer troubles. After helping her, he finds she's been spying on her after being outed by Maxie. When she mentions the Saga of Stone Cold, Maxie begins to call her names that could be used to describe Spinelli as well, causing him to distance himself from Maxie and grow closer to Winifred, who he calls "The Priestess". After he makes it clear to Winifred his love remains with Maxie, Maxie calls him to her apartment and they have sex. However, when he finds out that she only used sex to take his mind off of Winifred, the two get into a heated argument. Before Maxie can apologize, Spinelli is arrested by the FBI for treason and homeland security violations, with aid from Winifred, who is an undercover FBI agent. Despite the seriousness of the charges against him, FBI Agent Rayner tells him not to confess to anything, as he's merely bait to get to Jason Morgan, Sonny Corinthos, and the Zaccharas.

Spinelli was made to feel helpless by this turn of events, as Jason tells him not to use his hacking skills anymore, and Rayner would rather keep him as a bargaining chip to keep Jason under the FBI's thumb than give him any real use. However, he eavesdrops on Jason and Rayner's conversations over a missing Equinox truck carrying deadly cargo, and after being denied again by Jason to help, calls on Winifred for information. He provides most of this information to Jason, but not all, so that he'll let him help again. The pair find that an accident victim matching the description of one of the buyers of the stolen cargo has been admitted to General Hospital, but they're too late to do anything about it before a deadly bio toxin is released into the hospital. He is locked in with the patients under the quarantine the hospital is placed under. When he learns that the FBI has been ordered to turn the remaining bio toxin over to the Equinox corporation, he tries to explain to Patrick and Jason how they can't be allowed to have it back. Failing that, he trails the FBI team led by Winifred to retrieve the bio toxin, though he lets them retrieve it after arguing with her over the same issue. He then notices the anesthesia equipment has been left running and guides Winifred out of the room just as a cauterizer spark engulfs the room in an explosion.

Spinelli then continues to stay behind and help others evacuate once the building has caught on fire. Spinelli puts his laptop down to find a way to communicate to the FBI outside and locks himself in a utility closet as the building burns.

General Hospital: Night Shift
While playing around with Jason's gun, he accidentally shoots himself in the foot and Jason takes the fall for it. As a form of thanks, Spinelli designs a game based on Jason called the "The Stone Cold Saga".

He also harbors a small crush on one of the nurses, Jolene Crowell. It is also revealed that Spinelli harbors an immense fear of clowns. He helped Jason with Stacey Sloan's c-section in the elevator. He blames himself for Stacey dying because he pushed the elevator button hard. He also had a one night stand with Jolene. Spinelli later finds out from Jason that Jolene may be the one that has been sabotaging the hospital. Jason tells Spinelli to see if he can find anything that might prove that Jolene is a killer. Spinelli checks it out on his computer, wanting to prove that Jolene isn't capable of murder. In the season finale, Spinelli goes to Jason and tells him that he was right about the Jolene. There is later a shootout at the hospital and Spinelli throws his laptop at one of the gunmen. Surprisingly, Jolene jumps on top of him, knocking him to the floor to shield him from a bullet. When the shootout is over, Spinelli is kneeling on a corridor floor wondering why Jolene saved him. After visiting Touissant he goes to see Jolene, who is in a coma. He thanks her for saving him, without looking at her. He finally looks at her and calls her Fair Jolene.

Nicknames
Spinelli has a penchant for giving nicknames to those individuals who he has come into contact with, and on occasion to inanimate objects.