- Lesley redirects here. For other uses of the name, see Lesley or Leslie (disambiguation).
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Dr. Lesley Webber, MD is a fictional character on the popular ABC soap opera General Hospital.
She was played by Denise Alexander from 1972 through 1984 on contract and from 1996 to 2009 recurring. Alexander returned on May 16, 2013.
Casting
Actress Denise Alexander originated the role of Dr. Lesley Williams in March 1973.[4] In 1976, although TIME magazine panned General Hospital at the time, Alexander's character Lesley was noted as the serial's saving grace.[5]
When Alexander and the network could not agree to contractual negotiations, the character was killed off in March 1984. Angry fans picketed the studio, upset that the character had died.[6]
In 1996, the series wrote the character back on, and Alexander appeared in a recurring status until October 2009. Alexander returned to the role, once again in a recurring status, from May 16, 2013 to December 13, 2013
Storylines
Lesley Williams arrived in Port Charles in 1972 and began work as a cardiologist at General Hospital. Lesley's first patient was a woman named Florence Gray. Florence was suffering from stomach ulcers that she thought were brought on from the stress of her failing marriage with Gordon Gray. Florence was then sent to hospital psychiatrist Dr. Peter Taylor, and told him about her husband's affair years earlier with a student in his class, Gordon gotten the girl pregnant and the child presumably died shortly after birth. When Peter told Lesley about Florence and her history, Lesley realized she was that very student. Gordon Gray then returned and confessed his love to her Lesley and was willing to leave his wife. However Lesley convinced him to stay with Florence and they left town soon after.
Lesley later married millionaire Cameron Faulkner and discovered that the daughter she thought died at birth was in fact alive and living only miles away from Lesley's house. Lesley researched and found out her daughter Laura was living with her adopted parents The Vining's. Lesley was desperate to see Laura but was ordered from her husband never to make contact with her, so Lesley followed her daughter to a park one day and they spoke for the first time. Laura went home and told her sister Amy about the woman in the park who promised to bring her many gifts. The Vinings were very protective of Laura and discovered that Lesley was in fact Laura's biological mom and swore never to give up their claim to their daughter.
Lesley and daughter Laura
Laura was thrilled at the fact that Lesley was her mom and Lesley herself soon filed for custody. After Laura was granted a week to stay under her mother's roof she decided to stay with Lesley indefinitely but when Laura fell ill Lesley thought the illness could be emotional based and made the decision to send Laura back to the Vinings. Lesley's husband Cameron was thrilled and was determined to keep Laura out of his life so he paid a nurse to convince Lesley that Laura was actually not her daughter. Lesley didn't fall for it so Cameron then paid the Vinings a great deal of money to move far away. Cameron tried to convince Lesley to move on with her life but Lesley wouldn't have it and she soon learned that her husband paid the Vinings to leave and go far away. Cameron finally snapped and kidnapped Lesley however during a struggle while Cameron was driving Lesley grabbed the wheel and the car lunged off the road killing Cameron.
Rick and Lesley
Rick Webber
While grieving her husband Lesley met Dr. Rick Webber. Rick was trying to stay away from his brother Jeff's wife Monica. So Rick spent much time with Lesley and comforted her after she miscarried her late husband's baby. Monica became jealous over how much time Rick spent with Lesley and confronted Lesley warning her to stay away from Rick and that they were having an affair. Lesley wasn't sure whether to believe Monica but she then knew that she loved Rick very much. Rick was also becoming closer to Lesley and even volunteered to help her find her daughter Laura. When Rick and Lesley found Laura, Lesley was hoping for a joyful reunion but Laura had grown into a teenager and didn't want to live with Lesley and wanted nothing to do with her. Laura believed that Lesley didn't care about her when the Vinings had taken her away. Rick then sat Laura down convinced her that both her mothers loved her. Lesley was so grateful for Rick's efforts. Rick then confessed his love to Lesley and proposed. Lesley was shocked and agreed to be his wife.
Lesley marries Rick
When Rick's old college roommate David Hamilton moved into the Webber house, Lesley didn't trust him from the start. Laura however was very open to David and after rebelling against Lesley, she and her mother decided to make peace. David however didn't help things and would cause a rift between Lesley and her daughter again. David became obsessed with Lesley and soon made a pass at her, which Lesley rejected. After he was rejected by Lesley, David moved onto her daughter Laura. Laura and David then began a secret romantic relationship. But really, David was only using Laura to hurt Lesley and Rick. Laura and David's relationship grew and Laura asked David to take her away from Port Charles. David finally told Laura that he didn't care about her but loved her mother. Laura was angry and pushed David causing him to fall and hit his head, accidentally killing him. Lesley later found David's body and in an effort to protect Laura, confessed to killing David. Laura blocked the terrible night from her memory. She was sent to counseling with Peter Taylor and was able to recall killing David. Feeling guilty, Laura ran away from home but was later tracked down and brought home by Scott Baldwin. She confessed to murdering David and the charges against Lesley were dropped. Laura was sentenced to six months probation and was released into Lesley and Rick's custody.
After Lassa Fever hit GH, Rick and Monica slept together, Monica wanted to be with him but Rick told her that they needed time away from each other to be sure of their feelings. When Laura was in a car accident Rick came back to his senses and he told Monica they were over for good. Monica then reconciled with her husband Alan and discovered that she was pregnant. Lesley and Rick were pondered themselves whether they should have a baby. Unfortunately Lesley was told she couldn't conceive otherwise she would be putting her life into danger. Lesley later delivered Monica's son Alan Quartermaine Jr.. Monica however told Lesley that the child was Rick's. After Lesley confronted Rick he left Port Charles to think about his feelings for both Lesley and Monica.
After Alan Jr. developed a heart problem Rick was called back to Port Charles to perform surgery on him. Rick then filed a paternity suite against Monica as he wanted Alan Jr. to be his son. Lesley later filed for divorce so that Rick could marry Monica and have a family with Alan Jr. However a birth mark revealed that Alan Jr. was in fact a Quartermaine. Rick then ended things with Monica and left Port Charles once again.
Rick later returned and immediately remarried Lesley and adopted a six year old boy named Mike. Lesley and Rick then begin working at the Waterfront Sports Center where Lesley taught an Aerobic Dance class and even booked Richard Simmons to help her in a guest stint. When Laura disappeared in 1982, Lesley was crushed but soon received a new arrival under her roof by the name of Blackie Parrish. They welcomed the street kid into the Webber home after Blackie's mother had died. Blackie soon entered the music business and Rick and Lesley then noticed a change in his behavior, they discovered Blackie accidentally killed his girlfriend Lou and was arrested. Blackie was found guilty and sentenced to time in prison.
Lesley with grandson Lucky
Rick and Lesley were later overjoyed when Laura was revealed to be alive after being kidnapped by the Cassadines but tragedy would soon strike the Webber family again. A young woman named Ginny Blake came to town claiming to be little Mike Webber's biological mother, Lesley was tipped off by Bobbie Spencer that Ginny was running a scam and went to Ginny begging her to confess but Ginny refused. Lesley then went driving and was presumably killed in an accident from the icy roads.
Years later it was revealed in 1996, that Lesley Webber was indeed alive and being held captive in a catatonic state by the Cassadines. Lesley and Laura were reunited and, with Luke's help, they faked their deaths to escape the Cassadines. Stefan Cassadine then blackmailed Laura into leaving town. Laura lied to Luke that her mother needed treatment in Switzerland and took Lulu with them. They returned a few months later. Lesley was deeply traumatized by her experience and as a result was unable to practice medicine again. With the help of her family, she did however ease into her new role as grandmother to Laura's children Nikolas, Lucky and Lulu, while continuing to be a mother to Laura.
In 2002, Rick Webber returned to give his daughter Laura away again at her second wedding to Luke Spencer. Rick and Lesley reunited for the first time in over a decade. She confined in him how angry she was from having years stolen away by her captivity. However she was happy that Rick was able to move on with his life. Soon after his arrival Laura began having flashbacks involving their old garage attic, including wearing a dress covered in blood. Rick and Scott Baldwin could tell that Laura was remembering and tried to prevent the truth from coming out. It was revealed years ago during his marriage to Lesley, Rick was having an affair with nurse Theresa Carter and Laura walked in on them in the attic. Theresa got violent and Laura took an antique camera and hit Theresa over the head with it accidentally killing her.
Rick enlisted Scott to bury Theresa in the back yard and gave Laura a certain drug for her to forget that night. Laura went up to the attic to try and remember the truth day before the wedding. She believed that Rick had killed Theresa. When Rick tried to give her an injection to calm her down, Laura panicked and hit Rick over the head, killing him. Luke followed Laura and Rick to the attic where he discovered Laura over Rick's dead body. Luke then whisked Laura away into hiding. Lucky and Nikolas found Rick's body and tried to make his death look like a drunk driving accident. Laura had a severe mental break by the traumatic revelation that she had killed her stepfather and was institutionalized. Lesley was devastated by Rick's death and Laura's mental collapse, with Luke showing little interest in his daughter Lesley was left to raise young Lulu with the help of her other two grandchildren Nikolas and Lucky.
When Heather Webber returned to Port Charles in 2004, Lesley was immediately suspicious of her. Heather had become obsessed with Luke Spencer, and began her old scheming. She spiked Lesley's drink causing her to be hospitalized. Afterwards Heather convinced Bobbie Spencer to let her move into the Spencer house to care for Lulu. Fortunately, Lesley recovered and Heather was later institutionalized.
In 2005, Lesley and a now teenaged Lulu attended the wedding of Lucky and Elizabeth Spencer. Lulu grew up to be quite the rebel, Lesley tried her best but just couldn't handle the teen. Luke would occasionally pop into Lulu's life to take her fishing and spend the occasional holiday with her but, for the most part, he remained a stranger to her. Lesley decided it was time for Luke to be a real father and sent Lulu to the Quartermaine mansion, where Luke was living, and forced Luke to take a more active role in his daughter's life. Lesley was overjoyed in 2006, when her daughter Laura made a temporary recovery from her catatonia. When Luke decided to give Laura the wedding of her dreams Lesley was not thrilled at the idea of lying to her daughter as Luke was already married to Tracy Quartermaine. However in time Lesley realized she only wanted her daughter to be happy and later decided to support Luke's decision.
Lesley with grandchildren Nikolas, Lulu and Lucky
Lesley attended Lucky and Elizabeth's second wedding in March 2007 and returned later that year to comfort her grandson Nikolas after his fiance's death. In 2008, Laura came out of catatonia for good but was quickly kidnapped by Scott Baldwin. Lesley assisted Lucky, Lulu, and Nikolas in finding her location by remembering where Scott and Laura went on their honeymoon. Lesley later shared a tearful reunion with her daughter once again. Lesley Webber's last appearance before a four-and-half year absence was in October 2009 when she attended Lucky and Elizabeth's engagement party.
When Laura returned to Port Charles in 2013, she reveals Lesley has been living in Italy with her grandsons Nikolas and Spencer. Lesley returns to Port Charles in May 2013, along with Spencer to visit Laura and her grandson, Nikolas. She highly objects to her daughter's coming nuptials to Scott Baldwin, due to him being responsible for the death of her late husband, Rick Webber. However, she is persuaded to give her blessing and even she officiates the wedding after Mayor Janice Lomax is revealed to be too booked.Family tree
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| Walter Williams | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Gordon Grey |
| Lesley Williams | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Stavros Cassadine |
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| Laura Webber |
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| Nikolas Cassadine |
| Courtney Matthews |
| Lucky Spencer |
| Elizabeth Webber |
| Valentin Cassadine |
| Lulu Spencer |
| Dante Falconeri | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Spencer Cassadine |
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| Aiden Spencer |
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| Charlotte Cassadine |
| Rocco Falconeri | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
References
- โ On July 3, 2015, Dante received a call from Lesley and he stated that she was in Italy
- โ In May 2013, she reveals that she was ordained previously for a friend's Wiccan wedding and performs a non-denominational service for Laura and Scott Baldwin.
- โ Conceived via rape.
- โ "Petite Actress Plays Doctor On TV Series", Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Halifax Media Group, March 25, 1973. Retrieved on February 6, 2013.
- โ TIME magazine. TIME rates the soap. time.com. Retrieved on April 4, 2013.
- โ Associated Press. Goodbye For Fans. nytimes.com. Retrieved on January 2, 2013.
External links
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