‘General Hospital’ Star Leslie Charleson’s Cause of Death Revealed
The Doctor Is In
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Just over a month after she died, Leslie Charleson‘s cause of death has been revealed as “sequelae of blunt head trauma,” according to People. The condition results from a previous head injury, although the details of when and how the General Hospital star obtained that injury were not revealed.
Charleson’s autopsy also revealed a medical history of asthma, arthritis, atrial fibrillation, and normal pressure hydrocephalus (when too much cerebrospinal fluid builds up in the brain, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine).
The soap star, who was best known for her role as Monica Quartermaine on GH from 1977 to 2023, died on January 12 at the age of 79. She had reportedly been battling an illness for a long time before her death, according to TMZ. Her last acting appearance was in her final General Hospital episode two years ago. She received four Daytime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Drama Series for her performance in the role over the years.
Frank Valentini, an executive producer on General Hospital, was the one to publicly confirm the news of Charleson’s death in an Instagram post.
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“It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing of my dear friend and colleague, Leslie Charleson,” he wrote on the official General Hospital page. “Her enduring legacy has spanned nearly 50 years on General Hospital alone and, just as Monica was the heart of the Quartermaines, Leslie was a beloved matriarch of the entire cast and crew. I will miss our daily chats, her quick wit and incredible presence on set. On behalf of everyone at General Hospital, my heartfelt sympathy goes out to her loved ones during this difficult time.”
“I really do love this job,” Charleson told Soap Opera Digest in 2001. “Look at it this way, what better job can you do than get up in the morning, roll out of bed, throw something on and then have someone take care of how you look and how you dress and what you say? How much more grateful could you possibly be? Not bad, not bad at all.”
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