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We had no idea how hard hit we would be to learn on May 9, 2023, that Jacklyn Zeman had died. She had been a part of our lives for more than 45 years as General Hospital hooker-turned-nurse Bobbie Spencer. She was a reliable constant, like the seventh-floor nurses’ station. It didn’t compute that she… just wouldn’t be there anymore.

Marveled Anthony Geary, who played her ne’er-do-well brother for decades: “I never heard her utter one disparaging word about any actor, crew member or co-worker. In fact, I never heard Jackie express an unkind word about anyone, ever. In a highly competitive profession where ego, feelings and emotions are bread and butter, I’ve found this quality to be extremely rare.

“I expect it will be even more rare,” he went on, “now that dear Jackie is gone.

Her Big Break

A native of New Jersey, Zeman got her start in daytime with a small role on The Edge of Night. That led to an under-five gig on One Life to Live that grew into a two-year contract as ill-fated waitress-turned-nurse Lana McClain. By the time that character was killed off, the up-and-comer had landed on the radar of General Hospital executive producer Gloria Monty, who cast her as spitfire Bobbie in 1977. “There was only one hitch,” Zeman said in General Hospital: The Complete Scrapbook. “I had to lose 10 pounds.

“But I was glad to do it,” she added. “One Life to Live had asked me to gain 15 pounds to play Lana!”

The Wild Years

Newer fans might only recall Carly’s mother as wise and nurturing. But in her early years on the show, she was quite a hellion, moving heaven and earth to split up sometime lover Scotty Baldwin from the object of his affections, Laura Webber. “It was crazy in those days. Bobbie was a naughty girl back [then],” Zeman said during a 2022 State of Mind interview. Irate viewers were sending death threats by mail, so “I had full-time FBI bodyguards on me for over a year!”

Though time mellowed out Bobbie — and, thankfully, the audience — it did nothing to improve her luck in the romance department. She was married four times and suffered more broken hearts than have ever passed through the hospital’s cardiac unit. (This photo gallery revisits all the men that the character loved and lost.)

The Peak of Popularity

As the love quadrangle of Bobbie/Scotty/Laura/Luke caught fire, turning General Hospital into an overnight sensation, Zeman’s star rose and rose. The competition panicked — to the point that once, “I had a network offer me $250,000 not to re-sign my General Hospital contract,” Zeman said. “Didn’t even have to do anything. Just not re-sign it for a year.”

Once More, With Feeling

In 1988, the soap attempted to re-pair Bobbie and Scotty (as it would now and again for years to come). “It didn’t work out again,” Zeman said in 1995. “Kin Shriner and I were such good pals in real life that whenever we looked at each other romantically, we’d crack up!”

The Later Years

As Bobbie matured and Carly took over stirring the pot, Zeman was nudged onto the back burner. The audience clamored for more of the fan fave but didn’t get it. She seemed to take it in stride, however. “As much as I appreciate the thoughtful and kind support,” she told HollywoodHi in 2020, “I don’t write the story, I just say the lines.”

Zeman didn’t want to get into the unfairness of being a soap legend who wasn’t getting her due screen time at all. “Oh, let’s not go there,” she said. She was busy, anyway, with her long-running role on the digital soap The Bay.

In the End

When Zeman died at age 70 after a short battle with cancer, not just General Hospital but all of daytime mourned. “Saying she will be missed is an understatement,” Instagrammed Laura Wright (Carly). “I’m struggling to wrap my head around this.” Even now, so are we all.