‘General Hospital’s’ Genie Francis Married a ‘Star Trek’ Icon on Kirstie Alley’s Advice: Inside Their 38-Year Marriage

On November 17, 1981, General Hospital aired what is still the most-watched episode of daytime drama ever when Laura Webber (Genie Francis) married Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary) in a spectacular ceremony on the grounds of a lush Port Charles estate. Hollywood icon Elizabeth Taylor made a guest appearance as the original Helena Cassadine as one of soaps’ premier supercouples said ‘I do.’

Seven years later, Genie Francis, who was only 19 when Laura married Luke, wed actor Jonathan Frakes, just as he was rising to sci-fi fame as Commander William Riker on Star Trek: The Next Generation, per IMDb. Although Luke and Laura’s union didn’t stand the test of time, Francis and Frakes’ has, as they celebrated 38 years of marriage in May.

Francis was a mere 20 when she met Frakes, who was 10 years her senior, on the set of Bare Essence, a short-lived nighttime soap. Three years later, their relationship truly began when they worked on the miniseries North and South and decided to take a day trip when they had some time off between shoots. Francis admitted to GH costar Maurice Benard on his podcast, State of Mind, that she and Frakes had both confided their crushes to North and South costar Kirstie Alley, who told them to give love a try.

“So we were on location in Charleston and Natchez, and we fell in love – and now, somehow, she wasn’t too young for me,” Frakes told PEOPLE in 2023. “So we have been together ever since our first date on North and South, when we took a break for Memorial Day and went to New Orleans.”

While Frakes has gone on to play Commander Riker in various Star Trek series, including Star Trek: Enterprise and Star Trek: Picard, Francis has remained a soap opera mainstay and legend. She began playing Laura when she was only 14 years old in 1977 and remains in the role today, according to IMDb.

Francis has also taken some time off to appear on other soaps, including Days of our Lives, All My Children, The Young and the Restless. With a career that has spanned nearly 50 years, the Television Academy will be honoring the actress with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Daytime Emmys on October 30.

Through most of her time as a soap icon, Francis has also been a wife and mother to their two children, Eliza and Jameson. In a 2018 interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, Francis revealed her secret to marriage longevity: “To stay married a long time, you have to be willing to have a couple of really bad years. And you may have to have them more than once.”