When it premiered in 1963, television viewers were enthralled by the personal and professional relationships in the small town of Port Charles. Now, “General Hospital” celebrates its 60th anniversary with a prime-time special on ABC (and streaming the following day on Hulu). Daytime dramas, aka soap operas, are part of our pop culture, and on any given day college students gather around the TV in common areas to get their fix of their favorite characters. Daytime dramas have kept homemakers company, filled the time when someone was sick at home and been part of dinner conversations for decades.

“General Hospital” gave us the “super couple” of Luke and Laura, introduced viewers to musical talents and has been a platform for many social issues. This show has been popular not only with average television viewers but also many entertainment elites. Elizabeth Taylor was such a fan of the show she lobbied for a role and got it, playing Helena Cassadine for four episodes in 1981.

The series launched the careers of several actors who went on to prime-time television and feature films: Jonathan Jackson, Demi Moore, John Stamos, Mark Hamill, Jack Wagner and more.

When Luke and Laura tied the knot in November 1981, plenty of people stayed home to view the event — or, if they were lucky to have a tape recorder (before the time of DVRs, there were Beta and VHS machines), they rushed home after work or school to see this long-awaited event along with 30 million viewers that day.

“General Hospital” is the longest-running daytime drama on ABC. Its revolving door of characters has had faithful viewers staying the course and newer viewers joining in the stories. Although many of the storylines are far-fetched, that adds to the entertainment value of a show that is an escape from the ups and downs of everyday life. With stories about families, spies, mysteries and love, there always seems to be something that brightens the days of viewers and many times adds a lot of comedy and chuckles.

When the show began in 1963, it was broadcast in black-and-white 30-minute episodes until 1967 when it turned to color. The popularity of the soap led ABC to expand it to 45 minutes in 1976 and then finally to one hour in 1978.

This prime-time special looks at the legacy of the show, bloopers and tributes. The special will feature “General Hospital” cast members Maurice Benard, Jane Elliot, Genie Francis, Finola Hughes, Kelly Monaco, Laura Wright and more. Joining the slate of current and past cast members for this retrospective look at “General Hospital” are recent “Dancing with the Stars” winner and pro dancer Val Chmerkovskiy, film and television star Emma Samms, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, Grammy-winning singer/songwriter/actor Rick Springfield, and actress and writer Amber Tamblyn, among other all-star celebrity guests.

The current lineup of actors starring in the show include Francis, Elliot, Hughes, Kristina Wagner, Bernard, Nancy Lee Grahn, Rebecca Herbst, Monaco, Wright, Kirsten Storms, Dominic Zamprogna, Chad Duell, Michael Easton, Maura West, Donnell Turner, Eden McCoy, Josh Swickard, Katelyn MacMullen, Sofia Mattson, Amanda Sutton, Cynthia Watros, Brook Kerr, Nicholas Chavez, Avery Kristen Pohl, Cameron Mathison, Tash Bellow, Tanisha Harper, Tabyana Ali, Robert Gossett, Josh Kelly, Gregory Harrison, Evan Hofer and Kate Mansi.

“General Hospital: 60 Years of Stars and Storytelling” airs Thursday at 10 p.m. EST on ABC and streams Friday on Hulu.

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