Soap opera fans will have an opportunity to say one last goodbye to “General Hospital” star Jackie Zeman when, come September, Popstar!’s “The Bay” pays homage to the beloved daytime veteran in a special episode dedicated to her. Zeman also co-starred on “The Bay” —which streams on Peacock — playing Sofia Madison.
“The special episode titled ‘Sofia’willbe a celebration of boththe Sofia character and Jackie Zeman’s life, with several special guest stars that meant something to Jackie’s legacy,”says showrunner and head writer Gregori J. Martin.
Zeman, who earned five Daytime Emmy nominations — four for her role as prostitute-turned-nurse Bobbie Spencer on “General Hospital,” and one for her work on “The Bay” — died in May 2023 after a “short battle” with cancer. Her legacy on the ABC soap, where she spent more than four decades of her career, was marked this past January with a touching memorial episode and, within the show, the renaming of a longtime Port Charles landmark from Kelly’s to Bobbie’s.
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Among those set to appear in the tribute episode of “The Bay” are Dee Wallace (“ET,” “Cujo”), who relocates to Bay City to launch a fragrance line in honor of her sister, Sofia, who played a psychic medium on the Peacock series on and off since its inception in 2010. Also joining thisspecialstoryline, Leigh McCloskey,who played one of Zeman’s ex-husbands on“GH,” appears as Hank Henderson, Sofia’s first husband and the father of her two daughters. At a gala to launch Sofia’s fragrance line, McCloskey’s character will share actual words written byZeman’s real-life daughters, Cassidy and Lacey Rose. The episode will also include a collage of never-before-seen images and home video clips shared by Zeman’s family.
Tamara Braun, who played Zeman’s daughter Carly Corinthoson “GH,”will also appear in the special-guest star role of Rita “Elise” Kennedy, a blind woman who is given the gift of sight after receiving Sofia’s donated corneas.
“Knowing how special Tamara was to Jackie, I created the role of Elise specifically for her,”says Martin. To that end, Martin reached out to Daytime scribe Michele Val Jean, the showrunner of the upcoming new — and highly anticipated — CBS soap “The Gates” — for advice on what to name the character. He took Val Jean’s advice and namedBraun’s character after Zeman’s mother, Rita, and her two granddaughters. “I also knew whatever name we gave this character had to be somethingextraspecial to Jackie,” he says.
Real Andrews(“GH”), James Preston(“The Gates) and Kym Whitley(“Curb Your Enthusiasm”)return as series regulars. Daytime legend Darnell Williams(“All My Children”)joins the cast in the recurring role of psychiatrist Dr. Josef Givens.
Behind the scenes, Martin and Wendy Riche will continue serving as executive producers, with Nadine Aronson also promoted to that rank. All-new episodes of“The Bay” are expectedto be released daily this fall on Popstar!TVfollowed by a VOD release on multiple streaming platforms.
