‘General Hospital’ (GH) spoilers: On April 10, 1985, GH had a new heroine, Anna Devane (Finola Hughes), who came onto the scene like a firecracker.
Head writer Pat Falken Smith created the role of Anna, who was the spoiler in Robert Scorpio’s (Tristian Rogers) romance with Holly Sutton (Emma Samms).
‘General Hospital’ Spoilers: Finola Made An Unforgettable Impression
Finola was pleasantly surprised when she won the role because the character was initially supposed to be an American.
The powers that be were so impressed by Hughes’s acting skills that she was hired. And thus, the character became English.
Not the typical heroine in the traditional sense, Anna was a super spy and a double agent posing as a jewel thief when she first came to town. Her career started with the DVX and then the WSB. Eventually, Anna ended up as police commissioner.
She was formerly the love of Robert Scorpio’s life, and they shared a little girl named Robin Scorpio (Kimberly McCollough).
Anna also had a trademark burn scar on her face, which she later revealed to Robert that it was fake. Fans may remember that Anna’s hair was styled to hide the scar.
Robin was the tie that binds Robert and Anna. However, some would argue that the true love of Anna’s life was mobster and nightclub owner Duke Lavery (Ian Buchannan). He worked for “Operation Tumble Dry,” which was a money laundering operation.
‘General Hospital’ Spoilers: The Asian Quarter Storyline in 1985
One of Anna’s most memorable storylines was the Asian Quarter storyline. It took place in 1985 when the Wu family was first introduced to Port Charles.
The local mafia boss, Chaing Wu (Aki Aleong), was oppressing his people in the Asian Quarter, which was basically the ghetto. He stole pearls from a wise Chinese man called “The Ancient One” (Keye Luke). The pearls were supposed to be in his two Buddha statues. However, it turned out that the pearls were not there.
Wu went searching for the missing pearls. So did Robert, Anna, Frisco Jones (Jack Wagner), and Felicia Cummings-Scorpio, (Kristina Wagner).
The pearls ended up in Robin’s doll, and the Wu family had her kidnapped. Eventually Robert and Anna were able to rescue their daughter. The story was adventurous and exciting, and it helped make Anna a fan favorite.
Another memorable storyline that was much more recent was when Anna shot Charlotte Cassadine (Scarlet Fernandez). Someone was stalking Anna, and she didn’t know who.
Unbeknownst to her, Charlotte had been brainwashed by her evil grandfather, Victor Cassadine (Charles Shaughnessy), who wrote a letter to Charlotte that Anna would destroy her father, Valentin Cassadine (James Patrick Stuart).
‘General Hospital’ Spoilers: Anna Accidentally Shot Charlotte
Charlotte did everything she could to try to rid her father of Anna. She terrorized her hotel room and wrote threatening messages with lipstick on the mirror.
When Metro Court surveillance caught Charlotte on tape, instead of explaining to Anna what his daughter had done, he had Nina Reeves (Cynthia Watros) delete the footage.
Charlotte was free to continue her mission of eliminating Anna. She went to Anna’s apartment, and when Anna returned home, she saw a dark figure standing in the room.
Thinking whoever it was had a weapon, Anna fired her gun and shot Charlotte. Finola’s scenes after Anna shot Charlotte demonstrate her raw emotion and palpable terror for having accidentally shot a defenseless teenager. Her scenes with Valentin were some of the best from last year.
Hughes told Soap Opera Digest that Tristian was the first person she worked with on the show.
She explained
“He was really just encouraging. Everything I learned, I sort of learned through him,”
Finola’s portrayal of Anna Devane was a success. She became one of the most beloved characters on GH.
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