Denise Alexander, ‘General Hospital’ and ‘Days of Our Lives’ star, dies at 85

Denise Alexander, the legendary soap opera star famous for her roles on General Hospital and Days of Our Lives, has died.

The actress behind Dr. Lesley Williams died at age 85 on March 5, Entertainment Weekly has confirmed.

“I am so very sorry to hear of Denise Alexander’s passing,” General Hospital executive producer Frank Valentini told EW in a statement. “She broke barriers on screen and off portraying Dr. Lesley Webber — one of the first female doctors on daytime television — for nearly five decades. It meant so much to have her reprise her role in recent years, and I am honored to have had the opportunity to work with her. On behalf of the entire General Hospital family, I extend my heartfelt sympathies to her family, friends, and longtime fans. May she rest in peace.”

Born in New York in 1939, Alexander was raised on Long Island before moving to Los Angeles with her father, entertainment agent Alec Alexander. The actress booked several prominent screen roles in her youth, playing Perry Como’s daughter on Perry Como’s Chesterfield Supper Club in 1949 and appearing in a 1955 TV movie adaptation of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn with Thomas Mitchell and John Carradine.

Alexander made her cinematic debut in 1956’s Crime in the Streets. Directed by Don Siegel (Dirty Harry, Invasion of the Body Snatchers), the film also starred John Cassavetes and James Whitmore. In 1960, she appeared in her first soap opera, The Clear Horizon, as Lois Adams, before serving as a series regular for three years. During that same period, she also starred in the Twilight Zone episode “Third from the Sun” and in an episode of The Barbara Stanwyck Show.

Alexander’s big break came in 1966 while she was still a student at the University of California, Los Angeles, when she was cast as Susan Martin on Days of Our Lives. During her seven years on the show, Alexander’s character reeled from the death of her son, Dickie Martin, and eventually murdered her husband, David. The actress departed the soap in 1973, and Bennye Gatteys took over the part for another three years.

The same year she left Days of Our Lives, Alexander debuted as Lesley Webber on General Hospital. During Lesley’s time in a love triangle with Rick Webber (Chris Robinson) and Monica Quartermaine (Leslie Charleson), the soap enjoyed unprecedented success, with the actress earning a Daytime Emmy nomination for her performance as the character — the biological mother of Laura (Genie Francis) and the foster mom of Blackie Parrish (John Stamos) — in 1976.

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General Hospital killed Lesley off in a car accident in 1984 after the actress and show had a contract dispute, and Alexander joined Another World as Mary McKinnon, whom she played from 1986 to 1989. She then returned to GH in 1996 when Lesley was resurrected, and continued as a recurring player on the show until 2009. She made her way back to the soap once more for its 50th anniversary in 2013, and later returned for guest appearances in 2017, 2019, and 2021.

Alexander is survived by her stepdaughter Elizabeth Colla.