On General Hospital, Jane Elliot has been playing the often scheming, often lovable, Tracy Quartermaine on and off since 1978 for nearly 50 years. The character is now the longest-tenured member of the iconic Quartermaine family still around. Something that is not lost on the newest Gold Circle Inductee at last week’s 52nd annual Daytime Emmy Awards.

Jane was awarded her honor for excellence and dedication to her craft in the field of daytime television; and for making an enduring contribution to the vitality of the industry, and for setting standards for all to emulate.

Michael Fairman TV spoke to Jane shortly after she took to the stage during the Emmy ceremony and was acknowledged for her Gold Circle induction on her legendary daytime career which has spanned 60 years. It has included roles such as: Carrie Marler on Guiding Light, Angelica Deveraux on Days of our Lives, and Cynthia Preston on All My Children. Soap fans first saw Jane in 1965’s, A Flame in the Wind.

Jane shared what she is most proud of in her daytime career, “The first soap opera I did was in 1965, 60 years ago and it was live television. It’s 60 years later and I have been part of nine different soap operas. The thing I think that I’m proudest of is that I keep coming home to General Hospital and they keep a place for me, and that’s cherished. It is so cherished that they let me go do other things: I’ve done Days of our Lives. I’ve done Guiding Light, I’ve done All My Children, etc. They let me go, and visit other shows and create other characters, and then I get to come home. I don’t know anybody that’s been as lucky as I am.”

THE WRITE STUFF

Over the past year, GH Emmy-winning head writers, Elizabeth Korte and Chris Van Etten, have really given Jane some extraordinary nuanced material to play, and dare we say for the 2026 Daytime Emmys, if she were to throw her hat into the race, she would be hard to beat. Commenting on the writing, Elliot expressed, “It starts on the page. I can only do what I do, but it has to be on the page first. The material that I’ve been given to do in this past year has been exceptional.”

MONICA’S MEMORIAL EPISODES

There was not a dry eye in the house when on September 25 and 26, General Hospital aired its episodes centering around the memorial of Monica Quartermaine as the series said goodbye to the iconic character and her portrayer, the late Leslie Charleson. In real-life and on the show, it was Jane and her co-star Steve Burton (Jason Morgan) who were closest to Charleson making the story and the emotional scenes difficult to do.

“It was really hard, because Leslie died nine months ago and we did a celebration of life for her,” recalled Elliot. “I did a eulogy then for Leslie, and then I did it for Monica. To keep her (Monica) alive for nine months on camera and play like she was still here, and then to finally, after not acknowledging it, then acknowledging that she’d passed, was heartbreaking for Steve Burton and for me. I thought Steve did the best work of his life.”

In the key moment in the story for Tracy, she wheels interloper Drew Cain (Cameron Mathison) out of the church (he was in a wheelchair recovering from gunshot wounds), closes the doors, and then makes her way to the pulpit to finally eulogize Monica, who has always been like a sister to her; even though they were sister-in-laws. Jane explained if she felt more pressure or weight to the moment to deliver in the scene because of her love and out of respect for Leslie Charleson and the history they shared.

“There’s always weight when you’re given good work, right? When something is well-written it’s always a pressure to come up with the goods. because you want to it justice,” expressed Elliot.

GOING TOE TO TOE WITH ERIKA SLEZAK

Since Monica’s death, General Hospital brought six-time Daytime Emmy winner, Erika Slezak (Ronnie, GH and ex-Viki, OLTL) to the series for a short-term run as Tracy’s newest rival. Jane shared her reaction to working with another icon. “I was just in awe. I’ve watched Erika for years on television. She’s watched me for years on television, and then there we are face to face, nose to nose. And it’s like, ‘Oh, my God! There you are’. And she looks at me and goes, ‘Oh, my God! There you are.’  It could not have been more delicious.”

THE LEGACY OF TRACY: FROM WITHHOLDING EDWARD’S HEART MEDICATION TO BEING THROWN OUT OF THE QS

In a famous 1980 General Hospital storyline, Tracy Quartermaine withheld her father Edward’s heart medication during what she believed was a real heart attack. However, Edward was actually faking the attack to test her loyalty.  It became a soap classic and won Elliot a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in 1981. Jane explained that although it did launch Tracy further into the soap opera stratosphere she does not reflect back on it in that way. “I don’t think about stuff like that. I just do what’s asked of me,” Elliot said. “You put it on the page, I’m going make it sing as best I possibly can. I don’t have that self-awareness of how it’s going to live in history. I just do what I do. That’s all.”

Now below, check out our conversation with Jane. Make sure to check out the Michael Fairman Channel for more interviews with the winners at the 52nd annual Daytime Emmy Awards.

So, what do you think about what Jane shared about always “coming home” to GH, Erika Slezak, working in daytime for 60 years, and Monica’s memorial? Are you glad to see Jane receiving the Gold Circle honor? Share your thoughts via the comment section below.