Kristina Wagner Reflects On 40 Years Of Playing Felicia On ‘GH’
Kristina Wagner joined General Hospital as Felicia in 1984. She looks back on her four decades on the soap. Keep reading for more on the anniversary.
From The Midwest To Hollywood
Kristina Malandro moved from Indiana to Hollywood, California, to portray Felicia Cummings on General Hospital. Felicia quickly became a fan favorite. The actress later married her co-star, Jack Wagner.
The actress, now known as Kristina Wagner, chatted with Soap Opera Digest about her four decades on the show. She reflected on leaving her small town in the Midwest for Los Angeles.
“I was very sheltered growing up, and I was in a marriage, too, at the time; I was married when I was, like, 18 years old. So, yeah, it was walking into another planet.”
The actress was previously married to Randy Malandro from 1981 until 1985. She tied the knot with her GH co-star in 1993. Jack and Kristina Wagner divorced in 2006 but remain close. They supported each other through the heartbreaking loss of their son, Harrison, in 2022.
Her Mom Was Her Biggest Fan
While Felicia is happily married to Mac (John J. York) now, Frisco and Felicia were one of the soap’s most popular couples in the 1980s. Back then, fans of the show would send snail mail to their favorite actors.
According to Kristina Wagner, her mom took control of her fan mail and became President of her fan club. Her mom sadly passed away last year. The GH star found hordes of memorabilia from her career while cleaning out her mother’s house.
“It was like a room full of VHS tapes that she had recorded; she recorded the show every day, and she had all the [fan club] newsletter stuff and all the 8x10s and all the magazines she collected.”
Kristina Wagner Reflects On 40 Years Of Playing Felicia On GH
Kristina Wagner addressed her longtime success playing the Aztec princess. She credited the show’s then-executive producer, Gloria Monty.
Kristina Wagner (then Malandro) debuted as Felicia Cummings on this day in 1984. Happy 40th Anniversary Kristina #GH #GeneralHospital pic.twitter.com/YTuyJpNeQp
— Alicia (@LukeLauraGH) September 7, 2024
“Well, I think that the writers, and especially Gloria Monty, the [executive] producer at the time, really wanted this character to take off. I’m sure I disappointed her here and there. But then, as we started to work together, Jack and I, I think a lot of that had to do with some real-life chemistry [the actors were married from 1993-2006] that was attractive.”
The official General Hospital Instagram posted in honor of Kristina Wagner’s 40th anniversary. She left a heartfelt comment to her fans, “Thank you so much!! Nothing but gratitude. Gratitude, 7000 times!! I love the job and I especially love the people who work there every step of the way.”
Congratulations to Kristina Wagner for the huge milestone. Here’s to another 40 years as Felicia Jones!
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