General Hospital’s Jane Elliot reflects on becoming the last of the Quartermaine titans

General Hospital’s Tracy Quartermaine may be down, but she’s never out. After being unceremoniously kicked out of the Quartermaine mansion by Ronnie, she’s already plotting her next move — and if history tells us anything, Tracy’s revenge will be calculated, ruthless, and just a little bit delicious. Off-screen, Jane Elliot is in a far more reflective place, looking back on her decades as the character who has outlasted nearly everyone else in the house. In a new interview, she opened up about being the last of the Quartermaine titans.

A Legacy That Endures

Elliot spoke with Woman’s World about her long run on General Hospital and what it means to be still standing after six decades in daytime television. “I started in daytime 60 years ago, and as a woman of 78 years old and a female actor, I’m blessed,” she said. She acknowledged how few actors — especially women of her age — remain full-time on a major soap. “There are very, very few of us who are gainfully employed full-time as an actor, and I’m one of them.”

She lamented the passing of several of her peers, including Leslie Charleson (Monica). “It’s daunting, it’s overwhelming,” she stated, adding, “It makes me sad sometimes, and it makes me enormously grateful and proud.” The General Hospital star was recognized with a Gold Circle medal at the 52nd Daytime Emmy Awards, and noted how grateful she is to have material worth playing and storylines that challenge her.

Elliot also laughed at the idea of Tracy being the “matriarch” now. “People say to me on the show, ‘You’re the matriarch of the Quartermaine family.’ And I go, ‘Who are you talking about?’” She admitted that the concept hadn’t fully sunk in yet.

Outlasting Them All

Elliot reflected on what it means to be the last of her Quartermaine generation. “I look around and I realize that at this stage of the game, I’m the oldest actor on the show,” she said. “There are all these photographs on the set of the characters on the show, and they’ve all passed away, and I’m still standing.”

The General Hospital star admitted that the weight of that history sometimes hits her hard — seeing the faces of Leslie Charleson, John Ingle (Edward), Anna Lee (Lila), Stuart Damon (Alan), and Jacklyn Zeman (Bobbie) — all gone now, while she remains on set, carrying their legacy.

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But she remains grateful that she’s been a part of something that’s so enmeshed in TV history. It wasn’t what she envisioned when she began her career, but she wears the position with quiet strength. Ultimately, she doesn’t just play Tracy -- she’s become the keeper of the Quartermaine name and legacy.

General Hospital can be seen weekdays on ABC and Hulu

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