General Hospital's Kathleen Gati marks a Liesl Obrecht milestone

There's new life on General Hospital of late, as Dr. Liesl Obrecht has made her way back to Port Charles, making us laugh in her own unique way as Liesl makes new friends — and enemies — throughout town. Her arrival came just in time for a big moment in the character's history.

Kathleen Gati celebrates General Hospital's Liesl

On August 24, 2025, Gati marked 13 years as the mad scientist doctor turned GH chief of staff turned doting Oma.

"13 years ago today, my very first episode of General Hospital aired! Nearly 550 episodes since!" Gati tweeted, along with a picture of Liesl in her Metro Court pool best.

While Liesl wasn't always a sight for fans' sore eyes, Gati's portrayal of the character has endeared her to the audience. As Liesl recently informed Carly (Laura Wright), she is now reformed, and Carly had no reason to try to kick her out of her room at the Metro Court.

Indeed, Liesl has come a long way over the past 13 years. She wasn't even slated to become a full-fledged character, but Gati made that August 2012 appearance so memorable that GH kept asking her back for more.

Expand Tweet

Liesl Obrecht's transformation

General Hospital's Liesl gives Nina a warning about Willow | Image: ABC

GH fans first saw Dr. O when she helped Cesar Faison (Anders Hove) keep Robin Scorpio (Kimberly McCullough) hostage, leaving Robin's loved ones thinking she was dead. She and Cesar both terrorized Port Charles and Anna (Finola Hughes) for a while before the reveal that Liesl was also Dr. Britt Westbourne's (Kelly Thiebaud) mother (and Faison was her father).

Eventually, Liesl managed to snag the chief of staff position at GH, something she practically stole from Dr. Monica Quartermaine (the late Leslie Charleson). Liesl's also been in and out of Port Charles multiple times over the last 13 years, usually for jail stints.

When Liesl became popular, GH gave her more family. We learned that top cop Nathan West (Ryan Paevey) was really Liesl's son, whom she gave to her sister, Madeline (Donna Mills), to raise. That made Nina (Cynthia Watros) her niece and Nathan's son, James (Gary James Fuller), her grandson.

Who can ever forget when she escaped a prison transport only to find Nelle (Chloe Lanier) in labor in the middle of the woods? Yes, it was Liesl who delivered Wiley when she told Nelle to lift her "skinny legs and push." Little did she know that Nelle was her great-niece via Nina.

Liesl's softer side came out as the doting mother, grandmother, and aunt, but she still has that manipulative streak that will never leave. We can't wait to see what trouble Dr. O stirs up with Britt once she learns her precious Britta is alive.

Catch all-new episodes of General Hospital weekdays on ABC and Hulu.