Robin Scorpio
| Robin Scorpio | |||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Hospital All My Children character | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| File:Robinabcpromo001.png Kimberly McCullough as Robin Scorpio | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Kimberly McCullough | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Duration | 1985–1996, 1997, 1998-1999, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2005– | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| First appearance | September 6, 1985 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Created by | Anne Howard Bailey | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spin-off appearances | GH: Night Shift | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
Dr. Robin Drake (née Scorpio; formerly Soltini) is a fictional character from the ABC soap opera General Hospital and its prime time SOAPnet spin-off General Hospital: Night Shift, originated and portrayed by Kimberly McCullough since 1985.[1] The character came to mainstream attention when she was diagnosed as HIV-positive in the 1990s. Currently, she is the only soap opera character in the United States with this distinction. Robin is famous in the soap community as one of the few long-term soap characters to age in real time, not SORASed like most other child actors.
Casting
A seven-year-old McCullough debuted on September 6, 1985 as the daughter of characters Robert Scorpio (Tristan Rogers) and Anna Devane (Finola Hughes).[1] She left in 1996, her last airdate being on September 12. She reappeared several times for brief runs: January 17, 1997 to February 3, 1997, January 2, 1998 to January 20, 1999, 2000, and July 16, 2004.[1] She also appeared on May 30 to 31 2001; June 4, 2001 on All My Children when Robin reunited with her mother Anna. McCullough returned in 2005, her first appearance on October 11 and is currently portraying the role, which she also reprised on both seasons (2007 and 2008) of the spin-off series General Hospital: Night Shift.[1] She has won two Daytime Emmy Awards for the role, for Outstanding Juvenile Female in 1989 and Outstanding Younger Actress in 1996.[1][2][3] McCullough has also earned two Soap Opera Digest Awards (Outstanding Youth Actor/Actress in 1986 and Outstanding Child Actor in 1993) as well as a 1987 Young Artist Award.[1]
Storylines
Arrival
Robin Soltini (age 6) arrives in Port Charles with the woman she believes to be her grandmother, Filomena Soltini. She grew up thinking her mother, Anna Devane, was a family friend. Her father, Robert Scorpio, has no idea that he shares a daughter with Anna but soon selects three of his closest friends -- Sean Donely, Frisco Jones and Dr. Buzz Stryker to serve as Robin's godfathers when he and his wife Holly leave for Australia. Robin is asked to be BJ Jones godsister while Tania is pregnant. Robert later returns to Port Charles to find Anna married to Duke Lavery. During her childhood, Robin's grandmother was killed and she faced tough times when her parents were supposedly murdered in an explosion. She is then raised by her uncle Mac Scorpio who marries Felicia Jones. This marriage gave Robin two step-cousins, Maxie and Georgie Jones.
Robin met Michael 'Stone' Cates in 1993 and they did not get along. But they began dating in 1994 against her uncle Mac's wishes. Stone had been a street kid taken in and working for Sonny Corinthos. In 1995, Stone learned he was HIV+ and then had AIDS due to not having a second HIV test run after the first one came up negative. After her first love, Michael "Stone" Cates dies from AIDS and leaves her HIV-positive, she begins seeing Jason Morgan, who was becoming involved in the mob. She introduced him to Sonny Corinthos, soon his employer, and the three become great friends, helping Jason deal with his brain damage, as he was previously Jason Quartermaine. Robin celebrates her birthday with Jason on October 12, 1997. Robin left Port Charles to avoid the mob but returned in 1998 to help her friend Brenda Barrett from her recent break-up. During this period, Robin became friends with Nikolas Cassadine and the two bonded over their similar childhoods. Robin reconciled with Jason but their relationship began to deteriorate when Robin revealed to Jason's brother A.J. Quartermaine that he (and not Jason) was the father of Carly Roberts's son, Michael. Robin left town in 1999, moving to Paris. A few years later she reunited with her mother in Pine Valley.
Return
Robin returned to Port Charles to save her friend Jason Morgan's life when he had experienced seizures. It was during this time that she teams up with Patrick Drake to perform an operation that could determine his fate. Robin was grateful to Patrick when the surgery was a success and this hook-up leads down to them being a couple. Their team work came in handy when in a couple of months, Port Charles experiences a virus outbreak, which brings back her father, Robert Scorpio and the two reconcile.
Robin had then learned and revealed the paternity of John Michael Jacks, Nikolas Cassadine's son in which her best friend, Jasper Jacks was claiming to be the father of. This caused Carly Corinthos to hate and resent Robin even more; going back to when Robin told AJ that he was the father of Michael, and not Jason. At the same time, Robin and Patrick admitted their love for one another and at long last became a true couple. Robin helped Luke Spencer reconnect with his catatonic wife, Laura Spencer, who had been incapable of communicating until Robin discovered a miracle drug. Robin and Patrick faced trying times when Patrick abandoned a date with Robin to go to a bar in Vegas.
Robin once again faced problems when she was held hostage and was shot in the lower abdomen but was saved when Emily Quartermaine agreed to operate on her with guidance from Patrick through telephone. Patrick and Robin, after the crisis, discovered that they both loved sitting at the pier. Patrick declared to Robin that he loved her and the two reconcile. After a few months of being together, Robin wanted to settle down and commit to each other with a wedding and children. Patrick had different plans which caused Robin to walk out on Patrick.
Along with her recent break-up, Robin had to deal with her father's health due to the fact that he was diagnosed with colon cancer.
Marriage and Daughter
After the funeral of Georgie Jones, Robin is devastated and has a one-night-stand with Patrick. Robin later discovers that she is pregnant. But since she has been planning for some time to use a sperm donor and become a single mother, she does not let on that Patrick is the father, rationalizing her decision by saying that Patrick has been clear about not wanting children. After discovering the truth, Patrick confronts Robin and she tells him he's the father. Robin's mother Anna Devane, returns to town, learns of the pregnancy and asks Patrick to marry Robin. Although the two initially refuse, Patrick soon becomes marriage-minded and boldly proposes over the hospital speaker system, only to get shot down. Robin later agrees and they set a date in late October. However, the wedding gets cut short by Robin going into labor.
Robin names the baby Emma Grace Scorpio Drake and, after a brief scare, the new parents are relieved to find out that the baby has not been infected by Robin's HIV. Patrick and Robin wed right after Emma's first Christmas, but are soon at odds, as Robin is suffering from postpartum depression (PPD) and begins to act out. After months of refusing help from family and friends, Robin nearly dies when she either falls or jumps from the pier. Eventually she agrees to go away for treatment. Upon her return, she quickly bonds with her daughter.
But her hard-earned newlywed bliss is interrupted when Patrick and his brother, Matt Hunter, face a malpractice suit in the death of the mayor's mistress, Brianna Hughes, and when Alexis Davis becomes a suspect in the murder due to a public scandal that claims she stalked the mayor. Playing detective, Robin aids Patrick in proving that Brianna was murdered by the mayor's wife, clearing all three of them.
Robin hosts Thanksgiving dinner for the family at her new house, partaking in a plot with Kristina Davis and Molly Lansing to set up their mother, Alexis Davis, with Robin's uncle, Mac Scorpio. Robin tells a skeptical Sam McCall that the two guests of honor had very obvious chemistry at the "nonwedding" of Maxie Jones and Damian Spinelli. But Alexis and Mac realize something is afoot and tell the girls it is a waste of time. Matt also attends the dinner, unexpectedly bringing along Lisa Niles, an ex-girlfriend of Patrick's who is town. Maxie, nursing influenza, misses the family event, but shares turkey soup with Spinelli at her apartment.
Robin counsels Elizabeth Webber, who is having a secret affair with Nikolas Cassadine, but is engaged to Lucky Spencer, to be truthful about how she feels. Robin meets Patrick for karaoke night at Jake's. When she arrives, Lisa is already sitting with Patrick, so Robin stops at the bar and brings drinks over to the table for both of them, then orders a soda for herself. Lisa asks why she does not get a real drink and Patrick tells her Robin is on medication. When Lisa asks what type of medication, Robin ignores her. Alexis and Mac later show up together.
On January 12, Robin & Emma go and see Anna in London.
When Sonny is arrested and put on trial for the murder of his wife Claudia, Robin is called in to testify. Though Robin initially tries to paint Sonny in a positive light by telling the court about how Sonny helped found the hospital's HIV wing in honor of Stone, but Claire Walsh ultimately forces her to admit that Sonny had insulted and threatened Claudia at her birthday party prior to her death, which hurts Sonny's case. Nonetheless, Sonny assures Robin that she did the right thing. However, just as the verdict on Sonny is about to come in, Dante finds out that it was actually Michael who killed Claudia, albeit to protect Carly, and convinces him to confess. Robin later does her best to comfort Jason over Michael's conviction, but, like everyone else, she is left distraught and heartbroken when Judge Carroll unfairly sentences Michael to five years in prison as a way to punish everyone for their role in the cover-up and Diane and Claire specifically for their courtroom antics.
Lisa Niles
In June 2010, Robin left to go to Africa. A while after Robin came back from Africa Lisa breaks into their home and steals Robin's HIV medicine. Patrick knew what happened to them, but he did not say anything. Later on, Emma gets taken from her and Patrick's home by Lisa. They are very worried, but she brings her back and said that it was only an "ice-cream take-out", that she wanted to give Patrick and Robin some "Alone Time". When Lisa leaves Patrick confesses to Robin that he had slept with Lisa the night that Robin came back from Africa. Robin gets really angry and breaks their wedding photo and kicks Patrick out of the house. Not long after all of this Robin was driving to pick up Patrick and Lisa is watching Patrick from behind some stairs and sees Robin and intentionally jumps in front of Robin's car and claims that Robin tried to kill her.
Soon after all of this Robin was working in her lab at the Hospital and leaves for a moment and when she returned she sees her daughter Emma's favorite toy boiling in her beaker. An angry Robin believes this to be a threat to her daughter and punches Lisa in the Hospital lobby. Due to Robin's accusations and Lisa's good acting, people begin believing Robin is the crazy one and Lisa is the victim. Lisa replaces her medication with sedatives and while Robin drives Emma to Maxie's house, after taking her "pills", Robin falls asleep on the wheel and crashes. Lisa kidnaps her, takes her to a cabin in the woods, and begins to talk to her and convince her that Patrick does not love her, as she's too uptight and snotty. Robin escapes the cabin, but is so exhausted and unbalanced by the sedatives. Patrick goes on a search for her and finds her in the well. After getting her out, Lisa shows with a gun and attempts to kill herself. He stops her and Lisa is sent to a mental instituation. She arrives back shortly, stating the doctors have said she's perfectly sane. But Robin and Patrick do not trust her, mostly Robin. Robin lashes out at her for changing her patient's chart, but Steve explains another doctor did it and it says so on the chart.
During Halloween, witch Robin takes Emma to Kelly's and talkes to others. While she's not looking, Lisa, dressed as a witch, steals her. Robin panics and tells Ethan and Jonny, who were at Kelly's also, that somebody has stolen her daughter. Micheal's friend Abby finds Emma and gives her to Robin, saying she saw a woman dressed as a witch, like Robin's costume, leave Emma around the corner. At the hospital, Patrick hears about this and finds a witch hat in the locker room. He accuses Lisa until a nurse comes and claims that the house is hers. At Emma's birthday, a fire starts. Robin puts Emma to sleep upstairs and when she tries to back downstairs, she discovers the smoke and falls down the stairs. Lisa, possibly causing the fire, saves Robin and Emma. Robin is taken to GH to be taken cared of, as she has a burn on her leg. Her burn is bad enough that she has to stay at GH get better. After a nightmare, Robin awakes to find Lisa standing over her with a syringe. But Robin's accusation of Lisa trying to hurt her has no evidence, so Steve Webber can't do anything further. After this, Lisa petitions to have Robin fired from the hospital. Lisa tries again to poison Robin. Filling a syringe with sodium pentothal, Lisa sneaks into Robin's room and attempts to inject it into Robin's IV bag, but Maxie enters and catches her in the act. Maxie and Robin call the hospital to catch her. Lisa, unsure and panicking, finds Johnny Zacchara and gives him the syringe to avoid being caught. Lisa, after authorities search the hospital for the syringe, gets away clean. Nonetheless, as she had no reason to be in Robin's room either way, Steve puts her on probation; her O.R. privileges are revoked, she is transferred to the E.R., and will be fired without mercy if she tries to provoke Robin in any way or even goes near her again. To make insult to injury, the hearing to discuss Lisa's petition has been canceled, ensuring Robin's place at the hospital for the foreseeable future.
Robin is discharged and as packs up her things, Brenda comes to see her and the two reunite. The two reminisce about old times and Lisa's crazy antics. Robin and Patrick discuss taking things slow and even going on a date. Lisa overhears and is furious. She calls a friend and leaves for the day. Later during the aftermath of the bus crash, Dr. Terrel Jackson shows up a job at GH as a pediatric surgeon. Steve Webber gives him a job. Lisa congratulates him and the two seem to be friendly. In the elevator, Lisa explains she wants Terrel to flirt with Robin. She explains her plan further in an empty office. The two had a relationship before. Jackson came at Lisa's call to get back together, while Lisa wants him to sleep with Robin, which will devastate Patrick and cause him to get over her for good. Lisa sets her plan in action as Robin gives Terrell a tour of the hospital. However, Terrell begins to have his doubts about helping Lisa break up Robin and Patrick, particularly after discovering that Robin is HIV-positive.
At Sonny and Brenda's wedding, Robin serves as the maid of honor. When Sam is caught in a car bomb and Brenda is kidnapped, a distraught Robin blames herself, insisting that it never would've happened if she hadn't pushed Brenda to marry Sonny in the first place, while Patrick comforts her and insists otherwise, telling her not to give up hope that Brenda is still alive until there is a reason not to. At the hospital, Robin admits to Patrick that she wants to forgive him, but feels stuck and disappointed every time. Nonetheless, she allows him to take her home, and the two begin to take steps to repairing their relationship. Brenda is finally found and brought to the hospital in critical condition after being injected with a neurotoxin. Robin quickly administers an antidote, and Brenda recovers.
Robin and Patrick later discover that Lisa gave Johnny the syringe and break into his apartment to find it. Eventually, fed up with Lisa's vendetta against Patrick and Robin, and the trouble that the syringe has caused him, Johnny decides to end it one way or another. To this end, he sets up a treasure hunt, leaving several clues for Lisa and Robin to find and see who gets the syringe first. While searching through Carly Corinthos' house, Robin is caught in the act by Carly herself. Carly initially refuses to help her, but Robin explains the extent of Lisa's mental instability and obsession with Patrick, reminding her that she kidnapped Emma simply to get Patrick's attention and could easily endanger Emma's life again. Carly relents and allows Robin just enough time to find the next clue. With Patrick's help, Robin deduces that Johnny has hidden the syringe at the Haunted Star.
Luke allows Robin to search for the syringe, and she finds it just as Lisa arrives. Lisa pleads for the syringe, insisting that she can have Patrick back, but Robin refuses, stating that she already has Patrick and now has the proof to get Lisa out of their lives and hopefully a life sentence in a padded cell. Lisa attempts to forcefully take the syringe, but Robin slugs her and takes off for the hospital.
Reunion with Patrick
However, Robin and Patrick are delayed from proving Lisa's guilt when Jake Spencer is brought in after being hit by a car. When Jason arrives at the hospital after being called by Elizabeth, Robin regretfully informs him that Jake is in critical condition. Later, Jason asks Robin for a favor while Jake is being prepped for emergency surgery. Despite Patrick and Robin's best efforts, Jake is ultimately declared brain dead, leaving everyone heartbroken. Patrick kicks himself for being unable to save Jake, but Robin comforts him and assures him that he is not at fault.
Proceeding these events, Robin comes to the epiphany that life is too short to hold on to resentment and apologizes to Patrick for holding his affair with Lisa against him for so long, stating that if it was Emma who died tonight, she never would have forgiven herself for all of the time she wasted. Robin asks Patrick to come home so they can be a family again.
To work out their remaining issues, Patrick and Robin begin to go to marriage counseling, and hire Kristina to babysit Emma. However, during therapy, Robin admits to Maxie that she thinks that she may not be enough for him because he has been working so hard to make it up to her, while it took Jake's death to make her realize that Patrick is genuinely sorry for what he did and take him back. Nonetheless, Patrick assures her that he will make sure things work out for them.
Lisa subsequently acts out another revenge plot, this time attempting to kill Robin and frame Patrick for the murder. However, the plot fails, and Lisa is finally outed as the deranged woman she is.
Robin is later approached by Jax, who asks her to testify on his behalf during his and Carly's custody battle over Josslyn. Despite her dislike of Carly, Robin refuses, telling Jax that Carly is a good mother and that she would have to tell the courts as such, and also because she doesn't consider Jason and Sonny, whom he has long been friends with, to be any significant threat.
In late June 2011, Lisa Niles holds hostages at gun point in General Hospital, including Robin, Patrick, Steve and Maxie. After a long stand off and a shooting, Lisa injects herself with a drain cleaner meant for Robin. When doctors attempt to save Lisa, it is too late and she falls into a coma, with doctors unsure if she will ever come out of it.
Proceeding these events, Steve steps down from his position as chief of staff and appoints Robin in his place. However, the changes Robin makes to the hospital's management do little more than anger many of the employees, Matt going so far as to say that working under Robin is a nightmare.
When Jax returns to town and kidnaps Josslyn, he turns to Robin for help. In the midst of their conversation, Sonny, having learned of Jax's plans from Carly, enters in a rage. Though Robin begs Sonny to leave because of Emma, Sonny is lost in his hatred for Jax and attempts to shoot him, only to hit Robin with the bullet when she tries to stop him; fortunately, the bullet only nicks her. When Emma comes downstairs, Robin convinces Jax to leave, knowing that Sonny won't kill him in front of her daughter. When Patrick comes home, he is outraged and kicks Sonny out. Though Robin initially attempts to justify Sonny's behavior, she is ultimately forced to admit that there is no way to excuse what he just did.
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f "SOAP STAR STATS: Kimberly McCullough (Robin, GH)". SoapOperaDigest.com. Retrieved August 9, 2009.
- ^ "Daytime Emmy Winners & Nominees: 1989". SoapOperaDigest.com. Retrieved August 9, 2009.
- ^ "Daytime Emmy Winners & Nominees: 1996". SoapOperaDigest.com. Retrieved August 9, 2009.
External Links