General Hospital, which has reconfigured its writing team several times already this year, has yet another new head writing team in place. Elizabeth Korte, who has been head writer on the soap since January, has a new co-head writer in Chris Van Etten, the writer who was let go when Korte was promoted to her current position.
Korte assumed head writing duties with veteran soap scribe Patrick Mulcahey in January, replacing Dan O'Connor and Van Etten. O'Connor is now a breakdown writer for Days of our Lives. In May, news broke that Mulcahey was out and that Van Etten was back on the writing team. However, Van Etten's exact position was unknown.
For the first time this year, GH executive producer Frank Valentini has commented on the changes. Valentini also revealed that breakdown writer Cathy LePard has been elevated to associate head writer.
"No one knows General Hospital and its history more than Elizabeth and Chris," Valentini said in a statement. "Cathy joined the show in 2023, and her talent and love for the genre have been a tremendous asset to this team. We look forward to this dynamic writing combination continuing the legacy of the show and giving our fans much to look forward to."
Writing shakeups have plagued GH
The game of musical head writers has not been the only writing story for GH this year, as breakdown writer Shannon Peace said goodbye to the soap in March. In an Instagram Stories post, Peace wished the show well and hoped for more diversity behind the scenes.
"Even more importantly, as the sole Black breakdown writer (and only POC in the writers' room) during my tenure, I pushed for vital interactions and discussions that prioritized inclusion, visibility, and representation," Peace wrote. "Stella and Portia’s frank July 2022 conversation about the role race played in Esme’s framing of Trina is just one example of the impact I’m gratified to have had."
Peace also thanked her former bosses Van Etten and O'Connor for their support.
Van Etten was a writer for One Life to Live, and he moved to GH after OLTL's cancellation. In 2017, he was promoted to co-head writer with Shelly Altman after Jean Passanante retired.
Korte has been a member of the GH writing team since 1994 in various positions, including a brief stint as head writer in 2001. The new head writing team's work begins airing on Thursday, August 8.
Watch all-new episodes of General Hospital weekdays on ABC and Hulu.
