TVSquad

All this month, AOL TV is publishing their list of TV's hottest hunks of all time. That's a lot of hunks, but probably they won't all be memorable to you -- or to me.

Because when were you swooning over TV hunks? When you were a teenager, of course. Unless you are really, really immature. But seriously, I am guessing that beyond the age of 16 or so, you probably didn't plaster any Teen Magazine pin-ups on your bedroom walls.

As a teenager of the '80s, I surely had my favorite TV hunks. Yep, they were plastered on my bedroom walls, too: imagine hunk wallpaper and you've got the idea. So who on TV mingled amongst the movie actors of the Brat Pack?

When something's a success, a follow up is inevitable. Therefore, the news that SoapNet is launching a second season of General Hospital: Night Shift, commencing Tuesday, July 22, is no big surprise. The surprise will be who is going to be involved in the daytime soap spinoff that airs once a week on SoapNet at 11 o'clock. Last season, actors for General Hospital, including Kimberly McCullough, Jason Thompson and Steve Burton did double-duty. And they weren't alone. Some new characters appeared on Night Shift, but the draw was definitely the daytime stars.

SoapNet ordered 13 new episodes of Night Shift and this year the show will be produced in high def. Production begins next month, and unlike last year's edition, the show will be filmed on new stages dedicated solely to Night Shift instead of sharing space with General Hospital.

In honor of General Hospital's 45th year on the air, AOL came up with a terrific photo trivia quiz which was like a trip down memory lane for longtime fans like me. Seeing all those familiar faces made me realize that through the years there have been some wonderful actors who've called Port Charles home. Here's ten that were memorable and, in my opinion, let an indelible mark on General Hospital.

Amber Tamblyn (1995-2001)
When the producers and writers of GH realized the quality of an actress they had with Amber Tamblyn, they took this 12 year old girl and made her an important part of the Quartermaines, a core family. She appeared as Emily Bowen, the daughter of Page, a woman Monica befriended while they were undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer. When Page died, Monica and Alan adopted Emily and she became part of the family, and eventually the conscience of the squabbling, occasionally unscrupulous clan (along with Lila). Amber grew up on GH, going through growth spurts and the emotions of the awkward years. She never failed to convey a reality and truth in her acting. She was a shooting star, passing through GH on the way to bigger things, like Joan of Arcadia.

Has it really been 45 years since General Hospital started broadcasting? Four decades + five years of medical machinations, legendary love stories, action and intrigue. Yes, yes, it's true, on April 1, ABC's General Hospital will celebrate 45 years on the air. Current executive producer, Jill Farren Phelps, will cut the cake and members of the cast will blow out the candles, but we're the ones that probably should be smiling. Memories of the great years gone by are inevitable with any show that's run as long as GH. But there's something special about this ABC soap.