Nothing General About It

Maurice Benard, the Emmy Award-winning actor who plays Sonny Corinthos on General Hospital, tells the story of his life in this memoir. It is an account of success, show business and family, and of his long struggle with mental illness. Off screen he is a husband and the father of four, with a successful career behind him, but the road there was far from easy.

Benard was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at twenty. Looking back, he describes growing up in a small town and his strained relationship with his father. He explains how the illness began to show itself when he was still a child, and how one doctor ultimately saved his life.

For years he pushed relentlessly toward becoming a successful actor. Reaching that goal did not end his troubles. He kept facing frightening lows, breakdowns and setbacks, while his wife stood by him through violent and unpredictable episodes and he tried to hold their marriage together.

Benard speaks openly about being medicated and institutionalized, and about how he eventually learned to manage his manic episodes while working on the set of General Hospital.