Three-time Emmy award-winning actor Maurice Benard of “General Hospital” participated in an in-person fan event at The Picture House in Pelham, New York.
Benard portrays Sonny Corinthos on the hit ABC daytime drama “General Hospital,” and this fan event was presented by Rockwells and Coastal Entertainment.
At this event, he opened up about some behind the scenes stories about “General Hospital” and took questions from the audience.
Receiving an award for his work in mental health awareness in Staten Island
Most recently, Beneard earned an award for his work in the field of mental health, which was presented by the National Alliance on Mental Illness and boxing coach Teddy Atlas in Staten Island.
“It was amazing,” he admitted. “Mental health has become bigger than myself and the acting world. I can do things to help other people.”
“I believe God wants me to go through the things that I went through in life to help other people not go through that… this is why mental health is important to me,” Benard explained.
Maurice Benard remembers Tyler Christopher
Recalled some emotional moments with Tyler Christopher (which happened prior to his passing).
“Tyler and I connected over the last couple of years, and he was such a gentle soul and a talented actor,” Benard said.
“Tyler did ‘State of Mind’ and he was so raw. In ‘State of Mind,’ we spoke about how he was homeless (and that was two years after he won an Emmy award),” Benard elaborated.
“To this day, in the show’s history, Tyler is one of three actors in ‘General Hospital’ who ever won a ‘Lead Actor’ Emmy. It was a great interview,” Benard added.
Favorite holiday traditions
On his favorite holiday traditions, Benard shared, “My granddaughter TT is a star, and I want to film all the time for Instagram, but she just walks away. Baby Milo is cute, and I enjoy spending time with my family members and my animals.”
“Buddy the Goat is still cool,” he admitted. “Early on, Buddy was like a dog, and then, after a while, he warmed up.”
Lessons learned from ‘State of Mind’ and playing Sonny Corinthos on ‘General Hospital’
On the lesson learned from portraying patriarch Sonny Corinthos, Benard reflected, “Playing Sonny taught me that no matter how much chaos is inside my mind and my gut, I can still do it. That I know now with positivity.”
“What ‘State of Mind’ has taught me is that it’s all about relaxation,” he admitted. “You need to be relaxed and in ‘State of Mind,’ I want to make my guests the stars, and not me. Now, I do talk about myself but only if I feel like I need it.”
Speaking of “State of Mind,” Benard revealed that his latest guest on his podcast is media personality Dorothy Lucey, and it may be seen below.
His book “Nothing General About It” is available on Amazon.
To learn more about Maurice Benard, follow him on Instagram.
