General Hospital Honored by the Ruderman Family Foundation

Congratulations to GENERAL HOSPITAL, who is one of five television series honored by the Ruderman Family Foundation with the seal of authentic representation for casting people with disabilities. “By giving credit where credit is due in Hollywood,” foundation president Jay Ruderman told The Hollywood Reporter, “we hope to inspire a broader, longer-term, industry-wide sea change when it comes to authentically casing actors of all abilities.”

Joining GH in this honor are Netflix’s TALES OF THE CITY and RAISING DION, BBC/HBO’s YEARS AND YEARS, and Audience’s LOUDERMILK. GH received the recognition due to its casting of Maysoon Zayid (ex-Zahra), a comedian and disability advocate with cerebral palsy. “GH has also done incredible, authentic work on mental health,” declared Zayid on Twitter. “Maurice Benard (Sonny) blazed the trail for Zahra to exist.”

Playing a character on GH was a dream come true for longtime fan Zayid. (Photo Credit: ABC)

“Our goal has always been to provide stories that are authentic and relatable for our viewers,” said GH’s executive producer Frank Valentini. “Having the opportunity to welcome Maysoon Zayid onto the show was exciting for us. She is an incredible talent and was a perfect fit to guest-star as Zahra Amir. It takes all kinds of people to tell a story; especially those that are rich and entertaining enough to resonate with our audience.”

For more GH news, keep reading the ABC edition of Soaps In Depth magazine.

Love GH? Be sure to join our We Love General Hospital Facebook group to chat about all the latest storylines and juicy gossip!