Who Is Bill Eckert?
GENERAL HOSPITAL’s Bobbie struck a nerve in Fluke with the mere mention of the name Bill Eckert. Unaware that it wasn’t her big bro Luke she was talking to but rather his dead ringer (just like Billy was) set Fluke off on a defensive, angry tirade? So who was this lookalike cousin of theirs? We’ll fill you in!
Bill first arrived in Port Charles in 1991 as a crewmember aboard the Quartermaine’s ship, SS Tracy. Harlan Barrett hired him to salvage it when it sank and was later asked to run a cannery alongside his daughter, Julia Barrett. After receiving an inheritance from his father, Bill and his young son, Sly, moved into an abandoned lighthouse. What Bill and Julia didn’t know was that Harlan was part of a cartel that manufactured a substance that they planned to use to overtake the global economy! And where was it manufactured? You guess it the cannery!
Because Bill was running the cannery, the cartel thought it important to bring him in on the deal. However, Faison, who was part of the whole scheme, demanded Bill first prove himself by killing Robert Scorpio! Bill and Robert had become good friends, so that was not going to happen. Instead, they faked Robert’s death. When Harlan found out, he decided to off Robert himself but Bill killed Harlan first.
Later on, Bill and Holly became involved, and together they investigated an art heist. That romance quickly ended when Holly found him in bed with his former flame, Victoria. With the cartel having disbanded and its members either dead or having escaped, a mobster named Frank Smith was running the crime scene in Port Charles. Luke and Laura were up to their ears in Mr. Smith chaos and Bill offered to help them get out of it. Unfortunately for Bill, the fact that he looked like Luke cost him his life when Smith’s goons attacked and killed Bill, thinking he was his cousin.
But did Bill really die all those years ago? Could the reason Fluke got so bent out of shape at the very mention of the name be that its his true identity? Or might this be just another red herring? Sound off with your opinions in the comments!
