She has passed away at the age of 79.
Charleson's death was announced on Sunday, 12 January, by executive producer Frank Valentini via the official Instagram page of the hit series.
"It is with a great deal of sadness that I am sad to report the passing of my good friend and colleague, Leslie Charleson," he wrote, alongside a picture of her profile image.
“Unlike others,” was how the actor described her, “Monica certainly created some angry sparks among the cast and crew, but it was never miserable working with her.
"My heartfelt sympathies are with her family and loved ones at this very difficult moment.”
Charleson starred in the ABC daytime soap as Monica, a cardiologist at the hospital bearing her name - a role she had been performing since 1977 and for which she received four nominations for a Daytime Emmy.
She went on to do the show until December 2023 when she had to leave due to health issues.
Born in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1945, Charleson grew up acting as a child and in high school, after which he attended Bennett College in upstate New York to study theatre.
She appeared in 1,427 episodes between 1967 and 1973.
She even made a one-off appearance in a 2004 episode of
and
In 2019, she disclosed that she had initially "only signed on for two years."
“Honestly, I'm not quite sure what transpired.” Use to be a period when there weren't many good roles for women in the same way, “back in the day. It was a truly remarkable time, and the performance opportunity was superbly challenging.”
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