Passion, intrigue and adventure fill the lives of the residents of fictional Port Charles, N.Y. on ABC's longest-running daytime drama "General Hospital". But as the characters fight, love and laugh on screen, Jill Farren Phelps (A'72) is busy calling the shots behind the scenes and literally running the show as the soap's executive producer.

After receiving her B.F.A. in directing from Carnegie Mellon, Phelps stage-managed at New Jersey's McCarter Theater before becoming a production assistant for numerous New York stage productions. During her time in New York, she worked with such famous directors as Mike Nichols and Bob Fosse.

Phelps transitioned from stage to screen in 1974 when she served as the production assistant on "Guiding Light". In 1977, Phelps joined "General Hospital" as the drama's music director, and was awarded an Emmy for her work on the program. She left "General Hospital" in 1984 to work at "Santa Barbara," eventually becoming the executive producer. During her time with the show, it garnered three consecutive Emmy Awards for Outstanding Drama Series. After "Santa Barbara," Phelps was the executive producer of "Guiding Light"—the longest-running soap in all of daytime television. In 1995, she became executive producer of "Another World," where she improved the key demographic of women ages 10–49 by 34 percent. She also spent time at "One Life to Live".

Since she took the helm of "General Hospital" in December 2000, Phelps has worked to unify plot lines that were effectively becoming five different shows. Her original goal was just "to make sure that the show is true to itself," to maintain the high-stakes action and adventure storylines that "General Hospital" is famous for. Phelps also wanted to assure that the show was accessible to old audiences and new viewers alike. "We've done pretty well," she said.

Phelps is quick to share how her experience at Carnegie Mellon influenced her career. "There are things that you don't appreciate at the time, gifts that you don't know you're being given. We worked our asses off. If you didn't cut it, you were let go—the way it is in the business. My time at Carnegie Mellon taught me that you have to show up and do your absolute best or you aren't going to make it. Carnegie Mellon demanded excellence that I've tried to continue throughout my career."

But while she's quick to talk about Carnegie Mellon, she's hesitates to speculate on the future for General Hospital. Want to know what's going to happen to Luke, Sonny and the town of Port Charles? You'll have to tune in and see, because Phelps just isn't talking.