Meg Bennett, ‘General Hospital’ writer, ‘Young and the Restless’ actress, dead at 75

Meg Bennett, an award-winning screenwriter for “General Hospital” who also appeared on “The Young and the Restless,” died April 11, her family announced Sunday. She was 75.

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Bennett “lost her battle” with cancer, her family wrote in her obituary , which was first published Sunday in the Los Angeles Times .

The actress played Julia Newman on “The Young and the Restless,” appeared as Megan Richardson on “Santa Barbara” during the 1990s and as Allegra Montenegro on “General Hospital” in 2005,” according to the newspaper.

On stage, Bennett appeared as Marty Maraschino for more than two years during the original Broadway run of “Grease,” according to The Hollywood Reporter . She then began her long career in soap operas on “Search for Tomorrow” beginning in 1974.

Helen Margaret Bennett was born on Oct. 4, 1948, according to People . She grew up in Pasadena, California, and attended Northwestern University, where she majored in drama, the Times reported. She was also a homecoming queen, a model for Life magazine and a Miss America contestant, according to the newspaper.

She was part of a team that won a Daytime Emmy Award for Best Writing for “General Hospital” in 1995. She also won three Writers Guild of America Awards for “GH” in 1994, 1995 and 1997 and notched two writing awards for “Santa Barbara” in 1991 and 1992, People reported.

In 1980, she returned to Los Angeles and joined the cast of “The Young and the Restless,” where she appeared in 52 episodes including a cameo in 2020, according to IMDb.com .

When her character was being written off the show, Bennett was asked by creator Bill Bell to stay as a writer, according to The Hollywood Reporter .

“I’d been acting on the show for almost two years when this happened, so I knew the characters,” Bennett said during a 1985 interview.

While writing for “General Hospital,” Bennett met her future husband, former head writer Robert Guza Jr., the Times reported. They were on track to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary this year, according to her obituary .

In addition to her husband, Bennett is survived by two stepdaughters, four grandchildren, a brother and a sister, along with several nieces and nephews.