Peter Hansen as Lee Baldwin
Outstanding Supporting Actor (1979)
Peter Hansen took on the role of Lee Baldwin in 1965, remaining with the soap on and off for nearly 40 years. As the prominent lawyer and recovering alcoholic running AA meetings out of GH, Peter Hansen made quite the impact on the soap opera. Hansen has the distinction of being one of the first nominees at the inaugural Daytime Emmy Awards in 1974 alongside John Bernadino. He would earn several more before the end of the decade.
Special Friendship with Jessie Brewer
His character was at the center of the action in the 70s, thanks to his various storylines revolving around his friendship with Nurse Jessie Brewer. Lee Baldwin would do anything for the drama-plagued nurse. From offering to marry her when she was pregnant with another man’s child and defending her in court on murder charges- twice! Lee would eventually marry someone else and leave town, but returned a widow shortly after.
Rocky History with Scott & Finding his Rock in Gail
Lee struggled with the loss and his strained relationship with his son, Scotty. This grief did not go unnoticed by Gail Adamson, a psychiatrist at GH, who quickly became close to Lee. Gail reached out to his estranged son, Scotty, and the two reconnected. With his son back in his life, Lee focused on positive things like a romance with Gail. The two would eventually marry. The fresh storylines for Lee would lead to critical acclaim and recognition for Peter Hansen.
The Emmy Win
In 1979, Peter Hansen was nominated for the newly introduced category added to the Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor. Peter Hansen became the first GH actor to win for their performance on the show. As we all know, he would not be the last! The actor would coninue to appear on-and-off through 2004. When the network decided to launch spin-off Port Charles in 1997, with Scott Baldwin and his daughter Serena, Hansen frequently appeared. His final appearance was as a guest at Lila Quartermaine’s funeral in 2004, just a year shy of fifty years in the role.
Baldwin Family Legacy
Upon his death in 2017, Peter Hansen was shown in various flashbacks when he received a special tribute episode that featured Scott, Serena, and Lucy Coe mourning his death. The Baldwin family name is still mentioned as Scott is still regularly featured as was his grandson Franco Baldwin until his recent death.
Enjoy some of Peter Hansen’s iconic scenes as Lee Baldwin in the video below:
https://youtu.be/t-OkzS85hMA
