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‘GH’ gives 15-year vet Ingo Rademacher a pink slip.
‘GH’ fans will soon say goodbye to Ingo Rademacher’s Jax
We all knew this day was coming. The third vet firing of 2011 on General Hospital was announced today. Soaps in Depth broke the sad news this afternoon that Ingo Rademacher was fired from the struggling soap. Rademacher joined the cast of GH in 1996 as the Aussie corporate raider Jasper Jacks, more commonly known as “Jax.” Rademacher’s firing was announced the same day that fellow fired co-star Tyler Christopher taped his last scenes as Nikolas Cassadine. Earlier this year, Rademacher’s ex Rebecca Herbst was fired by the show only to have ABC issue a press release weeks later claiming that the actress was never let go and would remain with the show as Elizabeth Webber. It is widely known that General Hospital is facing the biggest budget cut it has seen in a long, long time and it seems the casting cuts have only just begun.
Rademacher gave his statement to SID today. “It is with mixed emotions and regret that I write this note to you, my fans and colleagues. After 15 years on GH portraying Jax I must say goodbye. I’m fired. Yes, I know that’s sounds bad but sometimes little birds need a shove out of the nest to find their wings… better late then never? I’m trying to find some humor in all this. Even though this was not my call, I think my GH days were almost up anyway. I would like to thank everyone at GH, the producers, directors, crew, my fellow actors and ABC/Disney for making my 15 years enjoyable and fun. It was always a great place for me to work and I will have fantastic memories. I would again like to thank my fans and especially my “Jax Angels” who have been there for me, supporting me in every way, from Day One. Thank you!”
Rademacher soared to heartthrob status as Jax wooed heroine Brenda Barrett (Emmy winner Vanessa Marcil) away from Sonny Corinthos (Emmy winner Maurice Benard) in one of the soap’s most popular triangles ever. After Marcil’s departure in 1998, Rademacher briefly left the show in 2000 to star in the Fox primetime soap Titans, but Rademacher quickly returned to the halls of GH where he has remained ever since. In more recent years, fans have seen Jax romance Carly (Emmy nominee Laura Wright), but their on-again off-again relationship has come to a halt as the two are seeking a divorce. As of late, fans have watched Jax play dirty in a brutal custody battle with Carly over their baby daughter Josslyn. Wright tweeted this afternoon, “I am so sad about the news of Ingo leaving- I hate this and i think it is a huge mistake- I am a big fan of Jax and Carly.”
Rademacher himself took to Twitter months ago warning fans that he wasn’t working much lately. The writing was really on the wall when now-ousted head writer Bob Guza gave an interview to TV Guide in April stating that Rademacher may be phased out down the line in response to a question about the actor’s own tweets. At the time, Guza promised that the Sonny/Brenda/Jax triangle was going to be resurrected. With rumors of Marcil’s exit sometime this year, will Jax and Brenda get to ride off in the sunset? Only time will tell. Despite Marcil hinting to Access Hollywood earlier this year that her time back at GH was almost up, this fan hopes that Marcil will extend her stay now that there’s a new head writer in town. Whatever the case may be, we’ll keep you updated on Rademacher’s exit storyline. Be sure to check our weekly previews every Friday! In the mean time, fans can look forward to Rademacher answering some questions via Twitter over the weekend as the actor has promised.
Not to get too cliché, but when one door closes, a window opens. What can be said of this genre above all else, soap fans will always support their actors in all of their endeavors. Good luck, Ingo! We look forward to seeing what you do in the future.
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