What Happened To Alice Gunderson On General Hospital?
Nicknamed Big Alice, actress Bergen Williams portrayed the Quartermaine family's live-in maid on "General Hospital" from 2002 to 2014. Williams was a prolific actress, starring in many TV shows in addition to "GH" throughout her career, including "Scrubs," "Nip/Tuck," and "Raising Hope" (via IMDb). Though Alice wasn't often in the spotlight on the soap, she was involved in several important storylines over the years — not unlike maid Esther Valentine on "The Young and the Restless." Unfortunately, Big Alice won't be returning for any more Quartermaine family Thanksgiving dinners because, tragically, Williams passed away in 2021 due to the rare genetic disorder, Wilson's disease.
Alice was known for her quick wit, unwavering loyalty, long-standing crush on Luke Spencer (Tony Geary), and for her wildly entertaining wrestling alter ego "The Dominator" (via Soaps in Depth). She was a fixture in the Q mansion and was beloved by everyone in Port Charles — except for maybe Luke's wife Tracy Quartermaine (Jane Elliot) — which is a claim not many characters can make. Let's take a look at some of Big Alice's biggest moments on the soap.
Luke Spencer altered Alan Quartermaine's will to include Alice
After Alan Quartermaine (Stuart Damon) died from heart failure in 2007, Luke Spencer and Tracy Quartermaine concocted a plot to alter his will, which they believed bequeathed the entire family fortune to Alan's daughter Emily Quartermaine (via Soap Central). During the reading of the new and improved will the family was shocked to learn that "Alan" had left most of his money to his sister Tracy, leaving only material items for the others, which made the rest of the family suspicious.
However, Luke had made sure to add a little something extra to the will to reward his friend Big Alice who had been sweet on him for many years. Thus, "Alan" left $75,000 to Alice for her diligent work as the Quartermaine maid. Though Tracy was angry with Luke for the amount of money he awarded Alice, Luke never regretted helping her financially or making her feel recognized by the family. Tracy was later haunted by her brother's ghost for altering the will, which was humorous torture that "General Hospital" fans loved to see (via Soaps in Depth).
Big Alice has a heart attack and receives a transplant
In 2014, just as she was about to inform Michael Corinthos (Chad Duell) that Tracy Quartermaine was plotting to take over control of the family company ELQ, Alice collapsed (via Soaps in Depth). She was taken to General Hospital where she learned that she had experienced a heart attack. She was shocked to find out that she was now in heart failure and in desperate need of a heart transplant.
Alice was supposed to receive the heart of Rafe Kovich Jr. (Jimmy Deshler) who had been declared brain dead but the transplant was canceled when Liesl Obrecht (Kathleen Gati) revealed that Rafe had drugs in his system at the time of his death, making his organ inviable. To brighten Alice's spirits while she was stuck in the hospital, Michael Corinthos (Bryan Craig) surprised the wrestler with a visit from her favorite WWE star David Otunga.
Everyone around Alice was thrilled when another heart became available due to the death of mobster Mickey Diamond (Nick Chinlund), including Tracy Quartermaine who had finally put aside her differences with the maid. The only problem was that he wasn't listed as an organ donor. Not willing to let Alice die, longtime friend Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) hired an actress to pose as Mickey's sister and give consent to donate the heart to Alice (via Soap Central). The transplant was a success and Big Alice lived to fight another day — and to finally reveal Tracy's plot to Michael.
Alice tries to help Tracy Quartermaine save Luke Spencer from Jerry Jacks
Later in 2014, Tracy Quartermaine was distraught when she found out that her husband Luke Spencer had been kidnapped by notorious criminal Jerry Jacks (Sebastian Roché) (via Soap Central). Jerry offered Tracy a deal that would require her to give him majority shares in ELQ in exchange for Luke's safe return.
Tracy went to various family members and begged them to give up their ELQ shares to save Luke's life, but everyone refused. Well, everyone except for Alice. When patriarch Edward Quartermaine (John Ingle) died in 2012 he had left 5% of ELQ stock to dear Big Alice. When she listened to Tracy's plea, Alice gave up her shares in the blink of an eye (via Soaps in Depth). It seems fitting that Alice's last major impact on "General Hospital" was a kind gesture, a bonding moment with Tracy, and an effort to save her sweetheart Luke.
Though we won't see any new scenes with the beloved Big Alice, many viewers like to imagine that she's still hanging around the Quartermaine mansion off-screen and keeping everyone in line.