NAMES IN THE NEWS : Breakdown Drove ‘Laura’ Away

Genie Francis says she left “General Hospital” in 1981 at the height of her popularity as Laura because she was on the verge of an emotional breakdown.

“I was sobbing and late to work, and, you know, I would go out to my car at the end of the night and just sit in the car and cry,” Francis said Thursday on “The Joan Rivers Show,” which recently moved from syndication to CBS.

Francis, 28, has a new role on another soap, “All My Children.” She was 14 when she began on “General Hospital” and 19 when she left.

“Most people feel that I left because I thought I was so hot that I had to go to become hotter. . . . I was too embarrassed to admit that I was having all of these problems,” she said.

She said she spent thousands of dollars on therapy.