A General Hospital rehearsal reveals a different set, a relaxed James Franco - and a newly-coiffed, laughing Kirsten Storms.

Judging by the name on the back wall, the artist Franco plays, whose name is Franco (a real stretch), must be fairly successful.

Photo: Michael Yarish/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.

As the time draws near for James Franco's first appearance on General Hospital, we're finding out a touch more about his storyline and about Franco's taping of the show.

What we know:

• Franco plays a character named...Franco.
• The character is an artist.
• The graffiti "CO77X" relates to him.
• He has some sort of involvement with Jason and possibly Sam.

  Franco is set to appear in 10+ episodes and began taping on October 30, according to Entertainment Weekly.

  On his first day, Jill Farren Phelps told EW, Franco taped a whopping 65 pages. Remember, now, that in film, actors do maybe one or two pages of script a day. Phelps reports being incredibly impressed by the actor's ability to memorize.

  Apparently, Franco was in talks with GH for six months. After hearing that acting in soaps is difficult, he wanted to try it, requesting only that his character be "a little off."

  There have also been hints that when Franco leaves the show after the story arc, his departure may not be permanent.

  Phelps also expressed the hope to EW that possibly Franco's appearance on the show will open the door for other stars to give soaps a try. It's not such a far-fetched idea. Franco is unusual in that he doesn't have to look for work. However, that isn't the case with some film stars who have found themselves off the A list. Just take a look at the film stars working on network television and in theater, two much more labor-intensive fields. Can soaps be far behind?

  Photo: Gary Gershoff/Getty Images Entertainment

Laura Wright has announced that she has signed to do four more years of that feisty, sexy character that she has made her own, Carly Corinthos Jacks.

Wright has been discovering the joys of Twitter; regarding her news, she added to her tweet, "You guys are stuck with me". Viewers will be very happy to read that.

Photo: American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.

Popular General Hospital actor Dominic Zamprogna married on November 1. Zamprogna, 30, and his fiancee, Linda Leslie, were married in Hollywood's Griffith Park.

Zamprogna plays Dominic Pirelli/Dante Falconeri (though the Pirelli alias is on its way out), and this week, he was literally in cold water with the object of his affections, (Julie Marie Berman). Let's hope when they're back on terra firma, they can start a real romance.

Dominic, we wish you and your bride much happiness.

Photo: Adam Larkey/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.