Charlotte. Laura supports Lulu though a nasty custody battle over Charlotte against the man who murdered Laura's son and Lulu's brother. They are devastated when the judge awards Valentin, and his new wife Nina Reeves, full custody of Charlotte. Creation Casting Child actress Stacey Baldwin originated the role of Laura Vining in 1974. Baldwin last appeared as Laura in August 1976. Genie Francis filmed her first scenes on December 28, 1976, and made her onscreen debut on February 8, 1977. The daughter of veteran actor, Ivor Francis, Genie Francis was new to acting and had recently appeared on the ABC drama series, Family opposite Kristy McNichol. Four months later, the then 14-year-old Francis booked the role of Laura. Francis signed a three-year contract with the series and a later admitted that she felt a bit trapped. "I signed away three years of my life. Never again" she said. "There was no light at the end of the tunnel." "It was a very small part" Francis said of the character when she initially booked the role of Laura. "I was just Lesley's long-lost daughter living in a commune" Francis said. Francis auditioned for the role of Laura twice and beat out 40 other actresses for the part. "It's hard to shut her off" Francis said of the character in 1979. "I will get home and I find that my body is sore from tension, or I'm still about to cry." In 1983, Francis reflected on her early years with the series in an interview with Soap Opera Digest. Francis said, "The first year was a tremendous learning process, but then I got hold of it and took it on my own." The actress said "I was very nervous at the beginning, but when I learned to relax, I got better." She further explained her inexperience. "I was a kid and had never been on a soundstage before. No one told me what to do. They handed me a script and said, "Go!" I was panicked—really hungry" for instruction. She continued, "So what I did was observe actors and do everything they did. Then I started asking questions." In her early years, Francis remembered being terrified of going to the studio alone and was accompanied by a nanny hired by her parents. Francis developed a "close" father-daughter like relationship with her onscreen father, Michael Gregory who took her under his wing. Meanwhile,