“General Hospital” pays tribute to the late Anthony Geary by re-airing his 2015 farewell episode on Jan. 1, in line with TV Insider.
Geary, who performed Luke Spencer on the ABC cleaning soap for practically 40 years, died on Dec. 14 as a consequence of problems from a medical process. He was 78.
The July 27, 2015, episode marked Geary’s final hurrah in Port Charles — moreover one remaining cameo as Luke Spencer in a 2017 episode. Geary appeared in 1,997 episodes of “Common Hospital” and was nominated for 17 Daytime Emmys for his function, successful a record-breaking eight.
Geary was greatest recognized on “Common Hospital” as one-half of the legendary cleaning soap couple Luke and Laura (performed by Genie Francis). The characters’ 1981 wedding ceremony episode drew 30 million dwell viewers, and it stays the highest-rated cleaning soap opera episode in American TV historical past. Luke and Laura turned a cultural phenomenon, with different soaps making an attempt to duplicate the success of “Common Hospital’s” central romance.
As a mobster and road hustler, Luke introduced new drama to the medical cleaning soap, together with espionage storylines and abroad subplots. His romance storyline began with a controversial scene wherein Luke sexually assaults Laura. As a consequence of a constructive viewers response to the pairing, the writers retconned the scene as a seduction, relatively than rape. The present revisited the incident a long time later, exhibiting how Luke regretted his actions and the way the couple moved on from it.
After Geary died, Francis honored her longtime co-star by posting on X: “He spoiled me for main males for the remainder of my life. I’m crushed, I’ll miss him terribly, however I used to be so fortunate to be his companion. In some way, someplace, we’re linked to one another as a result of I felt him depart final night time. Good night time candy prince, good night time.”
