ORIGINAL SUPERCOUPLE

Iconic ‘General Hospital’ Star and 8-Time Emmy Winner Dies at 78

Anthony Geary, who was part of one of daytime’s original supercouples, has died.

Anthony Geary, who won eight Daytime Emmys for his role as Luke Spencer on General Hospital, died at 78. He died on December 14 following complications from a scheduled operation he had three days prior, TV Insider reported. “It was a shock for me and our families and our friends,” Geary’s husband, Claudio Gama, told the outlet. “For more than 30 years, Tony has been my friend, my companion, my husband.” Before his death, Geary became a soap opera legend on General Hospital. Although his initial contract was only 13 weeks, he stayed for five years before leaving the show in 1983. He then returned to the show in 1991 full-time, playing both Luke Spencer and his lookalike cousin, Bill Eckert. Geary stayed with the show for 24 more years until its final episode in 2015. His character Luke and wife Laura (played by Genie Francis) were one of daytime’s original supercouples, even though Luke controversially raped Laura when they met. Their 1981 wedding was watched by 30 million viewers, making it the highest-rated hour in soap opera history. Geary told TV Line that General Hospital was “a huge part” of “over half” his life, but he didn’t want to die on set as it “wouldn’t be too poetic.” He added that “There was a point after my back surgery last year where it became clear to me that my time is not infinite.”