Anthony Geary

Anthony Geary, best known for playing one half of the "General Hospital" supercouple, Luke and Laura, died December 14, 2025, of complications from a scheduled surgery in Amsterdam, at the age of 78.

In a years-long saga that spanned both light and darkness, Geary transformed Luke from a menacing figure to one of the most beloved soap opera characters of his era. His character initially raped Laura Webber, played by Genie Francis, but the writers paired them up as a couple and attempted to reframe Luke's crime. They quickly became a sensation. Two years after that now infamous incident, the characters wed. It was the most watched soap opera episode in history, drawing over 30 million viewers.

"At the time we were working so hard, I don't think we really realized the impact that the show was having, or that the marriage of Luke and Laura was having, on its audience," Geary told NPR in 2015 after retiring from the show. "It really took leaving the studio and going out of L.A. – either making a personal appearance or going to my parents' home in Utah – for me to realize that the show and this character was having the impact it was having."

Geary was born May 29, 1947, in Coalville, Utah. Obsessed with film at a young age, he accepted a theater scholarship to the University of Utah, where he performed in a number of stage productions. That work brought him to Hollywood, where he made his screen debut on an episode of "Room 222." The following year, he appeared in a now classic episode of "All in the Family," portraying a character Archie incorrectly assumes is gay.

He soon drifted towards soaps, landing small roles in "Bright Promise" and "The Young and the Restless," along with appearances in shows like "The Patridge Family," "Mannix," "Marcus Welby, M.D.," and "The Six Million Dollar Man."

However, it was his 1978 debut on "General Hospital" that would change the course of his life. His was initially a small part, with Luke written as an antihero involved in the criminal underworld. The character's volatile relationship with Laura captivated fans, leading to Geary becoming a mainstay on the show. He left in 1984 to pursue other roles, but he returned in 1993 for a second run that lasted until 2015.

In 2020, Geary said his relationship with the character and his deeds – as well as with the fans who embraced Luke – was a complex one. "Somehow the audience identified with the pain of his action almost equally to the pain of the victim, and they suddenly started talking about it as a seduction. They started using those words in the scripts, and they tried to rewrite the history of what we all knew was a violent rape."

His initial comeback was as Luke's lookalike cousin, Bill Eckert, but fans wanted Luke. In 1993, "General Hospital" gave fans what they wanted. Geary remained in the role for two more decades. His efforts earned him a record-setting eight Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, along with two Soapy Awards.

By Eric San Juan

(Image: Mathew Imaging/FilmMagic)