Anthony Geary, who played Luke Spencer on ‘General Hospital,’ dies at 78

Anthony Geary, the actor who portrayed Luke Spencer on ABC’s long-running soap opera “General Hospital,” has died, according to numerous media reports.

He was 78.

Geary died following complications from a planned operation, TV Insider first reported.

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Born on May 29, 1947, in Coalville, Utah, Geary studied theater at the University of Utah and began his career onstage before moving into television work in the 1960s and 1970s.

He joined “General Hospital” in 1978, where his pairing with Genie Francis’s Laura Webber became one of the show’s signature storylines. Their 1981 wedding episode remains one of the most-watched soap opera broadcasts in U.S. television history.

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Geary won a record eight Daytime Emmy Awards for outstanding lead actor for his work on the series.

He is survived by his husband, Claudio Gama, who told TV Insider that Geary’s death came as a shock.

“It was a shock for me and our families and our friends,” Gama said. “For more than 30 years, Tony has been my friend, my companion, my husband.”

The pair lived together in the Netherlands.