“General Hospital” alum Rick Springfield has nothing but good words to say about the late Anthony Geary.
Springfield co-starred with Geary on the hit ABC soap during the early years of his career. He started playing Dr. Noah Drake just three years after Geary debuted as Luke Spencer.
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Springfield, 76, reminisced about his time on the show with Geary, calling him “one of the greats.”
Springfield recalled how the veteran actor showed him the ropes, noting that Geary was already famous when he joined the show.
“He was very welcoming to me,” the actor noted. “He was already a big star when I came on the show. I didn’t really know much about the show.”
Springfield added, “And when my star started to rise, Tony never gave me any trouble with it or anything. He was always just really a sweet guy.”
Rick Springfield Talks About Anthony Geary’s Most Unforgettable Scenes on ‘General Hospital’
Springfield, just like many “General Hospital” viewers, was in awe of Geary’s iconic portrayal of Luke Spencer. The actor vividly remembered a particular episode that was watched by 30 million people.
“We all knew it was a big moment, the wedding,” the actor recalled, referring to Luke and Laura’s (Genie Francis) wedding.
“I didn’t have a big part. I was just in the audience of the wedding, from what I remember,” he continued. “But it was like a real royal wedding. It was pretty nuts, actually. That’s the strength of the degree of connection that people had to the show.”
Geary’s Impact on Soaps
For Springfield, Geary is synonymous with soaps. The “General Hospital” alum noted, “You think of soaps, you think of Tony as one of the first.”
He added, “He had a great life, and he loved living in Amsterdam. But it’s always sad when someone leaves before their time.”
Meanwhile, Springfield took to Instagram to pay tribute to Geary. In his post, the actor credited his co-star for the success of “General Hospital” in the ’80s.
“Sad to hear of Tony’s passing,” Springfield wrote. “He was the reason ‘GH’ went where it went in the early ‘80s. The rest of us rode along with him and did our part, but Tony was the driver along with the great Gloria Monty. Had a really great evening with Tony and my guys in Amsterdam years ago. Such a good guy who deserved all the accolades he received. Love to those he left behind.”
Geary passed away on Sunday after suffering complications from a surgical procedure he underwent three days prior, TV Insider reported.
Gama confirmed the sad news to the outlet, saying, “It was a shock for me and our families and our friends. For more than 30 years, Tony has been my friend, my companion, my husband.”
