Soap opera icon Susan Lucci’s memoir, “La Lucci,” will be released on February 3. According to People on January 30, one topic Lucci touches on in the new book is the immense love she has for her son, who nearly died as an infant.
Susan Lucci Recalls the Kindness She Received During Her Son’s Illness
As People shared, Lucci had already been playing Erica Kane on “All My Children” for several years when she welcomed her son, Andreas Huber, in 1980. Lucci had two children with her beloved husband, Helmut Huber. In addition to Andreas, the pair had Liza Huber, who was born in 1975.
When Lucci’s son was just 36 hours old, he was diagnosed with pneumonia. He spent time in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and nearly died.
Lucci acknowledged that the experience was “hugely impactful on me.”
“I was so grateful to God, so grateful to the doctors, the nurses,” Lucci noted.
According to Lucci, she has only written one “fan letter” in her life. The recipients were the medical staff at the hospital where her son was during that difficult time.
She recalled her son being in the “transitional nursery,” which meant he was expected to be discharged soon.
One day, Lucci shared, she walked into the NICU at 5:30 a.m. to see her son being rocked by one of the nurses. The nurse was singing “Here Comes Peter Cottontail” to Andreas and another NICU baby, and Lucci’s newborn was even wearing a pair of cowboy booties that the nurse had crocheted for him.
Lucci noted that the nurse had no way of knowing she would arrive when she did. The nurse simply took care of the babies to that degree, whether the parents were there to see it or not.
“That’s who those nurses are in the NICU. They are so giving and so loving…So, I wrote that one fan letter. I was so grateful to receive that kind of kindness, to be on the receiving end of that. It woke me up,” Lucci explained.
Andreas Huber Was With His Mother During a Key Career Moment
In December 2023, Lucci received a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award. The event took place less than two years after the death of Lucci’s beloved husband, and her son was there by her side.
During her acceptance speech, Lucci noted that her son’s presence was the “icing on the cake.” She got teary-eyed as she looked at him and conveyed how much it meant to her that he was there with her that night.
Lucci recalled, “My husband had been with me at every one of the Emmys and so many performances.”
Sadly, Lucci’s husband wasn’t there for the soap star’s magical moment in receiving her lifetime achievement award. However, her son was. “My son flew in to be with me that night and having him there … I love him so much. And he was spectacular through the whole [night].”
In “La Lucci,” the “All My Children” star told People she wrote “about how he was there the whole time, too, with my husband fighting for his life and beyond and past that.”
“He’s a great young man, whether he’s my son or not,” Lucci gushed. She added, “I’m very proud to be his mother. He’s terrific.”
