Age: 77
Birthplace: Coalville, Utah, U.S.
Anthony Dean "Tony" Geary (born May 29, 1947) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the role of Luke Spencer on the ABC daytime drama General Hospital. Geary originated the role of Luke in 1978 and has since received a record eight Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. He also had a prominent supporting role in "Weird Al" Yankovic's cult comedy film UHF (1989).
Anthony Dean Geary was born in Coalville, Utah, a son of the late Dana (née Anderson) (2/10/1923-7/7/1997) and Russell Dean Geary (11/12/25-10/8/1991). His father was a building contractor and owner of a construction company. His mother was a homemaker and assisted his father in the business as the bookkeeper. His father was also the former mayor of Coalville, Utah. Both of Geary's parents were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He has two sisters, Jana Geary Steele and DeAnn Geary Bond. Geary attended the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, on a theater scholarship. At age 21, he performed as a chorus boy with Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca on the Las Vegas stage. It was while performing there that he fell and scarred his chin.
Geary made his first appearance on television in an episode of Room 222 and later appeared in All in the Family, The Mod Squad, Mannix, Marcus Welby, M.D., The Streets of San Francisco and Barnaby Jones. Geary's first daytime role was in NBC soap opera Bright Promise from 1971 to 1972.
He played George Curtis, who was a rapist, in The Young and the Restless and in 1978 was hired for a 13-week story arc to play Luke Spencer in ABC soap General Hospital. His character in General Hospital began as a hit man and later as a rapist who fell in love and subsequently married his victim, Laura Webber (played by Genie Francis). His portrayal of Luke Spencer on General Hospital was well received and grew into a full contract role. The 1981 on-screen wedding of his character and Laura Webber holds the record as the highest rated soap opera episode of all time.
He holds the distinction of winning a record eight Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. He was first nominated in 1980, 1981, and had his first win in 1982. Geary was nominated again in 1983, before leaving the show in 1984. Over the next several years he took roles in various theater and television productions, as well as in several films, but not at the level of success he had hoped for. Despite the popularity of his work as Luke Spencer, filmmakers such as Oliver Stone pigeonholed Geary based solely on the fact that he was a "soap actor". In a conscious effort to distance himself from GH, he actively sought a role in "Weird Al" Yankovic's film debut UHF (1989), that of the quietly eccentric scientist Philo (named for television pioneer Philo Farnsworth). Geary, a self-professed fan of Yankovic, went so far as to grow his hair like Albert Einstein's and stay in character as Philo when meeting the film's casting team; he immediately landed the part.
In 1991, Geary returned to General Hospital as Luke's cousin and look-alike Bill Eckert, due to the actor's desire to play something other than Luke. However, due to poor feedback from the viewing public, the character was killed off and Geary resumed the role of Luke in 1993. Tony appeared in more than 50 stage plays, including an award-winning one-man show titled Human Scratchings in 1996. He was nominated in 1997 and 1998 for Daytime Emmys for Outstanding Lead Actor, and had his second win in 1999, and his third in 2000. He received another nomination in 2003, and had his fourth win in 2004. When Geary won for the fifth time in 2006, he set the record for most lead actor wins. Geary received another Emmy nomination in 2007, and in 2008, he again set a record for most lead actor wins with his sixth Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor.
Geary set a record in 2012 with his 7th Daytime Emmy win and again in 2015 for his 8th win for Outstanding Leading Actor in a Drama Series after 16 nominations for the same role of General Hospital's Luke Spencer. Geary publicly announced on Friday, May 8, 2015 that he would be leaving his role on the long-running daytime drama series General Hospital. Geary finished taping his last scenes on the General Hospital set on Tuesday June 23, 2015. His last airdate was July 27, 2015.
A notable exception from his series of dramatic roles is the part of a scientist/studio engineer in the comedy/spoof movie UHF. He appeared in 1987's Disorderlies, with rappers The Fat Boys.
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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1970 | Room 222 | Tom Whalom | Episode: "Choose One & They Lived Happily/Unhappily Ever After" |
1971 | All in the Family | Roger | Episode: "Judging Books by Covers" |
1971 | Johnny Got His Gun | Redhead | |
1971-1972 | Bright Promise | David Lockhart | Soap opera |
1972 | Blood Sabbath | David | |
1972 | The Mod Squad | Johnson | Episode: "Good Times Are Just Memories" |
1972 | The Partridge Family | Greg Houser | Episode: "Ain't Loveth Grand?" |
1973 | Mannix | Eddie Decken | Episode: "A Way to Dusty Death" |
1973 | Shaft | David Oliver | Episode: "Hit and Run" |
1973 | The Young and the Restless | George Curtis | Soap opera |
1974 | Doc Elliot | Dennis Graham | Episode: "The Carrier" |
1974 | Sorority Kill | Tony | |
1971-1975 | Marcus Welby, M.D. | John Gavanelli | 2 episodes |
1974-1976 | The Streets of San Francisco | Gary Jelinek / Cajun / Joe Markham | 4 episodes |
1976-1977 | Barnaby Jones | Deputy Blake Jeffries / Nelson Mosley / Wilson | 3 episodes |
1977 | Most Wanted | Chops | Episode: "The Driver" |
1978 | The Return of Captain Nemo | Bork | |
1978 | Project U.F.O. TV Series | Darryl Biggs | Episode: "Sighting 4010: The Waterford Incident" |
1978 | Starsky & Hutch | Delano | Episode: "The Trap" |
1978 | The Six Million Dollar Man | Arta | Episode: "The Lost Island" |
1978-1984 1993-2015 |
General Hospital | Luke Spencer | |
1983 | Antony and Cleopatra | Octavius Caesar | |
1983 | Shaft of Love | Doug Hathaway | |
1983 | Intimate Agony | Dr. Kyle Richards | |
1984 | Sins of the Past | Lt. Malovich | |
1984 | The Impostor | Cade | |
1985 | Kicks | Martin Cheevers | |
1985 | Hotel | Eli Gilmour / Phil Tanner | 2 episodes |
1986 | You Are The Jury | Sam Billings | Episode: "The State of Ohio vs. James Wolsky" |
1987 | P.I. Private Investigations | Larry | |
1987 | Disorderlies | Winslow Lowry | |
1987 | Penitentiary III | Serenghetti | |
1987 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Murdered Madam | Steve Reynolds | |
1988 | You Can't Hurry Love | Tony | |
1988 | Pass the Ammo | Stonewall | |
1988 | It Takes Two | Wheel | |
1988 | Dangerous Love | Mickey | |
1989 | UHF | Philo | |
1989 | Night Life | John Devlin | |
1989 | Do You Know the Muffin Man? | Stephen Pugliotti | |
1989 | High Desert Kill | Dr. Jim Cole | |
1989 | Crack House | Dockett | |
1989-1990 | Murder, She Wrote | Eric Grant / KGB Lt. Fyodor Alexandrov | 2 episodes |
1990 | Sunset Beat | Uncredited Role | Made For TV Movie |
1990 | Sunset Beat | Uncredited Role | Episode: "One Down, Four Up" (TV Series) |
1991-1993 | General Hospital | Bill Eckert (Also played by Geary in a Dual Role) | Soap opera |
1991 | Night of the Warrior | Lynch | |
1991 | Scorchers | Preacher | |
1993 | Whistlestop Girl | Andy | |
1994 | Roseanne | Luke Spencer | Episode: "Suck Up or Shut Up" |
1995 | Burke's Law | Clayton Cole | Episode: "Who Killed the Centerfold?" |
1998 | Port Charles | Luke Spencer | |
2004 | Teacher's Pet | John / Juan | voice |
2005 | Carpool Guy | Carpool Guy | |
2008 | General Hospital: Night Shift | Luke Spencer | Episode: "Past and Presence", (Part One & Part Two) |
2009 | Fish Tank | Van Man | |
2013 | Alice and the Monster | George |
Year | Award | Category | Title | Result | Ref. |
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Soapy Award | Best Actor | General Hospital | Won |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Nominated |
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Soapy Award | Best Actor | General Hospital | Won |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Won |
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Soapy Awards | Best Actor | General Hospital | Won |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Nominated |
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Soap Opera Digest Award | Outstanding Lead Actor | General Hospital | Nominated | |
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Soap Opera Digest Award | Outstanding Lead Actor | General Hospital | Nominated | |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Nominated |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Nominated |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Won |
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Soap Opera Digest Award | Outstanding Lead Actor | General Hospital | Won |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Won |
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Soap Opera Digest Award | Outstanding Lead Actor | General Hospital | Won |
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Daytime Emmy Award | America's Favorite Couple | General Hospital | Nominated | |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Nominated |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Won |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Won |
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TV Land Award | Most Wonderful Wedding | General Hospital | Nominated | |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Nominated |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Won |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Nominated |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Won |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Won |
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Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | General Hospital | Nominated |
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