General Hospital

Mark Hamill Facts: Celebrities Who Started on Soaps

Published by

Shado Saeyang

5 years ago

Mark Hamill played one of the most iconic characters to come out of Hollywood, and as Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars franchise, he is beloved. But not everyone knows that Hamill was on a soap.

Along with his work in Star Wars and on daytime, Hamill has also worked in primetime television and has done voice work. From where he was born and raised to how he got the role of Luke, here are five fast facts about the actor.

Who Is Mark Hamill?

Hamill was born on September 25 in Oakland, California. He moved around a lot as a kid because his father was a U.S. Navy Captain, so he ended up graduating from Nile C. Kinnick High School in Japan. He then enrolled at Los Angeles City College, where he majored in drama.

Soap Beginnings
Hamill began his acting career in the 1970s with a number of guest-starring roles on television shows, but his first big break came when he landed the role of Kent Murray on General Hospital. Kent was the nephew of Nurse Jessie Brewer (played by original cast member Emily McLaughlin) and was on the show for a year.

Thanks, Freddy Krueger
Hamill got the role of Luke Skywalker in Star Wars all thanks to actor Robert Englund, who is best known for playing Freddy Krueger. Englund went out for the role of Han Solo and immediately thought of Hamill when he learned about the character of Luke. He encouraged Hamill to audition and well, the rest is history.

From Luke to The Joker

Hamill has been open about the fact it was hard to get parts following Star Wars because he had been typecast, but he went on to voice one of the most recognizable villains of all time, The Joker. In fact, Hamill has voiced The Joker at least a dozen times in various TV shows and movies.

Getting Personal With Mark Hamill
Hamill previously dated his General Hospital co-star Anne Wyndham, who played his on-screen sister Caroline. He went on to marry dental hygienist Marilou York on December 17, 1978. The couple has three kids together, Nathan (born in 1979), Griffin (born in 1983), and Chelsea (born in 1988).