General Hospital Star John J. York Celebrates His Birthday

Appearances by Mac Scorpio are a rare treat on General Hospital, and fans are wanting to find out what Mac will do when he finds out the truth about Cody Bell, but in the real world, beloved actor John J. York is celebrating a major milestone.

Happy Birthday, John J. York

That’s because he was born on December 10, 1958, in Chicago, Illinois, which means that this talented performer is turning 65 years old today! York’s initial plan to play professional football was derailed thanks to a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis.

He attended Wisconsin’s University of Whitewater where he studied marketing but York eventually dropped out and returned to his home state where he studied acting under Edward Kaye-Martin. He made his stage debut at the Wisdom Bridge Theatre where he appeared in such plays as Picnic, Loss of Roses, Career, and Golden Boy.

In 1983, the handsome actor relocated to Los Angeles where he took a day job waiting tables and immediately hit the audition circuit. That year he had small, bit parts in the television movie Listen to Your Heart and two primetime programs, Dynasty and Arthur Hailey’s Hotel.

One year later, York was cast in two films, Chattanooga Choo Choo and The Bear. Vicki Manners, the casting director for the former picture, became Mrs. York in 1986 — the same year he played Todd in Night of the Creeps and filmed guest spots on Hunter and Hotel (again).

Then, 1987 proved a banner year for York as he appeared in Newhart, the feature film House of the Rising Sun, and scored the lead role in the horror series Werewolf.

Subsequently, he appeared in a number of primetime greats including Murder She Wrote and 21 Jump Street. On February 14, 1991, York debuted on ABC’s General Hospital in the role of Malcolm “Mac” Scorpio.

York has remained with the medical soap ever since and even portrayed the character on other daytime serials that aired on both ABC (All My Children and Port Charles) and Soapnet (General Hospital: Night Shift).

Soap Hub would like to wish John J. York a very happy birthday and you can too by clicking on the X (formerly Twitter) link below. Also, share your favorite memory of his work or if you’ve met him personally in the comments section.