The soap world was left shocked last week when the news broke of General Hospital legend Anthony Geary’s passing on December 14. Now, Soap Hub is paying tribute to Geary and the iconic Luke Spencer.
Key Takeaways
- Anthony Geary played Luke for nearly four decades.
- Geary passed away on December 14 after complications from an operation.
- Soap Hub shares memories of Geary and Luke.
A Port Charles Patriarch
I’ve been watching GH for over half my life, one of a handful of generations in my family to call Port Charles home through the television. While I wasn’t alive when Luke and Laura (Genie Francis) got married, as an avid GH lover, I tend to find myself rewatching Luke and Laura’s wedding at least once a year. That, and the iconic Triple L diner explosion when Lucky (Jonathan Jackson) arrived in Port Charles.
I didn’t get quite as many years with Luke on my screen as most other long-time viewers, but the way I see it, Geary doesn’t need to be on the screen in order for his presence to be felt on GH. Every time we see Lucky, Lulu (Alexa Havins), Tracy (Jane Elliot), and Laura, we get a hint of Luke, too.
Losing Geary feels like losing a Port Charles patriarch, the way losing Leslie Charleson (Monica) was losing the Quartermaine matriarch. He hasn’t been in Port Charles in a decade, but both Geary’s and Luke’s light and legacy will forever be a staple of GH.
— Ashley Amber
Deeply Felt
When I think about Anthony Geary, I think about how deeply felt Luke Spencer was — not just as a character, but as a force on daytime television. Luke, as portrayed by Geary on GH, was never simple, never easy, and never interchangeable with anyone else on the canvas. He demanded your attention, whether you wanted to give it or not.
What always stood out to me was Geary’s fearlessness. Luke wasn’t written to be safe or universally likable, and Geary didn’t play him that way. He leaned into Luke’s contradictions — the humor, the darkness, the intelligence, the damage — and trusted the audience to wrestle with it. That kind of performance takes confidence and conviction, and Geary had both in abundance.
Luke Spencer felt lived-in. He carried history in his body language, his pauses, his silences. Even when Luke was standing on the sidelines, you knew he was thinking, calculating, reacting. Geary never wasted a moment on screen, and he never treated the material as disposable.
For me, Luke represents a time when soaps weren’t afraid to let characters be complicated and uncomfortable, and when performances were allowed to challenge viewers instead of coddling them. Anthony Geary didn’t just play one of the most iconic characters in soap history — he helped define what greatness in daytime acting could look like.
— Rachel Dillin
A Leading Man
Anthony Geary was my first soap opera leading man. I began watching GH — along with the majority of the world — in the summer of 1980. I was 10. I know now that Luke and Laura were problematic (at the time, I knew the word ‘rape,’ but I didn’t know what it meant).
I know now that Genie Francis was uncomfortable with the story, and that Geary would cringe when he’d do personal appearances and young girls would be screaming, “Rape me next, Luke!” But all I knew at the time was that this was a story of high adventure (I didn’t know what the word “camp” meant at the time, either).
That Luke was funny and brave and that Laura looked at him like he was the most amazing man in the world. Gloria Monty conceived of Luke and Laura. Pat Falken Smith wrote it. Dozens of technical professionals made sure their story made it onto the air. Francis held up her end of the performances, but Geary was the one who made it impossible to take your eyes off Luke whenever he was on-screen.
It’s talent, it’s charisma, it’s luck…but it’s also intensely hard work and professionalism. Anthony Geary was my first soap opera leading man. He set the standard for everyone who came afterward. You never forget your first.
— Alina Adams
A Daytime Hero
Anthony Geary didn’t just play Luke Spencer; he helped reprogram what daytime television thought it was allowed to be and became one of my heroes. I grew up around ABC soaps because my mother and grandmother watched them religiously, but GH grabbed me when it veered hard into action, intrigue, and globe-trotting danger, and Luke was the engine.
I was one of the 30 million viewers glued to Luke and Laura’s wedding, but what stayed with me were the moments that felt downright rebellious for daytime: Luke and Sonny (Maurice Benard) pinned down in a shootout inside Luke and Laura’s own house until Laura calmly saved them by blasting a bad guy with a shotgun; Luke forcing Sonny to do bird calls to evade capture like it was espionage-by-way-of-vaudeville; Roy DiLucca (A. Martinez) strolling back from the dead while Luke casually revealed he had Faison (Anders Hove) stuffed in his trunk, the two of them dispatching the supervillain off a cliff as if it were just another afternoon in Port Charles.
Geary made Luke funny, dangerous, romantic, reckless, and unexpectedly heroic, often all in the same scene, and in doing so, he helped turn a soap opera into an adventure serial that trusted its audience to go along for the ride. Luke Spencer didn’t just save the world on GH. He expanded it.
— Roger Froilan
READ MORE: GH to re-air Luke’s farewell episode in honor of Geary.
The Heartbeat of GH
I remember Anthony Geary as the heartbeat of GH during its most electric era — an actor who didn’t just play Luke Spencer, but redefined what a soap opera leading man could be. Luke was flawed, charismatic, unpredictable, and utterly human, and Geary’s chemistry with Genie Francis as Laura created one of daytime television’s most iconic supercouples, a pairing that transcended the genre and became true pop culture history.
Luke and Laura weren’t just a romance; they were an era, drawing millions of viewers into Port Charles and forever changing GH’s trajectory. That legacy felt especially vivid when I attended a GH panel at a convention in 2016, where Tristan Rogers (Robert) fondly recalled the behind-the-scenes shenanigans of the 1980s — stories of mischief, camaraderie, and creative chaos he shared with Geary.
Those moments cement my memory of Anthony Geary: a brilliant performer, a playful troublemaker, and an irreplaceable force who left an indelible mark on daytime television.
— Tiffany Bailey
The Loss Hits Hard
The loss of Anthony Geary hits hard for me. I began watching GH with my mom as a child because of Luke Spencer and his trouble-making ways. Pairing Luke and Laura only deepened my fandom of the character.
When Geary left GH, I cried like a baby at his final scenes and then again when he made an appearance to help send off Jane Elliot in style ahead of her retirement. GH hasn’t been the same without him, but his legacy and talent will forever be cemented on the show.
— Rachelle Lewis
READ MORE: Soap stars and Hollywood pay tribute to Geary.
