Guiding Light handed Vincent Irizarry figurative gold when the show paired the then-new actor with daytime legend Beverlee McKinsey as his TV mother, Alexandra Spaulding. Now, the actor who played the dual roles of Lujack and Nick on GL would like to see his TV mom honored posthumously with some gold of her own.
Vincent Irizarry Praises Beverlee McKinsey
“As many of you already know from my sincere expressions of adoration and gratitude throughout these past decades, I couldn’t have been more blessed to have worked opposite this amazingly talented woman and actress, Beverlee McKinsey, an indisputable icon in our world of Daytime, while performing in my first role on television back in 1983 on [Guiding Light],” Irizarry (ex-David Chow, Young and the Restless; Dr. Jordan Armstrong, Bold and the Beautiful) began a social media post, which can be seen below.
“Shockingly, Beverlee was nominated for [a Daytime] Emmy numerous times for her unforgettable, powerful performances for her many years…but never won,” the actor writes. McKinsey was nominated for four consecutive years, starting in 1977, for her role as Iris Carrington on Another World. The showdowns between Iris and Rachel, played by Victoria Wyndham, were legendary as willful Iris schemed against her stepmother to win the affection of her father, Mac Cory (Douglass Watson).
The Best of the Best
“Anyone that knew her, as well as her work ethic, all of whom were left in awe of her talent while working opposite her, and even more important, those watching her as a fan of those shows, knows that this fact makes no sense whatsoever,” Irizarry states. “Therefore, it has been brought to my attention that there is a petition to NATAS [the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences] to finally award her posthumously with a Lifetime Achievement Award for the significant role she played in elevating that medium while entertaining us all at the highest caliber throughout all those years.
“Please join us in this endeavor so that, in her name, we all may be able to thank and honor her, deservedly so…” McKinsey’s TV son concluded. Click here to sign the petition to get McKinsey her posthumous Daytime Emmy.
Vincent Irizarry & Beverlee McKinsey Take Two
As viewers recall, Alexandra and Lujack (AKA Brandon Luvonoczek) shared an emotional reunion in 1984. Alas, their happiness was short-lived, as Lujack died in late 1985 from injuries he sustained in an explosion.
Irizarry returned to GL in 1991 as Nick McHenry, Lujack’s long-lost twin. He and McKinsey worked together for several months as Alexandra worked hard to convince Nick that he was, indeed, her son. McKinsey left GL in the summer of 1992. She popped up two years later as Myrna Slaughter on General Hospital. She passed away in 2008.
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