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Anthony Geary (born May 29, 1947) is a retired American actor. Geary is best known for playing the role of Luke Spencer on the ABC daytime drama General Hospital. He originated the role of Luke in 1978, and went on to earn a record eight Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series prior to his retirement.
In addition to his role as Luke, Geary had a prominent supporting role in the "Weird Al" Yankovic comedy UHF (1989); other notable films include Johnny Got His Gun (1971), Disorderlies (1987), Scorchers (1991), Teacher's Pet (2004) and Fish Tank (2009).
Geary's first daytime role was on the NBC soap opera Bright Promise from 1971 to 1972. He also played rapist George Curtis on The Young and the Restless from August to November 1973.
In 1978, Geary was hired for a 13-week story arc to play Luke Spencer on the ABC soap opera General Hospital. Luke Spencer began as a hit man and rapist who fell in love with - and subsequently married - his victim, Laura Webber (played by Genie Francis). His portrayal of Luke Spencer on General Hospital became a contract role, and the pairing of Luke and Laura became a sensation. The 1981 on-screen wedding of Luke and Laura holds the record as the highest-rated soap opera episode of all time.
Geary 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, and had his first win in 1982. Geary was nominated again in 1983, before leaving the show in 1984.
Over the next several years, Geary took roles in various theater and television productions, as well as in several films, but did not reach his desired level of success in those endeavors. 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 General Hospital, 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 fan of Yankovic, went so far as to grow his hair out like Albert Einstein's and stay in character as Philo when meeting the film's casting team; he immediately landed the role.
In 1991, Geary returned to General Hospital as Luke's cousin and look-alike Bill Eckert; Geary expressed a desire to play a different character than Luke. However, due to poor feedback from the viewing public, Bill Eckert was killed off, and Geary resumed the role of Luke in 1993, when Genie Francis returned to General Hospital.
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 the 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 seventh Daytime Emmy win and again in 2015 for his eighth 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 General Hospital. Geary finished taping his last scenes on the General Hospital set on June 23, 2015. His last air date was July 27, 2015. He later made a cameo appearance on a May 2017 episode to facilitate the retirement of co-star Jane Elliot, who played Luke's former on-screen wife Tracy Quartermaine.
The comedy movie UHF was an exception to Geary's dramatic roles. He also appeared in 1987's Disorderlies, with Hip hop the Fat Boys, and has appeared in more than 50 stage plays, including an award-winning one-man show titled Human Scratchings in 1996.
| 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 |
| 1975 | The Wide World of Mystery | Dennis | Episode: "Distant Early Warning" |
| 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 2017 | General Hospital | Luke Spencer | |
| 1983 | Shaft of Love | Doug Hathaway | |
| 1983 | Intimate Agony | Dr. Kyle Richards | |
| 1984 | Antony and Cleopatra | Octavius Caesar | |
| 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 | 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 | 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 | Luke Spencer | Episode: "Past and Presence", (Part One & Part Two) | |
| 2009 | Fish Tank | Van Man | |
| 2013 | Alice and the Monster | George |
| +List of acting awards and nominations |
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