‘General Hospital’ to Re-Air Anthony Geary’s Farewell Episode After His Death

“General Hospital” will pay tribute to the late Anthony Geary by re-airing his 2015 farewell episode on Jan. 1, according to TV Insider.

Geary, who played Luke Spencer on the ABC soap for nearly 40 years, died on Dec. 14 due to complications from a medical procedure. He was 78.

The July 27, 2015, episode marked Geary’s last hurrah in Port Charles — besides one final cameo as Luke Spencer in a 2017 episode. Geary appeared in 1,997 episodes of “General Hospital” and was nominated for 17 Daytime Emmys for his role, winning a record-breaking eight.

Geary was best known on “General Hospital” as one-half of the legendary soap couple Luke and Laura (played by Genie Francis). The characters’ 1981 wedding episode drew 30 million live viewers, and it remains the highest-rated soap opera episode in American TV history. Luke and Laura became a cultural phenomenon, with other soaps attempting to replicate the success of “General Hospital’s” central romance.

As a mobster and street hustler, Luke brought new drama to the medical soap, including espionage storylines and overseas subplots. His romance storyline started with a controversial scene in which Luke sexually assaults Laura. Due to a positive audience response to the pairing, the writers retconned the scene as a seduction, rather than rape. The show revisited the incident decades later, showing how Luke regretted his actions and how the couple moved on from it.

After Geary died, Francis honored her longtime co-star by posting on X: “He spoiled me for leading men for the rest of my life. I am crushed, I will miss him terribly, but I was so lucky to be his partner. Somehow, somewhere, we are connected to each other because I felt him leave last night. Good night sweet prince, good night.”