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Longtime “General Hospital” star Tristan Rogers has died at 79 one month after announcing a lung cancer battle.
ABC 7 Eyewitness News confirmed he died Friday morning.
His manager, Meryl Soodak, told the outlet that Rogers’ role as Scorpio on the soap “meant everything to him. He loved being Scorpio and he created that role from nothing. He was supposed to work a day and he ended up making it into something huge. He was just a genuinely loyal, kind human being and he loved his family.”
Frank Valentini, “General Hospital” EP, said in a statement, “The entire ‘General Hospital’ family is heartbroken to hear of Tristan Rogers’ passing. Tristan has captivated our fans for 45 years, and Port Charles will not be the same without him (or Robert Scorpio). I would like to extend my deepest sympathies to his family and friends during this difficult time. Tristan was a one-of-a-kind talent and will be greatly missed. May he rest in peace.”
Rogers was born June 3, 1946, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
After appearing on several Australian soaps and as a regular on “The Box” (1974-1975), plus working in films that included “Four Dimensions of Greta” (1972) and “The Flesh and Blood Show” (1972), he relocated to the U.S.
Rogers first appeared as Robert Scorpio on “General Hospital” at the end of 1980, riding the show’s most successful years through early 1992. Scorpio teamed up with iconic characters Luke (Tony Geary) and Laura (Genie Francis) to save the planet from an extinction-event weather machine, the Ice Princess.
Though his character was killed off, he played the ghost of Scorpio in 1995 and returned occasionally as the character over the years, including from 2019-2024 and a short, final stint in July.
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Having appeared on more than 1,400 episodes of the show, his time on “General Hospital” lasted 45 years — even though he was initially hired for a two-day shoot.
Rogers’ other TV work included guesting on “The Love Boat” (1982), “Hotel” (1986), “Tales from the Crypt” (1991), “Walker, Texas Ranger” (1993), and in the TV movie “A Perry Mason Mystery: The Case of the Lethal Lifestyle” (1994).
He branched out into other American soaps as well: “The Bold and the Beautiful” (1997), “The Young and the Restless” (2010-2019), “The Bay” (2010-2023), and “Studio City” (2019-2022).
He won a Daytime Emmy for the latter.
Rogers also did voice work, including in “The Rescuers Down Under” (1990), “Captain Planet and the Planeteers” (1994), “The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest” (1996), “Batman Beyond” (2000), and “The Wild Thornberrys” (2001).
He is survived by his second wife, Teresa, with whom he had recently celebrated their 30th anniversary, and by their two children, Sara Jane and Cale
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