John Anthony Aniston (born Yannis Anastassakis, Greek: Γιάννης Αναστασάκης, July 24, 1933 – November 11, 2022) was an American actor who played Victor Kiriakis on the NBC daytime drama series Days of Our Lives, which he originated in July 1985 and played on and off for 37 years, until his death in 2022. His portrayal earned him a Daytime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2017 and he received a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022. He was the father of actress Jennifer Aniston.
John Aniston | |
|---|---|
 Aniston in 2012 | |
| Born | Yannis Anastassakis July 24, 1933 Chania, Greece |
| Died | November 11, 2022 (aged 89) |
| Nationality | Greek-American |
| Alma mater | Pennsylvania State University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1962–2022 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2, including Jennifer |
Early life
editAniston was born in Pervolakia, Chania on the island of Crete, Greece, on July 24, 1933,[1][2][3] to Stella Joanne (née Koume; 1899–1991) and Antonios Anastassakis (1891–1966).[4] The family left Crete for the United States when Aniston was two years old; his father anglicized the family's names on arriving in the US. The family settled in Chester, Pennsylvania, where they operated a restaurant.[5]
Aniston attended Eddystone High School and later graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a bachelor's degree in theater arts. While at Penn State, he became a member of Alpha Chi Rho fraternity.[6] After college, he served in the United States Navy as an intelligence officer on active duty in Panama and later in the Reserve, attaining the rank of lieutenant commander.[4]
Career
editAniston began his acting career in 1962 in 87th Precinct as "Officer #1" in the episode "New Man in the Precinct".[citation needed] He appeared in soap operas regularly starting in 1970, when he first joined Days of Our Lives as a character named Dr. Eric Richards. In 1975, he joined the cast of Love of Life as Eddie Aleata, appearing through 1978. He played Mary Stuart's new love interest, Martin Tourneur, on Search for Tomorrow from 1980 until April 1984. He returned to the cast of Days of Our Lives a second time, this time as Victor Kiriakis, in July 1985, and continued to play the role until his death.[4] He was nominated for the 2017 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his performance.[7]
In April 2022, it was announced that Aniston would receive a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award at the 49th Annual Daytime Creative Arts & Lifestyle Emmy Awards on June 18.[8]
Aniston also played small roles on the television series Airwolf in the season two episode "Short Walk to Freedom", Gilmore Girls as Douglas Swope in the 2002 episode "A Deep Fried Korean Thanksgiving", The West Wing as Alexander Thompson in the episodes "Game On" and "Debate Camp" (both in 2002), as the First IMF Captain in the 1969 Mission Impossible episode "Time Bomb". Aniston has also made guest appearances on Combat! (1964), My Big Fat Greek Life (2002), Star Trek: Voyager (2001), American Dreams (with Days co-star Frances Reid), Journeyman, and Mad Men.[9][better source needed]
Personal life
editAniston had a daughter, Jennifer Aniston (b. 1969), with his first wife, Nancy Dow, and a son, Alexander (b. 1989), with his second wife, Sherry Rooney (whom he met while co-starring on Love of Life).[10] His daughter Jennifer's godfather was Telly Savalas, one of his best friends.[11]
Filmography
editThis section needs additional citations for verification. (November 2022) |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | 87th Precinct | Officer #1 | Episode: "New Man in the Precinct" | |
| 1963 | Love with the Proper Stranger | Birdman of Macy's | ||
| 1964 | Combat! | Greek #2 | Episode: "Vendetta" | |
| 1967 | I Spy | Economides | Episode: "The Beautiful Children" | |
| 1968 | The Shakiest Gun in the West | Indian | ||
| The Virginian | Frank West | Episode: "Ride to Misadventure" | ||
| Now You See It, Now You Don't | Achmed | TV film | ||
| 1969 | Mission: Impossible | First IMF Captain | Episode: "Time Bomb" | |
| 1970; 1985–2022 |
Days of Our Lives | Eric Richards Victor Kiriakis |
3,782 episodes[citation needed] | |
| 1970 | That Girl | Phil Harvey | Episode: "Stop the Presses I Want to Get Off" | |
| 1974 | Kojak | Webster / Dancik | 2 episodes | |
| 1975–1978 | Love of Life | Eddie Aleata | Unknown episodes | |
| 1979–1984 | Search for Tomorrow | Martin Tourneur | Episode: "#1.8556" | |
| 1985 | Airwolf | Colonel Arturo Alzar | Episode: "Short Walk to Freedom" | |
| 1986 | Inhumanoids | Dr. Marcus Capello/Captain Action | 27 Episodes | |
| 1993 | Night Sins | Victor Kiriakis | TV film | [13] |
| 1997 | Diagnosis: Murder | Carlton Everest | Episode: "Must Kill TV" | |
| Fired Up | Gordon | Episode: "Honey, I Shrunk the Turkey" | ||
| 1999 | L.A. Heat | Alex Zota | Episode: "Faces of Fear" | |
| 2001 | Star Trek: Voyager | Quarren Ambassador | "Workforce", Parts I and II | [14] |
| 2002 | The West Wing | Alexander Thompson | 2 episodes | |
| Gilmore Girls | Douglas Swope | Episode: "A Deep-Fried Korean Thanksgiving" | ||
| 2003 | My Big Fat Greek Life | Constantine Christakos | Episode: "Greek Easter" | |
| 2004 | American Dreams | John Victor | Episode: "Old Enough to Fight" | |
| 2007 | Order Up | Wise Man | Short film | |
| Sands of Oblivion | Nigel Barrington | TV film | ||
| Journeyman | Merrit Ambaucher | Episode: "Home by Another Way" | ||
| 2008 | The Awakening of Spring | Mr. Gable | ||
| Worst Week | Jim | Episode: "The Wedding" | ||
| Fixing Rhonda | Detective Macomas | |||
| 2009 | The Gold & the Beautiful | Gerard Benedict | ||
| Cold Case | Herbert "Wolf" James | Episode: "WASP" | [15] | |
| 2010 | Mad Men | Wallace Harriman | Episode: "Waldorf Stories" | |
| 2011 | The Paul Reiser Show | Harold Melon | Episode: "The Old Guy" | |
| 2014 | Return to Zero | Ned | [16] |
Awards and nominations
edit| Year | Award | Category | Title | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1986
|
Soap Opera Digest Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role on a Daytime Serial | Days of Our Lives | Won | [17] |
| Outstanding Villain on a Daytime Serial | Won | [17] | |||
| Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Nominated | [18] | ||
| Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award | Won | [19] |
References
edit- ^ Mitchell, Molli (November 14, 2022). "Jennifer Aniston pays tribute to late father John Aniston". Newsweek. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
- ^ a b Barnes, Mike (November 14, 2022). "John Aniston, 'Days of Our Lives' Star and Father of Jennifer Aniston, Dies at 89". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
- ^ "Κρήτη: Ο σωσίας του μπαμπά της Τζένιφερ Άνιστον ζει στα Περβολάκια". Neakriti (in Greek). November 17, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
- ^ a b c "John Aniston biography". BuddyTV. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015.
- ^ "John Aniston bio". Soap Opera Digest. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ^ "Entertainers - North American Interfraternity Conference". www.nicindy.org. Archived from the original on May 21, 2014.
- ^ Evans, Greg (March 22, 2017). "2017 Daytime Emmy Nominations: CBS Leads Networks With 70 Noms, 'Young & Restless' Tops With 25". Deadline Hollywood.
- ^ Maloney, Michael (April 26, 2022). "Daytime Emmys 2022 Announce Date, Changes, and Lifetime Achievement". soaphub.com. Soap Hub. Retrieved April 27, 2022.
- ^ "John Aniston on Mad Men". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ^ "Profile of John Aniston". About.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2016. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ^ "Jennifer Aniston Biography". People. Retrieved May 21, 2008.
- ^ Griffin, Louise (November 14, 2022). "Jennifer Aniston announces death of dad, actor John Aniston, aged 89: 'I'll love you till the end of time – don't forget to visit'". Metro. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
- ^ "Days of Our Lives: Night Sins (1993)". www.tcm.com. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
- ^ "Star Trek: Voyager, Season 7". TVGuide.com. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
Episodes 16 & 17
- ^ "Paramount Press Express Releases | ... "COLD CASE" SUNDAY, NOV. 1". www.paramountpressexpress.com. CBS Entertainment Group. October 20, 2009. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
Additional guest stars include multiple Emmy Award winner Michael Learned ("The Waltons") as a former WASP pilot, Tony Award winner Deanna Dunagan ("August: Osage County") as the ex-WASP commander, Chad Faust ("The 4400") as a WASP flight instructor, and John Aniston ("Days of Our Lives") as a WWII Army Air Force pilot veteran.
- ^ "Return to Zero - Full Cast & Crew, 2014". TVGuide.com. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
- ^ a b "The Soap Opera Digest Awards: 1986". Soap Opera Digest. soapoperadigest.com. April 11, 2003. Archived from the original on March 3, 2009. Retrieved March 15, 2013.
- ^ "The 44th Annual Daytime Emmy Award Nominations" (PDF). New York City: emmyonline.org and National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. March 22, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 23, 2017. Retrieved March 22, 2017.
- ^ Rice, Lynette (April 26, 2022). "NATAS Names Lifetime Achievement Honorees; Sets Date For Daytime Emmys". Deadline.