Actors From The Young And The Restless You Didn't Know Died
The following article mentions mental health struggles and suicide.
As far as many TV watchers are concerned, there's never been a world without "The Young and the Restless." CBS' long-running daytime drama, which first hooked audiences in 1973 and shows no signs of slowing down, continues to rack up millions of viewers even 50 years after its premiere.
The impact of serials like "Y&R" is massive, as once detailed by daytime soap megastar Jeanne Cooper to ABC7. "You've always been able to become involved, whether you were wealthy or whatever your status is, our show hit the human being." It goes without saying that the show's lifeblood comes from its animated set of characters and the actors behind them, many of whom have stuck around for decades. Many others who did and passed left behind incomparable legacies that broadened the horizons of soap acting.
Here are some actors from "The Young and the Restless" whom we unfortunately lost but had the privilege of watching.
Billy Miller
In what was one of the most enduring portrayals of the suave Casanova, actor Billy Miller played the role of Billy Abbott on "The Young and the Restless" to perfection for six years. While his soap opera portfolio also included the likes of "General Hospital" and "All My Children," his stint on "Y&R" made him a three-time winner at the Daytime Emmys. He also appeared on hit primetime shows like "Suits" and "Ray Donovan."
On September 17, 2023, Miller died by suicide. He was 43 years old. In a statement provided to Soap Opera Digest, his mother said, "He fought a long hard valiant battle with bipolar depression for years." "The Young and the Restless" honored Miller's memory with an on-set memorial and a tribute episode.
In 2014, Miller left the series. Though he loved his time on "Y&R," he was ready to pursue other projects. As he told Soap Opera Digest (via Soap Central), "To pass was the hardest thing I've ever done."
Jennifer Leak
Jennifer Leak was on only two episodes of "The Young and the Restless," but her brief stint was certainly memorable. She played Gwen Sherman, a sex worker-turned-nun — not the most conventional arc to be found in the 1970s era of television. Leak by then had already established her star power to a great degree with a role opposite acting legend Lucille Ball in the 1968 comedy "Yours, Mine and Ours."
Soap opened up a whole new world of opportunities for Leak, described by her husband James D'Auria as "her favorite medium and what she loved performing in most" (via The East Hampton Star). After "Y&R," she went on to star in series like "Ryan's Hope" and "Another World."
Leak died on March 18, 2024. Per her obituary, she had been coping with progressive supranuclear palsy, a rare brain disease. After news of her death broke, her first husband, actor Tim Matheson, wrote on Facebook, "Jennifer was a remarkable woman, strong, lovely, and incredibly talented."
Kristoff St. John
Kristoff St. John had an acclaimed run as Neil Winters on "The Young and the Restless." The character — which he originated in 1991 and which remained exclusively his for nearly three decades — had become so synonymous with St. John that his death in 2019 invited mourning not just for him, but his alter ego, too. A beloved Genoa City fixture, Neil had a storyline dominated by dramatic turns in his romantic and professional adventures that won St. John multiple Daytime Emmy and NAACP awards year after year.
Unfortunately, St. John's personal life hadn't been as buoyant as his acting career during his final years. In 2014, his son Julian died by suicide at a mental health facility. The incident marked the start of a long mourning period for St. John, who reportedly sought out help for depression not long before his death, according to TMZ. His ex-wife, professional boxer Mia St. John, appeared on the "Tamron Hall Show" and revealed that the late star had also been coping with bipolar disorder. St. John died on February 3, 2019, with autopsy reports citing heart disease.
Jeanne Cooper
Jeanne Cooper was a bona fide matriarch of daytime television. For 40 years, she dedicated herself to "The Young and the Restless" as Katherine Chancellor, a feat that placed her among the longest-serving soap stars in the world. She originated the character in 1973, not long after the show first premiered on CBS, and — aided by her protracted timeline and audacious storylines — forged a new chapter on daytime television.
According to CNN, the decision by "Y&R" makers to onboard Cooper proved profitable for the show's initial ratings and, evidently, for the actor herself too. In addition to her dazzling list of Daytime Emmy nominations, Cooper's exalted screen career notably earned "The Young and the Restless" legend a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame — a first for any soap star. "I'm very motivating for some people," Cooper, aware of her influence, told ABC7. "If you impress one person to a better way of living, you've transferred what you should do."
Over the course of her career, Cooper racked up well over 100 film and TV credits. She died on May 8, 2013, at the age of 84. Cooper's final episode of "Y&R" taped less than two months before she died.
Jerry Douglas
Jerry Douglas is a standout name in the hall of "The Young and the Restless" veterans. In the role of John Abbott, Douglas was distinct for his portrayal of one of the most important and long-running characters on the daytime soap. As the patriarch of the Abbott family, it was through John that so many other stories and events in Genoa City were cross-linked. He was not the first actor to step into John's shoes but was easily the most impactful, delivering a career-defining performance between 1982 and 2006. Even the death of his character couldn't sever Douglas' ties to "Y&R" and he continued to make episodic appearances on the show from the afterlife until 2016.
In addition to finding success in film and television, Douglas also showcased his singing talents on his 2007 album "The Best is Yet to Come." His most enduring association, however, was to his longtime CBS soap opera home. Much to the delight of "Y&R" fans, Douglas met his cast mates for a birthday celebration during his final days, as Lauralee Bell shared on Instagram. He died on November 9, 2021, at the age of 88 after suffering from an illness.
Michael Evans
By the time he made a splash as Colonel Douglas Austin on "The Young and the Restless," English actor Michael Evans had already built up quite a reputation as a prolific stage actor. After serving during the second World War, Evans pursued his showbiz aspirations by entering the world of Broadway in 1950, according to the Los Angeles Times. Evans became part of theater legend almost immediately, starring in the inaugural 1951 production of "Gigi" alongside soon-to-be Hollywood icon Audrey Hepburn.
While Hepburn bagged "Roman Holiday" soon after, Evans continued to rack up stage credits with "My Fair Lady" and "Mary, Mary" before turning his attention to the screen. His earlier projects include "Bye Bye Birdie," "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.," and "Riot on Sunset Strip."
"Y&R" was among Evans' final credits, his portrayal of the colonel spanning over a decade starting 1980. Distinct as a family friend of the Newmans, Col. Austin remained a fascinating figure within Genoa City circles till the end of his stint in 1995. Evans died on September 4, 2007, at the age of 87. At the time of his death, he was living an assisted care facility in Los Angeles.
Beau Kazer
Beau Kazer made many sporadic appearances as on "The Young and the Restless" as Brock Reynolds throughout his three-decade run. Introduced as the son of Genoa City lynchpin Katherine Chancellor (Jeanne Cooper) in 1974, Brock — with his unique arc and dynamics with other characters — remained an important presence on the show, despite his periods of absentia. In fact, he came to occupy an immortal place in cinema history too, with a tiny but memorable appearance as a soap opera actor in Martin Scorsese's 1976 masterpiece "Taxi Driver."
Behind the scenes, Kazer drummed up a brief affair with Cooper, who, as previously noted, played his mother on "Y&R." Their romance quickly fizzled out, but it sounds like there was no ill-will between them. As Cooper told Smashing Interviews Magazine, "He is one of the great interpreters of dialogue. Incredible." Decades of age difference prevented Cooper from pursuing a relationship with Kazer, who eventually settled down with photographer Sharon Alkus. Kazer died on December 30, 2014, following health issues, per The Hollywood Reporter. Alkus, who died of a stroke eight years after her husband's passing, said the former "Y&R" star spent his final years writing a book titled "Adventures in Honkerville."
Elizabeth Sung
Hong Kong native and Juilliard School graduate Elizabeth Sung was both an accomplished dancer and actor. Her filmography glittered with a long line of credits, with acclaimed titles like "The Joy Luck Club" and "Memoirs of a Geisha" cited as distinct titles by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which invited her to join as a member in 2016. Her 30-year-long screen career had established Sung as a revered mentor to Asian Pacific American cinema aspirants.
While she made an impression with single-episode appearances on "The Sopranos" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm," Sung's longest television stint was on "The Young and the Restless." She joined the long-running soap in 1994 as Luan Volien, an ex-lover of Jack Abbott who rekindled a romance with him until her death. Her character had a two-year arc. Unlike a number of other "The Young and the Restless" characters, the role of Luan was never recast.
Sung died at age 63 on May 22, 2018. Director Quentin Lee noted in a tribute for Chopso that the star had been coping with acute lymphoma during her final days.
Andrea Evans
Andrea Evans was a bona fide soap star who left behind a glorious legacy when she died of breast cancer on July 9, 2023. She touched some of the most celebrated titles in the daytime television niche — including "One Life to Live," "The Bold and the Beautiful," "Passions," and, of course, "The Young and the Restless." The latter saw her expertly breathe life into the tumultuous storyline of Patty Williams in the early 1980s, when her career was only just taking off. As Evans' co-star Robin Strasser wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, "You knew when you worked with her, it'd be like going head to head with a champion."
Evans remained enthusiastic about soap acting throughout her career, even reprising some of her most iconic roles for 21st century revivals. "It's a genre that is solid and good and, and it's present in a lot more of our entertainment than people want to admit," she told We Love Soaps. That said, she had a complicated relationship with fame after some troubling interactions with a stalker in 1987. The stalker's behavior prompted her to take a break from her soap career entirely. As she told People, when she finally returned to the soap world, she struggled with being back in the limelight. "I was constantly sitting up, thinking maybe I shouldn't do this," she said.
Dennis Cole
Dennis Cole, with his matinee idol looks, seemed destined for stardom. As Al Martinez once wrote in the Los Angeles Times, "In a lot of ways, Dennis Cole is a living metaphor for L.A. He's tall, he's blond, he's good-looking and he's an actor." Cole got his start in show business as a model and stunt artist before he got into acting. The ABC drama "Felony Squad" gave him his first major taste of success, after which he perfected his art on series like "Bracken's World." He eventually landed up on "The Young and the Restless" as Lance Prentiss in the 1980s.
Though he didn't inaugurate the role of Lance for "Y&R," Cole won great favor among audiences for portraying his love-torn character with just the right amounts of charisma and earnestness. He didn't consider it his best performance though. As he sadly stated to the LA Times, "The greatest role I ever played was pretending I wanted to be alive." In 1991, Cole was struck by tragedy when his only son Joe Cole was killed during an armed robbery. Though the incident didn't bring Cole's career to a complete halt, the soap actor began directing his attention to activism against violence and, according to The New York Times, even ventured into real estate brokerage. He died of renal failure on November 15, 2009.
Quinn Redeker
When he died at the age of 86 on December 20, 2022, Quinn Redeker had achieved soap stardom that was in a league of its own. He had a career that spanned half a century and long-term associations with highly popular daytime telly productions. It would perhaps not even be an overstatement to say that it is impossible to encounter a soap fan unaware of who Redeker was. He was on people's screens for nearly a decade straight as the cunning conman Alex Marshall in "Days of Our Lives," and for a few years more in various roles on "The Young and the Restless."
Between all his stints on "Y&R" — which included the role of Nikki Newman's abusive father Nick Reed — audiences were moved the most when Redeker reprised his charming conman niche with the character of Rex Sterling on the show. He played Rex between 1987 and 1994, and ultimately earned two Daytime Emmy nominations for his work on the show. By then, he already had an Oscar nomination under his belt for the screenplay of the 1978 war drama "The Deer Hunter."
Rick Jason
One of the earliest actors to join the cast of "The Young and the Restless" when the soap first launched in 1973, Rick Jason played the recurring role of Warner Wilson. A classic screen star whose credits spanned the breadth of film, television, and theater, he rubbed shoulders with the who's who of Hollywood during his career, working with revered filmmakers like Alfred Hitchcock and Orson Welles. He laid out his trajectory as a World War II veteran and film star in his autobiography "Scrapbooks of My Mind."
Jason's reel and real lives memorably overlapped when, after serving in the U.S. Army, he achieved new heights of fame in his starring role as hardened lieutenant Gil Hanley on the acclaimed ABC drama "Combat!" in the 1960s. He revisited his iconic role at a show reunion in October 2000.
On October 16, 2000, just days after the "Combat!" reunion, Jason was found dead at the age of 74. His death was ruled a suicide, CNN reported, with the medical examiner stating at the time that the actor had been struggling with some unspecified personal issues.
Roscoe Born
With over 30 years of work in the genre, Roscoe Born was an icon of daytime television. It didn't take him long to climb the charts of success when he joined the soap opera world in the 1980s; he hit the ground running with a major role in "Ryan's Hope," followed by successive career-defining ones in "Santa Barbara," "The City," and "Days of Our Lives." Born was already a seasoned soap star by the time he made his way to "The Young and the Restless," on which he played the villainous Tom Fisher. His strained relations and criminal tendencies earned him the nickname "Terrible Tom" and Born, well-versed with this class of characters, played him with conviction. Born also made waves as the nefarious Mitch Laurence on "One Life to Live" — a role he reprised multiple times throughout his career after originating it in 1985 for the ABC series.
On March 3, 2020, Born died at the age of 69. His family shared on Facebook that he died of suicide after years of living with bipolar disorder. After his death was announced, former "One Life" head writer Ron Carlivati tweeted a tribute to Born. "Mitch Laurence as portrayed by Roscoe Born was one of my all-time favorite TV villains as a teenager watching One Life to Live. I was privileged to get to write for him," Carlvati wrote.
Sally Kellerman
A showbiz icon whose legacy spanned six decades, Sally Kellerman was a multi-hyphenate who charmed audiences across the scope of film, television, and music. Her 1971 Oscar nomination for "M*A*S*H," in which she played the sultry army major "Hot Lips" Houlihan, is remembered as the foremost testament to her talent. But Kellerman, with her great love for the performing arts – "I must have come out of the womb singing and acting," she wrote in her memoir "Read My Lips" — made just as deep an impact in the soap opera world.
She graced "The Young and the Restless" for 10 episodes, with fans and critics immediately taking to her portrayal of the wheelchair-bound Constance Bingham. The role was momentous, not just for earning Kellerman a Daytime Emmy nomination, but also for marking one of her final screen appearances before her death.
Kellerman died of heart failure on February 24, 2022. According to TMZ, she was diagnosed with dementia sometime around 2017, which is also the period the curtain dropped on her acclaimed career.
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