John Anthony Aniston (born Yannis Anastassakis, , July 24, 1933 – November 11, 2022) was a Greek-born American actor who played Victor Kiriakis on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

daytime drama series ''

Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that streams on the streaming service Peacock. The soap, which aired on the American television net ...

'', 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 The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...

nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2017 and he received a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022. He is the father of actress

Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Joanna Aniston (born February 11, 1969) is an American actress and film producer. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. Since her career ...

Early life

Aniston was born in

Chania Chania ( el, Χανιά ; vec, La Canea), also spelled Hania, is a city in Greece and the capital of the Chania regional unit. It lies along the north west coast of the island Crete, about west of Rethymno and west of Heraklion. The muni ...

on the island of

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...

, Greece, on July 24, 1933, to Stella Joanne (née Koume; 1899–1992) and Antonios Anastassakis (1889–1965). The family left Crete for the United States when Aniston was two years old; his father

anglicized Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by English culture or British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English becomes English. It can also refer to the influenc ...

the family’s names on arriving in America. The family settled in

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1682, Chester i ...

, where they operated a restaurant. Aniston graduated from

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State becam ...

with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to si ...

in theater arts. While at Penn State, he became a member of Alpha Chi Rho fraternity. After college, he served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

as an intelligence officer on active duty in Panama and later in the Reserve, attaining the rank of

lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding ran ...

Career

Aniston began his acting career in 1962 in '' 87th Precinct'' as "Officer #1" in the episode "New Man in the Precinct". He has appeared in soap operas regularly since 1970, when he first joined ''

'' as a character named 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 ''Search for Tomorrow'' is an American television soap opera. It began its run on CBS on September 3, 1951, and concluded on NBC, 35 years later, on December 26, 1986. Set in the fictional town of Henderson in an unspecified state, the show foc ...

, on ''

Search for Tomorrow ''Search for Tomorrow'' is an American television soap opera. It began its run on CBS on September 3, 1951, and concluded on NBC, 35 years later, on December 26, 1986. Set in the fictional town of Henderson in an unspecified state, the show fo ...

'' 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. He was nominated for the 2017

Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series The Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series is an award presented annually by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) and Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). It is given to honor an ...

for his performance. 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. Aniston also played small roles on the television series ''

Airwolf ''Airwolf'' is an American action military drama television series that centers on a high-technology military helicopter, code-named ''Airwolf'', and its crew. The show follows them as they undertake various exotic missions, many involving e ...

'' in the season two episode "Short Walk to Freedom", ''

Gilmore Girls ''Gilmore Girls'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Amy Sherman-Palladino and starring Lauren Graham (Lorelai Gilmore) and Alexis Bledel ( Rory Gilmore). The show debuted on October 5, 2000, on The WB and became a flag ...

'' as Douglas Swope in the 2002 episode "A Deep Fried Korean Thanksgiving", ''

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White Hous ...

'' 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 ''American Dreams'' is an American drama television series that ran on NBC for three seasons & 61 episodes, from September 29, 2002, to March 30, 2005. The show tells the story of the Pryor family of Philadelphia during the mid-1960s, with many ...

'' (with ''Days'' co-star Frances Reid), ''

Journeyman A journeyman, journeywoman, or journeyperson is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that fie ...

'', and ''

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on the cable network AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 92 episodes. Its f ...

''.

Personal life

Aniston had a daughter,

(born 1969), with his first wife,

Nancy Dow Nancy Maryanne Dow (July 22, 1936 – May 25, 2016) was an American actress who appeared in a small number of films and television shows. She was married to actor John Aniston with whom she had a daughter, Jennifer Aniston. Early life Dow was ...

, and a son, Alexander, with his second wife, Sherry Rooney (whom he met while co-starring on '' Love of Life''). His daughter Jennifer's godfather was Telly Savalas, one of his best friends. Aniston died on November 11, 2022, at the age of 89.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aniston, John 1933 births 2022 deaths 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male soap opera actors American male television actors Greek male film actors Greek emigrants to the United States American expatriates in England Jennifer Aniston Male actors from Crete Male actors from Pennsylvania Military personnel from Pennsylvania Penn State College of Arts and Architecture alumni People from Chania Place of death missing United States Navy officers