Classic GH star Martin West has passed away

Actor and filmmaker Martin West (ex-Phil Brewer, General Hospital; ex-Don Hughes, As the World Turns) has died. The New York native was 82.

Veteran actor Martin West, best known to daytime fans for his portrayal of classic General Hospital character Phil Brewer, passed away on December 31. He was 82 years old.

Born Martin Weixelbaum in Westhampton, New York, in 1937, he started his career in theater in New York before going on to make a name for himself in television and film. West made his mark on the soap opera world in 1967, when he joined the cast of GH as Dr. Philip Brewer, a role he played until 1975. He was the last one to play the character and was in the role the longest out of the many recasts of the fictional doctor that originally made his debut in 1963 with Roy Thinnes in the role.

As longtime GH fans may recall, West's run on the ABC soap opera was action-packed. Phil had been presumed dead in a plane crash before the New York native took on the role, and the character returned to Port Charles as "Harold Williamson." Though he was truly in love with Jessie Brewer (Emily McLaughlin), Phil felt he wasn't good enough for her and instead found comfort in the arms of Diana Maynard (Valerie Starrett/Brooke Bundy). Viewers of the soap subsequently saw Phil bounce back and forth between the women in several storylines that included Diana revealing she was pregnant with his baby after he had reunited with Jessie. In 1974, a nurse found Jessie hugging Phil's dead body, leading to her being arrested and charged with his murder. However, it was later revealed that Augusta McLeod (Judith McConnell) had actually killed him. The character wasn't seen again until 2015, when Phil briefly appeared in flashback scenes played by GH actor Ryan Carnes.

Following his GH run, West went on to play As the World Turns character Don Hughes in the late 1970s and Dallas character Phil McKenna in the early 1980s. His other television credits include Perry Mason, Gunsmoke, Matlock, Hill Street Blues, CHiPs, and L.A. Law, while his film credits include the cult classics Lord Love a Duck (1966) and John Carpenter's Assault on Precinct 13 (1976), as well as The Sergeant Was a Lady (1961), Mac and Me (1988), and Alfred Hitchcock's Family Plot (1976).

West moved to Westport, Connecticut, in 1993, and became a member of the Theater Artists Workshop of Westport, where he acted in and directed a number of productions and produced the documentaries A Gathering of Glory and Years in the Making.

From 1998, West was the life partner of Ann Chernow. He is survived by three children, Jason Weixelbaum, Allie West, and Gabriel West, along with his stepson, Paul Mend, and his sister, Gail Britt.

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A memorial service will be held Saturday, January 4, from 2:00PM to 5:00PM at the Theatre Artist Workshop (Masonic Lodge), located at 5 Gregory Boulevard, Norwalk, CT. In lieu of flowers, please feel free to send donations in West's name to the Theatre Artists Workshop.

What are some of your favorite memories from Martin West's time on General Hospital? Do you recall his brief run on ATWT or Dallas? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.

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