In Memoriam: Remembering those the soap community lost in 2020

Updated Tuesday, January 7, 2020 03:05:53 AM

Some of our favorite daytime stars of yesteryear passed away during 2020. We're taking a look back at those we've lost and remembering their contributions to daytime.

The daytime community lost some of its brightest stars in 2020. Here is a look at some of the stars who passed away this year. They may be gone, but they will never be forgotten.

January 16, 2020
Highlander and General Hospital actor Stan Kirsch (ex-Carl) died at the age of 51 after reportedly taking his own life. The performer was also an acting coach who worked with Mark Lawson (Dustin Phillips, GH; ex-Brody Lovett, One Life to Live).
January 29, 2020
Veteran soap opera actress Marj Dusay has passed away. The actress, known for playing Guiding Light's Alexandra Spaulding and All My Children's Vanessa Bennett, was 83.
February 10, 2020
Orson Bean, husband to The Bold and the Beautiful's Alley Mills (Pam Douglas), was hit and killed by a car over the weekend. The actor, who appeared on B&B as Howard in 2016 and on One Life to Live as Harrison Logan in 1982, was 91 years old.
February 10, 2020
Stage and screen actor Kevin Conway (ex-Earl Brock, One Life to Live; ex-Gordon Dobbs, The Doctors) has passed away. The New York native was 77.
February 26, 2020
Beloved wife, mother, grandmother, Emmy-winning broadcast journalist, and co-creator of The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful, Lee Phillip Bell passed away on February 25, 2020, at age 91.
March 2, 2020
Guiding Light alum James Lipton (ex-Dr. Dick Grant), who hosted Inside the Actors Studio and wrote for soaps like Another World and Capitol, has died. He was 93.
March 6, 2020
The daytime world has lost another family member. Roscoe Born, known for memorable roles on numerous soaps, has passed away. The actor and songwriter was 69.
March 25, 2020
Playwright and former The Young and the Restless actor Terrence McNally (ex-Dr. Robert Lynch) passed away due to complications from coronavirus.
March 29, 2020
Daytime actor John Callahan, best known as All My Children character Edmund Grey, passed away early Saturday morning. He was 66.
April 6, 2020
Coronavirus is reported as the cause of death for actor Forrest Compton (ex-Mike Karr, The Edge of Night; ex-Alfred Cory, Another World; ex-Dr. Godsham, Loving), who passed away over the weekend at the age of 94.
April 6, 2020
Peter Miner, known for his time as a director at One Life to Live and a producer at Dark Shadows, has passed away. He was 90.
May 17, 2020
Comedian Fred Willard, who won a Daytime Emmy for his role as The Bold and the Beautiful character John Forrester, had died. He was 86.
June 4, 2020
Character actress Mary Pat Gleason, who both acted on and wrote for Guiding Light in the 1980s, has died.
June 10, 2020
Actress Melinda O. Fee, known to daytime fans for roles like Days of our Lives' Mary Marshall and Guiding Light's Charlotte Bauer, has passed away. She was 77.
June 30, 2020
Linda Cristal, an Argentine-born actress who played General Hospital character Dimitra Antoinelle in the late 80s, has died. She was 89.
July 6, 2020
Maximilian B. Bryer, who directed episodes of the soap operas As the World Turns and The Edge of Night, has passed away. He was 98.
July 20, 2020
Beloved actress Chrishell Stause (ex-Jordan Ridgeway, Days of our Lives; ex-Amanda Dillon, All My Children) is mourning the loss of her mother, who passed away from lung cancer just one year after her father died of the same disease.
July 27, 2020
Iconic talk show and game show host Regis Phibin (ex-Malachy Malone, Ryan's Hope) passed away over the weekend, leading All My Children alums Kelly Ripa (ex-Hayley Santos) and Susan Lucci (ex-Erica Kane) to post heartfelt tributes.
July 30, 2020
Jacqueline Scott, an actress known for her roles in Charley Varrick, Planet of the Apes, and the first season of The Bold and the Beautiful (ex-Ruth Wilson), has died. She was 89.
August 4, 2020
Broadway star Patti Karr, who appeared on All My Children, Ryan's Hope, and Guiding Light, has passed away. She was 88.
August 28, 2020
Actor Marcus Smythe (ex-Gordon Middleton, Guiding Light; ex-Peter Love, Another World; ex-Dean Eldridge, Port Charles) has passed away. The Ohio native was 70.
September 1, 2020
Michael B. Jordan remembers Chadwick Boseman, his Black Panther costar with whom he says he is "forever linked," beginning with both having played All My Children character Reginald Porter.
September 7, 2020
Soap alum Kevin Dobson (ex-Mack MacKenzie, Knots Landing; ex-Mickey Horton, Days of our Lives; ex-Judge Devin Owens, The Bold and the Beautiful) passed away over Labor Day weekend. He was 77.
November 11, 2020
Character actress Elsa Raven, who appeared on both General Hospital and Days of our Lives, has passed away. The South Carolina native was 91.
November 26, 2020
Emmy-winning graphic artist and title designer Sandy Dvore, who created the iconic brush-stroke logo for The Young and the Restless, has died. He was 86.
December 1, 2020
Abby Dalton, known to soap fans as Julia Cumson on Falcon Crest and Lydia Summers on The Young and the Restless, has died. The Nevada native was 88.
December 7, 2020
David Lander, known for his roles on series like Laverne & Shirley and The Bold and the Beautiful (ex-Dr. Martin Guthrie), has passed away. He was 73.
December 9, 2020
Actress Marguerite Ray (ex-Mamie Johnson, The Young and the Restless) has passed away. The New Orleans native was 89.
December 9, 2020
Peg Murray, a Tony Award-winning actress who spent thirteen years playing the recurring All My Children character Olga Swenson, has died. She was 96 years old.
December 28, 2020
After Forever writer Michael Slade -- whose soap credits include One Life to Live, Days of our Lives, Passions, and Another World -- passed away after a battle with cancer.
December 30, 2020
Gilligan's Island actress Dawn Wells, who played The Bold and the Beautiful's Alice in 2016, has died of causes related to COVID-19.
Which of these soap opera deaths hit you the hardest? How do you normally deal with the death of a beloved celebrity? 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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