John Aniston
John Aniston | |
|---|---|
 Aniston in February 2012 | |
| Born | Yiannis Antonios Anastasakis 24 July 1933 |
| Nationality | American / Greek |
| Alma mater | Pennsylvania State University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1962–present |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2, including Jennifer Aniston |
John Anthony Aniston (born Yiannis Antonios Anastasakis /ˌænəstəˈsækɪs/, Greek: Γιάννης Αντώνιος Αναστασάκης, 24 July 1933)[1] is a Greek-American actor. He is best known for his role as Victor Kiriakis on the NBC daytime drama series Days of Our Lives, which he originated in July 1985 and has played continually since then. He is the father of Jennifer Aniston.
Early life
Aniston was born Yiannis Anastasakis (Greek: Γιάννης Αναστασάκης) on the island of Crete, Greece, the son of Stella Joanne (October 1, 1899 – November 7, 1992) and Antonios Anastasakis (January 17, 1889 – May 1965), who hailed from the island of Crete. His father anglicized his name when he immigrated to the United States when Aniston was two, and his parents opened a restaurant in Chester, Pennsylvania.[2]
He 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.[3] 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.[1]
Personal life
Aniston has a daughter, Jennifer Aniston (born February 11, 1969), with his first wife, Nancy Dow, and also has a son, Alexander, with his second wife, Sherry Rooney Aniston (whom he met while co-starring on Love of Life).[4] His daughter Jennifer's godfather was Telly Savalas, one of his best friends.[5]
John also has a stepson, John T. Melick, from Nancy's prior marriage, that he has raised since he was a toddler.
Career
Aniston has appeared in soap operas regularly since 1969, when he first joined Days of Our Lives as a character named Eric Richards, which he played until 1970. In 1975, he joined the cast of Love of Life as Eddie Aleata. In November 1978, he left Love of Life and began playing Mary Stuart's new love interest, Martin Tourneur, on Search for Tomorrow in February 1979. He played that role 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 continues to play the role.[1] He has been nominated for the 2017 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his performance.[6]
He also played a small role on the television series Gilmore Girls. Aniston made guest appearances on Airwolf in season two, Combat!, My Big Fat Greek Life, Star Trek: Voyager, Mission: Impossible, American Dreams (with Days co-star Frances Reid), Journeyman, and Mad Men.[7]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | 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" |
| 1985–present | Days of Our Lives | Victor Kiriakis | 2677 episodes Nominated–Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series |
| 1993 | Night Sins | Victor Kiriakis | TV film |
| 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 | 2 episodes |
| 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" | |
| 2010 | Mad Men | Wallace Harriman | Episode: "Waldorf Stories" |
| 2011 | The Paul Reiser Show | Harold Melon | Episode: "The Old Guy" |
| 2014 | Return to Zero | Ned |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Title | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soap Opera Digest Award | Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role on a Daytime Serial | Days of Our Lives | Won | ||
| Soap Opera Digest Award | Outstanding Villain on a Daytime Serial | Days of our Lives | Won | ||
| Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Days of our Lives | Nominated |
References
- ^ a b c "John Aniston biography". BuddyTV. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ^ "John Aniston bio". Soap Opera Digest. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ^ http://www.nicindy.org/entertainers.html
- ^ "Profile of John Aniston". About.com. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ^ "Jennifer Aniston Biography". People. Retrieved May 21, 2008.
- ^ "2017 Daytime Emmy Nominations: CBS Leads Networks With 70 Noms, 'Young & Restless' Tops With 25". Deadline Hollywood. March 22, 2017.
- ^ "John Aniston on Mad Men". YouTube. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ^ a b "The Soap Opera Digest Awards: 1986". Soap Opera Digest. soapoperadigest.com. 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.
External links
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
- 1933 births
- 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
- Living people
- Penn State College of Arts and Architecture alumni
- Male actors from Crete
- Male actors from Pennsylvania
- United States Navy officers