"You were one of the most beautiful humans I ever knew," wrote Jennifer Aniston.
John Aniston, an award-winning soap opera star, and Jeniffer Aniston's father passed away, at the age of 89, on Monday morning. Jennifer paid a tribute to her father in an Instagram post. "Sweet papa… John Anthony Aniston, You were one of the most beautiful humans I ever knew. I am so grateful that you went soaring into the heavens in peace - and without pain. And on 11/11 no less! You always had perfect timing. That number will forever hold an even greater meaning for me now 🕊️I’ll love you till the end of time💔 Don’t forget to visit 💫🤗❤️," she wrote.
He was best known for his role as Victor Kiriakis on Days of Our Lives. He starred in it since 1985. In June, after 52 years of the show, he received a Daytime Emmy lifetime achievement award. Jennifer had appeared virtually to speak about her father's achievements. She said, “This is truly a special moment for me,” she said. “It’s an opportunity to not only pay tribute to a true icon in the daytime television world, but it’s also a chance to recognize the lifelong achievements of a great and well-respected actor, who also happens to be my dad,” as reported by Independent.
He was born in Greece and before his TV career began, he worked in several theatre productions, according to TMZ. In 1959 he got a guest spot on the CBS cop show Brenner and started a 14-month stint playing a Native American, Chief Brown Bear, in the comic off-Broadway musical Little Mary Sunshine. His successful career began in 1962. Other than Days of Our Lives, he acted in Search For Tomorrow, Star Trek: Voyager, The West Wing, Gilmore Girls, Kojak, and Mad Men. Talking about fame that comes from Television shows, John said, “Soap operas have just the right amount of recognition. You get just enough to satisfy your ego but not enough to disrupt your life,” he said. “Whereas some people, my daughter being one of them, can’t go anywhere,” in an interview with Adrienne Faillace.
He was best friends with Kojak actor Telly Savalas and also made him Jennifer's godfather. John married American actor Nancy Dow in 1965, and they had two children: Jennifer and Alex. They divorced in 1980 and he went on to marry Sherry Rooney later. He had once asked his daughter Jennifer to stay out of show business because "it stinks." “I tell everybody who wants to be an actor, ‘Don’t be an actor, be something else.’ Because if my telling them to stay out of show business is going to keep them out, they shouldn’t be in it in the first place," said John. But he knew that Jennifer would make it. "I knew right from the beginning when Jennifer started auditioning for things because she always got called back,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
References:
https://news.yahoo.com/john-aniston-death-jennifer-aniston-145253217.html
https://www.tmz.com/2022/11/14/jennifer-aniston-father-dad-john-aniston-dead-dies-days-of-our-lives/
https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/interviews/john-aniston?clip=103074#interview-clips
Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Photo by Frazer Harrison
