John Aniston
ON SOAP OPERA DIGEST AND WEEKLY ONLINE
SOAP STAR STATS
John Aniston (Victor, DAYS)
Vital Statistics
- BIRTHDATE:
- July 24
- BIRTHPLACE:
- Crete, Greece
- STAR SIGN:
- Leo
- YEARS ON SHOW:
- 1987 to present
- MARITAL STATUS:
- Married to actress Sherry Rooney
THE 411
Born John Anastassakis on the island of Crete in Greece, John Aniston and his family emigrated to the United States when he was 10. His father promptly anglicized the family name, changing it to Aniston.
Aniston's love for performing led him to obtain a bachelor's degree in Theater Arts from Pennsylvania State University. Upon graduation, he served as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Navy. He was on active duty in Panama. Later, in the reserve, he attained the rank of lieutenant commander.
His acting career began on the New York stage, when Aniston appeared in the original production of the hit musical Little Mary Sunshine. Over the years, he appeared in many shows and regional and stock productions on and off Broadway.
Daytime fans were first introduced to Aniston in 1975, when he joined the cast of LOVE OF LIFE as Eddie Aleata. It was there that he met his future wife, actress Sherry Rooney. In 1978, he left LOL to play Mary Stuart's character Jo's new love interest, Martin Tourneur, on SEARCH FOR TOMORROW, a role he played until 1984. In 1987, he joined the cast of DAYS OF OUR LIVES as shady Greek mogul Victor Kiriakis.
Over the years, Aniston has guest-starred on a number of prime-time TV shows, including GILMORE GIRLS and THE WEST WING.
He currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife and their son, Alexander. Aniston, however, is perhaps best known as being the father of prime-time and film star Jennifer Aniston.
ET CETERA
Five Random Facts
—Speaks fluent Greek and Spanish.
—Was best friends with the late Telly Savalas, who was his daughter Jennifer's godfather.
—Was supposed to play the role of Ted Baxter on THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW before Ted Knight was found.
—Appeared on the first cover of Soap Opera Digest in November 1975.
—Originally auditioned for the role of DAYS's Doug Williams.
OTHER ROLES
TV Roles
WORST WEEK (Jim, 2008)
JOURNEYMAN (Merrit, 2007)
SANDS OF OBLIVION (Nigel, 2007)
AMERICAN DREAMS (John Victor, 2004)
MY BIG FAT GREEK LIFE (Constantine, 2003)
GILMORE GIRLS (Douglas, 2002)
THE WEST WING (Alexander, 2002)
STAR TREK: VOYAGER (Quarren Ambassador, 2001)
L.A. HEAT (Alex, 1999)
FIRED UP (Gordon, 1997)
DIAGNOSIS MURDER (Carlton, 1997)
AIRWOLF (Colonel Alzar, 1985)
SEARCH FOR TOMORROW (Martin, 1978-'84)
LOVE OF LIFE (Eddie, 1975-'78)
KOJAK (Albert, 1974)
THAT GIRL (Harvey, 1970)
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE (First IMF Captain, 1969)
NOW YOU SEE IT, NOW YOU DON'T (Achmed, 1968)
THE VIRGINIAN (Frank, 1968)
I SPY (Economides, 1967)
COMBAT! (Greek No. 2, 1964)
Film Roles
The Awakening of Spring (Mr. Gable, 2008)
The Gold and the Beautiful (Gerard, 2008)
Fixing Rhonda (Detective Macomas, 2008)
Order Up (Wise Man, 2007)
Now You See Him, Now You Don't (1972)
Love With the Proper Stranger (Birdman of Macy's, 1963)
LOOK WHO'S TALKING
"The age difference didn't bother me that much. I see that all the time with a lot of old farts that I know. All of them that can manage it." — on Nicole and Victor's May/December romance, Soap Opera Weekly, Jan. 15, 1992
"I haven't had a very successful acting career. I've only had three jobs in 25 years." — Soap Opera Digest, Sept. 9, 2000
"I've been good and I've been bad; bad is much better...it's just more interesting to play." — Weekly, Oct. 8, 1991
"It was quite apparent from the beginning that [Jennifer] was something special." — Weekly, April 10, 2007
