Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
by andrewjocunning | created - 27 May 2021 | updated - 4 months ago | PublicMost Wins 1. Anthony Geary = 8 wins 2. David Canary = 5 wins 3. Maurice Benard, Peter Bergman and Christian Le Blanc = 3 wins 4. Larry Bryggman, Macdonald Carey, Justin Deas, Michael Park and Douglass Watson = 2 wins
1. Thorsten Kaye
Actor | All My Children
Thorsten moved to the US in 1985 on a track (decathlon) scholarship to the United States International University in San Diego. Although Thorsten majored in physical education (and minored in drama), a serious motorcycle accident forced him to choose a different direction. He played soccer for a ...
2023: The Bold and the Beautiful
2. John McCook
Actor | The Bold and the Beautiful
John McCook was born on June 20, 1944 in Ventura, California, USA. He is an actor, known for The Bold and the Beautiful (1987), The Young and the Restless (1973) and Magnum, P.I. (1980). He has been married to Laurette Spang since February 16, 1980. They have three children. He was previously ...
2022: The Bold and the Beautiful
3. Maurice Benard
Actor | General Hospital
Daytime Emmy Award winning Actor Maurice Benard joined the cast of General Hospital in the role of Sonny Corinthos in August 1993. He briefly left the show for a year-long hiatus in December 1998. For his portrayal, Mr. Benard received the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in 2003. He was also ...
2021: General Hospital 2019: General Hospital 2003: General Hospital
4. Jason Thompson
Actor | General Hospital
Jason Thompson was born on November 15, 1976 in Alberta, Canada. He is an actor, known for General Hospital (1963), The Young and the Restless (1973) and General Hospital: Night Shift (2007). He has been married to Paloma Jonas since April 5, 2015. They have two children.
2020: The Young and the Restless
5. James Reynolds
Actor | Days of Our Lives
James Reynolds was born on August 10, 1946 in Oskaloosa, Kansas, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Days of Our Lives (1965), Dying to Learn (2022) and Generations (1989). He has been married to Lissa Layng since December 21, 1986. They have two children. He was previously married to Laura...
2018: Days of Our Lives
6. Scott Clifton
Actor | General Hospital
Scott Clifton was nominated for 5 Daytime Emmys. Three for his work as Dillon Quartermaine on ABC's General Hospital, one for his work as Schuyler Joplin on ABC's One Life to Live, and one for his work as Liam Cooper on CBS' The Bold and the Beautiful. Scott was born on Halloween .
2017: The Bold and the Beautiful
7. Tyler Christopher
Actor | General Hospital
Tyler Christopher was born on November 11, 1972 in Joliet, Illinois, USA. He was an actor, known for General Hospital (1963), Shouting Secrets (2011) and Into the West (2005). He was married to Brienne Pedigo and Eva Longoria. He died on October 31, 2023 in San Diego, California, USA.
2016: General Hospital
8. Anthony Geary
Actor | General Hospital
Mr. Geary has come a long way from Coalville, Utah, the small mountain community of 800 where he was born. Tony was a gifted student, attending the University of Utah as a Presidential Award Scholar in theater. Jack Albertson saw Tony perform there, a nd cast him in "The Subject Was Roses." The ...
2015: General Hospital 2012: General Hospital 2008: General Hospital 2006: General Hospital 2004: General Hospital 2000: General Hospital 1999: General Hospital 1982: General Hospital
9. Billy Miller
Actor | The Young and the Restless
Billy Miller was born on September 17, 1979 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for The Young and the Restless (1973), General Hospital (1963) and American Sniper (2014). He died on September 15, 2023 in Austin, Texas, USA.
2014: The Young and the Restless
10. Doug Davidson
Actor | The Young and the Restless
Doug Davidson was born on October 24, 1954 in Glendale, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Young and the Restless (1973), I'll Take Manhattan (1987) and Season of Rage. He has been married to Cindy Fisher since May 27, 1984. They have two children.
2013: The Young and the Restless
11. Michael Park
Actor | As the World Turns
Michael Park was born on July 20, 1968 in New York, USA. He is an actor, known for As the World Turns (1956), Stranger Things (2016) and Gotham the Series (2009). He has been married to Laurie Nowak since January 6, 1996. They have three children.
2011: As the World Turns 2010: As the World Turns
12. Christian Jules Le Blanc
Actor | In the Heat of the Night
Christian Jules Le Blanc was born on August 25, 1958 in North Carolina, USA. He is the son of Major Andre Victor Le Blanc (a veteran) and Alice Le Blanc. He grew up in a large family, being the second eldest of eight children. As a teen, he attended Jesuit High School and later went on to receive a...
2009: The Young and the Restless 2007: The Young and the Restless 2005: The Young and the Restless
13. Peter Bergman
Actor | The Young and the Restless
Peter Bergman was born on June 11, 1953 in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He is an actor, known for The Young and the Restless (1973), All My Children (1970) and The Bold and the Beautiful (1987). He has been married to Mariellen Bergman since 1985. They have two children. He was previously married to ...
2002: The Young and the Restless 1992: The Young and the Restless 1991: The Young and the Restless
14. David Canary
Actor | All My Children
David Canary was born on August 25, 1938 in Elwood, Indiana, USA. He was an actor, known for All My Children (1970), One Life to Live (1968) and Hombre (1967). He was married to Maureen Maloney and Julie M. Anderson. He died on November 16, 2015 in Wilton, Connecticut, USA.
2001: All My Children 1993: All My Children 1989: All My Children 1988: All My Children 1986: All My Children
15. Eric Braeden
Actor | The Young and the Restless
Eric Braeden is a German actor in America who began his career playing Nazis and eventually became a star of daytime soap operas. Born Hans Gudegast in Kiel, Germany, during the Second World War, he was a superb athlete who excelled in track-and-field events. As a teenager, he immigrated to the ...
1998: The Young and the Restless
16. Justin Deas
Actor | Santa Barbara
Justin Deas was born on March 30, 1948 in Connellsville, Pennsylvania, USA. He is an actor, known for Santa Barbara (1984), Guiding Light (1952) and As the World Turns (1956). He has been married to Margaret Colin since January 23, 1988. They have two children. He was previously married to Jody ...
1997: Guiding Light 1995: Guiding Light
17. Charles Keating
Actor | Another World
Charles Keating was born on October 22, 1941 in London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Another World (1964), The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) and The Bodyguard (1992). He was married to Mary Ellen Cudbody. He died on August 8, 2014 in Weston, Connecticut, USA.
1996: Another World
18. Michael Zaslow
Actor | The Guiding Light
Michael Zaslow was born on November 1, 1942 in Inglewood, California and was an actor and writer, best known for his work in daytime dramas, or soap operas. He was married twice, to Joanne Dorian and Susan Hufford, by whom he had two daughters, Helena and Marika. He died on December 6, 1998 in New ...
1994: Guiding Light
19. A Martinez
Actor | Longmire
A Martinez was born in Glendale, California, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Longmire (2012), Dark Winds (2022) and Avatar: The Last Airbender (2024). He has been married to Leslie Bryans since July 17, 1982. They have three children. He was previously married to Mare Winningham.
1990: Santa Barbara
20. Larry Bryggman
Actor | Die Hard with a Vengeance
Larry Bryggman was born on December 21, 1938 in Concord, California, USA. He is an actor, known for Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995), Spy Game (2001) and As the World Turns (1956). He has been married to Tracey Hanley Bryggman since 1999. They have two children. He was previously married to ...
1987: As the World Turns 1984: As the World Turns
21. Darnell Williams
Actor | All My Children
Darnell Williams was born on March 3, 1954 in London, England, UK. He is an actor and director, known for All My Children (1970), Short Cuts (1993) and S1m0ne (2002).
1985: All My Children 1982: All My Children
22. Robert S. Woods
Actor | One Life to Live
Robert S. Woods was born on March 13, 1948 in Maywood, California, USA. He is an actor, known for One Life to Live (1968), All My Children (1970) and Days of Our Lives (1965). He has been married to Loyita Chapel since 1985. They have two children.
1983: One Life to Live
23. Douglass Watson
Actor | Another World
Douglass Watson was born on February 24, 1921 in Jackson, Georgia, USA. He was an actor, known for Another World (1964), Julius Caesar (1953) and The Money Pit (1986). He was married to Eugenia Laring-Clark. He died on May 1, 1989 in Arizona, USA.
1981: Another World 1980: Another World
24. Al Freeman Jr.
Actor | Malcolm X
Al Freeman, Jr. was an actor and director who was the first African American to win a Daytime Emmy Award for acting. His most famous role was that of Police Captain Ed Hall in the soap opera One Life to Live (1968), which brought him the Emmy in 1979. He was a regular on the soap from 1972 through ...
1979: One Life to Live
25. James Pritchett
Actor | The Doctors
James Pritchett was born on October 27, 1922 in Lenoir, North Carolina, USA. He was an actor, known for The Doctors (1963), Night of the Comet (1984) and ABC Afterschool Specials (1972). He was married to Cynthia Arnold. He died on March 15, 2011 in New York City, New York, USA.
1978: The Doctors
26. Val Dufour
Actor | Search for Tomorrow
Val Dufour was born on February 5, 1927 in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. He was an actor, known for Search for Tomorrow (1951), The Undead (1957) and The Adventures of Jim Bowie (1956). He died on July 27, 2000 in Manhattan, New York, USA.
1977: Search for Tomorrow
27. Larry Haines
Actor | The Odd Couple
Appeared in scores of programs from radio's "Golden Age", such as "Suspense", the "Shadow", "Inner Sanctum Mysteries", and "X Minus One". Mr. Haines also starred in a short-lived series of 1953, "That Hammer Guy", in which he played the character created by Mickey Spillane, "Mike Hammer". He was on...
1976: Search for Tomorrow
28. Macdonald Carey
Actor | Shadow of a Doubt
American film and television actor MacDonald Carey became famous for his role as Dr. Tom Horton on NBC's soap opera Days of Our Lives (1965). For three decades he was the centered cast member of the show.
His film career was from the 1940s-'60s, and he appeared mostly in second-features (aka "B" ...
1975: Days of Our Lives 1974: Days of Our Lives
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