General Hospital star Tristan Rogers has died at the age of 79, his manager Meryl Soodak has confirmed in an emotional statement

Tristan Rogers has died at the age of 79, his manager confirmed in a sad statement. The General Hospital actor’s death comes just weeks after a statement revealed he had been diagnosed with lung cancer.

His manager Meryl Soodak said: “He loved being [Robert] Scorpio and he created that role from nothing [on General Hospital]. He was supposed to work a day and he ended up making it into something huge. He was just a genuinely loyal, kind human being and he loved his family.”

Speaking to ABC7, Soodak said the actor passed away Friday morning after a being diagnosed with lung cancer. He also noted that Rogers had never been a smoker.

Tristan Rogers has died following a lung cancer diagnosis
Just weeks earlier, Tristan’s friend and publicist, Anthony Turk, shared a press release to reveal the sad news of his cancer diagnosis. It read: “‘Beloved Emmy-winning actor Tristan Rogers, best known for his role as Robert Scorpio on the daytime drama, General Hospital, is sharing with fans that he has been diagnosed with cancer.

“While he remains hopeful and is working closely with his medical team on a treatment plan, this is a challenging time for Tristan and his family.”

He went on to request “privacy and understanding” and added the family was facing “emotional and physical burdens that come with this diagnosis”.

Anthony concluded: “‘They are deeply grateful for the outpouring of support and love from their friends and family. Tristan sends his love to his fans and wants them to know how much he appreciates their loyalty and encouragement over the years. This support means more to him now than ever.”

Tristan Rogers on General Hospital as Scorpio ( 
Image:
ABC via Getty Images)
Fans of Tristan were also quick to share messages of condolence online following the sad news. Jon Lindstrom said on Twitter/X: “I know the sadness I feel at this news is shared by so many of you. #TristanRogers was one of the coolest, funniest people I ever met.

Whenever we were together, which wasn’t nearly often enough, we never missed a chance to try to crack the other one up. I wish I’d had more of those chances. R.I.P”

Tristan had been a part of the stateside soap since 1980. He had taken a step back in recent years, but did reprise his role last year. His final time on air on the show came on November 12 last year.

As well as appearing in General Hospital, Tristan had other big roles on soaps in the US. He featured in Young and Restless as Colin Atkinson, while he also starred as Hunter Jones on Bold and Beautiful.

Other credits to his name came in the likes of Walt Disney Pictures’ The Rescuers Down Under, where he was the voice of Jake. And he also starred in Four Dimensions of Greta in 1972, The Flesh and Blood Show in the same year and Sex Farm from the following year.

He had been married to Teresa Parkerson since 1995, with the duo sharing daughter, Sara Jane, 32, and son, Cale, 29.