Days of our Lives star Drake Hogestyn has died at the age of 70

Executive producer Ken Corday adds: “This is a very difficult issue for all of us. Hogey was the ultimate team player and there are not enough words to express how deeply he will be missed. His impact on our show, both personally and professionally, was profound and will forever remain unparalleled.”

Donald Drake Hogestyn was born on September 29, 1953 in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and attended North Side High School. He continued his education at the University of South Florida in Tampa, where he attended school on a baseball scholarship. He studied pre-dental medicine with a double major in microbiology and applied sciences.

The athlete was drafted by both the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Yankees. Hogestyn played third base on the Yankees’ farm team until he was injured in 1977. In terms of acting, Hogestyn competed in a Columbia Pictures talent contest involving 75,000 individuals; he was among the 30 contenders selected. His first major role was in the late night drama Seven brides for seven brothers.

In 1986, the actor joined DAYS as the enigmatic John Black, a man who has faced more mystery surrounding his origins than any other character on soap operas. Initially, John was referred to as ‘The Pawn’, a story that was recently explored.

Ultimately, the pawn was revealed to be the presumed dead Roman Brady (Wayne Northrup). He and Marlena were reunited and remarried in a gala ceremony. In 1991, Northrup returned to the show and it was revealed that Hogestyn’s character was not that of Shawn (Frank Parker) and Caroline (Peggy McCay). When Marlena found out he wasn’t really ‘Roman’, he went back to calling himself John.

Whatever challenge existed between John and Marlena, their portrayers played their obstacles as a love story. Whether battling Kristen (then Eileen Davidson; now Stacy Haiduk), Andre DiMera (Thaao Penghlis), Stefano (Joe Mascolo), or the mistaken belief that Marlena was a murderer (she wasn’t), John’s love for Marlena – and hers before him – never hesitated. The two have never stopped loving each other or failed to show that love.

John and Marlena tried to fight their feelings for each other. Despite Roman’s return, Marlena was attracted to John. They made love while she was married to Roman, and their daughter, Belle (Martha Madison), was conceived. In the mid-1990s, John and Marlena were kept apart by the machinations of Kristen and Satan! John’s previous life as a priest came in handy when a possessed Marlena began floating and had to be exorcised.

In 1999, free from both Kristen and Satan, John and Marlena married again, but soon faced a host of challenges, including Princess Gina and the Salem serial killer. John was murdered in 2007 but was later revived. Both Hogestyn and Hall left DAYS the following year and returned in the fall of 2011.

“I think audiences who have been watching for a while know that romance doesn’t die after 45 years,” Hogestyn said Soap Hub in 2022, as the show prepared to switch from NBC to streaming platform Peacock. “There’s still a love of romance there, in a more mature way and in a deeper way. Snow on the roof, fire in the oven. It is the bond of two people. It’s what people want to see.”

Hogestyn’s other acting credits include Criminal minds and the TV movie Christmas Tree Avenue.

Drake Hogestyn is survived by his wife/high school sweetheart Victoria and their four children, Whitney, Alexandra, Rachael and Ben (ex-Lucas, General Hospital), and four grandchildren. While DAYS jumps ahead several months, viewers can expect to see Hogestyn on screen for a while longer.

Soap Hub extends its sincere condolences to Hogestyn’s family, everyone at DAYS and the actor’s loved ones during this difficult time.