Susan Lucci

Susan Lucci married Austrian-born chef and food-service manager Helmut Huber in 1969. They remained married for 52 years, until Huber's death on March 28, 2022. They had two children, actress Liza Huber and Andreas Huber.

In late 2018, Lucci underwent an emergency procedure after doctors discovered severe blockages in her heart. Two arterial stents were placed after a CT scan revealed a 90 percent blockage in her main artery and a 70 percent blockage in another branch.

Lucci began her television career with small parts on Love Is a Many Splendored Thing and The Doctors, along with early film appearances in Goodbye, Columbus and Me, Natalie. In 1969, she auditioned for the new ABC soap opera All My Children and won the role of Erica Kane.

Lucci first appeared as Erica on January 16, 1970, and played the character for the show's entire network run. Erica developed from a spoiled teenager into a complex, career-driven figure, and the character's 1973 abortion storyline was one of the program's notable groundbreaking stories. In 1976, Erica married Tom Cudahy, played by Richard Shoberg, in a highly publicized story event.

Lucci's performance made Erica Kane an enduring daytime television figure. TV Guide called the character the most famous soap opera character in daytime television, while Lucci became known by nicknames including "Daytime's Leading Lady" and "The Queen of Daytime." She also appeared with Michael Knight during the show's run.

Lucci received 21 nominations for the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her work on All My Children. Her repeated losses became a long-running subject of television comedy and helped make her name shorthand for an artist who receives many award nominations without winning.

In 1999, after 19 nominations, Lucci won the award. She received a four-minute standing ovation and later hosted the 2000 Daytime Emmy Awards. In 2023, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 50th Daytime Emmy Awards.

Lucci expanded beyond daytime television with guest appearances on Fantasy Island, The Fall Guy, Dallas, Hot in Cleveland and Army Wives. She hosted Saturday Night Live in 1990 and later hosted and narrated the true-crime series Deadly Affairs from 2012 to 2014.

Her television films included Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna, Mafia Princess, Ebbie and Seduced and Betrayed. She also appeared in the films Invitation to Hell, The Bride in Black, Joy and Outcome. On stage, she played Annie Oakley in the 1999 Broadway revival of Annie Get Your Gun and replaced Bernadette Peters for several weeks.

From 2013 to 2016, Lucci starred as Geneviève Delatour in the Lifetime comedy-drama series Devious Maids. She also competed on season seven of Dancing with the Stars with Tony Dovolani, finishing sixth.

Lucci published the memoir All My Life: A Memoir in 2011. She also developed The Susan Lucci Collection, a line that includes hair-care products, perfumes, lingerie and skin-care products.

Her honors include a 2005 star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a 2015 Disney Legend designation, the NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame honor and the 2023 Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award.