Michael Levin, who played Jack Fenelli on the ABC soap opera “Ryan’s Hope,” died last week. He was 90.
Jason Levin told the Hollywood Reporter his father died Jan. 6 of natural causes at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco, Recent York.
Born Dec. 8, 1932, Levin appeared in greater than 1,000 episodes of “Ryan’s Hope,” including the pilot in 1975 and the finale in 1989.
The late actor was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series every 12 months from 1978 to 1980, and he has been hailed as certainly one of the highest 25 best soap opera actors of all time.
Along with his TV profession, Levin appeared on Broadway within the 1965 production of “The Royal Hunt of the Sun,” in addition to three plays in 1970, including “Camino Real” with Al Pacino.
While attending the University of Minnesota, Levin fell in love with acting at 22.Disney General Entertainment Con
The late actor starred in the favored soap “Ryan’s Hope” for 1,000-plus episodes.Disney General Entertainment Con
He reportedly served within the US Navy for 2 years and attended the University of Minnesota to change into a author.
In a 1978 interview with Rona Barrett’s Daytimers Magazine, Levin recalled his first experience in an acting class on the university. He said he was told to act like “slightly kid.” Despite being a “petrified” 22-year-old, he was “sold.”
“That was it right there,” he declared.
“I used to be very successful on the university,” he continued. They thought I used to be a diamond within the rough, they usually wanted me to remain to get my master’s degree, but I said no! I needed to get to Hollywood. I used to be going to be a star!”
He took acting classes with the likes of Jack Nicholson in California, in line with the Hollywood Reporter, which noted he returned to Minneapolis to perform on the recently-opened Guthrie Theater before flying the coop to Recent York.
It wasn’t until he landed the role of an Italian spokesman for Alitalia Airlines that he was solid as Jack, an Italian American reporter, on “Ryan’s Hope.” He also went on to seem in “Law & Order,” “Recent York News” and two other daytime soaps, “All My Children” and “Because the World Turns.”
Levin, right, also appeared in quite a lot of live performances at various theaters.Disney General Entertainment Con
“On this career, you don’t have loads of control over your individual life,” he told Daytimers Magazine. “It’s a silly thing to say, but when I had all of it to do yet again, and I could change anything I wanted to alter, I might pick a career where I could have slightly bit more control. Perhaps I’d be an architect or something like that.”
Levin, whose personal hobby was woodworking, is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, sons Jason and Aaron, and two grandchildren.
