Nicolas Coster, Santa Barbara and All My Children actor, dies at 89
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Nicolas Coster, the soap opera star best known as wealthy patriarch Lionel Lockridge on NBC's Santa Barbara, has died. He was 89.
The actor passed away on Monday from complications of MDS (myelodysplastic syndromes) following a long battle with cancer, EW has confirmed. His wife, Yelena Coster, stayed by his side throughout his illness. His daughter, Dinneen Coster, announced the news on Facebook.
"There is great sadness in my heart this evening, my father actor Nicolas Coster has passed on in Florida at 9:01 pm in the hospital," she wrote. "Please be inspired by his artistic achievements and know he was a real actor's actor! I will remember him as always doing his best and being a great father. Rest In Peace."
A prolific character actor whose career spanned several decades, Coster starred in soaps such as Another World, As the World Turns, One Life to Live, and All My Children. He also made appearances in several popular primetime dramas, including Wonder Woman, Charlie's Angels, and Star Trek: The Next Generation. On film, he appeared in 1976's All the President's Men and 1981's Reds. In recent years, Coster played roles on Better Things, The Young Pope, The Last Exorcist, and The Deep Ones, which he also co-produced. In 2021, he published his memoir, Another Whole Afternoon.
ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images Nicolas Coster in 1984
Nicolas Dwynn Coster was born in London on Dec. 3, 1933, and raised in California. He got his start in the arts at 16 when he returned to England to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He later studied acting with Lee Strasberg, the "Father of Method Acting."
Coster made his big-screen debut in the 1950s with uncredited roles in Titanic, The Desert Rats, and Sea of Lost Ships. In the 70's, he starred alongside Sada Thompson in Twigs and with Michele Lee in the musical Seesaw. Coster's soap career began with the role of Robert Delaney in Somerset, which he later reprised in Another World. He briefly starred on One Life to Live before moving on to Santa Barbara. Coster received three Daytime Emmy nominations during his tenure as Lionel Lockridge and later won in 2017 for his turn as Mayor Jack Madison on Prime Video's The Bay.
On Tuesday, Coster's longtime Santa Barbara costar A Martinez shared a touching tribute on Facebook.
"It was an honor to work in a company with him, and I'll always hold his friendship and his sterling strengths as a professional close to heart," Martinez wrote. "Unsolicited one day, he gave me this profoundly useful advice: 'What you choose to do with a scene doesn't have to be the probable thing. You can choose any course imaginable –– no matter how unlikely –– as long as it's possible.'"
Martinez continued, "For 70 years, Mr. Coster practiced the art of acting with great vigor and distinction. There aren't many people in the history of the world who can match him in that regard."
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