Veteran actor John Aniston, known for his work on the popular soap opera Days of Our Lives, died at the age of 89 on Friday, November 11. It was his daughter, the actress Jennifer Aniston, 53, who confirmed the news this Monday with an emotional publication on her social networks. “You were one of the most beautiful human beings I have ever met,” wrote the interpreter who also rose to fame thanks to television and her role in the Friends series. “I am so thankful that you went to heaven in peace and without pain. And nothing less than 11 of 11. You were always very opportune. That number will forever have even greater meaning to me now. I will love you until the end of time ”, followed a message that she has accompanied with several photos with her father.
Born on July 24, 1933 in Crete (Greece), John Aniston is known for playing Victor Kiriakis in the successful soap opera Days of Our Lives, which has been broadcast for three decades without interruption on the American network NBC. His work earned him a Lifetime Achievement Emmy earlier this year. Already then he could not attend the delivery gala or leave a message of thanks.
It was his daughter who accepted the award on his behalf in a video in which he highlighted the career of his father, who has participated in other successful series such as Kojak, Mad Men, The West Wing of the White House or Gilmore Girls. “This is an opportunity to not only pay tribute to a true icon in the world of television, but also to recognize the lifetime achievements of a great actor, who is also my father,” he said then.
Just three hours after posting her emotional farewell (which ends with a “don’t forget to visit me”), Aniston’s post, a carousel of five photos with her father, racked up more than 1.8 million likes. In addition, the actress has received messages of support from public figures such as her ex-husband, actor Justin Theroux, or actresses Kaley Cuoco, Naomi Watts and Reese Witherspoon — who played her sister in Friends and have met again in The Morning Show, of which the third season is being shot.
Jennifer Aniston had a very special relationship with her father, something she has talked about over the years. Precisely, a few days ago the actress was in the news for an interview in Allure magazine, in which she, among other things, spoke openly about her relationship with her parents. “I think the divorce upset my mother a lot,” Aniston explained about the separation of her parents, in 1980, after 15 years of marriage. “In that generation it was not said: ‘Go to therapy, talk to someone. Why don’t you start microdosing?’ You go through life and you pick up your son with tears streaming down your face and you don’t have any help.”
Aniston was estranged from her mother for years and, although the same did not happen with her father, that divorce was a traumatic stage that strained family relationships and encouraged her to emancipate. “My house was not a fun house to live in,” she said in the recent interview about her family’s New York apartment. “I was delighted to get out of there.” Of course, the interpreter spoke of all these problems in the past tense and with a positive attitude: “I forgave my mother. I forgave my father. I have forgiven my family.”
In this interview, she also spoke openly about her desire to be a mother and how she dealt with the continuous pregnancy rumors that plagued her for years. “All those years and years of speculation were really difficult,” explained the actress. “I was undergoing IVF, drinking Chinese teas, doing whatever, I was trying everything…I would have given anything if someone had said to me, ‘Freeze your eggs. Do yourself a favour.’ But you just don’t think so. So here I am. The ship has sailed ”, Aniston recounted about the fight that she has had for decades against infertility.
