Wally Kurth

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Wally Kurth
Born
Wallace Kurth

(1958-07-31) July 31, 1958 (age 65)
Billings, Montana, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active1987–present
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1990⁠–⁠1993)​
​
(m. 1995⁠–⁠1997)​
Debra Yuhasz
​
(m. 2003)​
Children3

Wallace "Wally" Kurth (born July 31, 1958) is an American actor, best known for his roles as Justin Kiriakis on Days of Our Lives and Ned Quartermaine on General Hospital.

He is also a guitarist and vocalist for the musical groups Kurth and Taylor and The Day Players Band.

Early Life[edit]

Kurth was born and raised in Billings, Montana. He is the youngest of five children.[1] His father was a lawyer and his mother ran a cattle company, inherited from his grandfather.[2]

He became interested in acting at 10 years old, when he saw the film Oliver! A year later, he won the role of The Artful Dodger in a local production.[2]

He attended Loretto Heights College in Denver, Colorado and UCLA, where he received a bachelor's degree in 1985.[2][1]

Career[edit]

He played The Pirate King in The Pirates of Penzance on Broadway, debuting January 8, 1981 at the Uris Theatre.[3] He had previously played the role in a touring production of the musical.[2]

Kurth joined the cast of Days of Our Lives, playing Justin Kiriakis from 1987-1991. After leaving Days due to lack of storyline, he began playing Ned Quartermaine (then Ashton) on General Hospital in 1991.[4]

His television work includes a guest starring role on Oh, Grow Up and the TV movie, The Stepsister. He has appeared in the films Final Embrace, I Love You, Don't Touch Me!, and Amy's Orgasm.[1]

From 2004-2007, he hosted a SOAPnet series, 1 Day With..., where he would spend the day with a fellow soap star, including many of his GH castmates.[5]

He was taken off contract at General Hospital in February 2005, but continued to air on a recurring basis until July 2007.[6][5] In late 2007 and early 2008, he appeared on As the World Turns as Sam Hutchins.[5][1]

In June 2009, he announced that he would be returning to Days of Our Lives as Justin Kiriakis.[5]

Kurth made guest-starring appearances on Law & Order: LA in 2011 and Hot in Cleveland in 2015.[7][8]

He returned to General Hospital as Ned Quartermaine in 2014 and since 2020, continues to appear on both GH and Days of Our Lives.[9][10][11]

He is the lead vocalist and guitarist for the band Kurth and Taylor. The group has performed on and produced songs for General Hospital.[1] Kurth is also a vocalist and guitarist in the Day Players Band, a music group formed with his Days of Our Lives castmates Brandon Barash, Carson Boatman, and Eric Martsolf.[12]

In 2020, he starred in the independent film More Beautiful for Having Been Broken.[13]

Personal life[edit]

Kurth has been married to Debra Yuhasz since 2003. They have one child: Brogan George (b. November 14, 2004).[1]

Kurth was previously married to Cynthia Ettinger and Rena Sofer. Kurth and Sofer share one child: Rosabel Rosalind (b. September 17, 1996). Kurth also has a child from a previous relationship: Meghann Sidney (b. October 29, 1985).[1]

Filmography[edit]

List of acting roles
Year Title Role Notes
1987–1991, 2009–present Days of Our Lives Justin Kiriakis Recurring role
1991–2007, 2012–present General Hospital Ned Quartermaine Recurring role
1992 Final Embrace Devon Film
1994 Pom Poko Tamasaburo Voice
1997 I Love You, Don't Touch Me![14] David Barclay Film
The Stepsister Man Holding Baby Television film, uncredited
1999 Oh, Grow Up Lewis Morris Jr. Episode: "Clods and Monsters"
2001 Amy's Orgasm Beautiful Guy Film
2004 Higglytown Heroes Eye Doctor Hero Voice, episode: "Star Struck"
2007–2008 As the World Turns Sam Hutchins Recurring role
2010–2013 Generator Rex Agent Six, Captain Callan Voice, main role
2011 Law & Order: LA Gordon Ralston Episode: "Zuma Canyon"
2013 Hot in Cleveland Mark Episode: "Pony Up"

Awards and nominations[edit]

List of acting awards and nominations
Year Award Category Title Result Ref.
2018
 Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series General Hospital Nominated
[15]
2020
 Days of Our Lives Nominated
[16]
2021
 Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series Nominated
[17]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Wally Kurth Bio". Soap Opera Digest. Archived from the original on August 20, 2011. Retrieved August 6, 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d Byron, Ellen (March 3, 1992). "Dances with Quartermaines". Soap Opera Digest. 17 (5): 66–70.
  3. ^ "Broadway Roles: Wally Kurth". Playbill. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  4. ^ "About the Actors". Soap Central. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d Kroll, Dan J. (June 16, 2009). "Wallace Kurth set to reprise role as Justin Kiriakis". Soap Central. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  6. ^ Kroll, Dan J. (February 17, 2005). "Wallace Kurth taken off contract". Soap Central. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  7. ^ "Wally Kurth in Prime-Time". Soap Opera Digest. April 11, 2011. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  8. ^ Bowe, Jillian (March 17, 2015). "General Hospital and Days of Our Lives' Star Wally Kurth Gets 'Hot In Cleveland'". Daytime Confidential. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  9. ^ Kroll, Dan J. (March 12, 2014). "Wallace Kurth returning to Port Charles". Soap Central. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  10. ^ Kroll, Dan J. (March 5, 2020). "Wallace Kurth clarifies status at Days of Our Lives". Soap Central. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  11. ^ Clifford, Kambra (March 13, 2020). "Wally Kurth chats juggling his General Hospital and Days of our Lives roles". Soapcentral.com. United States. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  12. ^ Lewis, Errol (November 16, 2023). "The Day Players Band Announce 2024 Tour Dates with Performances in Florida, Illinois and Michigan". Soap Opera Network. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  13. ^ SOD (May 8, 2020). "Wally Kurth In New Film". Soap Opera Digest. United States: American Media, Inc. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  14. ^ "I Love You...Don't Touch Me!". TVGuide.com. Retrieved 2022-11-04.
  15. ^ "The 45th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards Nominations" (PDF). New York: emmyonline.org and National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. 2018. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  16. ^ Rice, Lynette (May 21, 2020). "General Hospital, Days of Our Lives lead 2020 Daytime Emmy nominations". Entertainment Weekly. United States: Meredith Corporation. Archived from the original on May 21, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  17. ^ "The 48th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards Nominations". New York: emmyonline.org and National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. 2020. Retrieved May 25, 2020.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wally_Kurth&oldid=1221004935"