‘General Hospital’ Pays Tribute to Late Star Jay Pickett, How Fans Can Attend Funeral Virtually
Soap Opera star Jay Pickett, who played Detective David Harper on General Hospital, died on July 30 at the age of 60. At the end of the Aug. 17 episode, the show paid tribute to the late actor. Here’s how Pickett was celebrated by his former co-stars, how fans can tune into his service, and the work Pickett loved to do up until his last day.
How ‘General Hospital’ said goodbye to Jay Pickett
As the Aug. 17 episode of General Hospital came to a close, the words “In Loving Memory of Jay Pickett” and a photo of Pickett showed on the screen.
Pickett played the part of Detective David Harper on the show from 2006 to 2008. His main role was to investigate the Corinthos-Zacchara mob war.
But General Hospital was not the only soap opera Pickett starred in. He was also featured in Days of Our Lives as Dr. Chip Lakin, and Port Charles as paramedic Frank Scanlon.
With the news of Pickett’s death, friends and former co-stars reached out from all over to share kind words about the actor.
“The sudden passing of my pal Jay Pickett Is very sad,” tweeted Kin Shriner, who played Scott Baldwin on General Hospital. “He loved acting and Westerns, and when we got together we laughed a lot.”
“This is one of the most difficult posts I’ve done,” Port Charles actor Marie Wilson wrote on Instagram. “My heart is broken to hear that this incredible person has passed. Words cannot describe how much you touched my life….your friendship, advice, and support made me feel so grateful and lucky. My first day on the set was with us having a water fight ….and the fun adventures continued from there. So happy to have shared all those moments with you. I will miss you my friend.”
Jay Pickett’s funeral
Pickett died of an apparent heart attack, according to Deadline, while riding a horse in a scene for the movie Treasure Valley. He was 60 years old.
A celebration of Pickett’s life will be held at the Nampa Civic Center in Nampa, Idaho on Aug. 20. Anyone can tune into a livestream of the memorial on the Nampa Funeral Home website at 4:45 p.m. EST.
Jay Pickett’s work in ‘Treasure Valley’
As Shriner wrote in his tweet, Pickett loved Westerns.
According to USA Today, the actor was not just starring in Treasure Valley. He was also producing and wrote the screenplay.
The film’s director, Travis Mills, took to the film’s official Facebook page to write about Pickett and the work he’d done on Treasure Valley.
Many of you have already heard about the tragedy that happened two days ago. Jay Pickett, our leading man, writer, producer, and creator of this movie passed away suddenly while we were on location preparing to film a scene. There is no official explanation for the cause of his death but it appears to have been a heart attack. Everyone present tried as hard as they could to keep him alive. Our hearts are broken and we grieve for his family who are so devastated by this shocking tragedy.
As so many of us know, Jay was an incredible man. He was kind, sweet, and generous. He was one of the best actors I ever worked with and it was an honor to collaborate with him. Everyone who met him, even for the briefest moment, could feel his warmth, his wonderful spirit. It is difficult to find the words right now to say more. His closest friends have said that he was very happy making Treasure Valley and my hope is that he truly was.
He was doing what he loved: acting, riding horses, making movies. And he was magnificent.
