Don Hastings American actor Date of Birth: 01.04.1934 Country: USA

Biography of Don Hastings

Don Hastings is an American actor, singer, and writer, best known for his role as Dr. Robert 'Bob' Hughes in the soap opera "As the World Turns". He was born in Brooklyn, New York, and began working in radio at the age of six as part of the choral group "Bus Bunny" in the series "Coast to Coast on a Bus".

From 1944 to 1948, Hastings appeared in four Broadway productions. In the period from 1949 to 1955, he played a role in the television series "Captain Video and His Video Rangers", portraying one of the first television superheroes aimed at children. From 1956 to 1960, Hastings played Jack Lane in the soap opera "The Edge of Night".

In October 1960, Hastings first played the character of Bob Hughes in "As the World Turns". He continued to portray this role until the final episode of the show aired on September 17, 2010. Hastings delivered the last line of the series, saying "Goodnight!", which echoed the first line ever spoken on the show by Helen Wagner, "Good morning, dear".

Hastings currently holds the fourth position on the list of actors who have portrayed the longest-running characters on international television. He is surpassed by Helen Wagner, William Roache, and Philip Lowrie. Prior to November 2010, Hastings held the first place on the list of the most long-standing regular actors in television series. However, he was surpassed by William Roache, who plays Ken Barlow in "Coronation Street". Roache began portraying Barlow two months after Hastings landed the role of Hughes, and neither actor had any breaks in filming.

In addition to his acting career, Hastings also wrote scripts and dialogues for both "As the World Turns" and another well-known soap opera, "The Guiding Light". He signed his scripts with the pseudonym "J.J.Matthew".

Currently, Don Hastings resides in New York with his second wife, actress Leslie Denniston. He has a daughter named Kate from his second marriage, in addition to two daughters and a son from his first marriage.