Nicholas Pryor, ‘Risky Business’ and ‘Port Charles’ Actor, Dead at 89

Nicholas Pryor, best known for his roles on General Hospital spinoff Port Charles and Risky Business, has died. TVLine reports that the actor passed away on Oct. 7 at 89 while “surrounded by loving family.” A cause of death has not been revealed, but Pryor’s on-screen son Jon Lindstrom from Port Charles shared the news on Instagram, writing, “Nick may be best known for his role as the father of Tom Cruise in Risky Business, or as the same to Robert Downey Jr. in Less Than Zero. He shared the screen with the likes of Jack Nicholson [in Hoffa], Kurt Russell [in Executive Decision], Ewan McGregor [in Doctor Sleep]…. Too many to name really. He starred on Broadway and delivered terrific work in Film and TV for over 60 years. But to me, he was my friend. One of the best I’ve ever had.”

“He was a mentor, a sounding board, a trusted confidant, and even a father-figure beyond, yes, playing my own father on GH and Port Charles,” Lindstrom continued. “And he was one of the funniest people you could hope to spend time with over a bottle of good wine and a great meal. I will miss him terribly, as will his beautiful wife Christina, his daughter Stacey, and his two grandchildren, Gus and Avril.”

Pryor made his TV debut in the soap opera The Brighter Day in 1958 while he was studying at Yale. He also spent some time on Broadway in the late ‘50s, appearing in The Egghead, Love Me a Little, Howie, and The Highest Tree. He then began to take over the soap opera world, appearing on Young Dr. Malone in 1958, Another World in 1964, and All My Children in 1970, among others. He went on to appear in numerous projects on the big and small screens, including Night Drive, Hart to Hart, Airplane!, Eight Is Enough, Little House on the Prairie, Risky Business, One Life to Live, Dallas, Moonlighting, and L.A. Law.

From 1994 to 1997, Nicholas Pryor recurred as Chancellor Milton Arnold in Beverly Hills, 90210. Also in 1997, he landed the role of Victor Collins on Port Charles, starring in over 300 episodes until 2002. Other credits throughout Pryor’s career include Dark Angel, Party of Five, The West Wing, NYPD Blue, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, Doctor Sleep, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Pryor’s most recent role was in 2021’s Halloween Kills, and he was set to star in the upcoming short 1^st Memory, which is in post-production.