As more and more emotional and meaningful social media messages about the recent passing of beloved The Young and the Restless star Kristoff St. John (ex-Neil Winters) are posted, the CBS soap opera has announced its plan for a special memorial of its own.
The drama series will be honoring its longtime Winters family member with a special tribute scheduled to air during the show on Friday, February 8. The on-air love for St. John, who passed away on February 3, comes amidst an outpouring of online affection for the actor, who seems to have touched nearly everyone in the industry with his kind, generous, and loving spirit.
This special tribute to St. John will not be the only one. In a statement to Soap Central, the show states that a more meaningful send off will air this spring. Since Y&R is written several months in advance, the show needs time to be able to work St. John's passing into the show.
"The Young and the Restless will forever value the legacy of Kristoff St. John in his portrayal of Neil Winters," the statement reads. "Beginning in late April, Y&R will feature a storyline that pays tribute to both Kristoff and his character."
Before the special tribute, however, fans will be able to view St. John's final episode of Y&R, which will be airing on Wednesday, February 6.
St. John joined the cast of The Young and the Restless in 1991 and immediately rose to major fame, winning the Outstanding Younger Actor award at the Daytime Emmys just one year into the role. He also took home a statue for Outstanding Supporting Actor in 2008 as well as multiple NAACP Image Awards.
Earlier this fall, St. John announced his engagement to model Kseniya Mikhaleva. The couple's engagement news was especially happy, as St. John experienced many personal battles with depression following the death of his son, Julian, in 2015. As fans of the actor may recall, St. John took a leave of absence from Y&R last October to undergo psychiatric treatment after a reported scare regarding his mental health.
Kristoff St. John is survived by his daughters, Lola and Paris.
How do you feel about Y&R planning a special on-air tribute to St. John this week? What are some of your favorite memories of the Emmy-winning actor? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
