Kristoff St. John
Kristoff St. John was an American actor. From 1991 to 2019, St. John portrayed the role of Neil Winters on CBS daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless, which earned him eleven Daytime Emmy Award nominations, two Emmy Awards, and ten NAACP Image Awards.
Early life
Kristoff St. John was born July 15, 1966, in New York City and grew up in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and Los Angeles. His father, Christopher St. John, is a producer, actor and director, while his mother, Marie, is an entertainer.Career
As a ten-year-old child, St. John had a featuring role on the Saturday-morning comedy Big John, Little John, broadcast on NBC in 1976. St. John portrayed a young Alex Haley in the 1979 ABC miniseries . He also made a small appearance as Booker Brown on the ABC sitcom Happy Days, as well as a boyfriend of Denise Huxtable on an early episode of The Cosby Show. In his first major role, he appeared as Charlie Richmond Jr. in the 1985 CBS sitcom Charlie & Co.St. John's first major soap role was Adam Marshall on the NBC soap opera, Generations. After the show's cancellation in 1991, he originated the role of Neil Winters on The Young and the Restless, and played the character for 25 years; no African American actor had appeared on the series more frequently than St. John. In 1992, he won the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series for his role. On September 5, 1994, he hosted CBS Soap Break.
In 2005, St. John became a special host for TV Guide Channel. In 2007, he received his fifth Daytime Emmy nomination. He was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor. In 2008, St. John won his second Daytime Emmy, as Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.
In 2014, A Man Called God, a documentary that St. John co-directed with his father Christopher St. John, debuted at the San Diego Black Film Festival. The film was awarded there, and at other festivals such as the American Documentary Film Festival, and he Beverly Hills Film Festival.
Kristoff's final appearance as Neil aired on February 6, 2019. Late in April, it was revealed that Neil had died of a stroke.
Personal life
St. John was married and divorced twice. He had a son, Julian and a daughter, Paris Nicole with his first wife, boxer Mia St. John. Julian died by suicide on November 23, 2014, following a long history of mental illness. St. John was married to Allana Nadal from 2001 to 2007, and they had a daughter, Lola. On August 31, 2018, he was engaged to Russian model Kseniya Olegovna Mikhaleva.St. John was a vegan and animal rights advocate; he appeared in two PETA ad campaigns.
St. John died at his Los Angeles, California home on February 3, 2019, at the age of 52. His death was ruled accidental with the cause listed as hypertrophic heart failure.
Filmography
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Result | Ref |
| 1985 | Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Starring in a New Television Series | Charlie & Co. | ||
| 1990 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Generations | ||
| 1991 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series | Generations | ||
| 1992 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 1993 | Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Younger Leading Actor | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 1993 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 1994 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 1996 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 1997 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 1998 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 1999 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2000 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2001 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2002 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2003 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2003 | Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2004 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2005 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2006 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2007 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2007 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2008 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2008 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2013 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2014 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2015 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2016 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | ||
| 2017 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless |