“This is something I was hoping I would not have to write about, another young man taken. A sweet-natured man. An Ohio boy like me. A man who had his demons — another thing we had in common. A young man I called son for the early part of our time together. Not this one!

So began Stephen Nichols’ poignant Instagram post about Tyler Christopher, his friend of more than a quarter of a century and his co-star on not one but two shows, General Hospital, where they played Stefan and Nikolas Cassadine, and Days of Our Lives, where Nichols plays Steve Johnson and, for a shining moment, Christopher played Stefan O. DiMera. “Tyler and I met when I visited his dressing room on the day he was about to camera test for the role of Nikolas Cassadine, my ‘son/nephew’ on General Hospital,” Nichols recalled. “We went over the scene a few times. He was very green and eager, and he had a kind of grace and a connection to the heart of the material that was special. I felt connected to him immediately.

“I can’t say enough about the beauty of Tyler Christopher’s work,” he continued. “He was an actor who was all instinct and spontaneity. It seemed effortless for him. I knew I wanted to work with him. I knew he would make me better.”

Christopher, it seems, had that effect on everyone with whom he shared scenes. “Our journey on General Hospital spanned around seven years. In the beginning, he asked for advice, and I offered Michael Chekov’s book, To the Actor, which had inspired me when I was starting out,” Nichols said. “Tyler gave so much to every scene. We connected in a deep way and lifted each other up. I know he was proud of the work he did even though he continued to look to me for approval. I reassured him that he was ‘there’ and to keep doing what he was doing. I called him ‘Baby Brando.’ He always laughed about that, but I wasn’t joking. I can only imagine how much more could have been.

“I know that over the years Tyler had addiction issues. I understood and told him so,” he went on. “We talked about it and checked in over the years but never really got deep into the subject of recovery. I regret that. When I asked how he was doing, he would generally say ‘good… fine.’”

In 2016, when Christopher won his first Daytime Emmy for his work on General Hospital, Nichols was foremost on his mind (as you’ll see in the clip below). “Some 20 years later, after several nominations, Tyler stood on that stage, with his Emmy in hand, and held up the book I had given him,” Nichols marveled. “I was thrilled for him and so touched and honored that he had mentioned our early connection.”