The Stunning Transformation Of Soap Star Susan Lucci

Has there ever been a television character as ambitious, scheming, and enduring as "All My Children" perennial Erica Kane? The oft-married soap heroine (who walked down the aisle 11 times with eight different dudes) first made her appearance on the show in 1970, and viewers watched the character grow from spoiled bad girl to devious grand dame over the course of multiple decades.

While some long-lasting soap characters have been played by multiple actors, Erica Kane was only ever portrayed by the incomparable Susan Lucci. The undisputed queen of daytime drama, Lucci played Erica for an uninterrupted stretch of more than 40 years — a rare feat in the world of television.

Over the years, Lucci has become soap royalty, a pop culture icon, and all-around television legend. She's been the author of books, hawker of merch on QVC, and laughed at herself while suffering one of the most outrageous losing streaks in entertainment history. Meanwhile, for those wondering whatever happened to Susan Lucci, the truth is that she's never gone away. But how did this native of Scarsdale, New York, wind up becoming one of the most familiar actors of her generation? To find out, read on to experience the stunning transformation of soap star Susan Lucci. 

Growing up in the Long Island village of Garden City, a career in showbiz seemed like a world away for young Susan Lucci. The daughter of a contractor (her father) and a nurse (her mother), Lucci was a quiet and reserved child, which she recounted in her 2011 memoir "All My Life." When she played make-believe, however, her shyness evaporated. "I was a totally different kid when I would perform," she wrote. 

Embarking on those flights of fancy eventually led her to seek an audience. "The stage was where I wanted to be, and when you're a little girl with a vivid and active imagination, all the world is a stage," she wrote. She landed her first acting role at age 11, in a "Cinderella"-inspired play through her Girl Scout troop. Lucci flourished onstage, and continued seeking acting roles in high school productions until graduation. She then attended Marymount College, studying drama, until moving to New York City in 1968 to launch herself as a professional actor. She would soon be on her way. 

It didn't take Susan Lucci long to find work in Manhattan. In 1969, she landed her first television role, a bit part in a daytime soap titled "Love Is a Many Splendoured Thing." That same year, she was cast in the films "Goodbye Columbus" and "Me, Natalie."

Later in 1969, the 23-year-old auditioned for a new daytime soap opera set to debut in January 1970, "All My Children." She won the part of Erica Kane, certainly not realizing this acting job would not only change her life, but would remain part of her life for the next several decades. Even so, as Lucci explained in an interview with About.com, she recognized the potential of Erica instantly. "When I read the audition scenes and when I heard the breakdown, I thought: Oh, I love this part, and the [mother-daughter] relationship between Mona and Erica was all I really knew, that's what was in my audition scene. It was full of humanity and humor. And it wasn't stiff. I loved the character of Erica Kane, but I really didn't particularly think that anyone else would."

As the years passed, Erica evolved into the scheming, scandalous soap legend fans came to know and love. Over time, fans couldn't possibly imagine "All My Children" without her — and, as it happened, they never had to.

After the 1970 debut of "All My Children," Susan Lucci devoted herself to the show, with her character growing in popularity along with that of the show. In the early 1980s, she branched out by taking on some other roles, including a part in the big-screen soap spoof "Young Doctors in Love." She also participated in what was a rite of passage for TV actors during the late 1970s and early 1980s by guest-starring on both "The Love Boat" and "Fantasy Island." 

However, it wasn't until 1984 that Lucci took on her first-ever starring role in a project that had nothing to do with "All My Children." That was "Invitation to Hell," a made-for-TV horror movie directed by Wes Craven, who would go on to bring fright fans hit horror franchises such as "A Nightmare on Elm Street" and "Scream."

While Erica Kane certainly had her nastier moments, she wasn't even in the same league as Lucci's character in "Invitation to Hell," who is actually Satan. By most accounts, the film is an over-the-top shlockfest of the so-bad-it's-hilarious variety — which, as a bonus, also stars Robert Urich, "Murphy Brown" cast member Joe Regalbuto, and Soleil Moon Frye.

Susan Lucci was nominated for her first Daytime Emmy Award in 1978. She didn't win, but she subsequently received another nomination — and didn't win that one either. As the years passed, that pattern repeated: Lucci was nominated, only to lose out to another actor, which happened over and over again. 

By 1991, Lucci had not only become famous for playing Erica Kane, she also became famous for her continual losing streak at the Emmys. At that point, she'd lost 11 times in a row, and told The New York Times that she'd been taking it in stride. "I am kind of used to not winning," she said, diplomatically adding. "But I am still so honored to be nominated." When asked why she felt she'd been ignored year after year, she responded, "I don't know. I would love to win, but whoever is on the blue-ribbon panel that chooses the winners, and that changes from year to year, does not like my work." 

Behind the scenes, though, there were those who believed the real reason behind all those losses was that she simply didn't deserve it. "Susan plays a role that is almost like a caricature of what a soap character is supposed to be," explained Meredith Berlin, editor of Soap Opera Digest. "The audience gets it. They see Erica as funny. But when the judges view her tapes against some of the more serious roles, it loses something."

In an interesting confluence, at the same time that Susan Lucci was becoming a punchline for losing at the Daytime Emmys year after year, she was also laughing all the way to the bank. As The New York Times pointed out, she was the highest-paid actor in soaps at the time, reportedly earning more than $1 million per year while also having negotiated a contract that allowed her to take on other projects. 

She'd also branched out into the lucrative realm of QVC, selling her own line of haircare products on the home-shopping channel. She also appeared in television commercials for a sugar substitute called The Sweet One, in which she jokingly claimed she has everything she's ever wanted — except for that pesky Emmy. She also joked about her lengthy losing streak when she hosted "Saturday Night Live" — and there's an argument to be made that she may never have been invited to host had it not been for the way all those Emmy losses made her a pop-culture phenomenon recognized far beyond the world of soaps. 

While a Daytime Emmy would have looked nice on one of her shelves, it wasn't going to pay any bills. "Long term, an Emmy does very little for a performer in this industry," Mimi Torchin, editor in chief of Soap Opera Weekly, told The New York Times. "It helps their ego and adds a little bit of prestige, but as far as dollars and cents, it doesn't do much."

It only took 19 nominations, but in 1999 Susan Lucci finally broke television's most notorious losing streak by winning her first-ever Daytime Emmy — more than 20 years after receiving her first nom. As Lucci sat in the audience, steeling herself for yet another humiliating loss, actor Shemar Moore — then starring in "The Young and the Restless" — took to the stage to hand out the award in the category for which she was nominated. "The streak is over, Susan Lucci!" Moore excitedly declared, which led the visibly stunned Lucci to make her way to the stage as the audience leapt to its feet with a roar of thunderous applause. "I truly never believed that this would happen," she said as the crowd kept on cheering.

While Lucci could barely believe it when her Daytime Emmy losing streak finally broke, when looking back on her first Emmy win — which also remains her only Emmy win — she admitted that knowing her children were waiting for her at home with balloons, cake, and plenty of hugs and kisses had always been her consolation prize. "Any one of these was more valuable than that elusive Emmy!" she told Entertainment Weekly in 2026, but jokingly added, "Having said that, winning felt pretty darn good — winning is definitely better!"

The icing on the cake that was 1999 came later that same year, when Lucci made her Broadway debut. That December, she took over the lead role in "Annie Get Your Gun," filling in for star Bernadette Peters for a three-week run.

Susan Lucci's journey from shy youngster to soap opera royalty has been a fascinating one to watch, and in March 2011 she brought her fans inside that voyage with the publication of her first memoir, "All My Life." In the book, Lucci explained why it had taken her so long — at that point, she'd been playing Erica Kane for an uninterrupted 40 years — to write it. According to Lucci, she'd been approached by publishers for years, who detailed the myriad reasons why readers would be interested in discovering her story. "While I was flattered by their kind words, writing a memoir wasn't something I ever thought was in me," she wrote, while pointing out that her schedule was already bursting at the scenes, and left little time to sit down and write. 

It wasn't until 2009 that she first began to take the idea of a memoir seriously, after a charity event in which she agreed to respond to questions from fans who'd won the opportunity. When further encouragement came from members of her family, she decided to take the plunge.

She did, however, admit that she was more than a little trepidatious about the process. "It's a little bit scary and a lot intimidating," she wrote. "But if I am going to take you on this journey with me, then like everything else I do in my life, I am committed to going all the way — no limits and no self-imposed barriers holding me back." Her fans responded, and the book became a New York Times bestseller.

While Susan Lucci basked in the success of her memoir, she was hit with some devastating news just weeks later. On April 14, 2011, ABC announced the cancellation of "All My Children," ending a 41-year run on daytime television, with plans for the series to conclude that September. Just days before that announcement, Lucci — who'd been part of the show since the beginning and had become its undisputed star — dismissed rumblings that the show was in trouble and was about to be axed. "No truth to that rumor," she told TMZ. "Not at all!"

Reports indicated that Lucci had been completely blindsided by the cancellation, and she wasn't shy about assigning blame. In the paperback edition of her memoir, she added some choice words about the man responsible, ABC Daytime president Brian Frons. "I watched Brian Frons' decisions destroy the production of our show and the lives of people on both sides of the country," she wrote (via Deadline), accusing Frons of possessing "that fatal combination of ignorance and arrogance."

She also blasted Frons' decision to replace "All My Children" with a talk show, which was significantly less costly to produce than a scripted daytime drama, decrying that "an iconic show was losing out to greed."

Having played Erica Kane since the debut of "All My Children" in 1970, the show's cancellation left Susan Lucci in a position she hadn't experienced in more than four decades: unemployed. Understandably, that led to moments of self-doubt. "I had been playing Erica my whole adult life and I didn't know — how will it be to walk around now? I'm not Erica anymore and don't play Erica anymore. Will I ever work again?" Lucci recalled in an interview with USA Today.

Of course, she didn't stay that way for long; as a free agent, the wildly popular actor was barraged with a tsunami of opportunities from which to pick and choose. The first of these she seized was a recurring guest spot on the soapy drama "Army Wives," playing the wife of a retired general in her very first post-"All My Children" acting role in 2012. She also made an appearance in singer Gloria Estefan's music video for her single "Hotel Nacional." In addition, she returned for a couple more episodes of sitcom "Hot in Cleveland," portraying a heightened diva-style version of herself.

While she was happy to keep working, the shock of losing a job she'd held for 40 years lingered with her for some time. "It has taken me this entire year, and I tell you quite honestly, it has taken me all this time to make peace with it," Lucci told City News in a 2012 interview. "It's almost impossible for me to say 'All My Children' and Erica Kane in the past tense ... But you have to go forward," she added.

In 2013, Susan Lucci signed on for her first series-regular role since "All My Children" when she joined "Devious Maids." The series was a soapy comedy from Marc Cherry, whose earlier hit, "Desperate Housewives," had recently ended after eight seasons, with Lucci playing wealthy and eccentric Genevieve. "I'm so lucky to go from ["All My Children" creator] Agnes Nixon's hands to Marc Cherry's hands," Lucci told Smashing Interviews of her new gig, indicating her new role wasn't that far beyond her wheelhouse. "Marc described Genevieve to me as the cousin of Erica Kane," she added.

"Devious Maids" ran for four seasons until concluding in 2016. Meanwhile, Lucci continued to take on acting roles. These included a small part in the film "Joy," a guest spot on comedy series "Difficult People," and appearing alongside JB Smoove and Kristen Bell in Sia's music video for "Santa's Coming for Us."

In 2024, Lucci joined the cast of "Outcome," a new movie that actor and director Jonah Hill was creating for Apple TV. The series was to star Keanu Reeves, Matt Bomer, and Cameron Diaz, who'd experienced her own stunning transformation. With a premiere date set for April 2026, Lucci became part of a cast that also included David Spade, Kaia Gerber, and "Orange Is the New Black" alum Laverne Cox, who's really pushed the boundaries in Hollywood. 

In 2018, Susan Lucci experienced an unexpected health crisis. She was out running errands when she experienced sudden chest pain. The manager of the store she was in immediately drove her to a nearby hospital, where doctors discovered she had two blocked arteries. To address those blockages, Lucci underwent emergency heart surgery to insert stents within those arteries. 

A few months later, Lucci — then 72 — revealed she was fully on the mend. "I'm doing great," she told Us Weekly. "I feel wonderful. I'm doing very well."

As she explained, the problem wasn't to do with her lifestyle — she ate a healthy diet and regularly exercised — but genetics. "For me it's DNA," she said. "My dad had calcium blockage in his arteries when he was 49, but my dad was a smoker so I never made the connection that I might have the same thing because I'm not a smoker at all."

In March 2022, Susan Lucci experienced the ultimate heartbreak when her husband of more than five decades, Helmut Huber, died at the age of 84. "Helmut's passing is a tremendous loss for all who knew and loved him," Lucci's publicist said in a statement to People.

That tragic loss inspired Lucci to write her second book, the 2026 memoir "La Lucci," in which she detailed the grief she experienced from Huber's death. "I realized that grief is not something you can really understand until you go through it — until you experience it," she wrote. "Until it's your grief and you're sitting in the front row at the funeral."

As she told People while promoting "La Lucci," the big lesson she'd learned about grief was to not attempt to sidestep it or bury it. "I don't fight it," she said. "I'm surprised sometimes by it. Certainly, there are things like the holidays that are triggers — someone who should be sitting at the table. But I just go with it."