When Kristian Alfonso returned to Days of Our Lives to film the long-awaited reunion of Bo (Peter Reckell) and Hope, she knew her on-screen duties would also involve the emotional sendoff to the character of John Black, played by the late Drake Hogestyn. The DAYS cast shot the scenes surrounding John’s demise just days before the beloved actor passed away from pancreatic cancer at the age of 70.
Black Magic
At the time she participated in the episodes, which aired this week, Alfonso was aware that her dear friend and former co-star was undergoing cancer treatment, but had reason to be optimistic about Hogestyn’s prognosis. “I was texting with Drake during that time, not really realizing [how ill he was], because I had heard good news,” she shares. “My heart and my head were completely hopeful, because that’s what I try to lead with: positivity and hope, no pun intended. So, I was hopeful. But,” she adds, her voice growing thick with emotion, “what I had heard was not completely correct.”
The actress describes learning of Hogestyn’s death as “devastating,” as she has so many wonderful and cherished memories of the years they spent together, both on camera and off. “Drake was, as you know, such a wonderful actor,” Alfonso says. “And I loved being a team member with him because we were such a team, and we had such a great time doing our jobs, which didn’t feel like jobs! I mean, some days were tougher than other days,” she allows, noting that Hogestyn’s spirited attitude set a tone of positivity for those more challenging times on set.
Recalls the actress, “He was just like, ‘Okay, today is a really dirty day! A difficult day, physically, we’ve got a ton of dialogue. Let’s do it! We’re gonna do it, we’re gonna be great, we’re gonna give the audience what they want!’ That was Drake, you know? And that’s why we got along so well, too, because that’s my upbringing, as well: ‘Let’s go get ’em!’ Both of us [were] athletes,” adds the former competitive ice skater. “Drake was a baseball player.”
Alfonso will always remember Hogestyn as “an incredible human being,” she says fondly. “And incredible husband. Oh, my gosh, so madly, madly in love with [wife] Victoria. I remember him coming back at Christmas one year — obviously, in the ’80s — and saying, ‘I went and knocked on the door of my first love, and I’m gonna marry her.’ I was like, ‘Really? What’s her name?’ ‘Victoria,’ he told me. He told me the whole story [of their earlier relationship] and I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, that’s so romantic.’ Drake has a beautiful family, and he was an incredible father. There are no word to truly express what a wonderful, gentle person he truly was.”
