# Kristoff St. John

Kristoff St. John (July 15, 1966 – February 3, 2019) was an American actor best known for playing Neil Winters on the CBS daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless from 1991 until his death in 2019. Playing the role of Neil earned him two Daytime Emmy Awards from eleven nominations, and ten NAACP Image Awards. He was also known for his role as Adam Marshall in the NBC soap opera Generations, for which he received two Daytime Emmy Award nominations; and his role as a young Alex Haley on the ABC miniseries Roots: The Next Generations.

## 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 step 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 Roots: The Next Generations. 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 28 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 the 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 (1989–2014) and a daughter Paris Nicole (born 1992) 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 (born April 15, 2003). 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.

## Death

St. John died at his Los Angeles, California, home on February 3, 2019, at age 52. His death was ruled accidental with the cause listed as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

## Filmography

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1975 | That's My Mama | Andy | Episode: "Weekend Daddy" |
| 1976–1977 | Big John, Little John | Homer | 11 episodes |
| 1976 | Happy Days | Booker Brown | Episode: "Football Frolics" |
| 1977 | Wonder Woman | Linc | Episode: "The Bushwhackers", (as Christoff St. John) |
| 1977 | The San Pedro Beach Bums | Ralphie | |
| 1979 | The Champ | Sonny | |
| 1979 | Roots: The Next Generations | Young Alex Haley | 26 episodes, (as Christoff St. John) |
| 1979–1980 | The Bad News Bears | Ahmad Abdul Rahim | 26 episodes, (as Christoff St. John) |
| 1982 | Sister, Sister | Daniel "Danny" Burton | TV movie |
| 1984 | The Cosby Show | David James | Episode: "How Ugly Is He?" |
| 1985–1986 | Charlie & Co. | Charlie Richmond Jr. | 18 episodes |
| 1988 | A Different World | E.Z. Brooks | Episode: "Advise and Descent" |
| 1989–1991 | Generations | Adam Marshall | 208 episodes |
| 1989 | Finish Line | Tito Landreau | TV movie |
| 1991–2019 | The Young and the Restless | Neil Winters | Series regular |
| 1995 | CBS Soap Break | Host | |
| 1995 | Hangin' with Mr. Cooper | Eric | 6 episodes |
| 1996 | Martin | Fred Livingston | Episode: "Kicked to the Curb" |
| 1996 | The Crew | Darnell | Episodes: "Winds of Change" Parts 1 & 2 |
| 1997 | The Jamie Foxx Show | Morris | Episode: "Break Yourself, Fool" |
| 1997 | Living Single | Norwood | Episode: "Reconcilable Differences" |
| 1997 | The Nanny | Himself | |
| 1998 | Family Matters | D'Andre | Episode: "Throw Urkel from the Train" |
| 2002 | Trois 2: Pandora's Box | Victor DuBois | |
| 2005 | Carpool Guy | Steven | |
| 2007 | Spiritual Warriors | Hospital Administrator | |
| 2009 | Everybody Hates Chris | Himself | Episode: "Everybody Hates Spring Break" |
| 2013 | 20 Feet Below: The Darkness Descending | Smitty | |
| 2014 | A Man Called God | Director | Documentary film co-directed with Christopher St. John |
| 2017 | A Christmas Cruise | Jake | TV movie |
| 2019 | Home Is Where The Killer Is | Dr. Fredericks | (final film role) |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Work | Result |
| 1985 | Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Starring in a New Television Series | Charlie & Co. | Nominated |
| 1990 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Generations | Nominated |
| 1991 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series | Generations | Nominated |
| 1992 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 1993 | Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Younger Leading Actor | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 1993 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 1994 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 1996 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 1997 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 1998 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 1999 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2000 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2001 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2002 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2003 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 2003 | Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2004 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 2005 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2006 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2007 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 2007 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2008 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 2008 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 2013 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 2014 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Won |
| 2015 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2016 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |
| 2017 | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | The Young and the Restless | Nominated |