Jay Pickett
American soap star Jay Pickett has died

General Hospital star Jay Pickett has died while filming a movie at the age of 60.

The American soap actor, who substituted for actor Ted King in the role of Lorenzo Alcazar, was said to be shooting a film in Idaho.

Jay’s co-star and fellow co-producer on Treasure Valley, Jim Heffel paid tribute in a post on Facebook.

‘Yesterday I lost a good friend and the world lost a great person,’ he began wrote on Friday. ‘Jay Pickett decided to ride off into the Heavens. Jay died sitting on a horse ready to rope a steer in the movie Treasure Valley in Idaho. The way of a true cowboy.’

Following the news of Jay’s death, the film’s director, Travis Mills, added: ‘Many of you have already heard about the tragedy that happened two days ago.

‘Jay Pickett, our leading man, writer, producer, and creator of this movie passed away suddenly while we were on location preparing to film a scene.

Jay Pickett
Jay Pickett also starred in Port Charles (Picture: Getty)

‘There is no official explanation for the cause of his death but it appears to have been a heart attack. Everyone present tried as hard as they could to keep him alive.’

He continued: ‘Our hearts are broken and we grieve for his family who are so devastated by this shocking tragedy. As so many of us know, Jay was an incredible man.

‘He was kind, sweet, and generous. He was one of the best actors I ever worked with and it was an honor to collaborate with him. Everyone who met him, even for the briefest moment, could feel his warmth, his wonderful spirit.

‘It is difficult to find the words right now to say more. His closest friends have said that he was very happy making Treasure Valley and my hope is that he truly was. He was doing what he loved: acting, riding horses, making movies. And he was magnificent.’

During his career, Jay also played Frank Scanlon, a dedicated paramedic and substitute teacher and the complicated older brother of Joe Scanlon, on the ABC Daytime drama Port Charles.

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