Drake Hogestyn is well-known for his iconic role of John Black in “Days of Our Lives.”
Aside from his acting career, he is a family man married to his wife of 36 years.
Hogestyn, who now sports gray hair, is also a loving grandparent to five grandkids.
Soap star Drake Hogestyn is now in his seventies. He is fulfilled with his life and has embraced his gray hair. In addition to being a husband and a father, he is a loving grandparent.
The veteran star launched his acting career after being one of the 30 people chosen from a group of 75,000 by talent scouts for Columbia Pictures.
Hogestyn is best known for starring as John Black in the popular long-running soap, “Days of Our Lives.” He plays the iconic role of John in the NBC soap alongside co-star Josh Taylor, who portrays Roman Brady, and Alison Sweeney, who plays Sami Brady.
The much-beloved television show has been running since 1965, and Hogestyn plays the on-screen husband of Dr. Marlena Evans, played by Deidre Hall.
Drake Has Been Married for over Three Decades to His Childhood Sweetheart
In real life, Hogestyn is someone else’s long-term spouse. He is married to Victoria Post, whom he wed in December 1986. The couple shares four children: son Ben and daughters Rachael, Whitney, and Alexandra.
Hogestyn and his beautiful wife have been married for 36 years. In a Q&A with fans in August 2018, the actor was asked to share the duo’s secret to a long and happy marriage.
“Stay married! You just stay married. And then you just fall in love with that same person over and over and over again,” he answered. Hogestyn explained there are several reasons why some marriages end in divorce, and that some unions could have survived if only the couples decided to work through their issues. He added:
“I really believe in the marriage vows and what they stand for.”
He disclosed that most of the problems he experienced with Post were mainly because of their children, which comes with parenting.
Hogestyn admitted he first fell in love with his spouse when he was 15 and she was 12 while on the baseball field. “That moment, she just shocked me, and I just screamed, ‘No! I have too much to do with my life,’ and from then on, that was it!” he divulged about his love.
The couple has had memorable times together. In their youth, Hogestyn took Post to see “Love Story” at a drive-in theater using the car he learned to drive in, a 1965 Corvair.
When visiting his parents many years ago, he showed her the car, and she said, “It wasn’t quite what she remembered.” Hogestyn told the mother of his kids that he would fix the car because it held sentimental memories. “She said absolutely no,” the television star revealed.
As a Hollywood star, Hogestyn’s only son Ben followed in his acting footsteps. In an April 2010 interview, the father of four discussed how his child ended up in show business.
At the time, the father and son duo were cast in the indie soap, “Reality Bytes.” When asked if they had collaborated before, Hogestyn said no. Asked whether they would share scenes in the project, he answered that he was unsure.
The doting parent further divulged that Ben was once asked to do a reading for Brady in “Days of Our Lives” in his senior year in high school.
The show’s producers told Hogestyn they were struggling to cast someone for the role and asked him if he had an 18-year-old. They suggested he bring along his son, but he told them he had no acting experience. This was not a dealbreaker for them, and they sent Ben the material to see whether he would be willing to try it out.
Hogestyn shared that his son was not keen on the offer at the time. However, he became interested when he started spending more time on set and interacting with his peers, Kirsten Storms and Jason Cook, who played Belle and Shawn on the soap.
Gradually, Ben became even more eager and interested in acting and studied for years until he eventually became a part of showbiz. “I’m very happy with his progress,” his famous father said at the time.
Drake Hogestyn Is a Grandfather of Five with Gray Hair – Inside His ‘Good’ Life
Hogestyn, who was born on September 29, 1953, in Fort Wayne, Indiana, turned 70 years old last month. In a May 2017 interview, he was asked to comment on his life, and the TV star decided to provide an update on what was happening then, sharing:
“I feel life is good. Whitney’s getting married, and that’s going to be my third and final daughter walking down the aisle. Time’s going by. That’s just it. It’s amazing. It’s remarkable.”
Hogestyn and his wife have five grandchildren: Avery, Graham, Thomas, Mason, and Jackson. The star has gushed about their grandkids on social media. In October 2013, he shared a picture of him and his two older grandkids smiling on the couch.
In December 2018, he posted a photo of him and his spouse cuddling with their third grandchild, following his birth. “Merry Christmas to all! He’s here!!! Thomas Drake arrived happy and healthy amidst a lively family celebration in support of Whitney and Tommy! So blessed and proud!” he announced on Twitter.
Hogestyn has also spent time outdoors with one of his grandchildren. In September 2019, he posted a video holding his infant grandchild and wrote, “Perfect day w/my grandson!”
A year later, in December 2020, he shared another clip reading a book for his grandchild on Christmas Day, writing, “Keep the magic alive. Merry Christmas!”
Another year later, in September 2021, Drake introduced another new addition to the family on Twitter alongside snapshots of him spending time with his grandkids. He captioned the post, “Introducing the newest members of our wolf pack, Mason James and Jackson Cole…and of course Thomas Drake.”
As a now 70-year-old grandparent, Hogestyn has full-grown gray hair. In a May 2017 interview, he said it was “time” to embrace his gray hair after getting a haircut with the silver color showing.
His wife said, “Wow!” in reaction and asked him what he would do about it, and he decided to let it grow naturally. She told him she liked it. Meanwhile, his daughter Rachael said she did not like it, while her kids Avery and Graham asked their grandfather what happened to his hair.
But Hogestyn’s son Ben reportedly likes his father’s gray hair. As for Alexandra and Whitney, it dawned on them that their father was growing old.
Hogestyn mentioned some of his kids wanted him and his wife to remain the same. Nonetheless, the showbiz star said he feels “comfortable” with his hair.