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. He was of African-American, Portuguese, and Polish descent.

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.Brennan, Carol. "St. John, Kristoff 1966–." Contemporary Black Biography, edited by David G. Oblender, vol. 25, Gale, 2000, pp. 156-158. Gale eBooks. Accessed 12 Aug. 2020.

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 suddenly 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) The San Pedro Beach Bums Ralphie 1979 The Champ Sonny 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" 1988 What's Happening Now!! Beautiful Bob Bledso Episode: "The candidate" 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 Hangin' with Mr. Cooper Eric 6 episodes 1996 Martin Fred Livingston Episode: "Kicked to the Curb" The Crew Darnell Episodes: "Winds of Change" Parts 1 & 2 1997 The Jamie Foxx Show Morris Episode: "Break Yourself, Fool" Living Single Norwood Episode: "Reconcilable Differences" 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 Smitty2013The First FamilyC.J. PattonEpisode: "The First Pitch" 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

YearAwardWorkResultRef1985 Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Starring in a New Television Series Charlie & Co.1990 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Generations1991 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series Generations1992Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series The Young and the Restless1993 Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Younger Leading Actor The Young and the Restless1993NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless1994NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless1996 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless1997 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless1998 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless1999 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2000 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2001 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2002 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2003 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2003 Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor The Young and the Restless2004 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2005 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2006 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2007 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2007 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series The Young and the Restless2008 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series The Young and the Restless2008 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series The Young and the Restless2013NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama SeriesThe Young and the Restless2014NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama SeriesThe Young and the Restless2015Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama SeriesThe Young and the Restless2016Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama SeriesThe Young and the Restless2017Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama SeriesThe Young and the Restless

References

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