It’s lucky No. 7 for Lucky Spencer. Battle Ground actor and musician Jonathan Jackson has received his seventh Daytime Entertainment Emmy Award nomination for his portrayal of supercouple Luke and Laura Spencer’s son Lucky on the ABC soap opera “General Hospital.”
The nominations were announced Wednesday morning; the 37th Annual Daytime Entertainment Emmy Awards will take place in Las Vegas on June 27 and air on CBS. Jackson and his wife, “General Hospital” alumna Lisa Jackson, nee Vultaggio, plan to attend the ceremonies.
Jackson is nominated in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series category. He’s up against four other actors, including “General Hospital” co-star Bradford Anderson, who plays Damien Spinelli.
Jackson got the call around 6 a.m. Wednesday from a “General Hospital” publicist notifying him of his nomination.
“I didn’t know why he was calling me because it was so early,” Jackson said from Los Angeles, where “General Hospital” films. “It was cool, exciting.”
Jackson, 28, has already won three daytime Emmys playing Lucky, a part he took on at age 11. Jackson left “General Hospital” in 1999, and the role was recast. He reprised the role in October.
“It’s pretty crazy,” Jackson said of his latest nomination. “The whole experience is a little surreal. I never thought I’d be back on the show or dealing with Emmy-type things.”
Though he hadn’t portrayed Lucky for a decade, stepping back into the role wasn’t too difficult.
“In terms of the character, it really wasn’t that strange,” Jackson said. “I was working with a lot of the same actors I’d had good relationships with in the past, so it was pretty comfortable.”
Rejoining the cast proved satisfying to Jackson not just personally but also as an actor. The part has offered some poignant, challenging scenes such as Lucky’s moments of reconciliation with his father and devastation after longtime off-and-on love Elizabeth’s affair with his half-brother, Nikolas, is exposed.
Beyond his work on the soap, Jackson is known as the vocalist and guitarist for the band Enation, which also features his brother and fellow actor, Richard Lee Jackson. The Jacksons are part of a group of celebrities living in Battle Ground that includes “One Tree Hill” actress Bethany Joy Galeotti. The Jacksons’ father is physician and country singer Rick Jackson.
Jonathan and Lisa Jackson have a son, Caleb, and daughter, Adora, and are expecting their third child. The family splits their time between Los Angeles and Battle Ground.
