By Trend News Line 2024-05-30 17:02:51.
Tragic General Hospital star Johnny Wactor was working in a ‘cathedral style’ nightclub in Los Angeles on the night he died and had barely had an acting gig in three years, DailyMail.com can exclusively disclose.
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The 37-year-old actor had taken up a job bartending to make ends meet, despite having battled a drinking problem, at the new Sinners y Santos in Downtown LA – just a few blocks away from where he would be shot dead on Saturday.
Family members previously told DailyMail.com that the ‘southern gentleman’ had been escorting a female co-worker to her vehicle at the time and shielded her with his body when a trio of thieves attempting to steal the catalytic converter from his car opened fire. The woman has since been identified as fellow nightclub worker Anita Joy after she broke her silence in a series of heartbreaking Instagram posts Wednesday recalling his heroic final moments.
She referred to Wactor as her friend of ‘eight years’ and described how he ‘fought to stay alive’ before ultimately dying in her arms. Now, several of his fellow actor friends have spoken further of Wactor’s ‘selfless’ and noble nature and revealed how he had taken up a job as a bartender at the new Sinners y Santos nightclub after struggling to find roles following the strike.
Exclusive DailyMail.com photos also show the desolate spot where the star lost his life, with a tattered piece of police tape still lingering on a heavily graffitied shop front nearby.
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Wactor had struggled to get acting work in recent years, with a source telling DailyMail.com he had been trying to make ends meet by working at the club. The insider said: ‘He hadn’t worked a lot in the last three years and was trying to subsidize his income by working at a bar. He was moving into the producing end of the business so he could have more control over how much he would work. Everybody liked him and the other actors and the fans were sad when his General Hospital storyline died out. He never gave up hoping he might be asked back but so far, his phone wasn’t ringing. Such is the world of soap operas.’
One of eight clubs, bars, and restaurants in the Level 8 entertainment complex attached to the Downtown AC and Moxy hotels, Sinners y Santos opened in October 2023 and specializes in agave-based cocktails. The venue is known for live DJs and its cathedral-themed décor which includes vast stained-glass windows and spectacular views of the LA skyline. The club, which is owned by LA nightlife gurus Mark and Jonnie Houston, is entered through a confessional, with partygoers asked to admit to their sins before going inside. Once in Sinners y Santos, there is a DJ booth disguised as a church organ while cocktails are served at a vast Gothic millwork and stained glass bar.
Anita shared a series of photos with Wactor posing with his fellow nightclub staff, while calling on the operators of the venue to provide parking for late-hour employees. A source at the club, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said of Wactor’s murder: ‘It’s just tragic. All this because of a catalytic converter. It’s just senseless.’
Anita, who was Wactor’s co-worker at the club, revealed he was shot at close range as the pair were walking to their cars after finishing a bartending shift. ‘Everything happened in an instant. I’ve come to describe it as a glass of water that gets tipped over and you’re scrambling to grab it and save it from spilling out completely but it just runs through your fingertips and is gone,’ she wrote in an Instagram post. ‘Johnny was between me and the man who shot him — as I heard the shot ring into the night, he forcefully tumbled back into my arms and as I grabbed for him, I shouted, ‘Hunny, you ok?!’ And he only responded, ‘Nope! Shot!’ We toppled onto the street, where I pushed my legs under him and tried to hold his body up while screaming for help and screaming at him to stay with me.’
Friend Megan Le told DailyMail.com she wasn’t surprised to learn Wactor’s last act of bravery was to protect his co-worker. Le, an actress and stuntwoman who was in the same acting class as Wactor, said he always made it a point to walk his friends to their cars if they ever had a late night somewhere, whether it be at a shoot or leaving from their acting class at Stuart Rogers Studios in North Hollywood.
Another friend and fellow acting student, West Liang echoed Le’s comments about the standup and kind-hearted actor. ‘Even in his last moment, he put himself in harm’s way for someone else,’ Liang said in tears. ‘That’s just who he was and it’s so unfair what happened to him.’ Le, who was in a movie with Wactor called RELIC, revealed he had been taking acting classes in LA for at least six years but was eventually forced to take a break from the course to focus on his role in General Hospital. After leaving the soap in 2022, Wactor returned to the Monday night class and took up a job bartending despite the fact he was still in AA, she revealed. ‘Work in the industry has not come back like it was supposed to so everybody is struggling. Johnny and a lot of people in my community take other jobs to make ends meet,’ Le said. ‘While he was on General Hospital he wasn’t in our acting class because that took up a lot of his time, but when that ended, he started coming back to the class. And then the SAG strike happened, and we were all out there [picketing]..
– General Hospital star Johnny Wactor
– Downtown LA nightclub Sinners y Santos nightclub.
