R.I.P. Meg Bennet: ‘Young And The Restless’ Star And Writer Dead At 75

Meg Bennett, the Daytime Emmy-winning soap star and screenwriter, has passed away after a battle with cancer. She was 75.

Born Helen Margaret Bennett in 1948, the prolific soap opera actress first got her start in acting in 1972 as Marty Maraschino in the original Broadway run of Grease. She soon landed her first role on a soap opera in Search for Tomorrow, launching a decades-long career in the genre that would later earn her several awards.

Bennett first appeared on The Young and the Restless in 1980, playing Julia Newman, wife to Eric Braeden’s Victor Newman. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Bennett was asked to stay on the show as a writer after her character was written off.

She began writing for the show in 1983, though she continued appearing as Julia until 2020.

She also appeared in The Paper Chase and starred in the 1989 series Santa Barbara. One of her final acting roles was in 2005 on General Hospital.

Prior to appearing on the show, Bennett had written for General Hospital from 1993 to 2011. The Los Angeles Times also reports that she met her husband, former head writer Robert Guza Jr., while working on the show. She also wrote for Generations and Sunset Beach.

Bennett won a Daytime Emmy in 1995 as part of a writing team on General Hospital. She also won four Writers Guild of America awards during her time working on the soap, as well for her work on Santa Barbara.

In a 1985 interview, Bennett spoke about her talent for writing and acting.

“I’ll admit, acting makes me a little crazy sometimes: You wait to audition. You wait for the part,” she said at the time, per THR. “When you’re writing, you’re in control. I can initiate things on my own when I’m writing.”

Bennett and her husband would have celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary this May.

She is survived by her husband, two stepdaughters and four grandchildren.