The Young and the Restless actress Michelle Stafford has taken a few breaks from Genoa City over the years. In 2014, she originated the role of Nina Reeves on General Hospital. That's where she got to work with, among others, the late, great Anthony Geary, a man to whom now she's paying a tribute. The Young and the Restless, remembering Anthony Geary View this post on Instagram Instagram Post"As I have said before, this man is hugely responsible for me being an actor today," Stafford shared on Instagram, referring to Geary, who played GH's Luke Spencer. "I watched Tony (on #GH) when I was younger every day. My sister and I would watch, truly, every single day. As I would watch, I would think, 'I want to do what he’s doing.' "He wouldn’t even really be in the scene, and you would see him in the background acting his ass off, being committed, pulling focus," Stafford pointed out. "He wasn’t even trying to upstage anyone, he just did. He couldn’t help it… he was a star. He made every scene he was in important. Every moment important."He loved acting. He loved Art," Stafford continued. "You can imagine how I felt when I joined the show. I don’t really get starstruck. But I always was when I was around him. I did one scene with him when I was on #GH."When a The Young and the Restless star checked into GH A dream came true for Michelle Stafford when she, as Nina, worked with Anthony Geary (Luke) on General Hospital; now she's back on The Young and the Restless | Image: JPIal "I was coming out of my skin," recalled. "I was extremely nervous. I remember I was sort of hiding, off set, calming myself down. I had been so mesmerized by him for so many years, and I could not believe that I was acting with him. In 2004, we won Emmys together for Best Actor and Best Actress. You know, those moments in time where you cannot believe that this is where your life has taken you…? "This was one of them, you know what I mean?" Stafford marveled. "Tony was honest, he was intelligent. He was real. I still can’t believe that I had the pleasure of knowing him. He didn’t even know that he had affected my life so deeply. I was too shy to tell him. How lucky are we all that he touched our lives on the screen? How fortunate am I that he equally touched my life in person and as a colleague. ❤️ Godspeed."Catch all-new episodes of The Young and the Restless weekdays on CBS and Paramount Plus.