Joe Marinelli dead: General Hospital and The Morning Show star dies as tributes pour in

Legendary actor Joe Marinelli has died aged 68. The star, who recently starred in the hit Apple TV show The Morning Show, died on Sunday, June 22, from stomach cancer, his family confirmed.

Marinelli's agent, Julie Smith, told CNN he had been living with stomach and throat cancer for a few years before his death. His wife, Jean Marinelli, also confirmed the news of his death to The Hollywood Reporter. The veteran actor had over 50 screen credits, including taking on the role of Bunny Tagliatti in 171 episodes of NBC soap Santa Barbara, bank robber Pauly Hardman on the CBS daytime drama Guiding Light in 1993, and as mobster Joseph Sorel in General Hospital. His earlier appearances were in the mid-1980s, on popular shows including Cagney & Lacey, Hill Street Blues and L.A. Law.

His most recent project was The Morning Show, in which he played show director Donny Spagnoli in 20 episodes alongside Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston, who portrayed presenters on the fictional daytime show. Outside of TV, Marinelli also starred in films including Sideways and One Last Ride in 2004.

Tributes have been rolling in for the late actor. Hollywood director Alexander Payne, who was behind Sideways in 2004, paid tribute to Marinelli saying: "The great Joe Marinelli acted in my very first movie at film school 40 years ago and again in Sideways. Aside from being an extraordinary artist, he was a uniquely magnificent human being with a heart as big as the ocean."

Marinelli's costar from Santa Barbara, Leigh J. McCloskey, penned a tribute to the late actor on social media, writing: "A sweeter man or a dearer friend you could not find than Joe Marinelli. I knew Joe was sick and so admired his indefatigable spirit throughout what sounded like a very difficult, if not impossible, ordeal.

"Joe was a champion. He was a great acting partner, teacher, philosophical friend, passionate believer in people, and a storyteller extraordinaire that with laughter and depth revealed the human spirit so beautifully and in so many different ways.

"He has a beautiful, incredibly talented family that reflects his love of music and art and with his amazing wife Jean, together they always radiated generous and noble hearts."

He is survived by wife Jean Marinelli, who he married in 1991, and two children Vincent and David.