Jeffrey Carlson, Chicago actor who played trans role on ‘All My Children,’ remembered as ‘stellar’ stage performer

Jeffrey Carlson is pictured in 2006, when he began playing a rock star transitioning to female on “All My Children.” (ABC)

Before taping episodes of the soap opera “All My Children” in New York City, Jeffrey Carlson would call a close friend from his time at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater and read through his script.

Mr. Carlson, a stage actor at heart who’d starred on Broadway, gave extra special attention to a challenging storyline he’d taken on. He was playing the first transgender character to appear on daytime television — Zarf the British rockstar, who transitioned into a female named Zoe.