Soap opera star Ben Masters passes away at 75

Washington [US], January 12 (ANI): Actor Ben Masters, who portrayed Julian Crane in the daytime soap ‘Passions’, passed away on Wednesday in Palm Springs, California, from COVID-19 after a protracted battle with dementia. He was 75.

According to Variety, a US-based news outlet, he portrayed the womanising heir apparent of the affluent and influential Crane family in the series from 1999 to 2008. In addition to ‘All That Jazz’, ‘Key Exchange’, ‘Making Mr. Right’, Mandingo’, and ‘Dream Lover’, Masters played roles in several other films.

In the short-lived 1976 television series ‘Muggsy’, Masters raised his 13-year-old sister in a trailer behind a gas station after their parents passed away. Compared to the prevalent suburban family images, the Saturday morning show dealt with themes like gangs and poverty in a more realistic manner.

From the 1970s until the 1990s, Masters contributed to a number of TV miniseries, including ‘Celebrity’ and ‘Noble House’ (starring Pierce Brosnan) (with Ned Beatty and Tess Harper).

Additionally, he appeared in a few TV shows as a guest star, such as ‘Kojak’, ‘Barnaby Jones’, ‘Murder She Wrote’, Petrocelli’, ‘Touched by an Angel’, ‘Sisters’, ‘Diagnosis Murder’, Kolchak: The Night Stalker’, and ‘Kung Fu: The Legend Continues’.
With a brief appearance on ‘Another World’ in 1982, he launched his soap opera career.

Born in Corvallis, Oregon, he obtained his high school diploma from Corvallis High School in 1965 and his bachelor’s degree in drama from the University of Oregon in 1969.

He quickly relocated to New York City and appeared in a number of on- and off-Broadway musicals, including ‘Boys in the Band’, ‘The Cherry Orchard’, and ‘Captain Brassbound’s Conversion’ (with Ingrid Bergman).

As per a report by Variety, Masters is survived by his sister Cheryl Lerner and nieces Hannah and Clea Lerner.