Ben Masters, star of NBC soap ‘Passions,’ dead at 75
Actor Ben Masters, best known for starring as Julian Crane on the hit NBC soap opera “Passions,” has died at age 75, his family has confirmed.
Masters, who hailed from Oregon, died Wednesday at Palm Springs’ Eisenhower Medical Center, Deadline reports.
After living with dementia for several years, he ultimately died due to complications from COVID, according to the outlet.
Per his wishes, there will be no memorial service or funeral, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Most notably, Masters appeared on “Passions” from 1999 until 2008. He never had another on-screen role since the show ended.
The series premiered on NBC in 1999 and was canceled by the network in 2007. Its final season was picked up by DirectTV’s 101 Network.
After news of Masters’ death came to light, his former “Passions” co-star Eric Martsolf rushed to Twitter to pay his respects.
“I snapped this on the last tape day at Passions,” he tweeted alongside a snap of Masters. “He was all smiles, and I’ll remember him as such. Thank you for your kindness, and rest in peace, Ben.”
In a follow-up tweet, he wrote, “RIP Ben. This charming guy was nothing but purely kind to me when I joined my first soap as a youngster. Rest in Passion, you lovely man.”
Prior to landing the role on “Passions,” Masters appeared in TV shows such as “Another World,” “Murder, She Wrote,” “Sisters,” “Texas Ranger,” and “Kung Fu: The Legend Continues.”
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He also starred Pierce Brosnan in the 1988 TV mini-series “Noble House.”
Masters also dabbled in films, appearing in “All That Jazz,” “Key Exchange,” “Dream Lover,” and “Making Mr. Right.”
Masters is survived by his sister Cheryl Lerner and nieces Hannah and Clea Lerner.
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