Passions Actor Ben Masters, Dead at 75

Ben Masters, known to soap fans for his run on Passions as devious, charming Julian Crane, patriarch of the Crane family has passed away.

Ben Masters — In Memoriam

Masters died on January 11, 2023, at the Eisenhower Medical Center in Palm Springs, CA, at the age of 75. He had been battling dementia for several years and passed away due to complications from COVID.

Born on May 6, 1947, in Corvallis, OR to Beryl and Mary Masters, Ben graduated from Corvallis High School in 1965 and the University of Oregon with a B.A. degree in Theater in 1969.

With a passion for theater, film, and television from a young age, Masters soon moved to New York City, where he starred in many on and off-Broadway productions, including Captain Brassbound’s Conversion with Ingrid Bergman, The Cherry Orchard with Meryl Streep, and Boys in the Band.

The actor segued into film, starring in Bob Fosse’s All That Jazz with Roy Schneider, Key Exchange with Brooke Adams and Danny Aiello, Making Mr. Right with John Malkovich, and Dream Lover with Kristy McNichol.

Throughout the 70s, 80s, and 90s, Masters starred in many TV mini-series, including Noble House with Pierce Brosnan, Celebrity with Ned Beatty and Tess Harper, and guest starred in numerous television series, including Kojak, Petrocelli, Touched by an Angel, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, Barnaby Jones, Murder She Wrote, Heartbeat, Walker: Texas Ranger, Diagnosis Murder, Sisters, and Pensacola Wings of Gold.

Masters’s last role was in the daytime drama Passions, in which he portrayed the rich and powerful Julian Crane from the show’s premiere in 1999 on NBC to its finale in 2008 after the series had switched over to DirecTV.

Masters is survived by his sister Cheryl Lerner, nieces Hannah and Clea Lerner of Los Angeles, and numerous friends and colleagues by whom he was loved and respected. He was pre-deceased by his parents. At his request, there will be no memorial service or funeral.

Soap Hub sends sincere condolences to Ben Masters’s family, friends, and Passions co-stars at this difficult time.