GH’s Maurice Benard And Y&R’s Eric Braeden Explore His Historic Past

You might be hearing Michael Buffer in your head with the famous boxing introduction, “LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE” at the thought of Sonny Corinthos and Victor Newman in the same room together, but what you find in this week’s video podcast of State Of Mind is a fantastic conversation between two titans of daytime, GH’s Maurice Benard and Y&R’s Eric Braeden.

Maurice Benard And Eric Braeden: Positive Defiance

Benard (Sonny, GH) admitted he was a little intimidated by his guest this week. “I’m a little nervous today. [LOL] A little more than usual. When I texted him he said, ‘Let’s just shoot the sh*t’ and I felt better.”

Braeden couldn’t be more accommodating. “I was very happy when you called me. Of course, I said yes immediately. I respect you enormously.” And so it began.

The two daytime tough guys began by getting personal about Braeden’s past and growing up without a father in post-World War II Germany. The veteran actor learned early on not to take any guff from others. “I don’t care that much. But I am defiant. In other words, okay, you don’t like it, oh really, come here brother. You understand? I learned this a long time ago as a kid in school.

“I lost my father when I was 12, and I was very close to him,” continued Braeden. “And I grew up with three brothers. We fought all of the time. I had to reign that in.” He described the post War environment from a kid’s perspective. “It was tough after the war. You can imagine. A lot of poverty around you. A lot of hard work. Hard work. I have earned my money since I was 12 years old. You become your own father. When you lose your father at a very young age, you become defiant and angry, and you resent authority. Or arbitrarily imposed authority.

“We had no hot running water. No central heating,” he went on to add. “And the thing that saved me was girls and sports. That’s what saved me. I was always in love. I was always looking forward to meeting with them. Bicycling in the cold, cold weather to throw a rock at their window so she would come down. It would just fill my heart with joy.”

Braeden On Working With Brando

Braeden opened up about working with actor Marlon Brando. “I did a film with him called Morituri in 1965. It means ‘We who are about to die salute you.’ Caesar said that. [The film] It was about the second World War. It took place on a ship. And we filmed it off of Catalina Island on a New Zealand boat with a Chinese crew. Every day there were 200 extras on that ship. I played a radio operator. A German radio operator and Brando played a German spy.

“We talked a lot about German history,” Braeden explained. The veteran actor described some of the subjects they tackled during the downtime of the set. “He had done the Young Lions before. So he was very interested in the history of the Second World War. The history of Germany. We talked a lot about prejudices. A lot about American Indians. The treatment of Native Americans. So we talked mostly about history and politics.”

Braeden shared Brando’s advice for him. “He said, ‘Listen. You are too bright. Don’t become an actor. Do something else.’ I said, ‘Why do you say that? You are an iconic figure to all of us. The iconic figure amongst actors in the world.’ Brando just waved him off and he asked, ‘How was the Actor’s Studio experience?’ and he responded, “Well, I picked up a lot of women.” Braeden expressed his thoughts on the legendary actor. “He was arguably one of the most charismatic actors that I have ever met in my lifetime. He had an inner power. An anger, at what I have no idea, but an inner power.”

Eric Braeden: James Cameron And Titanic

Braeden had heard stories about the difficult James Cameron before arriving on the set of Titanic, the 1997 Oscar Award-Winning Best Picture, to portray John Jacob Astor so when an assistant tapped him on the shoulder on his first day on the set, he wasn’t sure what to expect.

“She said, ‘Mr. Braeden, can you come and meet the producers? And James would like to meet you.’ I thought, ‘Well, let’s see…’ I talked to the producers. Very nice. Suddenly, behind me, he taps me on the shoulder and says, ‘I’m James Cameron. I am so happy you are here. I loved you in da da da…’ He took the p*** out of me. I thought, ‘Very nice,’ and then I changed my mind. He couldn’t have been nicer. I have such respect for the man. He’s a brilliant director. Absolutely brilliant director.”

Later, after he finished filming he recalled giving his son, writer and director Christian Gudegast, a tour of the set and watching the first five minutes of the movie with Cameron. It gave him goosebumps and he knew it would do well.

Benard And Braeden: So Much More!

Eric Braeden has more than 60 years of experience on stage, in film, on primetime and daytime television, and the two men take a look back on it all. From growing up in war-torn Germany, reciting poems in school, excelling in sports, and how that served his acting career well.

The actor recalls his first film experience on Operation Eichmann, tackling Broadway with Geraldine Page and overcoming stage fright, more stories of Brando, Cameron, DiCaprio, fatherhood,  being a grandfather, and, of course, his thoughts on working on The Young and the Restless for 40+ years.

This is a must-see State Of Mind. An episode that plays more like an episode of the iconic show Inside the Actor’s Studio between the two daytime fan favorites with unforgettable quotes throughout such as Braeden giving Benard a pep talk on what they do, “What you and I do on a daily basis is the hardest job for an actor in this town.” Click here for the full episode.

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General Hospital (GH) airs weekdays on ABC. Check your local listings for airtimes. For more about what’s coming up in Port Charles, check out all the latest that’s been posted on General Hospital spoilers, and for an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.