But as he was writing, 'almost as if an angel had come through the window, there was this sense of a presence saying, 'All of the stuff you've been worrying about for all those years is bulls-.' And suddenly, I let go of all of that. 'Back then, at age 68, I still had a sense that there was something wrong with me,' he says. But at the same time the book became an unintended forum for his coming out (today, he remains in a decades-long relationship with actor-producer Martin Rabbett).

In writing his book, Chamberlain had set about to put such thoughts on paper. 'It's a presence that exists within us and without us.

'I think love is the source of wisdom, of strength, of intelligence,' he says. One thing he learned along the way: Love is at the root of it all. 'I've been acting for 55 years - meeting the right people, getting the right advice, getting the right jobs.'Īt the same time, he has traveled a long and winding spiritual path, an odyssey he recounts in his 2003 memoir, 'Shattered Love.' Then he raps a wooden table conveniently in reach, and laughs again. 'I've got one-and-a-half scenes, but a really GOOD scene!' 'A job like this is ideal,' says Chamberlain before a recent performance as his current Man of God. 'Then all hell breaks loose,' says Chamberlain, adding with a chuckle, 'I've played a lot of priests over the years.' Not the least of them was Father Ralph de Bricassart, that passionate priest of 'The Thorn Birds,' the 1983 miniseries whose success on the heels of likewise top-rated 'Centennial' and 'Shogun' certified Chamberlain as The King of the miniseries genre. In his small but pivotal role, he plays Father Donald, who is called in to counsel the son - a traumatized Vietnam war veteran - of co-stars Holly Hunter and Bill Pullman. 14, Chamberlain can be found onstage in an off-Broadway production of the David Rabe black comedy 'Sticks and Bones.' Today, at 80, he is still working and, thanks to facial exercises and defiant genes (but no cosmetic work, he vows) retains the dreamboat looks of an elder James Kildare. He passed away two decades ago at age 67.īut a happier fate awaited Chamberlain, who, spared the typical flare-out of an overnight sensation, followed up his stint at Blair General Hospital with a varied and distinguished slate of films, TV and theater. Rugged, swarthy Vince Edwards would never again enjoy his prominence as Dr. Then, as if on cue, each sputtered to a finish five seasons later. Both launched out-of-nowhere heartthrobs. 28, 1961.īoth shows erupted as smash hits. Kildare' and its 27-year-old leading man, Richard Chamberlain.Īdding to the excitement was the harmonic convergence that found a rival doctor drama, 'Ben Casey,' arriving in ABC's lineup just four days after 'Dr. New York (AP) - It is hard to describe the hysteria that was whipped up by the new NBC drama 'Dr.

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