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"I play a neurosurgeon on TV but..."

"...I Studied to be a Dental Technician!"

For Peter Parros (Dr. Ben Harris) of As The World Turns, playing a doctor on TV not only requires good acting skills, but good script memorizing skills as well.

“Oh yeah, without a doubt. Actors can come in and learn lines and sometimes improvise their way through, and no one would know, but not me,” Parros said. “I have to have it down pact, especially medical terminology. Remember I play a neurosurgeon. What would happen if I said something wrong, and a real doctor was watching?”

Parros has been playing Dr. Ben Harris since July 1996. Describing his part as a “rollercoaster ride” but confided that he’s really learned from the role, especially that during surgery people are conscious, he said.

“It’s really been fun over the years. It’s up and down, especially in terms of storyline,” Parros said. “I work with some of the greatest people in the industry, and that’s what makes coming to work fun. Chris Goutman, the executive producer is fast and efficient. It’s well run.”

Admitting that he wishes his storyline would be a little less predictable, he would like to see Dr. Ben  do some “off the wall things.”

At left:  Peter Parros (Ben) with Tamara Tunie (Jessica) in an episode that aired July 27, 2004.

Soapdom wants to know, where would you like to see your storyline go? “At first I thought I was going in the direction of developing a family, and that dissolved,” Parros said. “It would be neat if a relationship developed that was steady. Look how many relationships I’ve had that went nowhere?  But all in all, I ’d love to pick up the script and be shocked with something unexpected to do.”

It was the his good relationship with then Executive Producer John Valente that  brought him to As The World Turns. Valente offered him the role of Dr. Ben Harris.

Previously, he played a doctor, and believe it or not! He was Dr. Ben, a neurosurgeon on One Life To Live. He also appeared on Young and Restless and Santa Barbara.

Parros admitted that the situation over at One Life to Live didn’t go too well, and he really thought he was through in daytime TV.

“In this business you never really know,” Parros said. “Things there (OLTL) were not all that great, and I really thought...well this the end of the soap opera world, and here I am again.”

We tried to get Parros to open up more about the experience on OLTL, but he declined to comment further.

Parros was studying to be a dental technician like his father when the acting bug swooped in. “I  became an editor of a magazine called ‘International Modeler,’ a company that created special effects miniatures. I started visiting sets, and just became interested. It seemed like a fascinating business, and I decided to pursue it,” he said.

Parros began his career in primetime as a series regular on the 1980’s series Knight Rider and the New Adam 12. He also appeared in Step by Step, Hanging with Mr. Cooper, Star Trek; the Next Generation, Seinfeld, and Charles in Charge. His feature film credits include Death Before Dishonor and Real Genius.

A highly creative person, he enjoys writing and producing with hopes of doing more feature film writing. He owns his own production company, Ten Talents Entertainment, where he writes and produces programs that develop a positive image for children.

Recently he entered into an agreement with Urban Ministries outside of Chicago.
A Christian himself, Parros will produce at least six Christian videos that will be available for purchase in stores. He also has a project going with hopes of making it into a TV series.

When away from the entertainment industry, Parros is married and is enjoys being dad to his two small children.

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