Daytime Mourns Roscoe Born

By Chris Eades Updated: March 9, 2020

Tags:

dead

ABC Photo Archives; Aaron Montgomery/jpistudios.com; Ron Galella, Ltd.

The daytime world suffered a heartbreaking loss on March 3 when veteran actor Roscoe Born passed away at the age of 69. A renowned soap hopper, he was best known to ABC soap fans as the evil Mitch Lawrence on ONE LIFE TO LIVE, to CBS viewers as the twisted Tom Fisher on THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS, and NBC fans as the nasty Trent Robbins on DAYS OF OUR LIVES. Not to mention his additional roles on SANTA BARBARA, THE CITY, ALL MY CHILDREN, AS THE WORLD TURNS, GUIDING LIGHT, and PASSIONS.

From his daytime debut in 1981 on RYAN’S HOPE all the way to his 2007 appearance on PASSIONS, Born worked with daytimes best and brightest over the decades. And many of them took to social media to express their admiration of the Daytime Emmy nominated actor and offer their sympathies to his loved ones.

Scroll through the gallery below for some classic photos and memories of Born from the co-stars who knew him best.

For more on your favorite daytime stars, keep reading Soaps In Depth magazine.

Andrea Evans (Tina, OLTL)

Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
Share this:
"So sad to hear of the passing of my old friend Roscoe Born. I loved working with him. He was a sweet, dear soul. And whenever I hear Sade’s 'Smooth Operator,' I will smile & think of him. RIP."
Marg Helgenberger (Siobhan, RH)

ABC Photo Archives
Share this:
"I’m deeply saddened to hear of Roscoe Born’s passing. My first acting job was on the soap RYAN'S HOPE, and Roscoe was a dream to work with. A generous, soulful, and talented person. My thoughts are with his family & friends. May he rest in peace."
Bree Williamson (Jessica, OLTL) and Melissa Archer (Natalie, OLTL)

Keysha McGrady/Walt Disney Television via Getty Images
Share this:
Bree: "I am devastated to hear of the passing of my friend Roscoe Born. He was a wonderful actor am amazing TV dad. He will be missed."

Melissa: "I can’t put into words how incredibly heartbroken I am to hear of Roscoe Born’s passing. He was an incredible partner to work with and a master in his craft. I can say without a doubt that some of my favorite work on OLTL was with Roscoe. He will be greatly missed. 💔"
Greg Rikaart (Kevin, Y&R)

Aaron Montgomery/jpistudios.com
Share this:
"Roscoe Born was a talented and generous actor and a kind man to boot. He would often say that everything he did was for his daughter. My thoughts are with her and his family today. #RIP"
Darin Brooks (Wyatt, THE BOLD & THE BEAUTIFUL; ex-Max, DAYS)

Paul Skipper/jpistudios.com
Share this:
"Oh, man...😔 Roscoe... You were an amazingly talented, generous actor, always giving your best for other people to shine... I know this because I had the honor of working with you back on DAYS and I remember in between takes, you turned to me and said: 'Ya know, the last time I played someone’s abusive father they won an Emmy... and you could too!' And yeah, we laughed but that year... I did win the Emmy! And it was because of you man! My scene partner in those scenes! Wouldn’t have had it any other way! Pushing me to 'Go man! Keep going!' You didn’t care how evil your character was, you just went all in for me! To get the reactions out of me! And I am forever grateful... It was an honor and a pleasure! RIP, brother... 💔‬"
Mark Lawson (Dustin, GENERAL HOSPITAL; Brody, OLTL)

Keysha McGrady/Walt Disney Television via Getty Images
Share this:
"I learned some important lessons from this man. I think about him often. Gonna miss him. Wander on, Roscoe."
Ron Carlivati (Headwriter of DAYS & OLTL)

Steven Bergman
Share this:
"This was the first time I met Roscoe Born in person at the Triad Theatre in New York. We were there to see Ilene Kristen (Roxy, OLTL) perform. Later, he sent me a wonderful book to thank me for bringing him back to ONE LIFE. Lovely man. Mitch Laurence as portrayed by Roscoe Born was one of my all-time favorite TV villains as a teenager watching OLTL. I was privileged to get to write for him, and while I eventually sent Mitch to hell, I sincerely hope Roscoe is in heaven..."