Soap Actor Ben Jorgensen Dead at 51
Actor Ben Jorgensen has died at the age of 51. For daytime fans, he was best known for playing Kevin Sheffield on ALL MY CHILDREN and Chris Hughes on AS THE WORLD TURNS. His former AMC castmate, Brian Gaskill (Bobby) reported the tragic news on social media. “My understanding is it was suicide,” he wrote on Instagram. “I have heard he suffered from bipolar disorder but as I have not spoken to him in years I do not know all the details.
“I just want to remember the good times we had on the set of AMC 24 years ago,” Gaskill continued. “He was a good guy and he had the courage to play a gay teenager on TV back when it was nowhere near as common to have representation as it is today. He was part of an award-winning storyline… but mostly we just had some good times back then. My condolences go out to his friends and family. Please, everybody, hang in there and reach out for help if you need it.”
In addition to his soap roles, Jorgensen could be seen in films like The Basketball Diaries, The Break, and The Normal Heart. Our thoughts are with Jorgensen and his loved ones during this difficult time. Some of his friends and former co-stars from AMC and ATWT shared heartfelt memories of the late actor in the days following his passing.