ContractDispute

Well, as Victor Newman might say: "That's a hell of a thing." Eric Braeden celebrated his 30th anniversary on 'The Young and the Restless.' It's not just three decades that makes it a memorable mark, it's that it has come after a very rough year in which Braeden quit the soap in a contract dispute and was brought back into the fold in part thanks to the influence of the head of the network, Les Moonves.

In honor of Braeden's tenure on the soap, there was a big party to commemorate the anniversary. As this picture reveals, Peter Bergman was in attendance and posed with Eric. True, on screen as Jack Abbott and Victor Newman, the two men would like to rip each other to bits, but off screen they're very civil and appreciative of each other's talents. They have had occasional dust-ups, but generally, they get along well.

After all, their characters' on screen feud has been the stuff of soap legend. Victor and Jack have shared wives, corporations, but mostly, unabashed hatred. They despise each other.

Where has the time gone? Is it really 20 years that Peter Bergman's played Jack Abbott on The Young and the Restless? Amazing, but true. Not only has Bergman been tearing it up as Jack for two decades, he's pretty much eradicated the memory of his tenure on All My Children where he was nice guy, Dr. Cliff Warner. Say what you will about Jack, he's not a nice guy. He can have his good moments, but this character is too complicated, too selfish, too diabolical ever to be confused with a noble man like Cliff.

Which is what has made Peter Bergman's time on Y&R so remarkable! The character had been so sharply defined by Terry Lester that it was going to be tough for any actor to take over the part.

It's been a tumultuous six weeks for Eric Braeden and The Young and the Restless. For a while, it looked like he was on his way out of the soap when contract talks broke down between the star and Sony. Then there was a story in the trades about other actors being contacted to possibly replace him, including William Devane, Paul Michael Glaser and Peter Strauss. Before you could say Jabot Cosmetics, Bob posted the news that Eric and Sony had reached an agreement and Victor Newman would continue to be played by Eric Braeden. Crisis averted.

Well, while he was still in exit mode, the show wrote Victor out. In the storyline, Victor is recovering from a heart transplant and has decided to go to a clinic in Belgium to rehabilitate. This week he's been tying up loose ends before leaving.