He is known for his 28-year run in the iconic role of Joshua Lewis on the longest-running soap opera, Guiding Light. His acting performances as Joshua garnered him two Daytime Emmy nominations for “Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.” “Overall, it was lovely to play him,” he said. “Like any job, there were certainly ups and downs to it. The people that I worked with were quite extraordinary, and lifelong relationships were developed after all of those years that are still intact today. As an actor, it’s a tricky thing to stay with the same character for that period of time.”
When asked how he handled being dialogue-heavy in his Guiding Light days, he said, “On any given day, there were three different storylines going on. I would always tell people that memorizing dialogue is part of what I do. When you’ve been playing a character for that long. it gets easier since you know who your character is and how he talks. Also, working with Kim Zimmer was so great, I was lucky to be with her.”
Newman also played the role of Richard in the hit digital drama series, Venice the Series, which was co-created by Crystal Chappell and Kim Turrisi. “I played an intricate storyline, which was about a father who didn’t know that he has a daughter, which had a Guiding Light vibe to it. Also, I got to reunite with Kim [Zimmer]. The last season of the series was very different than the other seasons,” he said.
Most recently, he enjoyed being a part of the series Mélange. “We shot it a couple of years ago as a pilot and now, they are working on turning it into a series. It’s a good show,” he said.
On the title of the current chapter of his life, he responded, “The current chapter is ‘Grandpa’.” “My wife, Britt, and I just became grandparents to our grandson, Leo Robert, so that was very exciting. He’s a very sweet kid,” he said.
Newman has guest-starred on House of Cards, Chicago Fire, Homeland, Criminal Minds, NCIS, and Law and Order: SVU.
His film credits include The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Dracano, and the short film Deadline, for which he earned the “Best Actor” Award at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival back in 2014.
For young and aspiring actors, he said, “You better be pretty good at what you do. I do a lot of theatre around the country. These days, you need to be good at everything. Back in the day, the triple-threat was singing, acting, and dancing. I could never dance but I could sing and I could act. Now, in this day and age, it’s about singing, acting, directing, writing, producing, and creating your own content.”
“The competition these days is fierce, you better be good and you better be ready when that moment comes,” he added.
Newman defined the word success in his personal life as celebrating his 35th wedding anniversary with Britt. “We have two amazing grown children and a grandchild, so for me, that’s part of success as well,” he said.
“I am still always looking for the next thing around the corner,” he said about success from a professional standpoint. “I am constantly working and my focus now is on stage.”
To learn more about actor Robert Newman, check out his official website and follow him on Twitter.
