Actor returns to alma mater

It’s been nearly 50 years since University of Montana alumnus and daytime television star Eric Braeden set foot on the Missoula campus. But he came back on April 19 to screen his aptly titled new movie, “The Man Who Came Back,” for the campus and Missoula communities.

Braeden introduced both free showings of the film in the University Center Theater and held a half-hour question-and-answer session following each screening. Not one to let down his fans, Braeden also signed dozens of personalized autographs for moviegoers.

The German-born Braeden, whose name was Hans Gudegast when he attended UM in the early 1960s and worked nights at the Bonner mill, is an internationally known television and film star. He’s best known for his longtime role as Victor Newman on the No. 1-rated daytime drama series “The Young and the Restless.” He also starred as John Jacob Astor in the Academy Award-winning movie “Titanic.”

Braeden reconnected with his alma mater after he was interviewed last fall by Missoula writer Paddy MacDonald for a profile that appeared in the winter 2008 issue of the Montanan, UM’s alumni magazine.

"The Man Who Came Back” was produced by Braeden and stars the UM alum as Reese Paxton, a former Confederate soldier who fights for the rights of African Americans in a bloody labor strike. Taking place post-Civil War in a small town where emancipation has yet to occur, the movie also stars Armand Assante, Billy Zane, Sean Young, Carol Alt, James Patrick Stuart and George Kennedy, among others.