For close to 19 years, One Life To Live has been a part of Robert S. Woods' life. But it certainly doesn't feel as if nearly two decades of work have passed for this veteran actor whose impressive acting ability has earned him one Emmy award in 1983 for Best Actor as well as another nomination in the same category for the 1992-93 season.

Back in 1979, Robert entered the town of Llanview playing Bo Buchanan, the brawn and burly Texan with an eye for the young ladies, and with just one short hiatus from the show that lasted from late 1985 to 1988, Robert returned to his reprised role. Working with countless storylines and a host of different occupations throughout the years, Robert's tenure on the show would appear endless at first glance, but as he admits, it's as if no time had gone by at all. "It doesn't seem as if I've been on the show for 18 years, but I guess it has been that long. Well, I've been around a long time, so 18 years is like ten minutes. If you're 18, you're old; it's your whole life." He continues, "It's funny because when I talk to the people I work with and I refer to some of the history, I realize that they were only about four, five, or six years old at that time. But at least there are still some other people around here that know what I'm talking about!"

For Robert, who takes growing older in his stride, achieving the status of a veteran actor truly hits home. In his late teens, Robert was sent abroad to Vietnam shortly after he had joined the U.S. Army, where he served 18 months overseas as a Green Beret. Little did Robert realize back then that his strong military background would serve a different purpose in his future. When his character Bo emerged as Llanview's police commissioner, Robert put into play his military skills, which has lent him considerable credibility to the role. "I was in the army. So I have something that I could draw on from there to portray a cop. There's always the actor thing you fall back on, which is the wardrobe and props. How do you act like a cop; how do you be a cop? Dress and act like a cop and play the wardrobe! So I have a shiny gold badge, a rubber nine-mm gun and a sholder holster. But there is a similarity being a commissioner and being in the military. Rank, sargeant, stripes; it's run like a military - following orders, issuing orders, making decisions."

Although Robert could not fathom the thought of playing the same role for an extended duration when he first came aboard, Bo's evolution of character happened quite naturally. "I thought it was difficult to play the same character over a long span of time when I first started. I used to ask Mike Storm (Larry Wolek) about that because at the time he had been playing the same guy for 10 years, and I said, 'you've been playing the same guy for 10 years! How can you do that?' And now I know. As the character ages, you play him a little older and it's easy because you're a little older. It's just a natural thing." He begrudgingly adds, "There was something up in the studio today that was done about 10 years ago and I saw that and I thought, 'Geez, that is a skinny guy,' and sometimes I wonder how come I don't look like that anymore. But I'm 10 years older. Like 18 years ago, if you'd have told me that I'd be the police commissioner in town, I'd think, 'how the heck did you do this!' Now, I am the police commissioner and I just sort of accept it I guess." With each change his character undertook, however, Robert dutifully embraced every scene, whether he was fond of them or not. "There were some scenes I have enjoyed doing, and some scenes I didn't like at the time. I didn't like going to work at The Banner too much because it was just kind of foreign. That was Clint's, Viki's and Kevin's place and it seemed odd for me to be there. Another time, there was a silly scene where I dressed up like some guy named Ricardo or something, but looking at it now, it's really funny. At the time of shooting it, I was embarrassed and Hillary [B. Smith (Nora)] and I just dove in with both feet, full speed ahead. Usually the only thing you can do with something that you don't like is to do it fast and just commit to it and a lot of times you can get out of it and you're not hurt to badly by it. Nobody ever intends to write something that you're not comfortable with, but it happens. You know what? In that particular scene they basically got what they wanted and as it turned out they were right. It was funny, and that's what it was supposed to be - I was just in too serious a mood at the time."

OLTL is gaining in its popularity in recent days and Robert's commitment to the show and flair he bring to the role is what earns his fans respect and love. In fact, Robert has attributed much of the show's success and increasing ratings to both he and his costars. "Certainly the cast and stories of any show is what makes them popular. I think it's getting more popular now than it was, though. There was a while where it really slipped and skidded downward, like in a down hill slide, and I think it's turning around. I think for me, personally, it is and just from how much I read about its increased ratings recently, from my particular contribution. But we also have a core of actors who have committed to doing just this and haven't gone out and moved to Hollywood or wherever, for instance, Erika Slezak, Phil Carey, Clint Ritchie, and Robin Strasser - so you still can identify the show." He adds, "I'm just glad that the show's still on and hope it stays on for another 30 or more years!" As for his current storyline, Robert is grateful for his chance to prove to the world again that there's still much fire left in his soul. "I'm just glad that Hillary and I have so much to do right now and that the stakes are as high as they are. We had some really nice scenes to work on, because for a long time we didn't. And when you don't have the conflict it can get really, really boring. You're dying for something to do; something to sink your teeth into and this thing that's going on right now is giving us our chance again. With Drew's return, more conflict will enter in his marriage and make for much internal conflict within Bo himself, too. But that's basically what you're really looking for in these shows because if everybody's happy, then there's no story really. It's nice to have a story that has this much conflict in it as this does. Honestly, this could be one of the two best storylines I've ever had to date, if not the best one!"