JAMES PICKENS JR. - Live YOUR DREAM

The Grey's Anatomy star talks about his life, career journey and the lessons he's learned

- Fortune Benatar

This winter, James Pickens Jr. is expected to return to the set to begin filming the 20th season of Grey’s Anatomy, which plans a spring premiere. James, who has played Dr. Richard “Chief” Webber since 2005, Ellen Pompeo and Chandra Wilson are the last original cast members of the long-running medical drama. “It’s been a heck of a ride,” James, 69, tells Closer. “We’ve had a good time.”

Beyond his career on television, where he also brought memorable characters to life on The X-Files and Roseanne, and theater, his first love, James is a celebrity ambassador for prostate cancer awareness. When he’s not on a set or stage, he can be found horseback riding and roping cattle. “It’s been a great escape for me,” he confides of the ranching life. “I go out and I just ride the trail. It’s fun.”

Did you always want to be an actor?

No. I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and was the oldest of three kids. My father worked in the steel mill for over 20 years. I had aspirations to be an artist and an illustrator, but then I went off to college and that’s when I got the acting bug. I found myself in New York City in the late ’70s where I plied my trade as an actor, mostly in off-Broadway theater. By 1990, I made my way to Los Angeles, and I can’t believe I’ve been here that long now.

Was your family supportive of your dreams?

They were supportive, but most of that generation didn’t quite get it. To them, it was about an eight-hour workday. Sidney Poitier, Diahann Carroll and Harry Belafonte were their frames of reference, but the whole idea of acting as a career was pretty foreign to them.