Chris Burke says "it's very wonderful" to get to play his character, Corky, on TV this fall in ABC's new series "Life Goes On."
"To become an actor who has Down's syndrome I think is very great," Burke said.Burke's character, like himself, suffers from the birth defect that is a cause of mental retardation.
"Life Goes On," a realistic family drama, is one of the few innovations from the networks this fall.
Burke plays 18-year-old Corky, the middle child of Drew and Libby Thatcher, played by Bill Smitrovich and Patti LuPone. In the series, Corky, who has spent his school years in special education, is just embarking on life in a "normal" high school.
His younger sister Becca (Kelly Martin) must cope with going to the same school as her brother. To complicate matters, Paige (Monique Lanier), a grown daughter from Drew's previous marriage, has broken up with a boyfriend and moved in.
Burke appeared at a news conference with other members of the cast and creator and executive producer of "Life Goes On," Michael Braverman.
Braverman said the series was developed around Burke, who had appeared as a peripheral character in a pilot movie Braverman had produced.
"Although ABC did not pick up that pilot, they loved Chris so much in it, they asked me if I could do something to develop a show that featured him. The result was "Life Goes On."
Braverman said he has been closely involved with Down's syndrome support groups because he has a relative who suffers from it, but does not employ a technical adviser on the show.
"There's no greater expert than Chris. If Chris says he can do something, or couldn't do something, or wouldn't do something, I take that prima facie."
Burke is not severely retarded and had little difficulty dealing with the room full of television critics, occasionally blushing and giggling in the midst of a lengthy answer. Braverman said the reason Burke is an actor is the desire he's had to be one since he was 5.
Burke himself described wanting to "burst into tears" when he went to one drama workshop and saw the other students performing with such ease.
There is a full-time drama coach on the set for Burke, Braverman said, adding, "and it would well serve many other actors as well." Smitrovich leaned forward and asked, "You talking about this show, or your other past experiences."
After the news conference, Smitrovich talked about the joys and difficulties of working with someone like Chris Burke.
"It requires a little more patience, to be truthful," Smitrovich said. "You know, Corky's a very special Down's syndrome child, . . . because Corky's not severely retarded. But in the process of working on a film it's a long day, you have to maintain a certain level of concentration. There are a lot of distractions, and, as you might know, children with Down's syndrome can be distracted quite easily. But someone once said that Down's syndrome, they have something extra, so I look at Corky as having something extra. . . . And he works hard and we get it done. And sometimes there's a nice subtle variable in his character. He's able to add nuance to it, unlike other actors who are straight and playing someone retarded."
ABC has scheduled the show on Sunday night, opposite CBS' powerhouse "60 Minutes."
"I don't think anybody expects us to beat `60 Minutes,"' said Braverman. "We're going to play our own game."