He made history on TV: what happens to the life of the protagonist of “Corky, the power of affection”

If you were part of the television audience in the nineties in Argentina, you will know that there was a telenovela entitled Corky, the strength of affection (in English, Life goes on) played by a teenager with Down syndrome.

The program told the story of the Thatcher family, but above all that of one of its members: Charles, also known as Corky. It was about a boy with Down syndrome who was studying in high school and suffered discrimination because of his condition. It was the first time that a character affected by this genetic disease acted in a television drama.

The great goal of Corky, the strength of affection It was about making visible the young person’s way of relating and the discrimination suffered due to Down syndrome. That’s why at the end of each chapter there was a message for improvement.

Originally, the soap opera aired in the United States on ABC between September 12, 1989 and May 23, 1993.

Who played Corky?

The actor who played Corky is American Chris Burke. His character was the middle child of Drew and Libby and the brother of Paige and Becca. He studies in high school, doesn’t get along with mathematics and has special tutoring.

For his performance, the 58-year-old actor was nominated for a Golden Globe in 1990 in the Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries or Television Film category.

Previously, Burke worked on an ABC film titled Desperate and had participated in the film with Julia Roberts, Mona Lisa’s smile.

Thanks to Corky’s fame, Burke wrote an autobiography (“A Special Kind of Hero”) which proved to be one of the best-selling books in the United States in 1992.

From a young age, his parents raised him in their New York home, encouraging his acting talent. From an early age he wanted to show himself to a different audience and as he grew up he was looking for a way to make the potential of people affected by his syndrome visible.

What is Chris Burke’s life?

Since 1994, Burke has been actively involved in the American Down Syndrome Society as a Goodwill Ambassador.

He appears at conferences and public events to talk about his career, interact with those in attendance, and inspire other people with Down syndrome. Today she is a spokesperson for the Society in New York, where she helps with different tasks every day.

In these years he also developed his role as a musician by forming a folk group with brothers Joe and John DeMasi.

She has no social network, however her co-star in Corky, Kelly Martin, usually uploads photos of himself to his Instagram account. This is what Corky’s official Facebook page does, the strength of affection.

On World Down Syndrome Day, Martin wrote: “I look forward to celebrating Chris Burke every day, but especially #worlddownsyndromeday. There is nothing he cannot do and no one he cannot conquer”.

Five days ago, the Instagram account of the Down Syndrome Society of the United States shared a photo of him to announce that Chris will be attending a gala on March 7.

Over there, the actor will be honored “for his significant contributions to the Down syndrome community, particularly his role in expanding the representation of Down syndrome in film and television.”