Eric Braeden ( born Hans-Jörg Gudegast ; April 3 , 1941 ) is a German-American film and television actor , best known for his roles as Victor Newman on the soap opera `` The Young and the Restless '' , as Hans Dietrich in the 1960s TV series `` The Rat Patrol '' , Dr. Charles Forbin in '' '' , and as John Jacob Astor IV in the 1997 film `` Titanic '' .
Eric Braeden ( born Hans-Jörg Gudegast ; April 3 , 1941 ) is a German-American movie and television actor , best known for his role as Victor Newman on the soap opera `` The Young and the Restless '' , as Hans Dietrich in the 1960s TV series `` The Rat Patrol '' , and as John Jacob Astor IV in the 1997 film `` Titanic '' .