Who can blame her? Beyond any reasonable doubt, viewers agree that Bratt's mile-high cheekbones and caffe latte complexion, aided and abetted by his honed 6'2" form, lift him into the most rarefied tier of leading men. "We don't see too many classically handsome people," testifies his prime-time partner Jerry Orbach, who likens Bratt, 35, to '40s leading man Tyrone Power. "Benjamin's a hunk to the women. He gets immediate reaction."
The son of a Peruvian-born mother, a nurse, and a sheet-metal worker of English-German ancestry, Bratt works hard to keep it coming. "I have a very healthy respect for this vessel," says the actor, dubbed "Scarecrow" at his San Francisco high school for being too thin. An all-around jock then (baseball, swimming and wrestling teams), he now rigorously maintains that respect with tennis, swimming and late-night workouts at his New York City gym. I've found that I can't go more than three days without doing something physically invigorating, because it makes me uptight and tense," says Bratt, an avid surfer who has been known to fly west when the waves are good. "When I'm physically fit, it balances my whole well-being."
It also helps him carry off the impeccably tailored suits that caught the eye of actress Julia Roberts, his girlfriend of a year and a half. "She says I have immense style," he says with a grin. His grooming routine is more mundane. Because 14-hour days in makeup stalking killers can be murder on his skin, "I have to be conscientious about cleaning my face," says Bratt, who also relies on oil-flee moisturizer, massages ("I always feel four inches taller when I walk out") and Kiehl's lip balm. "It sounds boring, but I live by the rule of moderation," he admits, except for coffee and dessert. "After every meal I have to have something sweet. But I've always said you can't really consider it gluttony unless it shows. So far, so good."