Lorenzo Lamas will return to the spotlight in 2015 - touring with his new memoir, "Renegade at Heart," and starring in the new season of "The Celebrity Apprentice" - but he's not looking to jump back into the Hollywood racket full-time.

"Right now, at this stage of my life, I just want to work with people that I really love and I don't want to get back in the rat race of Hollywood. I've done that," he told Headlines & Global News in an exclusive interview.

Lamas was a constant TV fixture throughout much of the '80s and '90s. He starred in all nine seasons of "Falcon Crest" (1981-1990) and headlined his own show "Renegade" for five seasons (1992-1997).

He headed back to TV last spring to shoot the new season of NBC's reality competition, premiering Sunday night, and worked hard to avoid hearing the dreaded phrase, "You're fired," by real estate mogul Donald Trump.

"That was an incredible experience," Lamas said. "It was very challenging, very difficult. I stayed awake lots of nights to try to contribute to my team and raise money for the different charities that my celebrity friends were promoting."

The 56-year-old actor consulted with his friend Dee Snider, who appeared on the fifth "Celebrity" season, for a few tips on how to succeed. The Twisted Sister frontman suggested holding back on volunteering ideas early, but ultimately, Lamas had to play his own game.

"He recommended that I kind of really reserve putting my neck my out until later on in the show and, of course, I didn't listen," Lamas said. "When you have an idea and nobody else does, you feel obligated to present it. In doing so, you're basically putting yourself at risk of being fired because if your idea doesn't work, you're the one that gets the can. I managed to contribute a lot and stay alive for a good period of time."

Lamas worked most closely with Fox News personality Geraldo Rivera. The two shared a rocky relationship, but one that would provide a lot of fireworks for the show.

"It was a relationship not unlike many of my marriages," joked Lamas, who's been married five times. "There were fantastic times and very resentful times. I think we're going to provide the audience with a lot of fireworks and a lot of entertainment. In the end, we are pals. There were a few rough patches we had to go through. We're both Latin and we both have tempers. That by itself leads to some pretty exciting exchanges."

A graduate of Admiral Farragut Academy, Lamas chose to support the Boot Campaign for his charity on the show. The non-profit organization raises awareness for challenges that many military veterans face as they return home.

Lamas sees a great difference between the support of American troops today compared to growing up in the 1970s when young men, like his step-brother, received little respect upon returning home.

"I really think that every American owes a debt of gratitude to those who serve. Even though the support of the troops is at a record high in this country... I still think more has to be done to help these folks when they come back to assimilate into civilian life," he said. "They come back with devastating injuries physically, mentally, financially and the Boot Campaign is a real grassroots charity that doesn't take a lot off the top."

In addition to his time filming "Celebrity Apprentice," Lamas also spent much of 2014 finishing up his new autobiography. He first set out to write about the relationship he shared with his famous father, Fernando Lamas, but expanded the focus to address the parts of his life that played out across the tabloids but he never had commented on until now.

"My wife [Shawna Craig] encouraged me to write the book. We've been together five years now and in the beginning she just read all the stuff, all these people saying these negative things about me regarding the way I was as a parent. Just untruths. She really pushed me to get my side of the story out," he said.

The heart of the book still revolves around his father and discovering that the two had much more in common than he realized as a young man. He describes the book as a sort of "self-help book for people who are struggling to live in their parents' shadow," and talks about entering a profession dominated by both his parents (his mother is actress Arlene Dahl, who found her greatest success in the post-WWII era).

"Both my parents were huge stars. I would never have attempted to become as big of stars as they were because they lived in a different era," Lamas said. "But there was a pressure that I grew up with and I think the book really serves as a sort of a handbook to how to deal with pressure that your parents can put on you, in a healthy way."

Today, Lamas finds his greatest joy as a helicopter tour guide, showing visitors to Los Angeles all the sights and putting smiles on their faces. The high-flying job also keeps him close to home and allows him to spend more time with his three younger children, an opportunity he didn't get with his older kids.

"I can go home to my family at night. I'm not stuck on some freezing Arctic location for three months," he said. "I feel horrible about the fact that I wasn't available to my three older kids when they were young because the [Hollywood] business owned me."

Lamas struggles with the idea that some of today's biggest names in show business can balance their careers and still have a close relationship with their children.

"I don't see how that's possible. I wasn't able to do that because to be a good parent, you have to be available to your kids. And I wasn't," he said. "Unless you're two people, how are you going to be in two places at the same time? You want to be on the red carpet but then you're going to miss your kid's school play."

"Renegade at Heart: An Autobiography" is available on Amazon and in bookstores.

"The Celebrity Apprentice" premieres on Sunday, Jan. 4 at 9 p.m. on NBC and will air regularly on Mondays at 8 p.m. starting on Jan. 12.