Glynnis O'Connor (born November 19, 1955) is an American actress. She made her big-screen debut starring in the 1973 romantic drama film, '' Jeremy''. She later starred in the short-lived CBS drama series '' Sons and Daughters'' (1974) and the television version of ''
Our Town
''Our Town'' is a three-act play written by American playwright Thornton Wilder in 1938. Described by Edward Albee as "the greatest American play ever written", it presents the fictional American town of Grover's Corners between 1901 and 1913 ...
Baby Blue Marine
''Baby Blue Marine'' is a 1976 American drama film set during World War II that was directed by John D. Hancock and starred Jan-Michael Vincent. The feature film was produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg.
Plot
Marion “Hedge” H ...
Night Crossing
''Night Crossing'' is a 1982 thriller drama film starring John Hurt, Jane Alexander and Beau Bridges. The film is based on the true story of the Strelzyk and Wetzel families who, on September 16, 1979, escaped from East Germany to West Germany ...
'', ''
Melanie
Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the Greek language, Greek μελανία (melania), "blackness" and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "dark".Johnny Dangerously'' (1984).
Personal life
O'Connor was born in
New Rochelle, New York
New Rochelle ( ; in ) is a Political subdivisions of New York State#City, city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately from Midtow ...
, and is the daughter of actress
Lenka Peterson
Lenka Peterson (born Betty Ann Isacson; October 16, 1925 – September 24, 2021) was an American theater, film, and television actress.
Early years
Peterson was born in Omaha, Nebraska, a daughter of Swedish and Hungarian immigrants. Her father w ...
and film producer Daniel Patrick O'Connor. She is married to Douglas Stern, a New York City native, and they have two daughters together, Lindsay (b. 1990) and Hana.
Career
In 1973, O'Connor made her screen debut and also sang the title song for the romantic drama film '' Jeremy'' in which she co-starred with
Robby Benson
Robby Benson (born Robin David Segal; January 21, 1956) is an American actor, director, and musician. He rose to prominence as a teen idol in the late 1970s, appearing in the films ''Ode to Billy Joe (film), Ode to Billy Joe'' (1976), ''One on ...
. Soon after her big-screen debut, O'Connor was cast as a female lead opposite Gary Frank in the CBS drama series, '' Sons and Daughters''. On January 8, 1974, she starred in the '' CBS Radio Mystery Theatre'' production of "Ring of Roses" and then co-starred with
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He began acting in television before transitioning into a leading man in films. List of awards and nominations received by John Travolta, His accolades include a Primetime Em ...
in the 1976 TV movie '' The Boy in the Plastic Bubble''. The same year, she portrayed Bobbie Lee Hartley, co-starring again with Robby Benson, in the drama film '' Ode to Billy Joe,'' a tragic romance produced and directed by Max Baer Jr., and the drama film ''
Baby Blue Marine
''Baby Blue Marine'' is a 1976 American drama film set during World War II that was directed by John D. Hancock and starred Jan-Michael Vincent. The feature film was produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg.
Plot
Marion “Hedge” H ...
'' opposite
Jan-Michael Vincent
Jan-Michael Vincent (July 15, 1944 – February 10, 2019) was an American actor. He emerged as a leading man in the 1970s, playing notable roles in films like '' Going Home'' (1971), which earned him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Sup ...
The following year she starred in the Western film ''Kid Vengeance'' and the made-for-television version of ''
Our Town
''Our Town'' is a three-act play written by American playwright Thornton Wilder in 1938. Described by Edward Albee as "the greatest American play ever written", it presents the fictional American town of Grover's Corners between 1901 and 1913 ...
''. In 1978, she starred in the made-for-television biographical film, '' Little Mo'' playing
Maureen Connolly
Maureen Catherine Connolly-Brinker (née Connolly; September 17, 1934 – June 21, 1969), known as "Little Mo", was an American tennis player, the winner of nine major singles titles in the early 1950s. In 1953, she became the first woman to win ...
, the 1950s American tennis player who was the first woman to win all four Grand Slam tournaments during the same calendar year, before an accident ended her tennis career at age 19. In 1979, she returned to big screen starring in the comedy-drama film, '' California Dreaming''.
In 1980, O'Connor starred opposite Tom Hulce in the romantic comedy film, '' Those Lips, Those Eyes'', receiving positive note from critic
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...
. The following year she starred opposite
Michael York
Michael York (born Michael Hugh Johnson; 27 March 1942) is an English film, television, and stage actor. After performing on stage with the Royal National Theatre, he had a breakthrough in films by playing Tybalt in Franco Zeffirelli's ''Romeo ...
in the drama film, '' The White Lions''. In 1982 she had supporting role in the thriller film ''
Night Crossing
''Night Crossing'' is a 1982 thriller drama film starring John Hurt, Jane Alexander and Beau Bridges. The film is based on the true story of the Strelzyk and Wetzel families who, on September 16, 1979, escaped from East Germany to West Germany ...
'' and the leading role in the drama film, ''
Melanie
Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the Greek language, Greek μελανία (melania), "blackness" and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "dark".Saskatoon Star-Phoenix
''The StarPhoenix'' is a daily newspaper that serves Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, and is a part of Postmedia Network. It has been referred to as a "sister newspaper" to the ''Regina Leader-Post, Leader-Post''. The ''StarPhoenix'' puts out si ...
'' wrote that "a compelling performance by O'Connor and a surprisingly fluid effort by Cummings lift the picture beyond the fair-to-middling category", adding that "the music, most written and performed by Cummings, is a strong selling point". Bruce Bailey of ''
The Montreal Gazette
''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
It is the only English-language daily newspape ...
'' echoed Powers' praise of Glynnis O'Connor, but otherwise found the film to be a calculating melodrama. Calling it "a successful manipulator of emotions", he noted that the crowd erupted into cheers when Melanie finally hit back at her cruel husband, noting that "the morality of encouraging such applause for violence on anybody's part, however, is a little dicey." At the 4th Genie Awards, she won the Genie Award for Best Performance by a Foreign Actress for her performance in ''Melanie''. In 1984, she was featured in the crime comedy film, '' Johnny Dangerously'' making her final big screen appearance in 1980s.
Since the mid-1980s, O'Connor has been in a string of made-for-television movies. In 1984, she starred as Leola Mae Harmon in the biographical film '' Why Me?'', about United States Air Force nurse Harmon's trauma and series of facial reconstruction surgeries after a horrifying car accident. In 1986, O'Connor performed in the miniseries '' The Deliberate Stranger''. Her other notable film credits include ''Love Leads the Way: A True Story'' (1984), '' To Heal a Nation'' (1988), '' Police Story: Cop Killer'' (1988) and '' Kojak: Flowers for Matty'' (1990). She starred in an 1986 episode of ''
The Twilight Zone
''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...
'' and from 1992 to 1993 had a recurring role in the NBC police drama ''
Reasonable Doubts
''Reasonable Doubts'' is an American police drama television series created by Robert Singer, which broadcast in the United States by NBC that ran from September 26, 1991, to April 27, 1993.
Synopsis
''Reasonable Doubts'' is primarily about ...
'' as
Mark Harmon
Thomas Mark Harmon (born September 2, 1951) is an American actor, writer, producer, television director and former American football, football player. He is best known for playing the lead role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs on ''NCIS (TV series), NCIS'' ...
's character ex-wife. From 1993 to 1994, she replaced Ellen Dolan in the role of Margo Hughes on the CBS daytime soap opera, ''
As the World Turns
''As the World Turns'' (often abbreviated as ''ATWT'') is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS for 54 years from April 2, 1956, to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created ''As the World Turns'' as a sister show to her other so ...
''. In 1995, she made her return to primetime TV starring opposite Richard Thomas in the true crime television film, '' Death in Small Doses''. She later starred in '' Summer of Fear'' (1996), '' Ellen Foster'' (1997), and '' Saint Maybe'' (1998).
O’Connor played defense attorney Anne Paulsen in five episodes, from 1998 through 2004, on the NBC drama series, ''
Law & Order
''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise.
''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...
Angelica
''Angelica'' is a genus of about 90 species of tall Biennial plant, biennial and Perennial plant, perennial herbaceous, herbs in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching as far north as ...
'' (2015), '' Diane'', and '' A Bread Factory'' (2018). In 2020, she had a recurring role in the Epix thriller series, ''
Condor
Condor is the common name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. The name derives from the Quechua language, Quechua ''kuntur''. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere.
One species, the And ...