Maeve Kinkead (born May 31, 1946) is an American

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

actress, writer and poet.

Acting

After numerous roles on stage, Kinkead's first major role was as Angie Perrini on the soap '' Another World'' (1975–80). Kinkead's longest running role was as Vanessa Chamberlain on the

Guiding Light ''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the third longest-running drama in television in American history. ''Guiding Light'' a ...

''. She played the role on a contract basis from June 2, 1980 to August 28, 1981, February 1, 1982 to September 1996, and April 1997 to September 5, 2000. She garnered five

Daytime Emmy The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (N ...

nominations during her time on the show, winning for Outstanding Supporting Actress in 1992. In 1993, she received her first nomination as Outstanding Lead Actress. In 2000, Kinkead left ''

''. She made special guest appearances as Vanessa in 2002 for Guiding Light's 65th anniversary on-screen. In 2005, Kinkead returned, and was included in the 70th anniversary cast photo. Kinkead appeared as Vanessa until the series finale on September 18, 2009. She garnered five

nominations during her time on the show, winning for Outstanding Supporting Actress in 1992. In 1993, she received her first nomination as Outstanding Lead Actress. Vanessa was a popular, central character; her rivalry with Nola Reardon ( Lisa Brown), the wife of her brother Quint (

Michael Tylo Michael Edward Tylo (October 16, 1948 – September 28, 2021) was an American actor. Career Among his numerous soap opera roles, he was best known for his portrayal of Quinton Chamberlain on '' Guiding Light''. He played the role from 1981 to 1 ...

) was a popular story line. Memorable scenes from this story line included a public fight at the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

-themed Antebellum Ball, in which Vanessa and Nola showed up in the same dress. Vanessa later married Billy Lewis, and was entangled with the Spaulding family, at times working at Spaulding Enterprises. In later years, Vanessa renewed her rivalry with Nola when she married Nola's nephew Matt Reardon (

Kurt McKinney Kurt Robin McKinney is an American actor. McKinney played Jason Stillwell in the 1986 martial arts film ''No Retreat, No Surrender''. Early years A native of Louisville, Kentucky, McKinney graduated from Ninth and O Christian School and atten ...

). She and Ross also reunited with Dinah, the daughter Vanessa gave up for adoption.

Other work

In 2008, Kinkead graduated from the Warren Wilson College Master of Fine Arts Program for Writers with a degree in poetry. She released her first book of poetry, ''A Dangling House'', in 2017.

Personal life

Kinkead was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, where she lives with her husband Harry Streep, brother of Oscar-winning actress

Meryl Streep Mary Louise Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Often described as "the best actress of her generation", Streep is particularly known for her versatility and accent adaptability. She has received numerous accolades throu ...

, and their children. Kinkead was diagnosed with

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...

(time frame unknown). In 2006, she appeared on the PBS program ''The New Medicine'', hosted by

Dana Reeve Dana Charles Reeve (née Morosini; March 17, 1961 – March 6, 2006) was an American actress, singer, and activist for disability causes. She was the wife of actor Christopher Reeve and mother of television reporter and anchor Will Reeve. Early ...

, in a segment that discussed the comfort level patients have when they are interacting with physicians, and how empowered they feel about talking to their physicians about health concerns.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kinkead, Maeve 1946 births American soap opera actresses Living people Actresses from New York City Daytime Emmy Award winners Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series winners Radcliffe College alumni 21st-century American women