Nancy Lee Grahn (born April 28, 1956) is an American actress known primarily for her work in daytime

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 ...

s, portraying

Julia Wainwright Capwell '' Santa Barbara'' is an American television soap opera that aired on NBC from July 30, 1984, to January 15, 1993. The show initially revolved around the lives of four families; the wealthy Capwell family, rivals the Lockridge family, and the mor ...

on '' Santa Barbara'' from 1985–93 and Alexis Davis on ''

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the list of longest-running television shows by category, longest-running American soap opera in pro ...

'' since 1996.

Early life and career

Grahn was born in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wil ...

, to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

mother, Barbara Edna Ascher, and a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

father, Robert Donald Grahn. Her parents were both involved with their local community theater in Skokie. Grahn's first stage appearance was as a pony in a community production of ''

Oklahoma! ''Oklahoma!'' is the first musical theater, musical written by the duo of Rodgers and Hammerstein. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, ''Green Grow the Lilacs (play), Green Grow the Lilacs''. Set in farm country outside the town of ...

'' At

Niles North High School Niles North High School, officially Niles Township High School North, is a public four-year high school located in Skokie, Illinois, a North Shore (Chicago), North Shore suburb of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. It is part of Niles Townshi ...

, she played "Daisy Mae" opposite future Broadway actor

Gregg Edelman Gregg Edelman (born September 12, 1958) is an American movie, television and theatre actor. Biography Edelman was born in Chicago, Illinois, attended Niles North High School, where he starred as Li'l Abner opposite future soap star Nancy Lee Gra ...

in the school's production of ''Lil' Abner''. As a freshman at the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

, Grahn landed her first credited role, as Mimi in ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also bo ...

'' at the Goodman Rep Theater, 1973–74 season. Grahn subsequently went to

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 studied acting with noted drama teachers

Sandy Meisner Sanford Meisner (August 31, 1905 – February 2, 1997) was an American actor and acting teacher who developed an approach to acting instruction that is now known as the Meisner technique. While Meisner was exposed to method acting at the Group ...

and Bill Epsen. Here she had roles in productions of ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

'' and ''

Barefoot in the Park ''Barefoot in the Park'' is a romantic comedy by Neil Simon. The play premiered on Broadway in 1963, starring Robert Redford and Elizabeth Ashley. It was made into a film in 1967, which starred Redford and Jane Fonda. Productions ''Barefoot ...

''. She also appeared in commercials and several industrial films; in an interview, Grahn recalled crossing paths with fellow future soap star

Kim Zimmer Kimberly Jo Zimmer (born February 2, 1955) is an American actress, best known for her role as Reva Shayne on the CBS soap opera ''Guiding Light''. For this portrayal, she has won four Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama ...

at the production of several of those films. She also continued to perform in numerous plays, such as ''Father's Day'' and ''

Two for the Seesaw ''Two for the Seesaw'' is a 1962 American romantic-drama film directed by Robert Wise and starring Robert Mitchum and Shirley MacLaine. It was adapted from the 1958 Broadway play written by William Gibson with Henry Fonda and Anne Bancroft (who ...

'', among others.

Television roles

Grahn has made a number of appearances in episodic

prime time Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...

television, including ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books is a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adolescence in the Midwestern United States, American M ...

'', ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...

'', ''

Magnum, P.I. ''Magnum, P.I.'' is an American crime drama television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator (P.I.) living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from December 11, 1980 to May 8, 1988 during its first-run broadcast on ...

'', '' Diagnosis: Murder'', ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a cli ...

'', ''

The Incredible Hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of '' The Incredible Hulk'' (May 1962). In his comic book a ...

'', ''

Knight Rider ''Knight Rider'' is an American entertainment franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The core of ''Knight Rider'' is its three television series: the original ''Knight Rider'' (1982–1986) and sequel series ''Team Knight Rider'' (1997–1998) ...

'' and ''

Babylon 5 ''Babylon 5'' is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Tel ...

''. She has also been seen in the recurring role of Denise Fielding on ''

Melrose Place ''Melrose Place'' is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on Fox from July 8, 1992, to May 24, 1999, for seven seasons. The show follows the lives of a group of young adults living in an apartment complex on Melrose Place, in ...

'', as Connie Dahlgren on '' Murder One'', and as Principal Russell on '' 7th Heaven''. Grahn also has had several roles on daytime dramas. Her first television role was as Beverly Wilkes,

Marco Dane Marco Dane is a fictional character from the American soap opera ''One Life to Live''. The role was played by actor Gerald Anthony from its debut in 1977 through 1986, and from May 17, 1989 until 1990. Anthony crossed over in the role on sister soa ...

's secretary on ABC's ''

One Life to Live ''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes ...

'' from 1978 to 1982. In 1985, she was cast as headstrong lawyer

, on the now-defunct soap opera '' Santa Barbara''. Julia was a departure from the traditional "damsel in distress" or vixen roles; she was an intelligent, uncompromising woman. Julia was paired with Mason Capwell, and the two had a Tracy/ Hepburn-esque romance. Offscreen, Grahn was briefly involved with Mason's portrayer, actor

Lane Davies Lane Davies (born July 31, 1951) is an American actor. Personal life Davies was born in Dalton, Georgia, the son of Emily and Bill Davies. He has three brothers—Bruce, George, and Whit. He graduated from Middle Tennessee State University with ...

; conflict over their storylines eventually led to Davies' departure from the series. Grahn's performance garnered her a

Daytime Emmy Award 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 ...

for Best Supporting Actress in 1989, an award which she shares with ''

All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 20 ...

'' actress

Debbi Morgan Deborah Ann Morgan (born September 20, 1956) is an American film and television actress. She played the role of Angie Baxter–Hubbard on the ABC soap opera ''All My Children'' for which she was the first African-American to win the Daytime Emm ...

. She portrayed the role of Julia until the show's cancellation in 1993. In 1996, she was cast as Alexis Davis, another headstrong lawyer, on ''

''. She was nominated for several additional Daytime Emmys, winning in the Outstanding Supporting Actress category in 2012. In July 2010, Grahn re-signed with ''General Hospital'' for another four years on the show.

Political views

A liberal, Grahn is outspoken in political matters. In 2000, she organized a television conference for fellow Democratic daytime stars titled "Daytime for

Gore Gore may refer to: Places Australia * Gore, Queensland * Gore Creek (New South Wales) * Gore Island (Queensland) Canada * Gore, Nova Scotia, a rural community * Gore, Quebec, a township municipality * Gore Bay, Ontario, a township on Manitouli ...

/ Lieberman". The event was held at the home of

Gary Tomlin Gary Tomlin is an American soap opera actor, writer, producer and director. Career Tomlin's career on daytime serials began in 1973 when he was cast on CBS's ''Search for Tomorrow'' as Bruce Carson. He also made a guest appearance on "The Nightwal ...

, director of

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

's ''

Passions ''Passions'' is an American television soap opera that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1999, to September 7, 2007, and on DirecTV's The 101 Network from September 17, 2007, to August 7, 2008. Created by screenwriter James E. Reilly and pro ...

'', and in attendance were

Sharon Davis Sharon Ryer Davis (born May 6, 1954) is an American author who served as first lady of California from 1999 to 2003. She is the wife of former California governor Gray Davis. She previously served as second lady of California from 1995 to 1999. ...

, wife of then-California Governor

Gray Davis Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 to 2003. In 2003, only a few months into his second term, Davis was recalled and remov ...

, and

Kristin Gore Kristin Carlson Gore (born June 5, 1977) is an American author and screenwriter. She is the second daughter of former U.S. vice president Al Gore and advocate Tipper Gore (née Aitcheson). Early life Gore was born in Carthage, Tennessee. She ...

, daughter of then-Vice President Al Gore. During the 2008 presidential election, she hosted an online chat along with fellow daytime actors to discuss the election with fans. Grahn is an active proponent of

reproductive rights Reproductive rights are legal rights and freedoms relating to reproduction and reproductive health that vary amongst countries around the world. The World Health Organization defines reproductive rights as follows: Reproductive rights rest on t ...

. She created "Daytime for Choice" in 1988, and discussed with the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' in 2007 her decision to have an abortion when she was in her 20s as well as her desire to see abortion depicted in a fair and unbiased light within film and television. Grahn is also a supporter of

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

rights and has participated in the

NOH8 Campaign The NOH8 Campaign (NOH8 meaning "No Hate") is a charitable organization whose mission is to promote LGBT marriage, gender and human equality through education, advocacy, social media, and visual protest. The campaign was created as photographic ...

Personal life

Grahn is a single mother to one daughter, Katherine Grace, known as Kate, born on February 24, 1998, who studies music at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

(USC). In December 2019, Grahn announced her engagement to guitarist Richard Smith of Eugene, Oregon, who is a professor at the Thornton School of Music at USC in LA. Grahn has two sisters, Wendy Grahn and Suzi Gantz of Illinois. She is also involved in various charities, including Meals on Wheels.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Grahn, Nancy Lee 1956 births Living people American soap opera actresses Actresses from Evanston, Illinois Daytime Emmy Award winners Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series winners American television actresses LGBT rights activists from the United States 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American film actresses American people of Jewish descent Illinois Democrats

Early life and career

Television roles

Political views

Personal life

Filmography

Awards and nominations

See also

References

External links