Catherine Oxenberg (born September 22, 1961) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as

Amanda Carrington Amanda Carrington is a fictional character from the ABC prime time soap opera ''Dynasty'', created by Richard and Esther Shapiro. She was portrayed by Catherine Oxenberg for two seasons from 1984 to 1986, and then by Karen Cellini for 13 episodes f ...

on the 1980s prime time

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 ...

Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...

''. Oxenberg is the daughter of

Princess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia Princess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia ( sr, italic=yes, Jelisaveta Karađorđević / Јелисавета Карађорђевић; born 7 April 1936) is a member of the royal House of Karađorđević, a human rights activist and a former presidential ...

and Howard Oxenberg. She twice played

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...

on screen, in ''

The Royal Romance of Charles and Diana ''The Royal Romance of Charles and Diana'' is a 1982 American television film, made-for-television biographical film, biographical drama (film and television), drama film that depicts the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer. The film ...

'' (1982) and '' Charles and Diana: Unhappily Ever After'' (1992) and has appeared in many other films.

Early life

Oxenberg was born in New York City, but grew up in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. She is the eldest daughter of

(born 1936) and her first husband Howard Oxenberg (1919–2010), 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 ...

dress manufacturer and close friend of the

Kennedy family The Kennedy family is an American political family that has long been prominent in American politics, public service, entertainment, and business. In 1884, 35 years after the family's arrival from Ireland, Patrick Joseph "P. J." Kennedy be ...

. Her sister is

Christina Oxenberg Christina Oxenberg (born December 27, 1962) is an American writer, humorist, and fashion designer. She has written seven books, and her writing has been featured in magazines and publications like '' Allure'', ''The Sunday Times'', ''Huffington ...

. Princess Elizabeth is the only daughter of

Prince Paul of Yugoslavia Prince Paul of Yugoslavia, also known as Paul Karađorđević ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Pavle Karađorđević, Павле Карађорђевић, English transliteration: ''Paul Karageorgevich''; 27 April 1893 – 14 September 1976), was prince regent o ...

(who served as regent for his cousin's eldest son King

Peter II of Yugoslavia Peter II ( sr-Cyrl, Петар II Карађорђевић, Petar II Karađorđević; 6 September 1923 – 3 November 1970) was the last king of Yugoslavia, reigning from October 1934 until his deposition in November 1945. He was the last r ...

) and

Princess Olga of Greece and Denmark Princess Olga of Greece and Denmark ( el, Όλγα; 11 June 1903 – 16 October 1997) was a Greek princess who became princess of Yugoslavia as the wife of Prince Paul, Regent of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Princess Olga was a daughter of Princ ...

. Through her maternal grandmother, Catherine is a first cousin once removed of:

Prince Edward, Duke of Kent Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, (Edward George Nicholas Paul Patrick; born 9 October 1935) is a member of the British royal family. Queen Elizabeth II and Edward were first cousins through their fathers, King George VI, and Prince George, Duk ...

Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy (Alexandra Helen Elizabeth Olga Christabel; born 25 December 1936) is a member of the British royal family. Queen Elizabeth II and Alexandra were first cousins through their fathers, King George ...

and

Prince Michael of Kent Prince Michael of Kent, (Michael George Charles Franklin; born 4 July 1942) is a member of the British royal family, who is 51st in the line of succession to the British throne as of September 2022. Queen Elizabeth II and Michael were first ...

. Oxenberg is also a second cousin once removed of

Queen Sofía of Spain Sofía of Greece and Denmark ( el, Σοφία; born 2 November 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who was List of Spanish royal consorts, Queen of Spain from 1975 to 2014 as the wife of King Juan Carlos I. She is the first child of ...

and

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

of the United Kingdom, making Catherine a third cousin of

Felipe VI of Spain Felipe VI (;, * eu, Felipe VI.a, * ca, Felip VI, * gl, Filipe VI, . Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Grecia; born 30 January 1968) is King of Spain. He is the son of former King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía, and h ...

and

Prince William, Prince of Wales William, Prince of Wales, (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982) is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. Born in London, William was educa ...

. Princess Olga was the sister of Princess Marina, who married

Prince George, Duke of Kent Prince George, Duke of Kent, (George Edward Alexander Edmund; 20 December 1902 – 25 August 1942) was a member of the British royal family, the fourth son of King George V and Queen Mary. He was a younger brother of kings Edward VIII and Geo ...

(an uncle of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

). Olga and Marina were also paternal first cousins of the

Duke of Edinburgh Duke of Edinburgh, named after the city of Edinburgh in Scotland, was a substantive title that has been created three times since 1726 for members of the British royal family. It does not include any territorial landholdings and does not produc ...

, husband of Queen Elizabeth II. Olga and Marina are also related to

Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark ( el, Νικόλαος; 22 January 1872 – 8 February 1938), of the Glücksburg branch of the House of Oldenburg, was the fourth child and third son of King George I of Greece, and of Queen Olga. He was kn ...

and

Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark ( el, Ανδρέας; da, Andreas; – 3 December 1944) of the House of Glücksburg, House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, was the seventh child and fourth son of King George I of Greece ...

, who were brothers. Oxenberg was educated at the

Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle The Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle, usually referred to as the Lycée or the French Lycée, is a French co-educational primary and secondary independent school, independent day school, situated in South Kensington in the Royal Borough ...

Kensington, London Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensington Gar ...

, St. Paul's School, and

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, though she did not finish.

Film and television

Oxenberg made her acting debut in the 1982 made-for-television film ''

'', in which she played

. In 1984, Oxenberg joined the hit

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

prime time soap opera ''Dynasty'' — then at its height of popularity — in the role of

. Oxenberg left ''Dynasty'' in 1986, following a salary dispute after the end of her second season, and the role was recast with

Karen Cellini Karen Cellini (born May 13, 1958) is an American multidisciplinary live performance artist, producer, writer, and activist. As an actress, she is known for portraying Amanda Carrington in the 1980s prime time drama ''Dynasty'' in 1986. Career Ce ...

. Though Oxenberg's publicist insisted that the actress left ''Dynasty'' voluntarily, several media outlets reported that she was fired. Oxenberg was the guest host on the May 10, 1986, episode of ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

'', making her the only descendant of a royal family to host the show. Oxenberg starred as Princess Elysa in the 1987 television film ''

Roman Holiday ''Roman Holiday'' is a 1953 American romantic comedy film directed and produced by William Wyler. It stars Audrey Hepburn as a princess out to see Rome on her own and Gregory Peck as a reporter. Hepburn won an Academy Award for Best Actress f ...

''. She also appeared in ''

The Lair of the White Worm ''The Lair of the White Worm'' is a horror novel by the Irish writer Bram Stoker. It was first published by Rider and Son of London in 1911 – the year before Stoker's death – with colour illustrations by Pamela Colman Smith. The story is bas ...

'' in 1988, and reprised the role of Diana, Princess of Wales in the TV film ''Charles and Diana: Unhappily Ever After'' in 1992. From 1993 to 1994, she starred in the short-lived series '' Acapulco H.E.A.T.''. Oxenberg was portrayed by

Rachael Taylor Rachael May Taylor (born 11 July 1984) is an Australian actress and model. Her first lead role was in the Australian series ''headLand'' (2005–2006). She then made the transition to Hollywood, appearing in films including ''Man-Thing'' (2005 ...

in the 2005 telemovie '' Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure'', a fictionalized retelling of the behind-the-scenes goings-on during the production of ''Dynasty''. In 2006, Oxenberg appeared in the TV special, ''Dynasty Reunion: Catfights & Caviar'', in which she was reunited with her former ''Dynasty'' castmates to reminisce about the series. In 2019, Catherine Oxenberg produced and narrated '' Escaping the NXIVM Cult: A Mother's Fight to Save Her Daughter'' where

Andrea Roth Andrea Roth (born September 30, 1967) is a Canadian actress. She is perhaps best known for her roles as Janet Gavin, the wife of main character Tommy Gavin, on the FX television series '' Rescue Me'' (2004–2011), as Victoria Chase in ''The Co ...

portrayed her.

Personal life

In the Class of 1985 Harvard freshman

face book A face book or facebook is a common or web directory found at some American universities consisting of individuals' photographs and names. In particular, it denotes publications of this type distributed by university administrations at the start o ...

, Oxenberg is listed directly ahead of

Conan O'Brien Conan Christopher O'Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for having hosted late-night talk shows for almost 28 years, beginning with ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' (19 ...

. A contemporary ''

Harvard Crimson The Harvard Crimson are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Harvard College. The school's teams compete in NCAA Division I. As of 2013, there were 42 Division I intercollegiate varsity sports teams for women and men at Harvard, more than at ...

'' piece indicates that she was at least initially in the Class of 1983, dubbing her "queen of the facebook". In June 1991, Oxenberg had a daughter, India Riven Oxenberg, whose father was later revealed to be the convicted drug smuggler William Weitz Shaffer. Shaffer and India were in contact during her childhood, even while he was in prison. In December 1992, Oxenberg was living with her daughter in

Coldwater Canyon Coldwater Canyon is a canyon running perpendicular to and over the central Santa Monica Mountains, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A section of the canyon south of Mulholland Drive is also a neighborhood in the Beverly Crest Neig ...

, Los Angeles, California. Oxenberg's first marriage was to the producer

Robert Evans Robert Evans (born Robert J. Shapera; June 29, 1930October 26, 2019) was an American film producer, studio executive, and actor, best known for his work on '' Rosemary's Baby'' (1968), '' Love Story'' (1970), ''The Godfather'' (1972), and ''Chi ...

, in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Bev ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, on July 12, 1998, but the marriage was annulled nine days later. Oxenberg met the actor

Casper Van Dien Casper Robert Van Dien Jr. (born December 18, 1968) is an American actor. He is best known for his lead role as Johnny Rico in the 1997 science-fiction action film ''Starship Troopers''. He has also appeared in a large number of television and ...

during the filming of the 1999 TV movie ''The Collectors'', and they worked together again the same year in the

Evangelical Christian Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual exper ...

thriller ''

The Omega Code ''The Omega Code'' is a 1999 apocalyptic thriller film directed by Rob Marcarelli, written by Stephen Blinn and Hollis Barton, and starring Casper Van Dien, Michael York, Catherine Oxenberg and Michael Ironside. The premillennialist plot revolves ...

''. On May 8, 1999, they were married at the

Graceland Wedding Chapel Graceland Wedding Chapel is a wedding chapel located in Las Vegas, Nevada that has been the site of many celebrity weddings. It is one of the oldest wedding chapels in Las Vegas and claims to be the first chapel ever to conduct weddings performe ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, Nevada. Van Dien had a son and a daughter from a previous marriage, Casper Robert Mitchum Van Dien and Caroline Grace Van Dien. Van Dien and Oxenberg have two daughters, Amanda Maya Van Dien (2001) and Celeste Alma Van Dien (2003). In 2005, the couple appeared in their own

reality series Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

, ''

I Married a Princess ''I Married a Princess'' is a 2005 reality show on the Lifetime TV network that starred Catherine Oxenberg and her husband Casper Van Dien. The show's slogan is "under the tiara and behind the shades - a real life look at a fairy-tale family." ...

'', which aired on the

Lifetime Television Lifetime is an American basic cable channel that is part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, a subsidiary of A&E Networks, which is jointly owned by Hearst Communications and The Walt Disney Company. It features programming that is geared toward ...

channel in the United States and on

LIVINGtv Sky Witness is a British pay television channel owned and operated by Sky, a division of Comcast. The channel primarily broadcasts drama shows from the United States, aimed at the 18–45 age group. An Italian version of Sky Witness, named Sky ...

in the United Kingdom. Van Dien filed for divorce from Oxenberg in 2015. While Oxenberg and Van Dien were married, and before India joined

NXIVM NXIVM () is the name commonly used to describe the personality cult of imprisoned racketeer and sex offender Keith Raniere. NXIVM is also the trademarked name of the defunct corporation that Raniere founded, which provided seminars and videos ...

, Oxenberg and Van Dien were celebrity ambassadors for the non-profit organization

Childhelp Childhelp is a US non-profit organization dedicated to the prevention and treatment of child abuse. Founded in 1959 as International Orphans, Inc. by Sara O'Meara and Yvonne Fedderson, Childhelp is one of the largest non-profit child abuse prevent ...

. Oxenberg acknowledged, in November 2017, that she had had interactions with

Keith Raniere Keith Allen Raniere (; born August 26, 1960) is an American criminal convicted for a pattern of racketeering activity including human trafficking, sex offenses, and fraud. He co-founded NXIVM, a purported-self-help multi-level marketing com ...

and his NXIVM organization, bringing her daughter India into NXIVM in 2011 for what she thought would be "a self-help, business-oriented program". Oxenberg confirmed that her daughter became heavily involved in the cult, and that she had initiated what proved to be a failed intervention for India. In August 2018, Oxenberg revealed that India had left NXIVM in June, after the arrest of Raniere, and they were working on their relationship. In August 2018, Oxenberg's book ''Captive: A Mother's Crusade to Save Her Daughter from a Terrifying Cult'' co-written by former ''People Magazine'' writer Natasha Stoynoff was published. In 2020, Oxenberg was featured in '' The Vow'', a documentary series for

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

, directed by

Jehane Noujaim Jehane Noujaim ( ar, جيهان نجيم, ) (born May 17, 1974) is an Academy Award nominated American documentary film director best known for her films ''Control Room'', '' Startup.com'', '' Pangea Day'' and '' The Square.'' In 2019, she co-di ...

and

Karim Amer Karim Amer (born November 10, 1983) is an Egyptian-American film producer and director. He worked on '' The Square'' (2013) and ''The Great Hack'' (2019); the former was the first Egyptian film to earn an Academy Award nomination and went on to ...

, which follows Oxenberg’s attempts to rescue her daughter India. Oxenberg also appears in '' Seduced: Inside the NXIVM Cult'' a documentary series for

Starz Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz consist ...

, directed by

Cecilia Peck Cecilia Peck (born May 1, 1958) is an American film producer, director and actress. She is the only daughter of actor Gregory Peck and his second wife Veronique Passani. Career As an actress, Peck was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for '' ...

and Inbal B. Lessner, which features India speaking out about her experiences for the first time.

Filmography

For playing

, Oxenberg won two ''Soap Opera Digest'' Awards in 1985, for Outstanding Supporting Actress and Outstanding Female Newcomer.

Ancestry

Through her maternal grandfather,

of the

House of Karađorđević A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condit ...

, Catherine Oxenberg is a great-great-great-granddaughter of

Karađorđe Đorđe Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Ђорђе Петровић, ), better known by the sobriquet Karađorđe ( sr-Cyrl, Карађорђе, lit=Black George, ; – ), was a Serbian revolutionary who led the struggle for his country's independ ...

, who started the

First Serbian Uprising The First Serbian Uprising ( sr, Prvi srpski ustanak, italics=yes, sr-Cyrl, Први српски устанак; tr, Birinci Sırp Ayaklanması) was an uprising of Serbs in the Sanjak of Smederevo against the Ottoman Empire from 14 February 18 ...

against the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

in 1804. Her maternal grandmother, Princess Olga, was the daughter of

Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna of Russia Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna of Russia (29 January 1882 – 13 March 1957), sometimes known as Helen, Helena, Helene, Ellen, Yelena, Hélène, or Eleni, was the only daughter and youngest child of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia ...

and

, himself the son of another Romanov grand duchess, Queen Olga Konstantinovna of the Hellenes and her Danish-born husband King George of Greece, brother of

Queen Alexandra Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 January 1901 to 6 May 1910 as the wife of King ...

of the United Kingdom and the

Empress Maria Fyodorovna Maria Feodorovna ( ru , Мария Фёдоровна , translit = Mariya Fyodorovna; 26 November 1847 – 13 October 1928), known before her marriage as Princess Dagmar of Denmark, was List of Russian royal consorts, Empress of Russia from 18 ...

.David Lewis,

William Addams Reitwiesner William Addams Reitwiesner (March 8, 1954 – November 12, 2010) was an American genealogist who traced the ancestry of United States political figures, European royalty and celebrities. Biography Reitwiesner was born on 8 March 1954 in Havre de ...

Persons eligible to succeed to the British Throne as of 1 Jan 2011
at wargs.com, accessed January 17, 2019

References

External links

* *

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oxenberg, Catherine 1961 births Living people 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from London Actresses from New York City American emigrants to England American film actresses American people of Danish descent American people of Finnish descent American people of German-Russian descent American people of Russian-Jewish descent American people of Serbian descent American people of Swedish descent American soap opera actresses American socialites American television actresses American Ashkenazi Jews Columbia University alumni Harvard University alumni Karađorđević dynasty

Catherine Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria. In the early Christ ...

People educated at Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle St. Paul's School (New Hampshire) alumni Evans family (Paramount Pictures) Royalty and nobility actors