Jane Badler
Encyclopedia
Jane Badler is an American
actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Diana, the chief antagonist in NBC
's science fiction
TV series, V, between 1983-85. Badler also appeared in ABC
's "reimagined" version of V
in 2011, again playing an alien named Diana, who this time is the mother of the series' chief antagonist, Anna. In recent years, Badler has also become an established nightclub singer in Australia
, where she now lives, and has released two albums.
, moving to Manchester, New Hampshire
, when she was in high school. Badler won the title Miss New Hampshire
and competed at the 1973 Miss America Pageant. Subsequently, she enrolled at Northwestern University
in Evanston, Illinois
, to study drama.
One Life to Live
, which she played from 1977 to 1981 and again in 1983. During her run, she also appeared in a 1979 episode of the primetime series Fantasy Island
. Badler also starred on the daytime soap opera The Doctors as Natalie Bell from 1981-82.
Badler then won her most prominent role, that of the villainous alien Diana in the 1983 NBC
sci-fi miniseries V. She reprised the role in the 1984 sequel miniseries V: The Final Battle and again in V: The Series, which ran for one season from 1984 to 1985.
Following V, Badler co-starred with José Ferrer
in the made-for-TV supernatural thriller Covenant. The following year she guest-starred as Meredith Braxton throughout the 1986-87 season of the CBS
primetime soap opera Falcon Crest
. Her other guest appearances during the 1980s included Riptide
, Hotel
, and Murder, She Wrote
. In 1987, she played the role of Tania Winthrop in the short-lived action-adventure series The Highwayman
. She then traveled to Australia
to play agent Shannon Reed in the 1980s revival of Mission: Impossible
for its second and third seasons, from 1989 to 1990. After the series ended, Badler moved to Australia permanently and married businessman Stephen Hains. They have two sons, Sam and Harry. She later appeared on the Australian game show Cluedo
from 1992 to 1993, and had a guest-starring role in Snowy River: The McGregor Saga
in 1995.
In March 2010, Badler was cast as the villainous Diana Marshall
in the Australian soap opera Neighbours
. She had a four-month guest contract with the show.
A remake of V
premiered in late 2009, and although this version did not include the character of Diana, the series' executive producer
, Scott Peters
, suggested that Badler and other stars from the original version may be offered guest roles as new characters. In August 2010, it was announced that Badler would be joining the series as a new character named Diana, the mother of the Visitors' evil leader Anna (Morena Baccarin
). Badler appeared in nine of the second season's ten episodes, commencing in January 2011. In the second season finale, her character was apparently killed by Anna, and ABC decided to not renew the series for a third season (although the fan campaign "Project Alice" is reported to be campaigning to Warner Bros. to renew the show on a different network).
production of archy & mehitabel, directed by Aaron Joyner and based on Don Marquis
's books of poetry, The Great Gatsby
, Sextet, The Singing Forest, Big Hair in America, and her one-woman show, Shakin' the Blues Away in which she also sang. Other productions in which she appeared for Magnormos included a concert of the musical Rebecca and OzMade Musicals.
Badler released her debut album (backed by the Melbourne
-based band Sir) on June 1, 2008. Titled The Devil Has My Double
, it is an autobiographical album which has been described as "a compulsive mix of fame, sex and solitude, set to a sweeping soundtrack of cold soul and passionate synthetics." As part of promotion for the album, she gave an extensive interview about her work to the Boxcutters podcast
.
Badler released her second album, Tears Again, in 2011.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Diana, the chief antagonist in NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
TV series, V, between 1983-85. Badler also appeared in ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's "reimagined" version of V
V (2009 TV series)
V is an American science fiction television series that ran for two seasons on ABC, from November 3, 2009 to March 15, 2011. A remake of the 1983 miniseries created by Kenneth Johnson, the new series chronicles the arrival on Earth of a technologically advanced alien species which ostensibly comes...
in 2011, again playing an alien named Diana, who this time is the mother of the series' chief antagonist, Anna. In recent years, Badler has also become an established nightclub singer in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, where she now lives, and has released two albums.
Biography
Badler spent her teen years in Great Neck, New YorkGreat Neck, New York
The term Great Neck is commonly applied to a peninsula on the North Shore of Long Island, which includes the village of Great Neck, the village of Great Neck Estates, the village of Great Neck Plaza, and others, as well as an area south of the peninsula near Lake Success and the border of Queens...
, moving to Manchester, New Hampshire
Manchester, New Hampshire
Manchester is the largest city in the U.S. state of New Hampshire, the tenth largest city in New England, and the largest city in northern New England, an area comprising the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. It is in Hillsborough County along the banks of the Merrimack River, which...
, when she was in high school. Badler won the title Miss New Hampshire
Miss New Hampshire
The Miss New Hampshire competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of New Hampshire in the Miss America pageant.The Miss New Hampshire program was conducted by the Union Leader newspaper for more than 50 years...
and competed at the 1973 Miss America Pageant. Subsequently, she enrolled at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in Evanston, Illinois
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois 12 miles north of downtown Chicago, bordering Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, and Wilmette to the north, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003. It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan...
, to study drama.
Film career
Badler's first television role was Melinda Cramer Janssen on the American daytime soap operaSoap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
One Life to Live
One Life to Live
One Life to Live is an American soap opera which debuted on July 15, 1968 and has been broadcast on the ABC television network. Created by Agnes Nixon, the series was the first daytime drama to primarily feature racially and socioeconomically diverse characters and consistently emphasize social...
, which she played from 1977 to 1981 and again in 1983. During her run, she also appeared in a 1979 episode of the primetime series Fantasy Island
Fantasy Island
Fantasy Island is the title of two separate but related American fantasy television series, both originally airing on the ABC television network.-Original series:...
. Badler also starred on the daytime soap opera The Doctors as Natalie Bell from 1981-82.
Badler then won her most prominent role, that of the villainous alien Diana in the 1983 NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
sci-fi miniseries V. She reprised the role in the 1984 sequel miniseries V: The Final Battle and again in V: The Series, which ran for one season from 1984 to 1985.
Following V, Badler co-starred with José Ferrer
José Ferrer
José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón , best known as José Ferrer, was a Puerto Rican actor, as well as a theater and film director...
in the made-for-TV supernatural thriller Covenant. The following year she guest-starred as Meredith Braxton throughout the 1986-87 season of the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
primetime soap opera Falcon Crest
Falcon Crest
Falcon Crest is an American primetime television soap opera which aired on the CBS network for nine seasons, from December 4, 1981 to May 17, 1990. A total of 227 episodes were produced....
. Her other guest appearances during the 1980s included Riptide
Riptide (TV series)
Riptide is a TV detective series that ran on NBC from 1983 to 1986, starring Perry King, Joe Penny, and Thom Bray. Riptide was created by Frank Lupo and Stephen J. Cannell, and produced by Stephen J. Cannell Productions. The main theme was composed by Mike Post and Pete Carpenter...
, Hotel
Hotel (TV series)
Hotel is an American prime time drama series which aired on ABC from September 21, 1983 to May 5, 1988 in the timeslot following Dynasty....
, and Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
. In 1987, she played the role of Tania Winthrop in the short-lived action-adventure series The Highwayman
The Highwayman (TV series)
The Highwayman is an action-adventure themed television series starring Sam J. Jones, set in "the near future." It was created by Glen A. Larson and Douglas Heyes. The pilot aired in September 1987, and was followed by a short-lived series of nine episodes, with significant changes to the cast and...
. She then traveled to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
to play agent Shannon Reed in the 1980s revival of Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible (1988 TV series)
Mission: Impossible is an American television series that chronicles the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The show is a revival of the 1966 TV series of the same name...
for its second and third seasons, from 1989 to 1990. After the series ended, Badler moved to Australia permanently and married businessman Stephen Hains. They have two sons, Sam and Harry. She later appeared on the Australian game show Cluedo
Cluedo (Australian game show)
Cluedo was an Australian television game show based on the board game of the same name. It was presented by Ian McFadyen.-Format:The studio audience had to pick the culprit using a dial system by which they could select who they thought was guilty...
from 1992 to 1993, and had a guest-starring role in Snowy River: The McGregor Saga
The Man From Snowy River (TV series)
The Man from Snowy River is an Australian television series based on Banjo Paterson's poem "The Man from Snowy River". Released in Australia as Banjo Paterson's The Man from Snowy River, the series was subsequently released in the United States as Snowy River: The McGregor Saga.The television...
in 1995.
In March 2010, Badler was cast as the villainous Diana Marshall
Diana Marshall
Diana Marshall is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Jane Badler. She made her first on-screen appearance on 22 June 2010. Badler had a four month contract with the show and she began filming her first scenes in April following a successful audition...
in the Australian soap opera Neighbours
Neighbours
Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera first broadcast on the Seven Network on 18 March 1985. It was created by TV executive Reg Watson, who proposed the idea of making a show that focused on realistic stories and portrayed adults and teenagers who talk openly and solve their problems...
. She had a four-month guest contract with the show.
A remake of V
V (2009 TV series)
V is an American science fiction television series that ran for two seasons on ABC, from November 3, 2009 to March 15, 2011. A remake of the 1983 miniseries created by Kenneth Johnson, the new series chronicles the arrival on Earth of a technologically advanced alien species which ostensibly comes...
premiered in late 2009, and although this version did not include the character of Diana, the series' executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
, Scott Peters
Scott Peters (writer)
Scott Peters is a Canadian television producer, television director and screenwriter, most probably known for his involvement in writing, co-creating and producing for the science fiction television series The 4400. He is also the head writer of the 2009 sci-fi series V, a remake of the 1980s...
, suggested that Badler and other stars from the original version may be offered guest roles as new characters. In August 2010, it was announced that Badler would be joining the series as a new character named Diana, the mother of the Visitors' evil leader Anna (Morena Baccarin
Morena Baccarin
Morena Baccarin is a Brazilian-born American actress most widely known for roles in several American science fiction television shows: as Inara Serra in the series Firefly; as Adria in the series Stargate SG-1; and as Anna in the 2009 version of the series V...
). Badler appeared in nine of the second season's ten episodes, commencing in January 2011. In the second season finale, her character was apparently killed by Anna, and ABC decided to not renew the series for a third season (although the fan campaign "Project Alice" is reported to be campaigning to Warner Bros. to renew the show on a different network).
Music and theatre career
Already an able singer when she competed in the Miss New Hampshire and Miss America Pageants, Badler forged a career in cabaret and on the stage in the 2005 MagnormosMagnormos
Magnormos is an independent musical theatre production company based in Melbourne, Australia, that specialises in producing musicals written by Australian writers, and landmark international works....
production of archy & mehitabel, directed by Aaron Joyner and based on Don Marquis
Don Marquis
Donald Robert Perry Marquis was a humorist, journalist, and author. He was variously a novelist, poet, newspaper columnist, and playwright. He is remembered best for creating the characters "Archy" and "Mehitabel", supposed authors of humorous verse.-Life:...
's books of poetry, The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby is a novel by the American author F. Scott Fitzgerald. First published in1925, it is set on Long Island's North Shore and in New York City from spring to autumn of 1922....
, Sextet, The Singing Forest, Big Hair in America, and her one-woman show, Shakin' the Blues Away in which she also sang. Other productions in which she appeared for Magnormos included a concert of the musical Rebecca and OzMade Musicals.
Badler released her debut album (backed by the Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
-based band Sir) on June 1, 2008. Titled The Devil Has My Double
The Devil Has My Double
The Devil Has My Double is an LP by Jane Badler, released on June 1, 2008. On the album she collaborates with Melbourne band Sir.-Track listing:# "When We Got High" - 5:04# "Who Did You Wear That Dress For" - 3:17# "I Love Everything" - 5:43...
, it is an autobiographical album which has been described as "a compulsive mix of fame, sex and solitude, set to a sweeping soundtrack of cold soul and passionate synthetics." As part of promotion for the album, she gave an extensive interview about her work to the Boxcutters podcast
Boxcutters (podcast)
Boxcutters is an Australian podcast dedicated to the discussion of television. It is produced weekly, and usually uploaded on a Monday. Shows average around 70 minutes, although there is no set length, and it is recorded at the studios of 3RRR...
.
Badler released her second album, Tears Again, in 2011.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977-1981, 1983 | One Life to Live One Life to Live One Life to Live is an American soap opera which debuted on July 15, 1968 and has been broadcast on the ABC television network. Created by Agnes Nixon, the series was the first daytime drama to primarily feature racially and socioeconomically diverse characters and consistently emphasize social... |
Melinda Cramer Janssen #2 | |
| 1979 | Fantasy Island Fantasy Island Fantasy Island is the title of two separate but related American fantasy television series, both originally airing on the ABC television network.-Original series:... |
Kim | |
| 1981-1982 | The Doctors | Natalie Bell #2 | |
| 1983 | V | Diana | TV miniseries 2 episodes |
| 1983 | Mr. Smith Mr. Smith (TV series) Mr. Smith is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from September 23 through December 16, 1983. The series was based around the premise of a talking orangutan. Mr. Smith was canceled after thirteen episodes were aired.The orangutan who played Mr... |
Uncredited | |
| 1984 | V: The Final Battle | Diana | TV miniseries 3 episodes |
| 1984 | Brothers Brothers (TV series) Brothers is an American television sitcom that originally aired on the cable network Showtime from July 13, 1984 to July 25, 1989, totaling 115 episodes. It was produced by Gary Nardino Productions, in association with two separate divisions of Paramount; first by the Paramount Video division and... |
Phyllis | |
| 1984-1985 | V: The Series | Diana | 19 episodes |
| 1985 | Covenant | Dana Noble | TV movie |
| 1985 | Hotel Hotel (TV series) Hotel is an American prime time drama series which aired on ABC from September 21, 1983 to May 5, 1988 in the timeslot following Dynasty.... |
Angie Archer | 1 episode |
| 1986 | Blacke's Magic Blacke's Magic Blacke's Magic was a short-lived American TV show about a magician, Alexander Blacke , who, with some help from his con-man father, Leonard , solves mysteries that get in the way of his performances. It ran for one season in 1986 for 13 episodes and featured crimes that tested logic against... |
Elisa Leigh | 1 episode |
| 1986 | Riptide Riptide (TV series) Riptide is a TV detective series that ran on NBC from 1983 to 1986, starring Perry King, Joe Penny, and Thom Bray. Riptide was created by Frank Lupo and Stephen J. Cannell, and produced by Stephen J. Cannell Productions. The main theme was composed by Mike Post and Pete Carpenter... |
Janet Ingram | 1 episode |
| 1986 | The Penalty Phase | Katie Pinter | TV movie |
| 1986-87 | Falcon Crest Falcon Crest Falcon Crest is an American primetime television soap opera which aired on the CBS network for nine seasons, from December 4, 1981 to May 17, 1990. A total of 227 episodes were produced.... |
Meredith Baxter | 22 episodes |
| 1987 | Jake and the Fatman Jake and the Fatman Jake and the Fatman is a television crime drama starring William Conrad as prosecutor J. L. "Fatman" McCabe and Joe Penny as investigator Jake Styles. The series ran on CBS for five seasons from 1987 to 1992. Diagnosis: Murder was a spin-off of this series... |
Shelly | 1 episode |
| 1987 | The Highwayman The Highwayman (TV series) The Highwayman is an action-adventure themed television series starring Sam J. Jones, set in "the near future." It was created by Glen A. Larson and Douglas Heyes. The pilot aired in September 1987, and was followed by a short-lived series of nine episodes, with significant changes to the cast and... |
Tania Winthrop | 10 episodes |
| 1988 | Murder, She Wrote Murder, She Wrote Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,... |
Carolyn Hazlitt | 1 episode |
| 1989-1990 | Mission: Impossible Mission: Impossible (1988 TV series) Mission: Impossible is an American television series that chronicles the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The show is a revival of the 1966 TV series of the same name... |
Shannon Reed | 24 episodes |
| 1992 | Cluedo | Mrs. Elizabeth Peacock | 20 episodes |
| 1992 | Embassy Embassy (TV series) Embassy was an Australian television series originally broadcast by the ABC from 1990 to 1992. There were three series produced with a total of 39 episodes. The series was set in the Australian embassy of a fictional south-east Asian country called Ragaan, located somewhere between Thailand and... |
Jacqueline Kowalski | 1 episode |
| 1994 | Sky Trackers Sky Trackers Sky Trackers was a television series created by Tony Morphett, and produced by Patricia Edgar and Margot McDonald for the Australian Children's Television Foundation... |
Coral Lee Pierce | 1 episode |
| 1995 | Snowy River: The McGregor Saga | Yvonne Waugh | 2 episodes |
| 2002 | Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World | Dame Alice Kyteler | 1 episode |
| 2010 | Neighbours Neighbours Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera first broadcast on the Seven Network on 18 March 1985. It was created by TV executive Reg Watson, who proposed the idea of making a show that focused on realistic stories and portrayed adults and teenagers who talk openly and solve their problems... |
Diana Marshall | 24 episodes |
| 2011 | V | Diana | 9 episodes |
| 2011 | Spicks and Specks | Herself | 1 episode |
| 2011 | Offspring Offspring (TV series) Offspring is an Australian television comedy-drama series which premiered on Network Ten in Australia on 15 August 2010. Offspring is centred around 30-something obstetrician Nina Proudman and her family, as they navigate the chaos of modern life... |
Wendy | 3 episodes |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | The First Time | Karen Watson | |
| 1989 | Easy Kill | Jade Anderson | |
| 1989 | Fine Gold Fine Gold (film) Fine Gold is a 1989 Spanish drama film directed by José Antonio de la Loma and starring Simón Andreu, Stewart Granger and Lloyd Bochner. It depicts the ongoing feud between two winemaking families.-Cast:* Jane Badler - Julia* Lloyd Bochner - Don Pedro... |
Julia | |
| 1989 | Autumn Rain | Lucia | |
| 1990 | Black Snow Black Snow (film) Black Snow is a 1990 Chinese drama film directed by Xie Fei. It was entered into the 40th Berlin International Film Festival, where it won the Silver Bear for an outstanding single achievement.-Cast:* Cai Hongxiang as Cui Yongli... |
Shelby Collins | |
| 1995 | Under the Gun | Sandy Torrence | |
Studio albums
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| The Devil Has My Double The Devil Has My Double The Devil Has My Double is an LP by Jane Badler, released on June 1, 2008. On the album she collaborates with Melbourne band Sir.-Track listing:# "When We Got High" - 5:04# "Who Did You Wear That Dress For" - 3:17# "I Love Everything" - 5:43... |
|
| Tears Again |
|
Singles
| Year | Single | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | "Four Corners to My Bed" | Tears Again |
| "Men Who Lie" | ||