Nancy Lee Grahn
Encyclopedia
Nancy Lee Grahn is an American
actress who has starred in such soap operas as Santa Barbara
as Julia Wainwright Capwell
from 1985 to 1993 and General Hospital
as Alexis Davis
since 1996.
. Her parents were both involved with their local community theater in Skokie. In high school, at Niles North, she played "Daisy Mae" opposite future Broadway actor Gregg Edelman
in the school's production of Lil' Abner. As a freshman at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
, Grahn landed another role, as Mimi in Guys and Dolls at the Goodman Rep Theater, 1973-1974 season. Grahn had another early stage role in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream with the Dallas
Theatre Center.
Grahn subsequently went to New York City
, where she studied acting with noted drama teacher Sandy Meisner. In New York, she appeared in commercials and also appeared in several industrial films; in an interview, Grahn recalled crossing paths with fellow future soap star Kim Zimmer
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
, among many others.
television, including Little House on the Prairie
, Moonlighting
, Murder, She Wrote
, Magnum, P.I.
, Diagnosis: Murder
, Perry Mason
, The Incredible Hulk
, Knight Rider and Babylon 5
("The War Prayer
", 1994). She has also been seen in the recurring role of Denise Fielding on Melrose Place, as Connie Dahlgren on Murder One
, and, most recently, 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's secretary on ABC
's One Life to Live
from 1980 to 1982. In 1985, she was cast in what is perhaps her best-known role, as headstrong lawyer
Julia Wainwright Capwell
, 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
; conflict over their storylines eventually led to Davies' departure from the show. Grahn's performance garnered her a Daytime Emmy
for Best Supporting Actress in 1989 (an award which she shares with All My Children
actress Debbi Morgan
). She portrayed the role of Julia until the show's cancellation in 1993.
In 1996, she was cast as Alexis Davis
/Natasha Cassadine, another headstrong lawyer, on General Hospital
, a role she has played ever since. She was nominated for several additional Daytime Emmys. In June 2006, Grahn re-signed with General Hospital for another four years on the show. In July 2010, Grahn re-signed with General Hospital for another four years on the show.
. As a member of "Daytime For Choice", along with founder Heather Tom
, she discussed with the New York Times her decision to have an abortion 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 GLBT rights and has participated in the NOH8 Campaign
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress who has starred in such soap operas as Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara (TV series)
Santa Barbara is an American television soap opera, first broadcast in the United States on NBC on July 30, 1984, and last aired on January 15, 1993. The show revolved around the eventful lives of the wealthy Capwell family of Santa Barbara, California...
as Julia Wainwright Capwell
Julia Wainwright Capwell
Julia Wainwright Capwell was a fictional character on the American soap opera Santa Barbara. She was portrayed by actress Nancy Lee Grahn from May 6, 1985 to then show's demise on January 15, 1993. Julia was a part of one of the show's main supercouples, Mason and Julia. The character is still...
from 1985 to 1993 and General Hospital
General Hospital
General Hospital is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-running American soap opera currently in production and the third longest running drama in television in American history after Guiding Light and As the World Turns....
as Alexis Davis
Alexis Davis
Alexis Davis is a fictional character on the popular ABC soap opera, General Hospital. Nancy Lee Grahn originated the role in April 1996. She is the daughter of Mikkos Cassadine and Kristin Bergman. She is also the mother of Sam McCall, Kristina Davis and Molly Lansing...
since 1996.
Early life and career
Grahn was born in Skokie, IllinoisSkokie, Illinois
Skokie is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Its name comes from a Native American word for "fire". A Chicago suburb, for many years Skokie promoted itself as "The World's Largest Village". Its population, per the 2000 census, was 63,348...
. Her parents were both involved with their local community theater in Skokie. In high school, at Niles North, she played "Daisy Mae" opposite future Broadway actor Gregg Edelman
Gregg Edelman
Gregg Edelman is an American movie, television and theatre actor.Edelman was born in Chicago, Illinois, attended Niles North High School, where he starred as Lil' Abner opposite future soap star Nancy Lee Grahn, and was trained at Northwestern University...
in the school's production of Lil' Abner. As a freshman at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
, Grahn landed another role, as Mimi in Guys and Dolls at the Goodman Rep Theater, 1973-1974 season. Grahn had another early stage role in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream with the Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
Theatre Center.
Grahn subsequently went to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where she studied acting with noted drama teacher Sandy Meisner. In New York, she appeared in commercials and also appeared in several industrial films; in an interview, Grahn recalled crossing paths with fellow future soap star Kim Zimmer
Kim Zimmer
Kim Zimmer is an American actress. She is known for her role as Echo DiSavoy on One Life to Live and best known for her role as Reva Shayne on Guiding Light.-Career:...
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
Two for the Seesaw is a 1962 romance-drama film directed by Robert Wise and starring Robert Mitchum and Shirley MacLaine. It was adapted from the Broadway play written by William Gibson.-Plot:...
, among many others.
Television roles
Grahn has made a number of appearances in episodic prime timePrime time
Prime time or primetime is the block of broadcast programming during the middle of the evening for television programing.The term prime time is often defined in terms of a fixed time period—for example, from 19:00 to 22:00 or 20:00 to 23:00 Prime time or primetime is the block of broadcast...
television, including Little House on the Prairie
Little House on the Prairie (TV series)
Little House on the Prairie is an American Western drama television series, starring Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert, about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s and 1880s. The show was an adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books...
, Moonlighting
Moonlighting (TV series)
Moonlighting is an American television series that aired on ABC from March 3, 1985, to May 14, 1989. The network aired a total of 66 episodes...
, 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,...
, Magnum, P.I.
Magnum, P.I.
Magnum, P.I. is an American television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from 1980 to 1988 in first-run broadcast on the American CBS television network....
, Diagnosis: Murder
Diagnosis: Murder
Diagnosis: Murder is a mystery/medical/crime drama television series starring Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, a medical doctor who solves crimes with the help of his son, a homicide detective played by his real-life son Barry Van Dyke. The series began as a spin-off of Jake and the Fatman...
, Perry Mason
Perry Mason
Perry Mason is a fictional character, a defense attorney who was the main character in works of detective fiction authored by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason was featured in more than 80 novels and short stories, most of which had a plot involving his client's murder trial...
, The Incredible Hulk
The Incredible Hulk (1977 TV series)
The Incredible Hulk is an American television series based on the Marvel comic book character of the same name created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. The pilot episodes were a pair of TV movies on the CBS network beginning on November 4, 1977; the series soon followed, airing from March 10, 1978 to...
, Knight Rider and Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...
("The War Prayer
The War Prayer (Babylon 5)
"The War Prayer" is an episode from the first season of the science fiction television series Babylon 5. The title of the episode comes from the Mark Twain story of the same name.-Synopsis:...
", 1994). She has also been seen in the recurring role of Denise Fielding on Melrose Place, as Connie Dahlgren on Murder One
Murder One (TV series)
Murder One is an American legal drama series that first aired on the ABC network in the United States in 1995. The series was created by Steven Bochco, Charles H. Eglee, and Channing Gibson.-Premise:...
, and, most recently, as Principal Russell on 7th Heaven
7th Heaven
7th Heaven is an American family drama television series, created and produced by Brenda Hampton. The series premiered on August 26, 1996, on the WB, the first time that the network aired Monday night programming, and was originally broadcast from August 26, 1996 to May 13, 2007...
.
Grahn also has had several roles on daytime dramas
Soap 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,...
. Her first television role was as Beverly Wilkes, Marco Dane's secretary on 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 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...
from 1980 to 1982. In 1985, she was cast in what is perhaps her best-known role, as headstrong lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
Julia Wainwright Capwell
Julia Wainwright Capwell
Julia Wainwright Capwell was a fictional character on the American soap opera Santa Barbara. She was portrayed by actress Nancy Lee Grahn from May 6, 1985 to then show's demise on January 15, 1993. Julia was a part of one of the show's main supercouples, Mason and Julia. The character is still...
, on the now-defunct soap opera Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara (TV series)
Santa Barbara is an American television soap opera, first broadcast in the United States on NBC on July 30, 1984, and last aired on January 15, 1993. The show revolved around the eventful lives of the wealthy Capwell family of Santa Barbara, California...
. 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
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy was an American theatrical and film actor, who appeared in 75 films from 1930 to 1967. Tracy was one of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, ranking among the top ten box office draws for almost every year from 1938 to 1951...
/Hepburn
Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Houghton Hepburn was an American actress of film, stage, and television. In a career that spanned 62 years as a leading lady, she was best known for playing strong-willed, sophisticated women in both dramas and comedies...
-esque romance. Offscreen, Grahn was briefly involved with Mason's portrayer, actor Lane Davies
Lane Davies
-Personal life:Davies was born in Dalton, Georgia, the son of Emily and Bill Davies. He has three brothers. He graduated from Middle Tennessee State University with cum laude honors for his degree in speech and theater. Currently, he resides in Georgia with his family...
; conflict over their storylines eventually led to Davies' departure from the show. Grahn's performance garnered her a Daytime Emmy
Daytime Emmy Award
The Daytime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Los Angeles-based Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American daytime television programming...
for Best Supporting Actress in 1989 (an award which she shares with All My Children
All My Children
All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
actress Debbi Morgan
Debbi Morgan
Deborah "Debbi" Morgan is an American film and television actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Dr. Angie Hubbard on the ABC soap opera All My Children, and for her role as The Seer in the fourth and fifth seasons of Charmed.Morgan joined the cast of The Young and the Restless as...
). She portrayed the role of Julia until the show's cancellation in 1993.
In 1996, she was cast as Alexis Davis
Alexis Davis
Alexis Davis is a fictional character on the popular ABC soap opera, General Hospital. Nancy Lee Grahn originated the role in April 1996. She is the daughter of Mikkos Cassadine and Kristin Bergman. She is also the mother of Sam McCall, Kristina Davis and Molly Lansing...
/Natasha Cassadine, another headstrong lawyer, on General Hospital
General Hospital
General Hospital is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-running American soap opera currently in production and the third longest running drama in television in American history after Guiding Light and As the World Turns....
, a role she has played ever since. She was nominated for several additional Daytime Emmys. In June 2006, Grahn re-signed with General Hospital for another four years on the show. In July 2010, Grahn re-signed with General Hospital for another four years on the show.
Political views
Grahn is an active proponent of reproductive rightsReproductive rights
Reproductive rights are legal rights and freedoms relating to reproduction and reproductive health. The World Health Organization defines reproductive rights as follows:...
. As a member of "Daytime For Choice", along with founder Heather Tom
Heather Tom
Heather Marie Tom is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Victoria Newman on The Young and the Restless, Kelly Cramer on One Life to Live and currently Katie Logan Spencer on The Bold and the Beautiful....
, she discussed with the New York Times her decision to have an abortion 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 GLBT rights and has participated in the NOH8 Campaign
NOH8 Campaign
The NOH8 Campaign is a silent protest photo project against California Proposition 8. The campaign features photographs portraying people in front of a white backdrop wearing white t-shirts, their mouths taped shut and "NOH8" painted on their cheek. The campaign was created on February 1, 2009, by...
.
Awards and nominations
- Daytime Emmys Winner, Outstanding Supporting Actress (1989) (tied with Debbi MorganDebbi MorganDeborah "Debbi" Morgan is an American film and television actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Dr. Angie Hubbard on the ABC soap opera All My Children, and for her role as The Seer in the fourth and fifth seasons of Charmed.Morgan joined the cast of The Young and the Restless as...
) - Daytime Emmys Nomination, Outstanding Lead Actress (2003, 2004, 2005)
- Daytime Emmys Nomination, Outstanding Supporting Actress (2000, 2011)
- Daytime Emmy Nomination, Outstanding Special Class Special for: SOAPnet Reveals ABC Soap Secrets (2006)
- Daytime Emmys Pre-Nomination, Outstanding Lead Actress (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007)
- Soap Opera Digest Award Nominee, Outstanding Supercouple (1991)
- Soap Opera Digest Award Winner, Outstanding Supporting Actress (2000, 2001, 2003)
- Soap Opera Digest Award Nominee, Outstanding Lead Actress (1993)
- Soap Opera Digest Award Nominee, Hottest Female Star (1993)