Jeanne Cooper
| Jeanne Cooper | |
|---|---|
 In the 1953 film The Redhead from Wyoming |
|
| Born | Wilma Jeanne Cooper October 25, 1928 Taft, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1953–present |
| Spouse | Harry Bernsen (1954-1977) |
Wilma Jeanne Cooper (born October 25, 1928), best known as Jeanne Cooper, is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Katherine Chancellor on the daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless. Though she was not on the series when the show debuted in March 1973, she made her onscreen debut in November of that year, and remains the longest-tenured actor on The Young and the Restless.
Contents |
[edit] Early career
Cooper began her career in the 1950s. Her first starring role was as Myra in 1953's western The Redhead from Wyoming. She also appeared as a player in films with stars like Maureen O'Hara, Glenn Ford, Tony Curtis, and Henry Fonda. Cooper was a fixture on episodic television throughout the 1960s and 1970s.
In 1965, she appeared in the western television series The Big Valley as Elaine Baxter Jason, a mercantile store owner and an old friend of Victoria Barkley. In another episode she appears as Heath's money-hungry aunt. Her husband was portrayed by John Anderson, who years later became known as MacGyver's often quoted grandfather, Harry Jackson.
[edit] Katherine Chancellor
Cooper's character has broken ground in the daytime medium; Katherine has endured several bouts with alcoholism, and the loss of many men in her life (four late husbands, and a child given away after birth).
Katherine (and Cooper) also had a facelift on national television (Cooper had pitched the idea of having a live facelift to CBS executives, who agreed to write the facelift into the show for Katherine Chancellor).
For many years, the story of Katherine's bitter rivalry with character Jill Foster Abbott has been a mainstay of the show. (In real life, Cooper and Jill's portrayer, Jess Walton, are close friends.) It was revealed in 2003 that Jill was Katherine's daughter born out of wedlock,[1] but developments in 2009 cast doubt upon that assertion and the long bitter enemies were found not to be mother and daughter after all.
She has received ten Daytime Emmy nominations, nine for Outstanding Lead Actress and one for Outstanding Supporting Actress, and two Primetime Emmy nominations. She received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Daytime Emmys in 2004. For her contributions to television, Cooper received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which is located at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. She won the 2008 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. This was her first competitive win, she had first been nominated in 1989.
Cooper also played the role of Marge Cotrooke, Katherine's lookalike, on the show from 1989 to 1990, and again in 2008 and 2009. Cooper recently signed a new three-year deal with Y&R.
Cooper's character, Katherine, was thought to have died in a November 2008 episode. It was, however, her look-alike Marge who died, and Katherine had experienced memory issues due to the car accident that took Marge's life.
Cooper's character, Katherine, along with Christian LeBlanc's character, Michael Baldwin, made a guest appearance on the finale of Guiding Light which aired Friday, September 18, 2009.
Cooper had to take a medical leave in October 2011 and her part on the soap was temporarily recast with veteran actress Michael Learned. However, the next month, she confirmed she was returning to the set. She returned as part of the show on December 23, 2011.
[edit] Personal life
Jeanne Cooper was born to Albert Troy Cooper and his wife Sildeth Evelyn Moore. She was the youngest of their three children. Jeanne's family lived in Kern County for several years, first in Taft until 1942 and then moving to Bakersfield. Her mother died August 21, 1945, and her father died April 11, 1986. She married television producer Harry Bernsen, Jr. and they were together 23 years before divorcing. Interviews and reports state they remained the best of friends until his death in June 2008.
The Bernsens had three children, all of whom are actors: Corbin Bernsen of L.A. Law fame (born September 7, 1954), whose mother Cooper portrayed twice on that series; Collin Bernsen, born March 30, 1958; and Caren Bernsen,[1] born August 17, 1960.
[edit] Filmography
[edit] Film
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | The Redhead from Wyoming | Myra | |
| The Man from the Alamo | Kate Lamar | ||
| Shadows of Tombstone | Marge | ||
| 1955 | The Naked Street | Evelyn Shriner | |
| 1956 | The Houston Story | Madge | |
| Over-Exposed | Renee | ||
| Calling Homicide | Darlene Adams | ||
| 1957 | Five Steps to Danger | Helen Bethke | |
| Rock All Night | Mabel | ||
| Plunder Road | Fran Werner | ||
| 1958 | Screaming Mimi | Lola Lake in Photo | uncredited |
| 1960 | Let No Man Write My Epitaph | Fran | |
| 1962 | Red Nightmare | Helen Donavan | |
| House of Women | Helen Jennings | ||
| 13 West Street | Mrs. Quinn | ||
| The Intruder | Vi Griffin | ||
| 1963 | Black Zoo | Edna Conrad | |
| 1965 | The Glory Guys | Mrs. Rachael McCabe | |
| 1967 | Tony Rome | Lorna Boyd | |
| 1968 | The Boston Strangler | Cloe | |
| 1970 | There Was a Crooked Man... | Prostitute | |
| 1972 | Kansas City Bomber | Trainer Vivien | |
| 1973 | The All-American Boy | Nola Bealer | |
| 1977 | The San Pedro Bums | Mrs. McClory | |
| 1991 | Lethal Justice | Clerk | |
| 1992 | Frozen Assets | Zach Shepard's Mother | |
| 1993 | Beyond Suspicion | Renata | |
| 2002 | The Tomorrow Man | Jeanine | |
| 2005 | Carpool Guy | Mrs. Lunsford | |
| 2009 | Donna on Demand | Virginia Hart | |
| Dead Air | Paranoid Caller |
[edit] Selected television works
| Show | Character | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| The Young and the Restless | Katherine Chancellor Marge Cotrooke |
1973–Present 1989-1990, 2008, 2009 |
| The Nanny | Herself | 1997 |
| The Bold and the Beautiful | Katherine Chancellor | 2005 (guest in two episodes) |
| Guiding Light | Wedding Guest | 2009 (guest star) |
| "The Untouchables" (1959 TV series) | Fran Cagle on the episode 'The Case Against Eliot Ness' - Season 3, episode #83 | 1962 |
| The Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Mother Fear a.k.a. Yvonne on the episode 'The Children's Day Affair' - Season 2, episode #41 | 1965 |
| Perry Mason | Laura Beaumont Thelma Hill Ethel Belan Mary Browne Miriam Fielding |
1958 1959 1962 1964 1966 |
| The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) | Barmaid on the episode "Mr. Denton on Doomsday" | 1959 |
| Have Gun Will Travel (1957-63 TV series) | Edna Hardin on the episode "The Treasure" | 1962 |
| Daniel Boone | Amy Barr Addie Ogilvie |
1966 1967 |
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Jeanne Cooper at the Internet Movie Database
- Jeanne Cooper bio on The Young and the Restless CBS website
|
||||||||
