Nancy Stafford

Nancy Stafford
Born	Nancy Elizabeth Stafford (1954-06-05) June 5, 1954 Wilton Manors, Florida, USA
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1977–present
Spouse	Larry Myers (1989–present)
Children	1
Website	www.nancystafford.com

Nancy Stafford
Education	University of Florida
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Beauty pageant titleholder
Title	Miss Ft. Lauderdale 1976 Miss Florida 1976
Hair color	Blonde
Eye color	Blue
Major competition(s)	Miss America 1977

Nancy Elizabeth Stafford (born June 5, 1954) is an American actress, speaker and author, known for her roles in television. She came to prominence in the 1980s as Ben Matlock's (played by Andy Griffith) law partner and friend, Michelle Thomas, on Matlock. She hosted a syndicated TV series called Main Floor (1995–2005), a show about fashion and beauty.

Career

Stafford was born in Wilton Manors, Florida, a suburb of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, where she was raised in a Southern Baptist home. In a 2008 interview with Christians in Cinema, she said that she had been a born-again Christian, since she was eight years old. But, before she attended college, attending her family's local church was full of hypocrisy. By the time she was a teenager, she had also lived a prodigal life, before she returned to Jesus. After graduating from Ft. Lauderdale High School in 1972, she was Miss Florida 1976, competing in the 1977 Miss America Pageant. She began her career working as a public relations specialist. In addition, she worked as a top model in New York at the Ford Model Agency. Her career was going strong until she was diagnosed with skin cancer. She underwent successful surgery in 1978. That same year, she became a spokesperson in 250 commercials, before she began her career in acting.

In 1982, she moved to Los Angeles, where she had her first guest-starring role playing the dual role of Adrienne/Felicia Hunt on the soap opera The Doctors, the show she grew up watching. This led to other roles on shows such as: Riptide, Remington Steele, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, Who's the Boss?, Hunter, Quantum Leap, and Magnum, P.I. In an interview, Stafford said that she wanted to work with Tom Selleck, who also helped launch her career. Stafford joined the cast of season two of St. Elsewhere, as Joan Halloran, opposite the late Ed Flanders and popular producer Norman Lloyd. She played the role for three seasons. She also starred as Patricia Blake on Sidekicks, which lasted one season.

After a decade of working with legendary stars, despite being a struggling, unfamiliar actress, her most prominent television role was as Ben Matlock's assistant Michelle Thomas on Matlock, opposite Andy Griffith, from 1987 to 1992, replacing Linda Purl, who left after the first year because she had contractual problems with her character and castmates. Stafford had been a lifelong Griffith fan, since the early 1960s, as a six-year-old girl. Stafford auditioned and won the role. Before she played Michelle, she guest starred on the same show in 1986, where she played a call girl. According to a 2010 interview with the actress on On Screen and Beyond, there was a remarkable on- and off-screen relationship between Stafford and Griffith. When co-star Kene Holliday who played Tyler Hudson in the series, got fired from the show, prior to attending rehab, after being 3 months sober, from his long battle against alcohol and drugs, Clarence Gilyard who played Conrad McMasters replaced him. At the same time, her on-screen appearances on Matlock were reducing; hence; she was unavailable to come to the set everyday due to her busy scheduling. She left the show to spend more time with her family, and also moving on to other ventures. She was grief-stricken, when on July 3, 2012, her mentor, childhood television hero and TV lawyer, Andy Griffith, passed away. Prior to his death, Stafford released a statement: "I'm heartsick....I am forever grateful for the 5 wonderful years I worked with Andy. They were a highlight of my life. I've never laughed so hard or learned so much! He has left an indelible mark on my life – and the lives of countless millions. He was a consummate professional, an American treasure, and a dear man."

After her departure from Matlock, she became a world-renowned public speaker, traveling all over from churches, colleges, universities, women's group to other businesses. During the 1990s, she was the host of Main Floor, which was a talk show that was seen in over forty countries. In 2008, she co-hosted the first season of Love, Marriage and Stinkin' Thinkin alongside Mark Gungor.

Stafford also guest starred in many shows in the late 1990s, such as ER, Frasier, Babylon 5, Baywatch and most recently, The Mentalist. Additionally, she played "The Lady in the Park" in the 2004 award-winning short film The Proverb.

She is also the best-selling author of many Christian books such as: Beauty by the Book: Seeing Yourself as God Sees You; The Wonder of His Love: A Journey into the Heart of God, and her 2006 book, Mothers & Daughters Taking Your Adult Relationship to a Deeper Level.

From 1984 to 2009, Stafford was the spokeswoman for City Furniture (known as Waterbed City from 1971 to 1994), a South Florida-based chain of furniture stores.

Education

Stafford graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in journalism.

Personal life

Husband Larry Myers is a pastor. They have a daughter and grandson.

Her older brother Tracy Stafford was a two-term Mayor of Wilton Manors and a five-term member of the Florida House of Representatives.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2007	The Wager	Annie Steele
2011	Christmas with a Capital C	Kristen Reed
2012	Race to the Finish	Julie
2013	Foreclosed	Terri Boyd	Short film
2013	Superheroes Don't Need Capes	Jenny
2013	Season of Miracles	Nurse Barbara
2013	Christmas for a Dollar	Mrs. Rathbone

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1982	The Doctors	Adrienne / Felicity Hunt	1 episode
1983	Lone Star	Amanda Talbot	TV film
1983-1986	St. Elsewhere	Joan Halloran	Regular role (30 episodes)
1984	Who's the Boss?	Trish Baldwin	Episode: "Sorority Sister"
1985	Riptide	Lt. Peggy Burke	Episode: "Prisoner of War"
1985	Hunter	Nell Armstrong	Episode: "The Avenging Angel"
1985	Magnum, P.I.	Amy Griswald	Episode: "The Treasure of Kalaniopu'u"
1985	Scarecrow and Mrs. King	Colleen Donnelly	Episode: "Flight to Freedom"
1985	Remington Steele	Jennifer Davenport	Episode: "Stronger Than Steele"
1986	You Are the Jury	Diane Blake	Episode: "The State of Arizona vs. Dr. Evan Blake"
1986	D.C. Cops	Molly St. Clair	TV film
1986-1987	Sidekicks	Patricia Blake	Main role (23 episodes)
1986	Matlock	Caryn Nelson / Caroline Nathan	Episode: "The Seduction"
1987	U.S. Marshals: Waco & Rhinehart	Joyce	TV film
1987-1992	Matlock	Michelle Thomas	Main role (108 episodes)
1990	Quantum Leap	Peg Myers	Episode: "Miss Deep South - June 7, 1958"
1993	Moment of Truth: A Child Too Many	Sharon Davis	TV film
1993	Saved by the Bell: The College Years	Judith Trudell	Episode: "The Poker Game"
1995	Deadly Invasion: The Killer Bee Nightmare	Karen Ingram	TV film
1996	Frasier	Claire Barnes	Episode: "Moon Dance"
1996	Babylon 5	Dr. Mary Kirkish	Episode: "Messages from Earth"
1997	Baywatch	Cassie Rose	Episode: "Rendezvous"
2003	Judging Amy	Judge Bell	Episodes: "Motion Sickness", "The Wrong Man"
2008	The Mentalist	Rosemary Tennant	Episode: "Seeing Red"
2013	Assumed Killer	Dr. Weston	TV film

External links

• Nancy Stafford at IMDb
• Official website