# Kim Lankford

Kim Lankford (born June 14, 1954) is an American businesswoman and retired actress, best known for her role as Ginger Ward on Knots Landing from 1979 to 1983.

## Life and career

Lankford was born in Montebello, California. She made her screen debut in the 1976 movie Harry and Walter Go to New York, and later began her television career appearing in episodes of sitcoms such as Happy Days. In 1978, she was cast as the female lead opposite Joe Namath in the short-lived NBC sitcom The Waverly Wonders. Later that year, she played the leading role in the teen comedy film Malibu Beach.
In 1979, Lankford was cast as Ginger Ward, one of the original lead characters, in the CBS prime time soap opera Knots Landing. She starred on the show during the first four seasons, before leaving in 1983. In 1980, she also had a role opposite Chuck Norris in the action film The Octagon, and in the following years co-starred with Don Meredith in the thriller Terror Among Us. After leaving Knots Landing, she guest-starred on Fantasy Island, The Love Boat, and Cheers. In 1988, she had a supporting role in the horror film Cameron's Closet, and was a regular cast member in the ABC detective drama Murphy's Law.
Lankford spent the 1990s playing guest starring roles on television series such as In the Heat of the Night, Chicago Hope and Diagnosis: Murder, as well as appearing in the films Missing Pieces (1992) and Night of the Running Man (1995). In 1996, Lankford was a co-presenter on a cult public-access television cable TV series, "The Count Smokula Show". She reprised her Knots Landing character in Knots Landing: Back to the Cul-de-Sac in 1997. After retiring from acting in 2000, Lankford created her own horse business in Colorado called Kim Lankford's Living Horsemanship.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Lankford lived with, and was romantically involved with, Warren Zevon. Lankford was close friends with Susan Berman. Lankford dated Robert Durst, who allegedly murdered Berman in 2000. In 2015, Lankford appeared in the HBO documentary series The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1976 | Harry and Walter Go to New York | Young Girl | |
| 1978 | Convoy | Darlene | Cut in post-production |
| 1978 | Malibu Beach | Dina | |
| 1980 | The Octagon | Nancy | |
| 1981 | Terror Among Us | Vickie Stevens | |
| 1988 | Cameron's Closet | Dory Lansing | |
| 1992 | Missing Pieces | Sally | |
| 1995 | Night of the Running Man | Waitress | |
| 1996 | Street Corner Justice | Jenny Connor | |
| 1996 | For Goodness Sake II | | Short film |
| 1997 | Get to the Heart: The Barbara Mandrell Story | | Television film |
| 1998 | Mixed Blessings | | |
| 2015 | Dead of Winter: The Donner Party | Tamsen Donner | Television film |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1976 | Police Woman | Kate | Episodes: "Task Force: Cop Killer: Part 1" and "Task Force: Cop Killer: Part 2" |
| 1977 | Happy Days | Sheena | Episode: "A Shot in the Dark" |
| 1977 | Busting Loose | Sharon | Episodes: "The Decision: Part 1" and "The Decision: Part 2" |
| 1978 | The Waverly Wonders | Connie Rafkin | Series regular, 9 episodes |
| 1978 | Man from Atlantis | | Episode: "The Siren" |
| 1978 | The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries | Alice Smith | Episode: "Campus Terror" |
| 1979–1983 | Knots Landing | Ginger Ward | Series regular, 75 episodes |
| 1982, 84 | Fantasy Island | Fancy Summerfield / Sandy | Episodes: "Roller Derby Dolls/Thanks a Million" and "Lady's Choice/Skin Deep" |
| 1984 | Finder of Lost Loves | Jeanine Prescott | Episode: "White Lies" |
| 1984 | Cheers | Maxine | Episode: "Sam Turns the Other Cheek" |
| 1978–1984 | The Love Boat | Carol Kelsey / Deanna Ellis / Anne Parker | S8 E13/ |
| 1985 | The Hitchhiker | Rae Bridgeman | Episode: "A Time for Rifles" |
| 1987 | Hunter | Charlene Lindquist | Episode: "The Cradle Will Rock" |
| 1987 | The Law & Harry McGraw | Karen Stillman | Episode: "Murder by Landslides" |
| 1988 | Jake and the Fatman | Cynthia Covington | Episode: "Rhapsody in Blue" |
| 1988–1989 | Murphy's Law | Marissa Danforth | Series regular, 12 episodes |
| 1990 | Dream On | Hannah Stone | Episode: "Premarital Ex" |
| 1991 | Paradise | Beckie | Episode: "A Bullet Through the Heart" |
| 1991 | In the Heat of the Night | Tamara Pollard | Episode: "Liar's Poker" |
| 1991 | Silk Stalkings | Muriel Hayes | Episode: "Hardcopy" |
| 1992 | Bodies of Evidence | Pam Charles | Episode: "The Cold Light of Day" |
| 1996 | Land's End | Jenny's Mother | Episode: "Jenny" |
| 1997 | Chicago Hope | Leslie Bowman | Episode: "Leggo My Ego" |
| 1997 | Knots Landing: Back to the Cul-de-Sac | Ginger Ward | Miniseries |
| 1995, 1997 | Diagnosis: Murder | Chelsea Drew / Lois Claire | Episodes: "Death in the Daytime" and "A Mime Is a Terrible Thing to Waste" |
| 2000 | Martial Law | Dr. Geller | Episodes: "Final Conflict: Part 1" and "Final Conflict: Part 2" |
| 2015 | The Jinx | Herself | Miniseries |