Mel Harris
Mary Ellen "Mel" Harris is an American actress best known for her role as Hope Murdoch Steadman in the ABC drama series "Thirtysomething" (1987–1991), for which she received a Golden Globe nomination in 1990. Early life. Harris was born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, the daughter to Mary Michael "Mike", a high-school science teacher, and Warren Harris, football coach at Bethlehem High School and Princeton University. Her nickname came from her younger sister mispronouncing her given name Mary Ellen as "Melon" while a baby, which evolved into "Mel". Harris grew up in North Brunswick, New Jersey and graduated from  New Brunswick High School in 1974. Before finding success as an actress, Harris had appeared as a contestant on the game show "Pyramid" on two occasions, in 1979 on the ABC-TV daytime version known as "The $20,000 Pyramid", and in 1985 on the syndicated version known as "The $100,000 Pyramid", both versions hosted by Dick Clark. She later appeared as a celebrity on the third week of "The $100,000 Pyramid" hosted by John Davidson in 1991, with a clip of her big win in 1985 as shown in a flashback clip. Career. Harris made her film  debut playing a female leading role in the 1987 action film "" starring Rutger Hauer. She went on to star alongside Ken Olin, Patricia Wettig, Melanie Mayron, Timothy Busfield, Peter Horton and Polly Draper in the ABC drama series "Thirtysomething" playing the role of Hope Murdoch Steadman. The series received critical acclaim during its run, while Harris was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama in 1990. She directed one episode during the final season. The series ended in 1991. During that time, she also starred in the horror film "Cameron's Closet" (1988) and action  comedy "K-9" alongside Jim Belushi. In 1989, she played a real-life victim Madge Oberholtzer in the TV miniseries "Cross of Fire". In 1989, "Harper's Bazaar" named her one of "America's 10 Most Beautiful Women". In 1990s, Harris had many leading roles in the made-for-television films and miniseries, include "The Burden of Proof" (1992), "Ultimate Betrayal" (1994) and "The Women of Spring Break" (1995). She co-starred in the 1992 psychological horror-thriller film "Raising Cain", and the following year played the leading role in the thriller film "Suture". Her other notable film credits include "The  Pagemaster" (1994), "Hangman's Curse" (2003), and "The Lodger" (2009). From 1996 to 1998, she starred with Jere Burns in the NBC sitcom "Something So Right". The series was cancelled after two seasons. Harris has appeared in a number of television series in 2000s, including "Touched by an Angel", "Stargate SG-1", "The West Wing", "JAG", "House", and "Criminal Minds". In 2007, she was a regular cast member in the MyNetworkTV limited-run serial "Saints & Sinners". At that time, she began working as a writer. She was executive producer and creator of 2012 ABC drama pilot "Scruples" based on the 1978  novel by Judith Krantz. After a six-year hiatus, Harris returned to television in 2013, appearing in the two episodes of "". In 2016, Harris starred in the first season of Hulu drama series "Shut Eye", and from 2017 to 2018 had a recurring role in the Bravo comedy series "Imposters". In 2020, ABC ordered a sequel for "Thirtysomething" with Harris set to return alongside Olin, Busfield, and Wettig. Personal life. Harris has been married six times. She was married to David Silbergeld from 1978 to 1979; Brian Kilcommons from 1980 to 1982; photographer David Hume Kennerly from 1983 to 1988  (with whom she had son Byron); actor Cotter Smith from 1988 to 1996 (with whom she had daughter Madeline); and investment banker Michael Toomey from 2001 to 2006. She has been married to screenwriter and producer Bob Brush since 2009.