NANCY LEE GRAHN
Alexis Davis on the ABC Television
Network's General Hospital
Genuine, intelligent, and independent
are just a few of the words that can
describe actress Nancy Lee Grahn.
The seasoned actress, who arrived at
General Hospital in 1996, plays strong
and savvy Alexis Davis, a brilliant
attorney who is completely loyal to her
family, the Cassadines, sometimes
against her better judgment.
Grahn grew up in Skokie, Illinois, where
her parents were choreographers for a
local community theater. However, her
first taste of acting occurred in a high
school production of Oklahoma. With a
very small part in the chorus, Grahn
knew then that she would follow in her
parents' footsteps. As she prepared to
start her freshman year at University of
Illinois, a friend suggested she audition
for Guys & Dolls at the Goodman Rep
Theatre, where she landed her first big
break in the role of Mimi. Grahn went
on to perform on stage in a production
of A Midsummer Night's Dream with the
Dallas Theatre Center.
After A Midsummer Night's Dream,
Grahn went to New York, where she
had the good fortune of studying acting
with Sandy Meisner. In New York, she
continued to perform in numerous
plays, such as Tomorrow, Cole,
Fathers Day, and Two for the Seesaw,
among many others.
Grahn's television career came next
with a move to Los Angeles for a
change of pace. Her first television role
was Beverly Wilks, Marco Dane's
secretary on ABC's One Life to Live.
She went on to guest-star in episodes
of Moonlighting, Murder, She Wrote and
Magnum P.I., to name a few. In 1989,
she won an Emmy for Best Supporting
Actress for her portrayal of Julia
Wainwright on Santa Barbara. She has
most recently been seen in the
recurring role of Denise Fielding on
Melrose Place, Connie Dahlgren on
ABC's Murder One, and as Principal
Russell on 7th Heaven. Grahn has also
guest-starred in Diagnosis Murder,
Perry Mason and Babylon V, in addition
to starring in numerous television
movies.
When Grahn is not at work, she enjoys
escaping to her beach house to
daydream, visualize and write. "I am
curious about why we do the things we
do, and I've made a career trying to
figure it out," explains Grahn. But if one
looks at the generosity that Grahn
displays to charitable and important
causes, no one would even think twice
about why Grahn does what she does.
"I think it is important to use the soap
box to do other things than promote
storyline," and to that end, Grahn has
turned her fan club into a community
service contest, and has lobbied the
support of other daytime talent to
create "Daytime for Choice." Grahn
helped in the Clinton presidential
campaign because of his enormous
support for women, and she continues
to give time and energy to many
women's causes. She also chaired the
Media Access Awards, which promote
the appropriate portrayal of disability in
the media
WALLACE KURTH
Ned Ashton on the ABC Television
Network's General Hospital
Wallace Kurth brings his intense dark
eyes and disarming smile to the role of
Ned Ashton, a man truly cut from
Quartermaine cloth. Clever, ambitious
and indefatigable in his business
objectives, his inherited business
ferocity took a heavy toll when his
beloved wife, Lois, left the confines of
the family mansion with their baby
daughter to keep her from the family's
toxicity.
Daytime viewers know Wally from his
four-year run on Days of Our Lives,
where he played Justin Kiriakis.
Wallace joined General Hospital in
1992. His popularity among viewers is
evidenced by being selected in 1996 as
the Most Valuable Player on General
Hospital" by readers of Soap Opera
Update magazine, and nominated as
Hottest Male Star by Soap Opera
Digest magazine, also in 1996.
Born in Billings, Montana, Wally grew
up with a strong interest in acting and
music. He put this talent to work in
musical theater and songwriting. He
has appeared on stage in a variety of
works that have been produced from
regional theater to the Kennedy Center
to Broadway, where he starred as the
Pirate King in The Pirates of
Penzance. He has also been active in
the Los Angeles Equity waiver
theatrical arena where he has worked
as an actor and director. He lent his
talents to the musical review, Over the
Rainbow: The Music of Harold Arlen,
and Sondheim: Part 3, an annual
STAGE event that benefits
AIDS-related services in Los Angeles.
Wally also writes and performs music
with his partner, Christian Taylor. Their
two albums, Kurth & Taylor and Half &
Half, have received critical praise from
Billboard magazine. Kurth and Taylor
are currently touring the country
promoting their new album Nashville.
Wally Kurth and his General Hospital
co-star Rena Sofer were married on
March 31, 1996 in Big Sky, Montana.
The couple live in the San Fernando
Valley area of Los Angeles with their
baby daughter, Rosabel, and Wally's
daughter, Meghann.
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