Guest Stars on Mama’s Family

Born in Los Angeles on June 2, 1978, Cox expressed an interest in show business at age four. She was discovered by a prominent dance agent while taking dance classes, which led to her professional debut in the comedy film Mac and Me (1988). Dancing temporarily held center stage with appearances in Michael Jackson's Moonwalker (1988); a Los Angeles Music Center Ballet Tour; The Joffrey Ballet; Paula Abdul's video "Forever Your Girl"; "The MTV Awards" and The Arsenio Hall Show (1989). At age 10, Cox won her first speaking part in a guest-starring role in Mama's Family (1983). Her other television credits included Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987), Night Court (1984), Murphy Brown (1988), Baywatch (1989) and Boy Meets World (1993). Cox also had starring roles in The Ryan White Story (1989) and the sci-fi thriller The Presence (1992) - both television movies. She was also a series regular on NBC's Someone Like Me (1994). On the big screen, Cox was featured in the box-office hit Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) and played Gina Cates, Jagger Cates' long-lost sister on ABC's General Hospital (1963).

American performer Amy O'Neill was born in Pacific Palisades on July 8, 1971. The daughter of an art school director and a construction company owner, O'Neill is the third of five children. Accompanied by her older siblings, she began auditioning for roles at the age of ten, first appearing at the age of 13 in an episode of Mama's Family (1983) in which she played the younger version of Betty White's character.

As a young teenager, O'Neill continued to land guest spots on television shows such as Matt Houston (1982), Night Court (1984), Highway to Heaven (1984), The Twilight Zone (1985), and Family Ties (1982), before winning a regular role on the 1986 season of the long-running soap opera The Young and the Restless (1973). She made her feature film debut three years later in Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989). In the movie, O'Neill's character Amy is shrunk by her scientist father (Rick Moranis). She was nominated for a Young Artist Award for her performance, but lost to Gaby Hoffmann for Field of Dreams (1989). O'Neill reprised her role in the sequel, Honey, I Blew Up the Kid (1992).

Throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, O'Neill mainly continued to guest-star on popular television series such as Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987), The Young Riders (1989), and Murder, She Wrote (1984), also appearing in the biographical miniseries I Know My First Name Is Steven (1989). She had roles in the made-for-TV flicks White Wolves: A Cry in the Wild II (1993) and Attack of the 5 Ft. 2 Women (1994), as well as the rejected comedy pilot ...Where's Rodney? (1990)

Patrika Darbo was born on 6 April 1948 in Jacksonville, Florida, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Days of Our Lives (1965), Babe (1995) and Rango (2011). She has been married to Rolf Darbo since 29 December 1973.

Veteran character actor Earl Boen is probably best known for his role as criminal psychologist Dr. Peter Silberman in the Terminator series. Other films which he appeared include Battle Beyond the Stars (1980), The Man with Two Brains (1983), Alien Nation (1988), Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994) and Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000). Boen retired from screen acting in 2003, but continues his work as a voice actor in radio, animated series and video games.

Alan Oppenheimer is an American actor from New York City, who started his career in the 1950s. By the 1970s, Oppenheimer started performing voice acting roles. He eventually emerged as one of the most prolific voice actors in the United States, with roles in numerous series and films. His better known roles include the evil emperor Ming the Merciless in "The New Adventures of Flash Gordon" (1979-1982), the tyrant Overlord and his mind-controlling Vizier in "Blackstar" (1981), the arrogant narcissist Vanity Smurf in "The Smurfs" (1981-1989), the evil sorcerer Skeletor, the shape-shifting animal Cringer, the heroic Man-at-Arms, and the aquatic villain Mer-Man in "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe" (1983-1985), the pacifistic naturalist Beachcomber, the sailor Seaspray, and the gun-enthusiast and munitions expert Warpath in "The Transformers" (1984-1987), the android wizard Prime Evil in "Ghostbusters" (1986), and the cryptic advisor Merlin in "The Legend of Prince Valiant" (1991-1993).

In 1930, Oppenheimer was born in New York City. His father was the stockbroker Louis Oppenheimer. In 1958, Oppenheimer married costume designer Marianna Elliott. They had three children. He received a divorce at some point prior to the mid-1980s. In 1984, Oppenheimer married the professional tennis player Marilyn Greenwood. Their marriage lasted less than a decade, and ended in a divorce. In 1992, Oppenheimer re-married his first wife Marianna Elliott. Their marriage lasted until her death in 2003. He has remained single since her death.

In 1993, Oppenheimer had a guest star role in "Star Trek: The Next Generation". He played the Klingon cleric Koroth. His character cloned the long-dead messianic warrior Kahless, in hope of restoring his peoples' faith in their religion.In 1994, Oppenheimer played the ill-fated star-ship captain Keogh in "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine". After successfully completing a rescue mission, Keogh fell victim to a suicide attack (along with most of his crew). In 1997, Oppenheimer played an unnamed ambassador of the Nezu in "Star Trek: Voyager". His character attempted to enlist the USS Voyager to rescue his planet from destruction. This was Oppenheimer's last role in a "Star Trek" television series. Oppenheimer has mostly avoided live-action roles since 1998.

In 2022, Oppenheimer voiced Skeletor again for an appearance in the film "Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers". By 2022, Oppenheimer was 92-years-old. He has never fully retired, though he has played less prominent roles in recent productions. He remains popular to animation fans for his iconic roles in several classic series.

Amy Benedict - Bio In film ("Sneakers", "Clairevoyant") and on television ("thirtysomething", "Grey's Anatomy", "CSI", "24"), Amy has portrayed moms and murderers, bombers and babysitters, in a career that has spanned over 3 decades. Born and raised in Columbia, Missouri, Amy attended Northwestern University in Evanston, IL to study theatre. As an undergrad, she started working as a commercial and film actress in Chicago to help pay for her tuition. When she was flown to New York her senior year to audition for "Biloxi Blues" on Broadway and then later that year to Los Angeles for a pilot audition for "My Sister Sam", she decided, despite her love for the Big Apple, she would head to the left coast after graduation. Amy landed in Los Angeles in the late 80s and hit the ground running with guest star and recurring roles on "Family Ties", "thirtysomething" (as "Amy" the babysitter), "LA Law", and numerous after-school specials (due to her toddler-esque facial features). She was also cast as "Mary" in the cult-classic "Sneakers" with River Phoenix, Robert Redford, and James Earl Jones. Amy continued to work in television with a principal role on "General Hospital", and in prime-time on "ER", "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine", "24" with more recent credits on "CSI", "Grey's Anatomy", "Law & Order: Los Angeles" and on her brother Rob Benedict's streaming show, "Kings of Con". She appears as "Eliza" in the movie "Clairevoyant" streaming on Amazon (2021) and guest stars as "Gail Morgan" on CBS's "S.W.A.T." (November, 2021). She also appears in the award-winning short "Danni & May" with Julianne Dowler produced by the The Collaborative, an actor media collective. Amy plays a kooky computer hacker in a unique Zoom production shooting in 2021-22 and an alcoholic mother in the film "Remy & Arleta" (in post-production as of November, 2021). Theatre Credits include "You" with Lake Arrowhead Rep, "American Iliad" at the Victory Theatre, and Mary Zimmerman's pre-Broadway production of "Metamorphoses" at the Mark Taper Forum. Amy currently lives in the foothills above Los Angeles with her two awesome kids, her hard-working schoolteacher husband, Mark Brodie - and 3 very high-maintenance pets.

Mark Brandon is known for Riverdale (2017), The Flash (2014) and Supernatural (2005). He has been married to Joanne Brandon since 2009.

Stacey Swain was born on 30 November 1958 in Fullerton, California, USA. She is an actress, known for The Return of the Living Dead (1985), Little Nicky (2000) and Hot Rod (2007).

Maureen LaVette was born on 10 August 1958 in Dubuque, Iowa, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Virgin High (1991), Danger USA (1989) and Otherworld (1985).

Myra Turley is known for Flags of Our Fathers (2006), Meet the Fockers (2004) and Nightcrawler (2014).

Troy Evans was born on 16 February 1948 in Missoula, Montana, USA. He is an actor, known for Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), Under Siege (1992) and Demolition Man (1993). He is married to Heather McLarty.

Brent Spiner, whose primary claim to fame is his portrayal of the beloved android Data on the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987), was born and raised in Houston, Texas. His parents, Sylvia (Schwartz) and Jack Spiner, owned and operated a furniture store, and were both from Jewish immigrant families (from Austria, Hungary, and Russia). Jack died of kidney failure at age 29, when Brent was 10 months old. When he was 6 years old, his mother married Sol Mintz, who adopted Brent and his older brother Ron. Although his mother divorced Mintz after 7 years of marriage, Brent retained his adopted father's last name until 1975, when he took back his birth name.

Spiner first began pursuing his interest in acting while in high school. There his inspirational drama teacher, Cecil Pickett, gave a great start to the careers of a remarkable group of aspiring young actors (and directors), including Spiner, Cindy Pickett (Cecil's daughter), Randy Quaid, Dennis Quaid, Trey Wilson, Robert Wuhl and Thomas Schlamme, all of whom later attained success in Hollywood. After graduation, Spiner followed his mentor to the University of Houston and other local colleges, while also launching his professional acting career in theater (The Houston Music Theater and other regional theater) and in film (My Sweet Charlie (1970), which was shot on location in Texas). After a couple of false starts in New York and Hollywood, Spiner eventually established himself as a stage actor in New York, appearing in a number of off-Broadway and Broadway plays, such as "A History of the American Film" (1978), "Leave It to Beaver is Dead" (1979), "Sunday in the Park with George" (1984), and "Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" (1985). While in New York, he had a bit part in Woody Allen's Stardust Memories (1980) and starred in an independent film called Rent Control (1981). The play "Little Shop of Horrors "brought Spiner to Los Angeles in 1984, where he eventually took up permanent residence.

In 1986, after a number of character parts in television series and movies, such as Robert Kennedy and His Times (1985), Crime of Innocence (1985), Manhunt for Claude Dallas (1986), and Family Sins (1987), Spiner snagged the role that would bring him international fame: Data, the endearing android, whom Spiner played "by tapping into his inner child." Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987), the sequel to the original television series Star Trek (1966), became hugely popular, moving to the big screen for four films (so far) after its 7-year run on television. Aside from these films, Spiner has made cameo appearances in a number of films directed by his friend and old schoolmate Thomas Schlamme, such as Miss Firecracker (1989), Crazy from the Heart (1991), and Kingfish: A Story of Huey P. Long (1995), and has appeared in small roles in more recent films, such as Dude, Where's My Car? (2000) and The Master of Disguise (2002). Arguably his most popular film portrayal was Dr. Brakish Okun in Independence Day (1996), a role that elicited his unique eccentricity and sense of humor. He reprised the character in the sequel, Independence Day: Resurgence (2016).

Gary was nominated for Best Actor for the Canadian series "Wild Roses" for the CBC at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival in 2009. The show was also nominated. Born and raised in Newport News, Virginia.. He is a proud uncle, and son of Joe and Bev...and has 9 nieces and nephews. Gary moved to Los Angeles in 1979, but always considers Virginia his home. For the last 14 years he has split his time between the States and Canada. Gary is now a dual citizen, and enjoys the time he spends in the great white north. He has been teaching acting for the past 15 years, doing seminars in the US and Canada, and just finished teaching a semester at the University of the Arts in San Francisco. He enjoys his "frustrating" time on the golf course, playing in numerous charity events every year, and still swings a pretty mean tennis racket. A big sports fan...he cheers for the underdog...Cowboys - Joe Tores team in New York City...and the house that Jerry West built.

Mina Kolb was born on 7 June 1926 in Wilmette, Illinois, USA. She is an actress, known for A Mighty Wind (2003), The Hollywood Knights (1980) and Ellen (1994).

Bonnie Urseth was born on 14 August 1951 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. She is an actress, known for Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990), Hardcastle and McCormick (1983) and Medium (2005). She has been married to Gerry Koch since 13 July 1975. They have one child.

Tina Payne was born on 6 December 1968 in Harris County, Texas, USA. She is an actress, known for Mama's Family (1983) and The 5th Annual People's Choice Awards (1979).

The entertainment world has enjoyed a six-decade love affair with comedienne/singer Carol Burnett. A peerless sketch performer and delightful, self-effacing personality who rightfully succeeded Lucille Ball as the carrot-topped "Queen of Television Comedy," it was Burnett's traumatic childhood that set the stage for her comedy.

Carol's rags-to-riches story started out in San Antonio, Texas, on April 26, 1933, where she was born to Ina Louise (Creighton) and Joseph Thomas "Jodie" Burnett, both of whom suffered from acute alcoholism. As a child, she was left in the care of a beloved grandmother, who shuttled the two of them off to Hollywood, California, where they lived in a boarding house and shared a great passion for the Golden Age of movies. The plaintive, loose-limbed, highly sensitive Carol survived her wallflower insecurities by grabbing attention as a cut-up at Hollywood High School. A natural talent, she attended the University of California and switched majors from journalism to theater. Scouting out comedy parts on TV and in the theater, she first had them rolling in the aisles in the mid-1950s performing a lovelorn novelty song called "I Made a Fool of Myself Over John Foster Dulles" (then Secretary of State) in a nightclub act. This led to night-time variety show appearances with Jack Paar and Ed Sullivan and where the career ball really started rolling.

Carol's first big TV breaks came at age 22 and 23 as a foil to a ventriloquist's dummy on the already-established The Paul Winchell Show (1950) in 1955, and as Buddy Hackett's gawky girlfriend on the short-lived sitcom Stanley (1956). She also developed an affinity for game shows and appeared as a regular on one of TV earliest, Stump the Stars (1947) in 1958. While TV would bring Carol fans by the millions, it was Broadway that set her on the road to stardom. She began as the woebegone Princess Winnifred in the 1959 Broadway musical "Once Upon a Mattress" which earned her first Tony Award nomination. [She would later appear in three TV adaptations - Once Upon a Mattress (1964), Once Upon a Mattress (1972) and Once Upon a Mattress (2005).] This, in turn, led to the first of an armful of Emmy Awards as a repertoire player on the popular variety series The Garry Moore Show (1958) in 1959. Burnett invented a number of scene-stealing characters during this time, most notably her charwoman character. With the phenomenal household success of the Moore show, she moved up quickly from second banana to headliner and appeared in a 1962 Emmy-winning special Julie and Carol at Carnegie Hall (1962) co-starring close friend Julie Andrews. She earned the Outer Critics Circle Award for the short-lived musical "Fade Out, Fade In" (1964); and made her official film debut opposite Bewitched (1964) star Elizabeth Montgomery and Dean Martin in the lightweight comedy Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed? (1963).

Not surprisingly, fellow redhead Lucille Ball, who had been Carol's treasured idol growing up, subsequently became a friend and mentor to the rising funny girl. Hilarious as a guest star on The Lucy Show (1962), Carol appeared as a painfully shy (natch) wallflower type who suddenly blooms in jaw-dropping fashion. Ms. Ball was so convinced of Carol's talent that she offered Carol her own Desilu-produced sitcom, but Burnett had her heart set on fronting a variety show. With her own team of second bananas, including character crony Harvey Korman, handsome foil Lyle Waggoner, and lookalike "kid sister" type Vicki Lawrence, the The Carol Burnett Show (1967) became an instant sensation, and earned 22 Emmy Awards during its 11-year run. It allowed Carol to fire off her wide range of comedy and musical ammunition--whether running amok in broad sketch comedy, parodying movie icons such as Gloria Swanson, Shirley Temple, Vivien Leigh or Joan Crawford, or singing/gushing alongside favorite vocalists Jim Nabors, Steve Lawrence, Peggy Lee, Sammy Davis Jr., Ella Fitzgerald and Mel Tormé. She managed to bring in huge stars not known at all for slapstick comedy, including Rock Hudson and even then-Governor Ronald Reagan while providing a platform for such up-and-coming talent as Bernadette Peters and The Pointer Sisters In between, Carol branched out with supporting turns in the films Pete 'n' Tillie (1972), The Front Page (1974) and Robert Altman's A Wedding (1978).

Her program, whose last episode aired in March of 1978, was the last truly successful major network variety show to date. Carol took on new challenges to display her unseen dramatic mettle, and accomplished this amazingly in TV-movie showcases. She earned an Emmy nomination for her gripping portrayal of anti-Vietnam War activist Peg Mullen in Friendly Fire (1979), and convincingly played a woman coming to terms with her alcoholism in Life of the Party: The Story of Beatrice (1982). Neither character bore any traces of the usual Burnett comedy shtick. Though she proved she could contain herself for films, Carol was never able to acquire crossover success into movies, despite trouper work in The Four Seasons (1981), Annie (1982) (as the hammy villainess Miss Hannigan), and Noises Off... (1992). The last two roles had been created onstage by Broadway's Dorothy Loudon.

Carol would return from time to time to the stage and concert forums with productions of "Plaza Suite", "I Do! I Do", "Follies", "Company" and "Putting It Together". A second Tony nomination came for her comedy work in "Moon Over Buffalo" in 1995. Carol has made frequent appearances on her own favorite TV shows too, such as Password (1961) (along with Elizabeth Montgomery, Carol was considered one of the show's best players) and the daytime soaper, All My Children (1970).

During the early 1990s, Carol attempted a TV comeback of sorts, with a couple of new variety formats in Carol & Company (1990) and The Carol Burnett Show (1991), but neither could recreate the magic of the original. She has appeared, sporadically, on various established shows such as "Magnum, P.I.," "Touched by an Angel," "Mad About You" (for which she won an Emmy), "Desperate Housewives," "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (Emmy nomination), "Hawaii Five-0," "Glee" and "Hot in Cleveland." Befitting such a classy clown, she has received a multitude of awards over time, including the 2003 Kennedy Center Honors and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005. She was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1985. Her personal life has been valiant--tears in between the laughs. Married three times, her second union with jazz-musician-turned-variety-show-producer Joe Hamilton produced three daughters. Eldest girl, Carrie Hamilton, an actress and former teen substance abuser, tragically died of lung and brain cancer at age 38. Shortly before Carrie's death, mother and daughter managed to write a play, together, entitled "Hollywood Arms", based on Carol's 1986 memoir, "One More Time". The show subsequently made it to Broadway.

Today, at age 80 plus, Carol has been seen less frequently but still continues to make appearances, especially on TV. Most recently she has guested on the shows "Glee," "Hot in Cleveland" and the revivals of "Hawaii Five-0" and "Mad About You." As always she signs off a live appearance with her signature ear tug (acknowledging her late grandmother), reminding us all, between the wisecracks and the songs, how glad and lucky we all are to still have some of "this time together".

Phyllis Franklin is known for The X-Files (1993), Dutch (1991) and Expired (2007).

Tanya Fenmore was born in San Diego, California, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983), Tales from the Darkside (1983) and My Stepmother Is an Alien (1988).

Heather Kerr is known for Mama's Family (1983), The Grove (1985) and Trapper John, M.D. (1979). She has been married to Thom Mooney, Drummer since 1994.

Susan Barnes was born in Jefferson, Pennsylvania, USA. She is known for Repo Man (1984), They Live (1988) and Nurse Betty (2000).

Betty White was born in Oak Park, Illinois, to Christine Tess (Cachikis), a homemaker, and Horace Logan White, a lighting company executive for the Crouse-Hinds Electric Company. She was of Danish, Greek, English, and Welsh descent.

Although she was best known as the devious Sue Ann Nivens on the classic sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970) and the ditzy Rose Nylund on The Golden Girls (1985), Betty White had been in television for a long, long time before those two shows, having had her own series, Life with Elizabeth (1952) in 1952.

She was married three times, lastly for eighteen years, until widowed, to TV game-show host Allen Ludden.

She was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame and she was known for her tireless efforts on behalf of animals.

Betty White died on 31 December 2021, at the age of 99.

Courtney Gebhart was born on 18 September 1964. She is an actress, known for My Name Is Khan (2010), Summer School (1987) and 976-WISH (1997). She was previously married to Jared Chandler.

The day his dad took him to see Star Wars on the big screen was the day Todd knew what he was meant to do the rest of his life. As a boy, he experimented behind the camera making short films with the help of his family and friends and his grandfather's 8mm camera.

Today Todd is a creative director, producer and writer who has enjoyed a career both in front and behind the camera. His favorite role, however, has always been that of a storyteller. He has over 20 years of experience working with The Walt Disney Company and other well-known consumer brands including ESPN, ABC, Pixar, Lucasfilm, Smucker's, Jif, Folgers, The Orlando Magic, Atlantis and NASA. Todd also boasts a modest resume of award-winning films.

His most recent is the 2022 Emmy nominated "Woman In Motion" (Paramount+) which chronicles the story of Star Trek's Nichelle Nichols and her epic journey to bring diversity to our space program after standing up and asking NASA the question: "Where are my people?" In 2022, "Woman In Motion" was named an ambassador film for the American Film Showcase (AFS), a partnership with the Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and USC's School of Cinematic Arts.

Todd is putting the finishing touches to his next feature film project, "Pre Fab!", the story of one man, his drums and the band that became The Beatles. He is also working on the authorized documentary film The Runaway about rock-n-roll legend Del Shannon and the film What Hugh Knew which centers around the power of human connection.

For more information, please visit StarsNorth.com and ToddThompsonOnline.com.

Film, TV and stage actress Georgann Johnson was a product of Decorah High School, Luther College and Northwestern University. Her father, George, was a local plumbing contractor and an amateur actor. Georgann's specialization has been in the portrayal of the all-American girl/housewife and/or the young comic's sweetheart. She met her husband, Stanley Prager, in 1953 when both were appearing briefly as replacements in the Broadway stage revival of "Room Service". In 1954, she appeared with Mike Wallace in the stage comedy, "Reclining Figure", a spoof of the art world. Her recurring role as the menacing "Princess Arura" in the noted DuMont Television Network series, Captain Video and His Video Rangers (1949), widened her acceptance as a strong dramatic artist. Georgann has been notably critical of what she terms the false glamor of the stage.