Staying Fit
Did you always want to be an actress?
I did, I kind of knew in my bones from the time I was a little kid that this was what I wanted to do. It was either this or be a veterinarian, and I wasn’t terribly good at science so I think that helped me make my decision. I took a couple of detours first. [After college] I got myself to New York and worked Off Broadway for a couple of years, and doing dinner theater and summer stock. And then had a chance to model, and that was my ticket to travel. I took 5 years from 25 to 30 and got to see the world. I never really started working as an actor until I was 30. I’m sort of a late bloomer in a lot of ways.
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Did you set out to become a character actress or were those the roles that were given to you?
I was definitely typecast in my 30s. I was tall and brunette and often played the heavies, or the evil girls or the divorcees. Usually I was the bad one in the group! I mostly did dramatic stuff on television. In plays I had more range, but in television it wasn’t until I did Dream On that they found out I was funny. That changed my career forever and opened so many doors. And then having Just Shoot Me for 7 years, I figured ‘well, I’ve had mine, you can’t really ask for much more.’ So Hot in Cleveland I did not expect.
The characters on the show are described as “looking for a second act.”
This is my 3rd act. And I attribute so much of that to Betty. I turned 60 when we started Hot in Cleveland, and I have this role model in Betty, who is 30 years older than I, and made me realize this really could be a whole other rich chapter for me. Instead of the end, it’s another beginning.
