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Meredith Baxter
Meredith Baxter 2014 HRC Gala (cropped).jpg
Baxter at the Human Rights Campaign Gala in 2014
Born
Meredith Ann Baxter

(1947-06-21) June 21, 1947 (age 77)
Other names Meredith Baxter Birney
Education Interlochen Center for the Arts
Occupation
  • Actress
  • producer
Years active 1971–present
Spouse(s)
Robert Lewis Bush
(m. 1966; div. 1969)
David Birney
(m. 1974; div. 1989)
Michael Blodgett
(m. 1995; div. 2000)
Nancy Locke
(m. 2013)
Children 5
Parents
  • Tom Baxter (father)
  • Whitney Blake (mother)

Meredith Ann Baxter (born June 21, 1947) is an American actress and producer. She is known for her roles on the CBS sitcom Bridget Loves Bernie (1972–1973), ABC drama series Family (1976–1980) and the NBC sitcom Family Ties (1982–1989). A five-time Emmy Award nominee, one of her nominations was for playing the title role in the 1992 TV film A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story.

Early life

Baxter was born in South Pasadena, California, the daughter of actress, director and producer Whitney Blake; and Tom Baxter, a radio announcer. After her parents were divorced in 1953, Baxter and her two brothers, Richard (born 1944) and Brian (born 1946), were raised by their mother in Pasadena. Her second stepfather was situation comedy writer Allan Manings. She and her Family Ties co-star, Michael Gross, were both born on June 21, 1947.

Baxter was educated at James Monroe High School before transferring to Hollywood High School. During her senior year, she attended Interlochen Center for the Arts as a voice major, but returned to Hollywood High, where she graduated in 1965.

Career

Early years

Baxter got her first appearance in television in 1970 on an episode of The Partridge Family in its second season. She later appeared in 1972 as one of the stars of Bridget Loves Bernie, a CBS television network situation comedy. The series was canceled after one season. Her co-star, David Birney, became her second husband in 1974. Until they were divorced in 1989, she was credited as Meredith Baxter Birney, under which name she became widely known in 1976 on Family. She played the role of Nancy Lawrence Maitland and received two Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (1977 and 1978). In 1976 she played the wife of White House staffer Hugh W. Sloan Jr. in All the President's Men

1980s and 1990s

Family Meredith Baxter-Birney 1977
Baxter in 1977

After Family ended, she starred with Annette O'Toole and Shelley Hack in Vanities (1981), a television production of the comedy-drama stage play about the lives, loves and friendship of three Texas cheerleaders starting from high school to post-college graduation; it aired as a part of Standing Room Only, a series on the premium television channel HBO.

In 1982, Baxter landed the role of Elyse Keaton, the former flower child matriarch of the Keaton family on the NBC sitcom Family Ties. In 1986, during her time on Family Ties, Baxter garnered critical acclaim for her dramatic performance as Kate Stark in the NBC television film Kate's Secret, about a seemingly "perfect" suburban housewife and mother. Following Family Ties, Baxter produced and starred in television films. She portrayed a kidnapper in The Kissing Place (1990) and was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Special for her work in A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story (1992), based on the true story of Betty Broderick. For her work on the television film My Breast (1994), she received a special award for public awareness from the National Breast Cancer Coalition. In 1997, Baxter once again played the mother of a character played by Michael J. Fox (who portrayed her son, Alex P. Keaton, on Family Ties), this time in two episodes of Spin City.

Since 2000

In 2005, she began appearing in television commercials for Garden State Life Insurance Company. In 2006, she temporarily co-hosted—with Matt LauerToday, the NBC morning news and talk show. In 2007, she made a guest appearance on What About Brian, an ABC drama series. That same year, she also made several appearances as the dying mother of Detective Lilly Rush on Cold Case, a CBS police procedural series. In recent years, Baxter created a skin care line called Meredith Baxter Simple Works, which raises funds for Baxter's breast cancer research foundation.

Baxter was the guest speaker at the 2008 Southern Commencement for National University in La Jolla, California, and was awarded an honorary doctoral degree from the university.

On March 1, 2011, Baxter's memoir, titled Untied, was published. The book became a New York Times bestseller.

She is also a spokesperson for the senior mobile service provider Consumer Cellular. She voiced the character "Elise Sr." in Dan Vs.. In April 2013, it was announced that Baxter would be in the season 4 finale episode of Glee, along with Patty Duke, as a mentor to Darren Criss's character Blaine Anderson and Chris Colfer's character, Kurt Hummel. She also made a guest appearance on the ABC Family/Freeform series Switched at Birth as the widowed mother of Kathryn Kennish (portrayed by Lea Thompson).

On August 4, 2014, producers announced that Baxter would be joining The Young and the Restless as Maureen, a "charming, intelligent, middle-class woman who has always aspired to a more privileged life than she has had". Baxter started appearing on the program on September 8. She also played the mother to "Stich" Raybourne and Kelly Andrews.

Personal life

Marriages and children

Meredith Baxter David Birney Bridget Loves Bernie 1972
Baxter and Birney in Bridget Loves Bernie (1972)
Meredith Baxter at the AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) benefit cropped and altered
Baxter in September 1990

Baxter has been married four times and has five children.

  • Robert Lewis Bush (1966–1971, divorce); Children: Theodore Justin "Ted" Bush (born May 10, 1967) and Eva Whitney Bush (born August 6, 1969)
  • David Birney (1974–1989, divorce); Children: Kathleen Jeanne "Kate" Birney (born December 5, 1974), and twins, Mollie Elizabeth Birney and Peter David Edwin Birney (born October 2, 1984)
  • Michael Blodgett (1995–2000, divorce)
  • Nancy Locke (2013–present)

On December 2, 2009, she came out as a lesbian during an interview with Matt Lauer on Today, and on the Frank DeCaro Show on Sirius-XM OutQ 102, claiming that accepting her sexual orientation helped her understand why, in part, previous relationships with men had failed.

Diet

Baxter is a vegetarian.

Health issues

Baxter became a vegetarian to keep her weight under control.

Baxter was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1999. After treatment, she made a full recovery.

Filmography

Film

Chad Everett Meredith Baxter Medical Center 1975
Chad Everett and Baxter in 1975
Year Title Role
1972 Stand Up and Be Counted Tracy
Ben Eve Garrison
1976 All the President's Men Debbie Sloan
Bittersweet Love Patricia
1990 Jezebel's Kiss Virginia De Leo
1999 Elevator Seeking Ann
2003 Devil's Pond Kate
2005 Paradise Texas Liz Cameron
The Mostly Unfabulous Social Life of Ethan Green Harper Green
2008 The Onion Movie Cooking Show Chef
2010 Airline Disaster President Harriet Franklin
2013 Reading Writing and Romance Mrs Wenders
2014 Letter to Anita: The Ronni Sanlo Story Herself
2019 Undateable John Beatrice

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1970 The Partridge Family Jenny 1 episode
1971 The Young Lawyers Gloria
The Doris Day Show April 1 episode - repackaging of unsold sitcom pilot "Young Love"
1972 Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law Ann Glover 1 episode
1972–1973 Bridget Loves Bernie Bridget Fitzgerald Steinberg 24 episodes
1973 The Invasion of Carol Enders Carol Enders Television film
Doc Elliot Jenny 1 episode
The Cat Creature Rena Carter Television film
1974 Barnaby Jones Jenny Sutherland 1 episode
The Stranger Who Looks Like Me Joanne Denver Television film
Young Love April Pilot aired later
1974–1975 Medical Center Paula
Priscilla
2 episodes
1975 Target Risk Linda Flayly NBC television film
The Imposter Julie Watson
The Streets of San Francisco Jodi Dixon 1 episode
The Night That Panicked America Linda Davis Television film
Medical Story Erica Schiff
Sunny
2 episodes
McMillan & Wife Faye Leonard 1 episode
1976 City of Angels Mary Kingston 3 episodes
Wide World of Mystery Episode: "Terror in the Night"
Police Woman Liz Robson 1 episode
1976–1980 Family Nancy Lawrence Maitland 45 episodes
1977–1982 The Love Boat Sandy Rytell 3 episodes
1978 Little Women Meg March Miniseries
1979 The Family Man Mercedes Cole Television film
1980 Beulah Land Lauretta Pennington Miniseries
1981 Vanities Joanne
The Two Lives of Carol Letner Carol Letner Television film
1982 Take Your Best Shot Carol Marriner
Love Boat Fran 2 episodes
1982–1989 Family Ties Elyse Keaton Main role, 176 episodes
1985 The ... of Richard Beck Barbara McKee Television film
Family Ties Vacation Elyse Keaton
1986 Kate's Secret Kate Stark
1987 The Long Journey Home Maura Wells
1988 The Diaries of Adam and Eve Eve
Mickey's 60th Birthday Elyse Keaton
Winnie Winnie
1989 She Knows Too Much Samantha White
1990 The Kissing Place Florence Tulane
Burning Bridges Lynn Hollinger
1991 Bump in the Night Martha Tierney
1992 A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story Betty Broderick
Her Final Fury: Betty Broderick - The Last Chapter Betty Broderick Sequel to A Woman Scorned
Stolen Love DeeDee ABC Television film
1993 Darkness Before Dawn Mary Ann Guard NBC television film
also co-executive producer
CBS Schoolbreak Special - Other Mothers Paula Hensen 1 episode; won a Daytime Emmy Award for her role
1994 For the Love of Aaron Margaret Gibson Television film
One More Mountain Margaret Reed
My Breast Joyce Wadler Television film - also co-execuive producer
1995 Betrayed: A Story of Three Women Amanda Nelson
1996 The Faculty Flynn Sullivan 13 episodes
also executive producer
After Jimmy Maggie Stapp Television film
1997 Dog's Best Friend Cow (voice)
The Inheritance Beatrice Hamilton
Let Me Call You Sweetheart D.A. Kerry McGrath
Miracle in the Woods Sarah Weatherby
Spin City Macy Flaherty Episode: "Family Affair"
1999 Holy Joe Annie Cass Television film
Down Will Come Baby Leah Garr
Miracle on the 17th Green Susan McKinley
2000 The Wednesday Woman Muriel Davidson
2001 A Mother's Fight for Justice Terry Stone
Aftermath Carol
Murder on the Orient Express Mrs. Caroline Hubbard
2002 A Christmas Visitor Carol Boyajian
2003 7th Heaven Mrs. Jones Episode: "Go Ask Alice"
2004 Half & Half Joan Tyrell 1 episode
Angel in the Family Lorraine Television film
2005 The Closer Congresswoman Simmons Episode: "Fantasy Date"
2006 Brothers & Sisters Margaret Packard Episode: "For the Children"
2006–2007 Cold Case Ellen Rush 5 episodes
2007 What About Brian Frankie Episode: "What About All That Glitters..."
2009–2011 Family Guy Elyse Keaton / herself / Carol 3 episodes
2009 Bound by a Secret Ida Mae Television film
Brothers TV Mom Episode: "Episode: Commercial – Coach DMV"
2010 We Have to Stop Now Judy Web series
Episode: "The Grass Is Always Greener"
RuPaul's Drag U Herself 1 episode: Appeared as a guest judge
2011 The Oprah Winfrey Show 1 episode
2011–2013 Dan Vs. Elise Sr. 4 episodes
2012–2015 Switched at Birth Bonnie Tamblyn Dixon 2 episodes
2012 Naughty or Nice Carol Kringle Television film
2013 Glee Liz 1 episode
The Neighbors Mother Joyner 2 episodes
Shadow on the Mesa Emilie Rawlins Television film
2014 The Young and the Restless Maureen Russell Recurring
2014–2015 Finding Carter Gammy 10 episodes
2015 Becoming Santa Jessica Claus Television film
Being Mary Jane Simone Episode: "Some Things Are Black and White"
2016 Skirtchasers Lilah Samuels Television film
Hell's Kitchen Herself Episode: "7 Chefs Compete"
Code Black Joanna Episode: "Landslide"

Award nominations

Year Award Work Result
1977 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Family Nominated
1978 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Family Nominated
1992 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Special A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story Nominated
1994 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in a Children's Special CBS Schoolbreak Special Nominated
2007 TV Land Award Lady You Love To Watch Fight For Her Life in a Movie of the Week Nominated
2015 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Guest Performer in a Drama Series The Young and the Restless Nominated

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See also

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