- Linda Purl
Infobox actor
imagesize = 150px
bgcolour =
name = Linda Purl
birthname =
birthdate = birth date and age|1955|9|2
location =Greenwich, Connecticut , U.S.
spouse = Desi Arnaz Jr. (divorced)
Alexander Cary (divorced)
William Broyles Jr. (divorced)
deathplace =Linda Purl (born
September 2 ,1955 inGreenwich, Connecticut ) is an American actress andsinger , best known for portraying Ben Matlock's daughterCharlene Matlock in the first season of Matlock.Early life and education abroad
Purl was raised in
Japan , becoming the only foreigner to train at theToho Geino Academy . While at the Imperial Theatre inTokyo , Purl performed in several plays, gaining the role of Louis in "The King and I ", Bet in "Oliver! ", and the role of Helen in "The Miracle Worker ". Ms. Purl attended high school at Wykeham Rise school for girls in the arts in Washington, CT. After attendingFinch College , Ms. Purl went to England to study underMarguerite Beale , before returning to the United States to study at theLee Strasberg Institute , and later with Robert Lewis.Movie roles
Purl's first major movie role was in Jonathan Demme's 1975 comedy, "Crazy Mama". Subsequent movie appearances have included "The High Country", "Viper" and "Mighty Joe Young". She has also featured in many movies made for television, including "Little Ladies of the Night" and "The Young Pioneers".
Television roles
Linda Purl has played several roles on television, notably on "
The Secret Storm ", "Happy Days ", and Matlock. She also played secret agent Kate Del'Amico in the short-lived series "Under Cover". In "Happy Days" she played two different roles: Richie's occasional girlfriend Gloria in the second year of the show, and Fonzie's steady girlfriend Ashley eight seasons later.Linda Purl acted alongside with Shaun Cassidy in the 1979 TV movie "Like Normal People" - Sheldon EgbertLinda Purl was also in the third season of The Waltons. The episode was called The Spoilers
Theatre roles
She is a regular performer (and part of the original cast) of the long-running touring play "
Seven Deadly Sins Four Deadly Sinners " produced byMarc Sinden .Sept. 12, 2008 Linda Purl opened at the Cleveland Playhouse in Cleveland, Ohio in the production, The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams. She played Amanda, the mother of the main characters, and received high accolades at the end of the first performance, which runs 3 weeks.Charity
Ms. Purl also does charity work, for AIDS Project Los Angeles, Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, Haven House, and Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. She also supports Actors and Others for Animals (see Gallery below).
Music
Purl launched a jazz music career after leaving "Matlock" and has released several albums of music, most recently "
Out of This World --- LIVE ".Trivia
*She is the former daughter-in-law of
Desi Arnaz andLucille Ball , and sister-in-law ofLucie Arnaz , having been married toDesi Arnaz Jr.
*She is a mountain climber in her spare time.
*She was married toAlexander Cary, Master of Falkland , son of British politicianLucius Cary, 15th Viscount Falkland ee also
*
Matlock (TV series)
*List of characters in Matlock External links
*imdb name|id=0700909|name=Linda Purl
* [http://www.lindapurl.net/ Linda Purl's Official Home on the WWW]
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