A trained Broadway singer and dancer, Christine Ebersole started acting in the 1970s on the ABC soap opera Ryan's Hope. On Broadway, she shared the stage with many greats in shows like Camelot. In 1981, she joined the cast of Saturday Night Live before returning to soaps to play Maxi McDermott on One Life to Live and earning a Daytime Emmy nomination. In 1985, Ebersole moved on to the sitcoms The Cavanaughs and Valerie. She sang the theme song as well as starred in the short-lived Fox sitcom Rachel Gunn, R.N. After making her film debut with a bit part in Tootsie, she had a few film roles, including opera diva Katerina Cavalieri in Milos Forman's Amadeus. She also starred in the family sci-fi feature Mac and Me, the Bill Cosby vehicle Ghost Dad, and several made-for-TV movies. Some of her credits include My Girl 2, Folks!, Pie in the Sky, and the Bette Midler TV version of Gypsy. In 2001, Ebersole received a Tony award for her work on the Broadway revival of 42nd Street. She worked more often on stage than on TV or movies, but in 2009 she had a small role in Confessions of a Shopaholic and landed a recurring role on the cable series Royal Pains.
Christine Ebersole
Share on
Biography by AllMovie
Movie Highlights
Factsheet
- Made her Broadway debut in Angel Street in 1976; subsequently appeared in Oklahoma, Camelot and Getting Away with Murder.
- Launched her TV career in the mid-'70s with a role on the long-running ABC soap Ryan's Hope.
- Was a Saturday Night Live cast member during the 1981-82 season, co-anchoring the "Weekend Update" segment.
- Made her big-screen debut in 1982 with a bit part in Tootsie, and went on to star in Mac and Me (1988) and Folks! (1992).
- Moved to Hollywood in 1985, after starring in the poorly received Broadway musical Harrigan N' Heart, which closed after just three performances.
- Landed series-regular roles on several sitcoms, including CBS' The Cavanaughs and Ink.
- Returned to the cabaret stage in 1997, and released her first album, Live at the Cinegrill, the following year.
- Began a string of critically acclaimed stage roles in 2001 with 42nd Street, and continued her winning streak with Dinner at Eight (2003) and Grey Gardens (2007).