Amanda Bearse (born August 9, 1958) is an American actress,

comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audienc ...

and director. She starred in the 1985 supernatural horror film ''

Fright Night ''Fright Night'' is a 1985 American supernatural horror film written and directed by Tom Holland (in his directorial debut) and produced by Herb Jaffe. It stars Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Roddy McDowall, Amanda Bearse, Jonathan Stark, D ...

'', and later starred as Marcy Rhoades D'Arcy in the Fox sitcom '' Married... with Children'' (1987-1997). Bearse later began working as television director, directing over 90 episodes of comedy series.

Early life

Bearse grew up in

Winter Park, Florida Winter Park is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 30,183 according to the 2022 census population estimate. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Winter Park was f ...

. After she graduated from Winter Park High School in 1976, her family moved to Atlanta. She attended

Rollins College Rollins College is a private college in Winter Park, Florida. It was founded in November 1885 and has about 30 undergraduate majors and several graduate programs. It is Florida's fourth oldest post-secondary institution. History Rollins Colle ...

Birmingham Southern College Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

and

Young Harris College Young Harris College is a private Methodist-affiliated liberal arts college in Young Harris, Georgia, United States. History Origins The school was founded in 1886 by Artemas Lester, a circuit-riding Methodist minister who wanted to ...

, where she received an associate of arts degree. Bearse studied acting at New York City's

Neighborhood Playhouse A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural a ...

under instructor

Sanford Meisner Sanford Meisner (August 31, 1905 – February 2, 1997) was an American actor and acting teacher who developed an approach to acting instruction that is now known as the Meisner technique. While Meisner was exposed to method acting at the Grou ...

Career

Bearse made her television debut playing the role of Amanda Cousins in the ABC daytime soap opera ''

All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 2013, via Hulu, Hulu Plus, and ...

'' from 1982 to 1983. The following year, she had small role in the comedy film ''

Protocol Protocol may refer to: Sociology and politics * Protocol (politics), a formal agreement between nation states * Protocol (diplomacy), the etiquette of diplomacy and affairs of state * Etiquette, a code of personal behavior Science and technology ...

'' starring

Goldie Hawn Goldie Jeanne Hawn (born November 21, 1945) is an American actress, dancer, producer, and singer. She rose to fame on the NBC sketch comedy program ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (1968–1970), before going on to receive the Academy Award and Go ...

, and later landed a role in the sex comedy '' Fraternity Vacation''. In 1985, Bearse played the female leading role in the supernatural horror film ''

''. She returned to television with guest-starring role in the ABC drama series, ''

Hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

'' in 1986. The following year, she was cast as Marcy Rhoades (later Marcy D'Arcy), the feminist next-door neighbor in the Fox sitcom '' Married... with Children'' opposite Ed O'Neill and

Katey Sagal Catherine Louise "Katey" Sagal (; born January 19, 1954) is an American actress and singer. She is known for playing Peggy Bundy on '' Married... with Children'' (1987–1997), Leela on ''Futurama'' (1999–2003, 2008–2013, 2023), Cate Hennes ...

. The series ran to 1997; becoming one of the longest running sitcoms in television history. Bearse studied directing at the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...

and the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

. She began directing television while appearing on ''Married...with Children'', and from 1991 to 1997, she directed 31 episodes of the show. She also directed episodes of '' Reba'', '' Mad TV'', '' Nick Freno: Licensed Teacher'', '' Malcolm & Eddie'', ''Pauly'', ''The Tom Show'', ''

The Jamie Foxx Show ''The Jamie Foxx Show'' is an American sitcom that aired on The WB from August 28, 1996, to January 14, 2001. The series stars Jamie Foxx, Garcelle Beauvais, Christopher B. Duncan, Ellia English, and Garrett Morris. Although the show was not ...

'', ''

Dharma & Greg ''Dharma & Greg'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on ABC from September 24, 1997, until April 30, 2002, for 119 episodes over five seasons. The show starred Jenna Elfman and Thomas Gibson as Dharma and Greg Montgomery, a ...

'', '' Veronica's Closet'', '' Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place'', '' Jesse'' (1999; starring her ''Married...with Children '' costar Christina Applegate), '' Jessie'' (2011), and '' Ladies Man''. In 2005, she directed '' The Sperm Donor'', a pilot for

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

starring

Maggie Wheeler Margaret Emily Wheeler (née Jakobson) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Janice on the television sitcom ''Friends'' (1994–2004), and Anita on ''Ellen'' (1994–1996). Early life Wheeler was born Margaret Emily Jakobso ...

. In 2006, Bearse teamed with

Rosie O'Donnell Roseann O'Donnell (born March 21, 1962) is an American comedian, television producer, actress, author, and television personality. She began her comedy career as a teenager and received her breakthrough on the television series '' Star Search'' ...

to produce and direct ''

The Big Gay Sketch Show ''The Big Gay Sketch Show'' is an LGBT-themed sketch comedy program that debuted on Logo on April 24, 2007. The series is produced by Rosie O'Donnell and directed by Amanda Bearse. The program was originally titled ''The Big Gay Show'' but wa ...

'', which debuted on

Logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name it represents as in a wo ...

on April 24, 2007. As actress, in 1990s, Bearse appeared only in two films: ''

The Doom Generation ''The Doom Generation'' is a 1995 black comedy thriller film written and directed by Gregg Araki. The film follows two troubled teenage lovers, Amy Blue (Rose McGowan) and Jordan White (James Duval), who pick up a young handsome drifter named Xavie ...

'' and '' Here Come the Munsters'' (both 1995). She returned to acting in 2011, appearing in two episodes of Lifetime comedy-drama series, ''

Drop Dead Diva ''Drop Dead Diva'' is an American legal comedy-drama/fantasy television series that aired on Lifetime from July 12, 2009, to June 22, 2014. The series was created by Josh Berman and produced by Sony Pictures Television. It stars Brooke Elliott ...

''. In 2020, she starred in the German comedy horror film, '' Sky Sharks'', making her first film appearance in 25 years. In 2022, Bearse played

Luke Macfarlane Thomas Luke Macfarlane (born January 19, 1980) is a Canadian-American actor and former singer. He is known for playing Scotty Wandell on the ABC television drama '' Brothers & Sisters'' (2006–2011), RAC Agent D'avin Jaqobis on the Space tele ...

's mother in the romantic comedy film, '' Bros''.

Personal life

Bearse has been publicly out as

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

since 1993 and has an adopted daughter, Zoe. Amanda Bearse

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bearse, Amanda Living people 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American film actresses American television actresses American television directors American women comedians American women film directors American women television directors American lesbian actresses Lesbian comedians Actresses from Orlando, Florida Comedians from Florida LGBT people from Florida People from Winter Park, Florida Birmingham–Southern College alumni Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre alumni Winter Park High School alumni Young Harris College alumni Film directors from Florida 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American comedians LGBT television directors 21st-century LGBT people 1958 births