Gina Tognoni (born November 28, 1973) is an American actress, best known for her work with American daytime

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio drama ...

s. Her most notable performances include

Kelly Cramer Kelly Cramer is a fictional character on the long-running ABC soap opera ''One Life to Live''. The role was originated by actress Gina Tognoni, who debuted on February 17, 1995, and played the character in her last appearance on August 24, 2011. ...

on ''

One Life to Live ''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes ...

'', Dinah Marler on ''

Guiding Light ''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the third longest-running drama in television in American history. ''Guiding Light'' a ...

'' and

Phyllis Summers Phyllis Summers is a fictional character from ''The Young and the Restless'', an American soap opera on the CBS network. The character was created and introduced by William J. Bell, and debuted in the episode airing on October 18, 1994. Phyllis wa ...

on ''

The Young and the Restless ''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in fictional Genoa City (not the real-life similarly-named Genoa City, Wi ...

''.

Career

Tognoni is known for her roles on daytime television soap operas. In 1995, she made her soap debut as

in ABC's ''

''. She appeared on the show until 2001. In April 2001, it was announced that Tognoni, after six years with the show, had decided not to renew her contract with the series. Tognoni returned to daytime television as Dinah Marler on CBS's ''

'' in July 2004, and won her first

Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series The Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series is an award presented annually by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) and Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). It is given to honor an ...

in 2006 for her work on the show. In 2007, she was nominated again in the same category but lost to

Genie Francis Eugenie Ann Francis (born May 26, 1962) is an American actress. She is best known for playing the role of Laura Spencer on the television soap opera ''General Hospital'' from 1977 to present, for which she won a Daytime Emmy Award in 2007. Fran ...

. She won her second Emmy in 2008, becoming only the second actress to be a repeat winner in the Supporting Actress category. In 2009, after CBS canceled ''Guiding Light'', Tognoni returned to her role as

on ''

''. Also it was reported that Tognoni was in talks with several soaps for her post-''Guiding Light'' gig. Following the April 2011 cancelation of ''One Life to Live'' and ''All My Children'', it was announced that Tognoni and co-star Tom Degnan, who was portraying Joey Buchanan at the time, would exit the series before its January 2012 finale. In addition to her career on soaps, Tognoni had guest-starring roles in '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' and ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster, portraying his difficulties as he tries to balance ...

'', and co-starred in a number of television shows and independent films. On May 22, 2014, it was announced that Tognoni was cast as

in CBS's ''

'', replacing

Michelle Stafford Michelle Stafford (born September 14, 1968) is an American actress, screenwriter and producer. She currently plays Phyllis Summers on the CBS daytime soap opera ''The Young and the Restless'', for which she has won two Daytime Emmy Awards. In 20 ...

. Tognoni made her debut on August 11, 2014. At the 42nd Daytime Emmy Awards in 2015, Tognoni was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress for her role as Phyllis Summers. At the 44th Daytime Emmy Awards in 2017, she was again nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress for which she won. On March 30, 2019, it was announced that Tognoni would be leaving ''The Young and the Restless'', following the decision to fire her while in contract and return Stafford to the role. Tognoni's last appearance in the role aired on June 7, 2019.

Personal life

Tognoni was born in St. Louis, Missouri. She won

Miss Rhode Island Teen USA The Miss Rhode Island Teen USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Rhode Island in the Miss Teen USA pageant and the name of the title held by that winner. Rhode Island has placed six times at the Miss Tee ...

in 1991 and Miss Rhode Island Teen All-American in 1993. Tognoni became engaged to Joseph Chiarello on November 21, 2007. She was introduced to him by her co-star

Beth Ehlers Beth Ehlers (born 1968) is an American actress. She is known for playing Harley Cooper, between 1987 and 2008, on CBS's daytime drama ''Guiding Light''. Career Ehlers grew up in New York City and begin appearing in television commercials at t ...

. The two were married May 16, 2009.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tognoni, Gina 1973 births Living people 1993 beauty pageant contestants 20th-century Miss Teen USA delegates American soap opera actresses American people of Italian descent Daytime Emmy Award winners Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series winners Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series winners 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American television actresses