Ellen Weston (born Ellen Weinstein) is an American actress, producer, and writer.

Early years

Born in New York City, Weston is the daughter of educators; her mother was a teacher, and her father was a superintendent of schools. She attended Performing Arts High School,

Hofstra University Hofstra University is a Private university, private research university in Hempstead, New York, United States. It originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University and became an independent college in 1939. Comprising ten schools, includ ...

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

, and

Hunter College Hunter College is a public university in New York City, United States. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools ...

. She completed work on her

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree two years after she dropped out to act full-time.

Career

Weston's Broadway credits include '' Toys in the Attic'', '' A Far Country'', and '' Mary, Mary''. Her first notable television role was a stint as Robin Fletcher on ''

Guiding Light ''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. ''Guiding Light'' aired on CBS for 57 years between June 30, 1952, and September 18, 2009, overlapping a 19-year broadcast on radio ...

'' from 1963 to 1964, followed by another daytime role as Karen Gregory on '' Another World''. From 1978 to 1980, she appeared as Derek's ex-wife 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 the fictional Genoa City (named after the real-life Genoa City, Wiscon ...

''. She portrayed Betty Harrelson in '' S.W.A.T.'' and Dr. Steele in ''

Get Smart ''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the Spy fiction, secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s with the release of the ''James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Bu ...

''. She also appeared in '' The Ghost and Mrs. Muir'', ''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 12, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 431 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running Western, the second-longest-running Western series on ...

'', ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superheroine who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''All Star Comics'' Introducing Wonder Woman, #8, published October 21, 1941, with her first feature in ''Sensation Comic ...

'', '' Bewitched'', '' Hawkins'', and ''

The Bob Newhart Show ''The Bob Newhart Show'' is an American television sitcom produced by MTM Enterprises that aired on CBS from September 16, 1972, to April 1, 1978, with a total of 142 half-hour episodes over six seasons. Comedian Bob Newhart portrays a psychol ...

'' and in television movies such as '' Letters from Three Lovers'' (1973), '' Miracle on 34th Street'' (1973), '' The Questor Tapes'' (1974), and '' Revenge of the Stepford Wives'' (1980). The only feature film in which Weston has appeared was ''Dangerous Relations''. In 1972, Weston co-wrote seven songs with singer

Lesley Gore Lesley Gore (born Lesley Sue Goldstein, May 2, 1946 – February 16, 2015) was an American singer and songwriter. At the age of 16, she recorded her first hit song " It's My Party", a US number one in 1963. She follow ...

for Gore's MoWest debut album '' Someplace Else Now''. Her first television writing job was as a staff writer for the CBS soap opera '' Capitol''. She was hired to write made-for-TV movies, including ''Lies Before Kisses'', ''See Jane Run'', ''The Disappearance of Vonnie'', and ''As The Beat Goes On: The Sonny and Cher Story''. She was also a producer on several of these. In 2003, John Conboy, executive producer of ''

'', hired Weston — who had worked for him on ''

'' and '' Capitol'' — as the head writer. Weston's central story was the Maryanne Carruthers mystery. The story brought actress Carrie Nye, a friend of Weston, back to the show. The story was criticized for its resemblance to a similar plot that ''Guiding Light'' had broadcast 20 years earlier and for the substantial revisions to history that the story made for five main characters. Weston was replaced with new head writer David Kreizman in 2004.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weston, Ellen Living people American film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses American soap opera writers Jewish American television writers Actresses from New York City Writers from New York City Screenwriters from New York (state) American women soap opera writers 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American women Year of birth missing (living people)