Jenilee Harrison (born June 12, 1958) is a retired American

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

who appeared as Cindy Snow, a cousin of and replacement for blonde roommate Chrissy Snow on the hit

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

'' Three's Company'', between 1980 and 1982. She went on to play Jamie Ewing Barnes on ''

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

'' from 1984 to 1986.

Career

Before breaking into show business, Harrison was a

cheerleader Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ent ...

from 1978 to 1980 for the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

. Harrison was just 21 when she landed the role of Cindy on ''Three's Company'' after Suzanne Somers asked for a raise in salary, and her role was reduced. Both Harrison and Somers suffered in popularity. As a result, Priscilla Barnes was cast as Terri permanently replacing Somers, while Harrison was made a supporting cast member and disappeared from the series after two and a half seasons, with producers saying she was too "inexperienced and unseasoned". This period of her life was later dramatized in the television movie '' Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of Three's Company'' (2003) with Liz Crawford playing Harrison. After ''Three's Company'', Harrison continued with her acting career, appearing in the feature film ''

Tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

'' and the television series ''

'' in which she played Jamie Ewing Barnes for two years. She reunited with her former ''Three's Company'' co-stars Suzanne Somers and

Don Knotts Jesse Donald Knotts (July 21, 1924February 24, 2006) was an American actor and comedian. He is widely known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife on the 1960s sitcom ''The Andy Griffith Show'', for which he earned five Emmy Awards. He als ...

in a guest starring role on '' She's the Sheriff'' in 1988. She performed with another ''Three's Company'' co-star Richard Kline in dinner theater for the play ''Shear Madness'' in Canada in 1992. She left showbiz in 2002 to focus on her real estate investments, caring for animals and car racing. In 2017, she did reunite with some of the surviving stars of ''Three's Company'' for the show's 40th anniversary celebration on Antenna TV.

Personal life

In the early 1980s, Harrison dated L.A. Rams guard Dennis Harrah and Major League Baseball star Reggie Jackson. In 1993, Harrison married Dr. Bruce Oppenheim, a Los Angeles–area chiropractor and the ex-husband of actress

Cybill Shepherd Cybill Lynne Shepherd (born February 18, 1950) is an American actress, singer and former model. Her film debut and breakthrough role came as Jacy Farrow in Peter Bogdanovich's coming-of-age drama '' The Last Picture Show'' (1971) alongside Jef ...

. Oppenheim and Harrison divorced in 2022.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Jenilee 1958 births Living people Actresses from Los Angeles American cheerleaders American film actresses American television actresses 20th-century American actresses NFL cheerleaders 21st-century American actresses