OjiNmagnatebonnO
04-12-2004, 08:18 PM
Everyone, please answer back when you see this thing that was fwd to me from iMade4Maddeni..she did not write this..she got it from a guy who i think she knows......shes on mobile device now but when shes available I want to find alot of info on this person who sent it to her! Read carefully..this is the weirdest thing I have ever seen...........x0x0JessieakaJo:
I have been a loyal and devoted fan of Nancy McKeon fan for over
15 years. I first became a fan of hers back in 1987. The show she
starred in, The Facts of Life, had been a spin-off of the hit TV
show, Diff'rent Strokes and Facts had run since 1979. Though I wasn't
the greatest fan of The Facts of Life, I watched the show avidly and
was a worthwhile distraction in my daily routine.
Nancy McKeon joined the cast of The Facts of Life in 1980, one
year after that show began. During that period of the time with the
show, the producers had decided to "cut the fat" because of poor
ratings. They let go of certain cast members including Molly
Ringwald, who would eventually achieve stardom in feature films such
as The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles and Pretty in Pink. Also let
go were former (1977-1979) New Mickey Mouse Club player Julie
Piekarski, Felice Schachter and the headmaster of Eastland Prep
School, Mr. Stephen Bradley, played by John Lawlor.
When Nancy joined The Facts of Life for the 1980-1981 season at
NBC, both the show and the network were at a doldrums long
before "Must See TV" ever started and were spiraling down hill, but
that would eventually change. The network would improve. The Facts of
Life would improve and gain viewers and win new audiences. Most
crucially of all though, Nancy McKeon would improve also. She would
gain an audience of her own by playing the streetwise Jo Polniaczek,
a character who took no bullsh** from anybody, especially Blair
Warner, played by fellow New Mickey Mouse Club alum, Lisa Whelchel.
More critically though, Jo Polniaczek had certain soft spots and
vulnerabilities that endeared many viewers throughout the lifespan of
that TV show. It was Jo's – and Nancy's human qualities that had won
fans over.
I didn't especially notice Nancy McKeon until about 1987 when the
show was nearing its' celebrated end one year later. It was around
that time, when her character, Jo Polniaczek, had matured from
a "tough girl" to a beautiful young lady, like Nancy McKeon, the
actress who played her. She still didn't take any crap from anyone,
but with age and beauty came grace and tactfulness. I became very
attracted to her.
One of her paramount TV roles in Nancy's career, was playing
Tracey Thurman in the Made-for-TV movie "A Cry for Help: The Tracey
Thurman Story". Tracey Thurman was a battered woman from Torrington,
CT who suffered through years of domestic abuse at the hands of her
husband Charles "Buck" Thurman, played by Dale Midkiff. Tracey
Thurman also endured many death threats until in 1983, when she was
brutally stabbed and left to die in the back yard of her sister's
Torrington home. Buck Thurman was subsequently arrested and was
sentenced to 15 years in prison, however was released from prison in
1991. Tracey Thurman eventually sued the Torrington, CT Police
Department and was awarded $1,900,000.00. Nancy McKeon and Dale
Midkiff briefly dated after the movie wrapped.
Nancy McKeon took on other roles on the small screen. In 1991,
Nancy starred in the Made-for-Cable movie "The Lightning Incident". A
movie featuring a young woman in the Southwestern U.S., who confronts
a Latino-Indian evil cult that kills her husband, played by Tim Ryan
and kidnaps her newborn child. Also starring in the movie was
heralded actress Polly Bergen and Tantoo Cardinal, a First Nations
Canadian who would go on to star in other movies such as Legends of
the Fall, The Education of Little Tree and the 1998 hit indie film,
Smoke Signals.
Nancy then starred in another Made-for-TV movie, "Baby Snatcher"
in 1992. A movie about a woman in a small California town whose baby
is kidnapped. Another notch on Nancy's TV résumé, that also starred
fellow TV player Veronica Hamel, from the famed TV series Hill Street
Blues, TV and movie action star Michael Madsen and future X-Filer
David Duchovny.
Also highlighting Nancy's TV career in the early 1990's was a Made-
for-TV miniseries documentary about the life of a woman in one of New
York City's prominent Mafia families. "Love, Honor & Obey: The Last
Mafia Marriage" was released in 1993 to critical success. The story
revolves around Rosalie Profaci Bonanno, played by Nancy and her
marriage to organized crime prince Salvatore "Bill" Bonanno, played
by acclaimed actor Eric Roberts, brother of mega-star actress Julia
Roberts. The movie also stars noted actor Ben Gazzara and Alex Rocco.
Alex Rocco is a personal friend of Nancy's who made several guest
appearances throughout Nancy's Career playing her Father on various
shows. However Alex Rocco played Uncle Frank in Nancy's 1993 TV
miniseries.
Alex Rocco's son Marc Rocco is a producing partner with Nancy's
brother Phillip McKeon who both produced two of Nancy McKeon's
feature film appearances. In 1992's "Where The Day Takes You", Nancy
made a supporting role appearance along with Dermot Mulroney
(Copycat, My Best Friend's Wedding and About Schmidt), Laura San
Giacomo (Sex, Lies & Videotape, the TV series Just Shoot Me and Eat
Your Heart Out), Sean Astin, brother of Mackenzie Astin, who appeared
in the last two seasons of "The Facts of Life" with Nancy, Lara Flynn
Boyle, who later would star in the hit TV drama "The Practice" and
Will Smith, the former alum from DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince
who would go on to mega-stardom with not only various TV projects
such as "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air", but also to blockbuster movies
such as "Men In Black-MIB" and "Bad Boys", not to mention a hugely
successful singing career. Also starring were former TV alums Alyssa
Milano from "Who's The Boss" and Twin Peaks star Kyle MacLachlan.
The other feature film produced by Marc Rocco and Phillip McKeon
with a Nancy McKeon appearance was a mindless 1994 indie
release "Teresa's Tattoo". The movie did poorly in both the box
office and in video sales. Co-Stars include C. Thomas Howell (E.T.
The Extra-Terrestrial, Tank, Red Dawn and Soul Man), indie film
prodigy Adrienne Shelly, who played "Teresa" in this movie along with
Lou Diamond Phillips (La Bamba, Stand and Deliver and Young Guns),
Jonathan Silverman (The Single Guy, Just a Little Harmless Sex and
Made), Diedrich Bader (The Beverly Hillbillies- 1993 movie release
and The Drew Carey Show) and included cameos by singer-songwriter and
Leavenworth, KS native Melissa Etheridge, who directed "Teresa's
Tattoo" and was married to the movies' co-star Lou Diamond Phillips.
Rounding out the cameos are Tippi Hedren, singer k.d. Lang and an un-
credited Kiefer Sutherland.
1995 saw an upswing in Nancy McKeon's career. Early that year, she
starred in the Made-for-TV movie "A Mother's Gift". A period piece
based on the Bess Streeter Aldrich novel "A Lantern in Her Hand", the
movie is about Margaret, a woman in late 1800's- Midwestern U.S. who
is forced to choose between a socially well-oiled noble Ed Matthews,
played by Adam Storke (Mystic Pizza, Prey) who promises the world and
hopes to prop up her singing career and a simple farmer named Will
Deal, played by Adrian Pasdar (Top Gun, Vital Signs and Feds- married
to Dixie Chicks' lead songstress Natalie Maines) who promises fertile
ground, clear blue skies and a whole lot of love. Margaret chooses
the latter. Max Wright (Alf) co-stars as banker Herman Mandelbrot who
Will Deal has many fallings out with in their Farmer-Banker
relationship and Jeremy London (Mallrats, Party of Five) also stars
as the adult son John Deal who takes over the bank from Mandelbrot.
The movie bombed in the ratings, but Nancy McKeon, while filming on
location in Texas met a Key Grip named Marc Andrus, a gentleman who
Nancy dated for a couple of years thereafter.
Also in 1995, Nancy got the opportunity to act in a sitcom again
and make people laugh in the process. The show was titled "Can't
Hurry Love" and was debuting Monday nights on CBS between top-rated
TV shows "The Nanny" and "Murphy Brown". "Can't Hurry Love" was
originally scripted as a show about a New York City couple and their
lives together, but was later re-tooled as a story about a single
young woman in her late 20's in the Manhattan neighborhood of
Chelsea. Annie O'Donnell, played by Nancy McKeon- who was also a
producer on the TV show, is an upwardly mobile lady trying to eke out
life in the "Big Apple" along with her other single friends Didi
Edelstein, played by Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order: Special Victims
Unit), the comedically boorish Roger Carlucci, played by (Louis
Mandylor- brother of Picket Fences' Costas Mandylor) and married
friend Elliott Tenny, played by Kevin Crowley (Major League). Making
a recurring guest appearance is, as you might have guessed, Alex
Rocco, that same Alex Rocco co-starred with Nancy on "Facts" playing
her father Michael O'Donnell. Also making guest appearances were
Scott Baio (Happy Days, Charles in Charge), former "Facts" co-star
Charlotte Rae, Peter Dobson (Sing, The Frighteners) who plays a love
interest and supermodel-turned MTV VJ-turned actress Daisy
Fuentes. "Can't Hurry Love" opened to high ratings, however the show
was seen as a "copycat" of the NBC hit TV sitcom "Friends" by many of
Hollywood's producers and critics. "Can't Hurry Love" was canceled in
1996 after a single season on CBS.
Nancy McKeon made two more Made-for-TV movies in the late 1990's.
First was the 1996 TV-movie "The Wrong Woman". About a young
professional lady with a horrible past, Melanie Brooke, played by
Nancy McKeon, moves to Philadelphia to make a fresh start at life.
However she is framed for a murder she didn't commit. Co-starring
Chelsea Field and Stephen Shellen.
The second TV-movie was the 1997 release "In My Sister's Shadow",
about Joan Connor, a naïve woman in Salt Lake City who gets caught up
in a twisted revenge plan hatched by her sister's ex-boyfriend. Also
starred were Thomas McCarthy, Alexandra Wilson and legendary actress
Janet Leigh.
1998 saw a return to TV sitcoms for Nancy McKeon. The TV
sitcom "Style and Substance" co-starring Jean Smart (Designing Women)
portrays Chelsea Stevens, a Martha Stewart-like rival who just has to
have everything done her way. Jane Sokol, played by Nancy McKeon, is
a straight-laced producer of Chelsea's TV home and lifestyle show who
tries to install some sense into her. "Style and Substance" lasted
only a half-season in 1998 after poor ratings and a weak audience.
Nancy was under contract from CBS, preventing her from pursuing
offers from other networks. She did manage to keep herself occupied
by doing a guest appearance on the hit TV family show "Touched By an
Angel" and writing and directing the short film "A Wakening", based
upon an Irish-American family from Queens, NY. The short, to this
date, has never been released.
It was not until the year 2000, when Nancy McKeon came across an
audition for a new Made-for-Cable TV crime drama titled "Heart of the
City". Nancy travels to Vancouver to audition for the part and wins
it. There was a little twist though, The shows' producers wanted to
have the series filmed in Toronto, but Nancy McKeon objected, citing
the need for work for many of L.A.'s un-employed actors. The
producers give in to Nancy's request to have the show filmed in Los
Angeles, though set in San Francisco.
The TV crime drama is re-tooled and later renamed "The Division"
and debuted on the Lifetime cable network in 2001. The show is about
a group of female police inspectors who solve various crimes for the
San Francisco Police Department. The group is lead by Capt. Kate
McCafferty, played by Bonnie Bedelia and includes the troubled Insp.
Jinny Exstead, played by Nancy McKeon, Insp. Magda Ramirez, played by
Nancy's close friend, actress Lisa Vidal, who also owns a baby
clothing store in L.A. called Oodles, and included Lela Rochon Fuqua,
Tracey Needham, David Gianopoulos and has since added Taraji P.
Henson, John Hamm and Amy Jo Johnson (Felicity, Sweetwater). The TV
show is in it's fourth season and is a critically acclaimed success.
Back in 1995, I mentioned Nancy McKeon fell in love with a Key
Grip named Marc Andrus. It was a relationship that lasted for about
two years and had dissolved due to "bad timing". Fast forward to
2003. Marc Andrus then re-entered Nancy's life and on Valentine's
Day, asked her to marry him. She accepted, and in June 2003 Nancy
McKeon and Marc Andrus were married in an Andrus' family farm in
Texas, the same state where "A Mother's Gift" was filmed, the film in
which they had met. In February 2004, Nancy McKeon Andrus gave birth
to Daughter Aurora and appears to be very happy.
I guess the reason I am writing this, in spite of some of the re-
hashing of the facts already known, is to re-trace why I came to
admire her so much. Like I said, in 1987, I was captivated by her
strength and her beauty. I was also admired by her refusal to succumb
to the lifestyle of drug abuse and heavy drinking, the way so many of
the people in Hollywood around her had given in to. I was also
pleased by her personal stance against doing nude scenes in films.
The reason she turned down a starring role in the feature
film "Striptease" was because she was against nudity. Nancy McKeon
stood her ground. Although Nancy did admit on a TV interview with
Lauren Hutton in 1995 that the benefits of her relationship with her
boyfriend, who later became to be revealed as her now-husband Marc
Andrus, was "unconditional love" and the "sex"- a "1 &1a". Now I
didn't have any problem with the unconditional love part, but
the "SEX" part made my skin crawl. I had a major crush on Nancy since
1987 and the idea of someone else having sex with her, someone I had
a crush with wounded me on the insides. It was a very crushing blow
to my heart.
What brought me to forgive her was she was in her late 20's when
she did that interview and later thought, "the girl at that age is
entitled to have a little fun". Not that I truly thought she was a
virgin or anything, but inspite of its' initial shock, later on I
thought about the virtuous life and career she had led and the
general role model she was to young women. Too many of today's
actresses seem all too eager to strip naked in front of the camera,
act like they're having sex at different angles of the lens, be chain-
smokers, alcoholics, become general troublemakers and be married and
divorced and/or have kid(s) out of wedlock, all before age 30.
Nancy McKeon didn't go to lots of wild Hollywood parties, get
caught up on all the drug abuse, the alcohol abuse, strip naked and
have sex in front of the camera and she didn't have a child or two
out of wedlock by age 30. So she may have slipped at 29, big deal.
Furthermore, Nancy McKeon is a devout Christian and a Roman Catholic.
She has waited until marriage to have baby Aurora and has lived a
relatively exemplary life with the help of her Mother, Barbara, her
Father, Don, her Brother Phillip, her close friends Lisa Whelchel,
Melanie Smith, Dr. Karen Todd, Tammy Lauren, her Karate instructor
Sensei Tak Kubota and her new husband Marc Andrus. It seems like the
gentleman she married is a nice, decent guy. He maybe involved in the
entertainment industry, but unlike so many men in Hollywood who turn
out to be such major jerks and a—holes, he seems like someone really
genuine who loves Nancy and cares for her very, very much.
Two things I like about this is first of all, it seems Nancy
didn't marry for money or the advancement of her career like I've
seen so many Hollywood actresses do, only to throw the men away in
divorce proceedings citing "irreconcilable differences". The reason
to get married is to join two loving souls into one, and to procreate
and enjoy a joyous life full of love and happiness. The other reason
I think this is grand is the guy is a "nobody" in comparison to
Nancy, a B or C-list actress with a successful Hollywood Career. It
sort of gives hope to other "nobody's" like me. I wish Nancy, Marc
and all of them many joyful years to come.
It also brings me to the second reason I'm writing this. I used to
have a crush on Nancy and was madly in love with her. I still think
the world of her, even though she is married now and moved on and is
in very good hands. I only wish that for myself one day. She will
still have a special place inside my heart.
Despite the way I feel about Nancy however, I must close this
chapter of my life. I must move on and open new windows, walk through
new doors and see what life awaits me. I have amassed numerous tapes
with many shows, movies and interviews from her budding years in the
early 1980's to the present day with her TV series "The Division".
But now, starting in January of this year, I have stopped recording
Nancy's TV shows, and have no plans to record any more episodes
of "The Division" or anything else starring Nancy ever again.
Why, you might ask? Are you angry? Why not stay a fan and keep
recording her material? My answer is this. No, I am not mad at Nancy.
I have no hard feelings or any ill will towards her Nancy and her
husband. None at all, believe it or not. As astonishing as it may
seem, I am very happy for both Nancy and her husband Marc. I really
wish them well.
The reason I do not plan to record Nancy anymore is it will
emotionally bring me back to those days of where I felt about Nancy,
as passionately as I did at one point. I am afraid that if I start
recording Nancy again, I will start developing a crush and having
those feelings come up inside my head again that I don't want in my
life.
For my own good, I have to sever ties with Nancy and move on. I am
resigning from Nancy, effective immediately and shall last
permanently. I must move on.
With that said, I would like to thank everyone for the opportunity
to share my feelings and thoughts about Nancy. You all are such a
wonderful group of people. I would like to thank Nancy, herself for
many of the memories that she brought to the screen, and into our
lives. And most importantly, I'd like to thank Barbara McKeon for
bringing Nancy into the world and making this all possible. By the
way Barbara, my first girlfriend was also named Barbara. Small world,
isn't it? (HEHE)
Anyway, my new endeavor these days, is among many, Jennifer Love
Hewitt. She seems do be a real "doll" who's very beautiful and has
the body of a dancer and the grace of a swan. I just hope she can
follow in some of the same footsteps as Nancy did. Anyway, only time
will tell.
In closing, let me leave everyone with this:
If you want love, you've got to give a little
If you want faith, just believe a little
If you want peace, turn your cheek a little
You've got to give… to live.
(Sammy Hagar- Give to Live)
Thank you everybody. Thank you so very much and God bless you, all.
Au Revoir, Farewell and Love Always,
Charlie Nichols.
Goodbye
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Subj: [NancyMcKeon] Swan Song
Date: 4/10/2004 3:58:44 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: charliethemaddawg@yahoo.com
confused:
I have been a loyal and devoted fan of Nancy McKeon fan for over
15 years. I first became a fan of hers back in 1987. The show she
starred in, The Facts of Life, had been a spin-off of the hit TV
show, Diff'rent Strokes and Facts had run since 1979. Though I wasn't
the greatest fan of The Facts of Life, I watched the show avidly and
was a worthwhile distraction in my daily routine.
Nancy McKeon joined the cast of The Facts of Life in 1980, one
year after that show began. During that period of the time with the
show, the producers had decided to "cut the fat" because of poor
ratings. They let go of certain cast members including Molly
Ringwald, who would eventually achieve stardom in feature films such
as The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles and Pretty in Pink. Also let
go were former (1977-1979) New Mickey Mouse Club player Julie
Piekarski, Felice Schachter and the headmaster of Eastland Prep
School, Mr. Stephen Bradley, played by John Lawlor.
When Nancy joined The Facts of Life for the 1980-1981 season at
NBC, both the show and the network were at a doldrums long
before "Must See TV" ever started and were spiraling down hill, but
that would eventually change. The network would improve. The Facts of
Life would improve and gain viewers and win new audiences. Most
crucially of all though, Nancy McKeon would improve also. She would
gain an audience of her own by playing the streetwise Jo Polniaczek,
a character who took no bullsh** from anybody, especially Blair
Warner, played by fellow New Mickey Mouse Club alum, Lisa Whelchel.
More critically though, Jo Polniaczek had certain soft spots and
vulnerabilities that endeared many viewers throughout the lifespan of
that TV show. It was Jo's – and Nancy's human qualities that had won
fans over.
I didn't especially notice Nancy McKeon until about 1987 when the
show was nearing its' celebrated end one year later. It was around
that time, when her character, Jo Polniaczek, had matured from
a "tough girl" to a beautiful young lady, like Nancy McKeon, the
actress who played her. She still didn't take any crap from anyone,
but with age and beauty came grace and tactfulness. I became very
attracted to her.
One of her paramount TV roles in Nancy's career, was playing
Tracey Thurman in the Made-for-TV movie "A Cry for Help: The Tracey
Thurman Story". Tracey Thurman was a battered woman from Torrington,
CT who suffered through years of domestic abuse at the hands of her
husband Charles "Buck" Thurman, played by Dale Midkiff. Tracey
Thurman also endured many death threats until in 1983, when she was
brutally stabbed and left to die in the back yard of her sister's
Torrington home. Buck Thurman was subsequently arrested and was
sentenced to 15 years in prison, however was released from prison in
1991. Tracey Thurman eventually sued the Torrington, CT Police
Department and was awarded $1,900,000.00. Nancy McKeon and Dale
Midkiff briefly dated after the movie wrapped.
Nancy McKeon took on other roles on the small screen. In 1991,
Nancy starred in the Made-for-Cable movie "The Lightning Incident". A
movie featuring a young woman in the Southwestern U.S., who confronts
a Latino-Indian evil cult that kills her husband, played by Tim Ryan
and kidnaps her newborn child. Also starring in the movie was
heralded actress Polly Bergen and Tantoo Cardinal, a First Nations
Canadian who would go on to star in other movies such as Legends of
the Fall, The Education of Little Tree and the 1998 hit indie film,
Smoke Signals.
Nancy then starred in another Made-for-TV movie, "Baby Snatcher"
in 1992. A movie about a woman in a small California town whose baby
is kidnapped. Another notch on Nancy's TV résumé, that also starred
fellow TV player Veronica Hamel, from the famed TV series Hill Street
Blues, TV and movie action star Michael Madsen and future X-Filer
David Duchovny.
Also highlighting Nancy's TV career in the early 1990's was a Made-
for-TV miniseries documentary about the life of a woman in one of New
York City's prominent Mafia families. "Love, Honor & Obey: The Last
Mafia Marriage" was released in 1993 to critical success. The story
revolves around Rosalie Profaci Bonanno, played by Nancy and her
marriage to organized crime prince Salvatore "Bill" Bonanno, played
by acclaimed actor Eric Roberts, brother of mega-star actress Julia
Roberts. The movie also stars noted actor Ben Gazzara and Alex Rocco.
Alex Rocco is a personal friend of Nancy's who made several guest
appearances throughout Nancy's Career playing her Father on various
shows. However Alex Rocco played Uncle Frank in Nancy's 1993 TV
miniseries.
Alex Rocco's son Marc Rocco is a producing partner with Nancy's
brother Phillip McKeon who both produced two of Nancy McKeon's
feature film appearances. In 1992's "Where The Day Takes You", Nancy
made a supporting role appearance along with Dermot Mulroney
(Copycat, My Best Friend's Wedding and About Schmidt), Laura San
Giacomo (Sex, Lies & Videotape, the TV series Just Shoot Me and Eat
Your Heart Out), Sean Astin, brother of Mackenzie Astin, who appeared
in the last two seasons of "The Facts of Life" with Nancy, Lara Flynn
Boyle, who later would star in the hit TV drama "The Practice" and
Will Smith, the former alum from DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince
who would go on to mega-stardom with not only various TV projects
such as "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air", but also to blockbuster movies
such as "Men In Black-MIB" and "Bad Boys", not to mention a hugely
successful singing career. Also starring were former TV alums Alyssa
Milano from "Who's The Boss" and Twin Peaks star Kyle MacLachlan.
The other feature film produced by Marc Rocco and Phillip McKeon
with a Nancy McKeon appearance was a mindless 1994 indie
release "Teresa's Tattoo". The movie did poorly in both the box
office and in video sales. Co-Stars include C. Thomas Howell (E.T.
The Extra-Terrestrial, Tank, Red Dawn and Soul Man), indie film
prodigy Adrienne Shelly, who played "Teresa" in this movie along with
Lou Diamond Phillips (La Bamba, Stand and Deliver and Young Guns),
Jonathan Silverman (The Single Guy, Just a Little Harmless Sex and
Made), Diedrich Bader (The Beverly Hillbillies- 1993 movie release
and The Drew Carey Show) and included cameos by singer-songwriter and
Leavenworth, KS native Melissa Etheridge, who directed "Teresa's
Tattoo" and was married to the movies' co-star Lou Diamond Phillips.
Rounding out the cameos are Tippi Hedren, singer k.d. Lang and an un-
credited Kiefer Sutherland.
1995 saw an upswing in Nancy McKeon's career. Early that year, she
starred in the Made-for-TV movie "A Mother's Gift". A period piece
based on the Bess Streeter Aldrich novel "A Lantern in Her Hand", the
movie is about Margaret, a woman in late 1800's- Midwestern U.S. who
is forced to choose between a socially well-oiled noble Ed Matthews,
played by Adam Storke (Mystic Pizza, Prey) who promises the world and
hopes to prop up her singing career and a simple farmer named Will
Deal, played by Adrian Pasdar (Top Gun, Vital Signs and Feds- married
to Dixie Chicks' lead songstress Natalie Maines) who promises fertile
ground, clear blue skies and a whole lot of love. Margaret chooses
the latter. Max Wright (Alf) co-stars as banker Herman Mandelbrot who
Will Deal has many fallings out with in their Farmer-Banker
relationship and Jeremy London (Mallrats, Party of Five) also stars
as the adult son John Deal who takes over the bank from Mandelbrot.
The movie bombed in the ratings, but Nancy McKeon, while filming on
location in Texas met a Key Grip named Marc Andrus, a gentleman who
Nancy dated for a couple of years thereafter.
Also in 1995, Nancy got the opportunity to act in a sitcom again
and make people laugh in the process. The show was titled "Can't
Hurry Love" and was debuting Monday nights on CBS between top-rated
TV shows "The Nanny" and "Murphy Brown". "Can't Hurry Love" was
originally scripted as a show about a New York City couple and their
lives together, but was later re-tooled as a story about a single
young woman in her late 20's in the Manhattan neighborhood of
Chelsea. Annie O'Donnell, played by Nancy McKeon- who was also a
producer on the TV show, is an upwardly mobile lady trying to eke out
life in the "Big Apple" along with her other single friends Didi
Edelstein, played by Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order: Special Victims
Unit), the comedically boorish Roger Carlucci, played by (Louis
Mandylor- brother of Picket Fences' Costas Mandylor) and married
friend Elliott Tenny, played by Kevin Crowley (Major League). Making
a recurring guest appearance is, as you might have guessed, Alex
Rocco, that same Alex Rocco co-starred with Nancy on "Facts" playing
her father Michael O'Donnell. Also making guest appearances were
Scott Baio (Happy Days, Charles in Charge), former "Facts" co-star
Charlotte Rae, Peter Dobson (Sing, The Frighteners) who plays a love
interest and supermodel-turned MTV VJ-turned actress Daisy
Fuentes. "Can't Hurry Love" opened to high ratings, however the show
was seen as a "copycat" of the NBC hit TV sitcom "Friends" by many of
Hollywood's producers and critics. "Can't Hurry Love" was canceled in
1996 after a single season on CBS.
Nancy McKeon made two more Made-for-TV movies in the late 1990's.
First was the 1996 TV-movie "The Wrong Woman". About a young
professional lady with a horrible past, Melanie Brooke, played by
Nancy McKeon, moves to Philadelphia to make a fresh start at life.
However she is framed for a murder she didn't commit. Co-starring
Chelsea Field and Stephen Shellen.
The second TV-movie was the 1997 release "In My Sister's Shadow",
about Joan Connor, a naïve woman in Salt Lake City who gets caught up
in a twisted revenge plan hatched by her sister's ex-boyfriend. Also
starred were Thomas McCarthy, Alexandra Wilson and legendary actress
Janet Leigh.
1998 saw a return to TV sitcoms for Nancy McKeon. The TV
sitcom "Style and Substance" co-starring Jean Smart (Designing Women)
portrays Chelsea Stevens, a Martha Stewart-like rival who just has to
have everything done her way. Jane Sokol, played by Nancy McKeon, is
a straight-laced producer of Chelsea's TV home and lifestyle show who
tries to install some sense into her. "Style and Substance" lasted
only a half-season in 1998 after poor ratings and a weak audience.
Nancy was under contract from CBS, preventing her from pursuing
offers from other networks. She did manage to keep herself occupied
by doing a guest appearance on the hit TV family show "Touched By an
Angel" and writing and directing the short film "A Wakening", based
upon an Irish-American family from Queens, NY. The short, to this
date, has never been released.
It was not until the year 2000, when Nancy McKeon came across an
audition for a new Made-for-Cable TV crime drama titled "Heart of the
City". Nancy travels to Vancouver to audition for the part and wins
it. There was a little twist though, The shows' producers wanted to
have the series filmed in Toronto, but Nancy McKeon objected, citing
the need for work for many of L.A.'s un-employed actors. The
producers give in to Nancy's request to have the show filmed in Los
Angeles, though set in San Francisco.
The TV crime drama is re-tooled and later renamed "The Division"
and debuted on the Lifetime cable network in 2001. The show is about
a group of female police inspectors who solve various crimes for the
San Francisco Police Department. The group is lead by Capt. Kate
McCafferty, played by Bonnie Bedelia and includes the troubled Insp.
Jinny Exstead, played by Nancy McKeon, Insp. Magda Ramirez, played by
Nancy's close friend, actress Lisa Vidal, who also owns a baby
clothing store in L.A. called Oodles, and included Lela Rochon Fuqua,
Tracey Needham, David Gianopoulos and has since added Taraji P.
Henson, John Hamm and Amy Jo Johnson (Felicity, Sweetwater). The TV
show is in it's fourth season and is a critically acclaimed success.
Back in 1995, I mentioned Nancy McKeon fell in love with a Key
Grip named Marc Andrus. It was a relationship that lasted for about
two years and had dissolved due to "bad timing". Fast forward to
2003. Marc Andrus then re-entered Nancy's life and on Valentine's
Day, asked her to marry him. She accepted, and in June 2003 Nancy
McKeon and Marc Andrus were married in an Andrus' family farm in
Texas, the same state where "A Mother's Gift" was filmed, the film in
which they had met. In February 2004, Nancy McKeon Andrus gave birth
to Daughter Aurora and appears to be very happy.
I guess the reason I am writing this, in spite of some of the re-
hashing of the facts already known, is to re-trace why I came to
admire her so much. Like I said, in 1987, I was captivated by her
strength and her beauty. I was also admired by her refusal to succumb
to the lifestyle of drug abuse and heavy drinking, the way so many of
the people in Hollywood around her had given in to. I was also
pleased by her personal stance against doing nude scenes in films.
The reason she turned down a starring role in the feature
film "Striptease" was because she was against nudity. Nancy McKeon
stood her ground. Although Nancy did admit on a TV interview with
Lauren Hutton in 1995 that the benefits of her relationship with her
boyfriend, who later became to be revealed as her now-husband Marc
Andrus, was "unconditional love" and the "sex"- a "1 &1a". Now I
didn't have any problem with the unconditional love part, but
the "SEX" part made my skin crawl. I had a major crush on Nancy since
1987 and the idea of someone else having sex with her, someone I had
a crush with wounded me on the insides. It was a very crushing blow
to my heart.
What brought me to forgive her was she was in her late 20's when
she did that interview and later thought, "the girl at that age is
entitled to have a little fun". Not that I truly thought she was a
virgin or anything, but inspite of its' initial shock, later on I
thought about the virtuous life and career she had led and the
general role model she was to young women. Too many of today's
actresses seem all too eager to strip naked in front of the camera,
act like they're having sex at different angles of the lens, be chain-
smokers, alcoholics, become general troublemakers and be married and
divorced and/or have kid(s) out of wedlock, all before age 30.
Nancy McKeon didn't go to lots of wild Hollywood parties, get
caught up on all the drug abuse, the alcohol abuse, strip naked and
have sex in front of the camera and she didn't have a child or two
out of wedlock by age 30. So she may have slipped at 29, big deal.
Furthermore, Nancy McKeon is a devout Christian and a Roman Catholic.
She has waited until marriage to have baby Aurora and has lived a
relatively exemplary life with the help of her Mother, Barbara, her
Father, Don, her Brother Phillip, her close friends Lisa Whelchel,
Melanie Smith, Dr. Karen Todd, Tammy Lauren, her Karate instructor
Sensei Tak Kubota and her new husband Marc Andrus. It seems like the
gentleman she married is a nice, decent guy. He maybe involved in the
entertainment industry, but unlike so many men in Hollywood who turn
out to be such major jerks and a—holes, he seems like someone really
genuine who loves Nancy and cares for her very, very much.
Two things I like about this is first of all, it seems Nancy
didn't marry for money or the advancement of her career like I've
seen so many Hollywood actresses do, only to throw the men away in
divorce proceedings citing "irreconcilable differences". The reason
to get married is to join two loving souls into one, and to procreate
and enjoy a joyous life full of love and happiness. The other reason
I think this is grand is the guy is a "nobody" in comparison to
Nancy, a B or C-list actress with a successful Hollywood Career. It
sort of gives hope to other "nobody's" like me. I wish Nancy, Marc
and all of them many joyful years to come.
It also brings me to the second reason I'm writing this. I used to
have a crush on Nancy and was madly in love with her. I still think
the world of her, even though she is married now and moved on and is
in very good hands. I only wish that for myself one day. She will
still have a special place inside my heart.
Despite the way I feel about Nancy however, I must close this
chapter of my life. I must move on and open new windows, walk through
new doors and see what life awaits me. I have amassed numerous tapes
with many shows, movies and interviews from her budding years in the
early 1980's to the present day with her TV series "The Division".
But now, starting in January of this year, I have stopped recording
Nancy's TV shows, and have no plans to record any more episodes
of "The Division" or anything else starring Nancy ever again.
Why, you might ask? Are you angry? Why not stay a fan and keep
recording her material? My answer is this. No, I am not mad at Nancy.
I have no hard feelings or any ill will towards her Nancy and her
husband. None at all, believe it or not. As astonishing as it may
seem, I am very happy for both Nancy and her husband Marc. I really
wish them well.
The reason I do not plan to record Nancy anymore is it will
emotionally bring me back to those days of where I felt about Nancy,
as passionately as I did at one point. I am afraid that if I start
recording Nancy again, I will start developing a crush and having
those feelings come up inside my head again that I don't want in my
life.
For my own good, I have to sever ties with Nancy and move on. I am
resigning from Nancy, effective immediately and shall last
permanently. I must move on.
With that said, I would like to thank everyone for the opportunity
to share my feelings and thoughts about Nancy. You all are such a
wonderful group of people. I would like to thank Nancy, herself for
many of the memories that she brought to the screen, and into our
lives. And most importantly, I'd like to thank Barbara McKeon for
bringing Nancy into the world and making this all possible. By the
way Barbara, my first girlfriend was also named Barbara. Small world,
isn't it? (HEHE)
Anyway, my new endeavor these days, is among many, Jennifer Love
Hewitt. She seems do be a real "doll" who's very beautiful and has
the body of a dancer and the grace of a swan. I just hope she can
follow in some of the same footsteps as Nancy did. Anyway, only time
will tell.
In closing, let me leave everyone with this:
If you want love, you've got to give a little
If you want faith, just believe a little
If you want peace, turn your cheek a little
You've got to give… to live.
(Sammy Hagar- Give to Live)
Thank you everybody. Thank you so very much and God bless you, all.
Au Revoir, Farewell and Love Always,
Charlie Nichols.
Goodbye
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Subj: [NancyMcKeon] Swan Song
Date: 4/10/2004 3:58:44 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: charliethemaddawg@yahoo.com
confused: