Emotions & Images: An Interview with actress & artist Belinda Montgomery

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Soon after "Aaron's Way's" cancellation, Montgomery landed another series, one that would end up becoming her most well-known role. Montgomery starred as the concerned, compassionate mother of the title character in the Steven Bochco/David E. Kelley comedy-drama "Doogie Howser, M.D." (1989-93). Neil Patrick Harris starred as Doogie Howser, with James B. Sikking also starring as his father. Montgomery has very fond memories of working on this series and recalls that she landed the role because, "I went in to audition, as did a lot of my friends. And I remember that, right before the audition, I had just decided to cut my hair very short and I let it go curly. I had been a redhead for awhile in 'Aaron's Way,' and so I went back to blonde. So I went in and read and I got it. In the first year, Neil looked like he really could be my son. It was perfect casting and I think changing my hairstyle back to blonde helped me. I loved my husband and son on the show. Jim Sikking was cast by Steven Bochco because they had worked together on 'Hill Street Blues' and he was marvelous. He had a sardonic way about him and a great, wry sense of humor. Very droll and a wonderful actor. And I loved working with Lawrence Pressman. Larry's just this big sweetheart. I've known Larry forever, since the time we did 'Man from Atlantis' together. And Neil was adorable. He was this great kid. I helped him buy his first house. I guess he was 18 years old at the time, and my then-husband and I went out with him to look at houses. All during my acting career, I had bought and flipped and sold a lot of houses. I was like a 'house addict.' My mother used to say, 'Belinda never saw a house she didn't like and that she couldn't re-do!' So I used to stage houses and put things together and sell houses myself because I loved it. There was no HGTV at the time, I did it all on my own, it was like being an art director or production designer and creating a set. Neil grew up in the business and he has gone on to become this big star. I always expected him to become a director, and he may end up doing that anyway. He's such a showman. He's not shy at all, what can I tell you? He's very, very confident. And we had a great reunion when we did the red carpet together at the Laguna Art Festival where we were both guests and he was emcee of the Pageant of the Masters. He's just a great guy. We last spoke when he was in Santa Barbara and I had an art show up there."

Montgomery also recalls how she deeply enjoyed working with "Doogie Howser" producer Steven Bochco due to his great professionalism and kindness, "I remember Steven saying to me, 'Belinda, this show is going to go for five years. It's going to be a really good show, there's going to be really great writing. You're going to enjoy yourself. Do you want to be on board?' I said, 'Are you kidding?!' He was just the best producer to work for. He was a giant at the time and was a dream producer. My then-husband had been diagnosed with colon cancer at that time and he was being treated at Cedars Sinai hospital. When they operated on him, they found that the cancer had spread and eaten up three quarters of his liver. So I slept at Cedars and I would go to work from the hospital. Steven had heard about this and he called me and said, 'Belinda, I know that your husband is really sick. I just want you to know that I have a jet that is ready and able at any moment to fly you anywhere in the world if you think there's a specialist out there who can help him.' It was one of the nicest and most thoughtful offers anyone's ever given me. It really made me feel like the people I worked for cared about what was happening in my life. I just love Steven, he's a wonderful man. David E. Kelley wasn't around as much as Steven was on that show, but he was also a really great and talented guy to work for. They gathered a wonderful crew for that show. I had worked with the cinematographer, Michael O'Shea, many times through the years on many different shows, so it was a very comfortable work environment. I was really privileged to have worked with everybody on that show. It was a great experience."

While Montgomery enjoyed working on "Doogie Howser, M.D.," she acknowledges there were times she wished she had more to do on the series, "I liked my character very much and they were always trying to think of ways to bring her out there to give her more to do on the series. We talked that maybe she was a potter or she would do this or that. They were having me come over to do more things at the hospital, which was good because otherwise I never saw any of those people in that part of the series, and they didn't see me, because my character's scenes were often at the house. I wanted to break out of the 'mom' thing on the series because you can get caught in that 'mom' mode and get typecast. The irony is that I've had millions of kids on-screen, but I don't have any of my own, though I do have a stepson who is wonderful. I just rented other people's children on these shows. (laugh)"

Despite Bochco's promise that "Doogie Howser, M.D." would last for five years, the show was abruptly cancelled in 1993 at the end of its fourth season. Montgomery recalls that, "It only went for four years, unfortunately. For whatever reason, ABC decided to cancel the show. They pulled the plug on us having a fifth season, even though we had good ratings. That was a disappointment, but we still had a great run. I'm just thrilled we were all together. And, of course, my son went on to complete anonymity. (laugh)" After "Doogie Howser" was cancelled, Montgomery continued working as an actress throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s, but slowly started moving away from the business to focus on other aspects of her life. Montgomery explains that, "After 'Doogie Howser' ended, I was running around and acting and doing things for several more years. I shot a couple of more shows after that, but then my parents started having health problems and I was very busy taking care of them. I just couldn't concentrate on acting anymore. My mother needed a lot of help because she had a lot of physical issues and heart problems. I wanted to be available to help them. Many mornings, the phone would ring and I would come out of a dead sleep and learn that something had happened and I would rush over to their home to help them. It was very exhausting. I moved my parents next door. After my mother passed away in 2005, my father lived for another 10 years and I would take him out for his walk and prepare his meals. My father had his own health issues. He also had a balance problem where he would fall and break his hip or his femur or his wrist. That was tough to witness because my dad was this big, strong guy. It's hard to wrap your head around the idea that your parents are not strong anymore. I just didn't have time to focus on my acting career because I was too tired."