Jan Smithers

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Jan Smithers
Born
Karin Jan Smithers
OccupationActress
Years active1973–1987
Spouses
  • Kipp Whitman
    (m. 1971; div. 1972)
  • (m. 1986; div. 1995)
Children1

Karin Jan Smithers is a former American actress. She is known for playing Bailey Quarters on the CBS sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati (1978–1982).

Life and career

Smithers first reached the public eye as a teenager when, at 16, she was profiled and featured on the March 21, 1966, cover of Newsweek seated on the back of a motorcycle.[1] She received offers from Hollywood agents as a result of that appearance.[2][3] She was the co-lead singer of the early 1970s band Hot Cup of Friends which featured Christopher Mancini (the son of Henry Mancini).[2]

Smithers's first marriage was to Kipp Whitman from 1971 to 1972. From 1986 to 1995, she was married to actor James Brolin[2] and was stepmother to his two children from a previous marriage; together they have one daughter, Molly Elizabeth. Smithers filed for divorce from Brolin in 1995.

After living in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, she now lives in Ojai, California.[3] In June 2014, Smithers attended a reunion of surviving WKRP in Cincinnati cast members hosted by the Paley Center for Media.[4]

Television and filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1973 Love Story Barbara Episode: "Beginner's Luck"
1974 Where the Lilies Bloom Devola Feature film
1974 When the North Wind Blows Lady in the Zoo Feature film
1976 Starsky & Hutch Sharman Crane Episode: "Running"
1978 Our Winning Season Cathy Wakefield Feature film
1978–82 WKRP in Cincinnati Bailey Quarters Main cast (86 episodes)
1980 The Love Tapes Carol Clark TV movie
1982 The Love Boat Sabrina Drake Episode: "The Spoonmaker Diamond/Papa Doc/The Role Model/Julie's Tycoon"
1983 The Fall Guy Cynthia Caldwell Episode: "Spaced Out"
1983 The Love Boat Aurora Adams Episode: "Long Time No See/The Bear Essence/Kisses and Makeup"
1984 Legmen Sarah Turner Episode: "Take the Credit and Run"
1984 Hotel Lacey Grant Episode: "Encores"
1984 The Love Boat Carol Cooperman Episode: "By Hook or by Crook/Revenge with the Proper Stranger/Don't Get Mad, Get Even"
1984 Finder of Lost Loves Barbara Hensen Episode: "Old Friends"
1985 Mike Hammer Shia Walters Episode: "Firestorm"
1985 Cover Up Karen Morris Episode: "The Assassin"
1985 Murder, She Wrote Kathy Farrell Episode: "Sudden Death"
1985 Comedy Factory Barrie Shepherd Episode: "The Columnist"
1986 Hotel Janice Copeland Episode: "Triangles"
1987 Mr. Nice Guy Dr. Lisa Rayon Feature film

References

  1. ^ Jones, Abigail (May 12, 2016). "Newsweek Staffers Remember the 1966 Cover Story on Teens". Newsweek.com. Newsweek. Archived from the original on May 26, 2016. Retrieved May 12, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c Jones, Abigail (May 12, 2016). "An Interview With Jan Smithers, Newsweek Teen Cover Star In 1966". Newsweek.
  3. ^ a b "Whatever Happened To Actress Jan Smithers". July 3, 2006. Archived from the original on June 15, 2008. Retrieved January 21, 2008.
  4. ^ "Baby, If You've Ever Wondered: A WKRP in Cincinnati Reunion". The Paley Center for Media. June 4, 2014.

Further reading

External links