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Stephanie Zimbalist (born October 8, 1956) is an American actress best known for her role as Laura Holt on the NBC detective series Remington Steele.
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Stephanie Zimbalist was born in New York City, the daughter of Loranda Stephanie (née Spalding) and actor Efrem Zimbalist, Jr..
Although Zimbalist was born in New York, her family moved to Los Angeles when she was an infant and this is where she grew up. She graduated from Foxcroft School in Middleburg, Virginia and briefly attended the Juilliard School before commencing her acting career. Zimbalist attributes her thespian vocation to, in part, drama activites at summer school.
Zimbalist and her older siblings inherited not a small amount of cultural capital in that their grandfather of Russian descent, Efrem Zimbalist, was a world famous concert violinist, music teacher (at the Curtis Institute) and composer and their grandmother, Alma Gluck, born in Rumania, was a leading soprano of her day..
Their father's half-sister, Marcia Davenport, was a prominent author, music journalist and historian acquainted with personalities such as conductor Arturo Toscanini. Some old fiscal wealth is evidenced by the family properties, for example, in the past, a large brown stone mansion in mid-Manhattan with a carved-stone violin and angel above the door, and, for example, in the present day, "The Rafters" of New Hartford, Connecticut. .
Although the Zimbalist family name might suggest a Jewish descent, Efrem Zimbalist adopted an Episcopalian tradition and Efrem Zimbalist Jr. is a born-again Christian. Stephanie Zimbalist has described herself as conservative and religious.
Zimbalist has donated more than $25,000 to Republican campaigns and committees.
Stephanie Zimablist's early television and movie appearances included Forever, The Triangle Factory Fire Scandal, The Long Journey Back (TV 1978), The Awakening (with Charlton Heston), Tomorrow's Child (TV 1982) and The Golden Moment, in which she played a Soviet Olympic gymnast. She co-starred with her father, Efrem Zimbalist Jr, in the tragic 1979 TV movie The Best Place to Be.
Another early role for Zimbalist was that of Ellie Zendt in the mini-series Centennial, based on James Michener's epic novel of the same name, which was first televised on NBC between October 1978 and February 1979.
In her TV work, Zimbalist is best known in the TV role of female sleuth, Laura Holt, in the NBC series Remington Steele opposite Pierce Brosnan and Doris Roberts (1982 to 1987).
Since then, Zimbalist has taken leading roles in several television movies such as the Emmy-award winning Caroline? (1990) and some guest roles in television series such as Touched by an Angel.
Many female fans of Zimbalist's work in Remington Steele see her character, Laura Holt, as an heroic role model. In an interview recorded in 2005 for a DVD special feature, Zimbalist and Remington Steele co-creator Michael Gleason discussed the large number of women who have approached them over the years to express their appreciation for the character of Laura Holt.
Speaking of the women she meets, Zimbalist said "They are extraordinary women…. They are interesting. They do interesting things. They are smart. They're independent. They're sort of, what my character was – and I meet them all the time."
Also in 2005, Robin Rauzi published an article in the Los Angeles Times saying that Laura Holt was her hero. In a subsequent interview Rauzi elaborated, saying that Laura “was one of the only examples of an unmarried modern career woman on TV that I could identify with at that time” and that Laura “didn’t seem that far away from who I was and who I could be.” Rauzi concludes, “I’ve decided to stop being embarrassed to say Remington Steele changed my life. It did and for the better.”
Onstage, Zimbalist played opposite Tommy Tune in the touring musical My One and Only and took the featured role of "Edith Herbert". She has made several appearances with the Rubicon Theatre Company in Ventura, California, winning a "Robby Award" for Best Actress in a Drama in The Rainmaker, staged by Rubicon in 2001. Throughout the 2000, Zimbalist took roles in plays concerning nineteenth-century artists including Chopin, Tchaikovsky and Van Gogh. In 2009 she portrayed actress Katharine Hepburn in Tea at Five.
Zimbalist has released audio books including "The Girls" and "Queen of the Underworld". "The Girls" received a Listen-Up award in 2006.
She appeared in the 2006 documentary "Christa McAuliffe: Reach for the Stars". She also played Christa McAuliffe in the play Defying Gravity.
She has been a supporter of the Tennessee Williams Festival of New Orleans
Stephanie Zimbalist has a website officiated by Ms J. Moose. She will occasionally speak with fans at the stage door. In 2008, through her official website, Zimbalist requested that fans no longer send her letters or gifts. The site does, however, recommend a childrens' charity.
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