Ex-DAYS alum Linda Carlson passed away on October 26, 2021, in Gaylordsville, Connecticut, after battling ALS. The veteran actress was no stranger to both daytime and primetime television.
In Memoriam: Linda Carlson
Born in Knoxville, Tennessee, on May 12, 1945, Carlson began her love for acting while attending Edina Morningside High School in Minnesota. She graduated from the University of Iowa before earning her Master’s degree from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Carlson earned her acting stripes in the off-Broadway production of The Harangues with the Negro Ensemble Company in 1969. By 1973, she had made her Broadway debut in the revival of Full Circle, directed by the great Otto Preminger.
The actress set her sights on Hollywood, traveling to California for an audition in a TV series remake of The African Queen taking on Katharine Hepburn’s part. Carlson lost out to Mariette Hartley but the pilot didn’t take off. Carlson, on the other hand, landed the role of Dr. Janet Cottrell on the ABC series Westside Medical.
Building A Legacy in Hollywood
Other series quickly followed. In the 1978 series Kaz, the actress took on the role of reporter Katie McKenna, Rob Leibman’s convict turned defense attorney’s girlfriend. She appeared in such classics as WKRP in Cincinnati, Remington Steel, St. Elsewhere, Cagney & Lacey, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, and Growing Pains.
A 1981 episode of Lou Grant titled Rape, cast Carlson alongside General Hospital and Knots Landing actress Lynne Moody. The two women portrayed rape victims as Lou Grant, played by Ed Asner, and Joe Rossi, played by Robert Walden, comfort a staff reporter (played by Moody) after she returns to work after being raped and robbed.
In 1985, Carlson joined the cast of Newhart, in its third season, as the demanding station manager for Vermont Today, hosted by Dick Loudon (Bob Newhart), through 1987. She tackled daytime television in 1989 with the role of Dr. Elaine Schaefer on NBC’s Days of our Lives and, later, added a short stint on Passions.
Steady Work
Film roles include Victim for Victims: The Theresa Saldana Story, Honey, I Shrunk The Kids, The Pickle, The Beverly Hillbillies, and The Song of the Lark. The actress added more primetime roles such as Father Dowling Mysteries, Space: Above and Beyond, Sisters, The Pretender, Clueless, N.Y.P.D. Blue, and Providence.
From 1995 to 1997, Carlson portrayed the honorable Judge Beth Bornstein in the iconic Steven Bochco series Murder One. The series cast included Daniel Benzali, Patricia Clarkson, Stanley Tucci, Anthony LaPaglia, and another DAYS’ alum, Vanessa Williams (ex-Valerie Grant).
Beyond Acting
The actress can also be remembered for her philanthropic work for the Village for Children & Families in Hartford, Connecticut, and for the Virginia Avenue Project in Los Angeles where she served as the president and board member.
Soap Hub sends their heartfelt condolences to her surviving family, second husband James A.V. Hart, siblings Janet and James, and her four nieces and nephews. Donations can be made to the ALS Association.
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