Mel Harris will next be seen in the role of Nadine Davies on Hulu's new series Shut Eye. Harris is an American actress, writer and director, best known for her portrayal of Hope Steadman on the critically acclaimed, Emmy award winning series, thirtysomething, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination as best Actress in a Drama Series. She starred in the NBC comedy Something So Right and the drama series Saints and Sinners. Harris has also starred in numerous miniseries and telefilms including Cross of Fire, The Burden of Proof, and Grass Roots, as well as appearances on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and as Senator Rafferty on The West Wing. Among her feature film credits are Brian De Palma's Raising Cain, K-9 opposite Jim Belushi; Suture, Imagine That, The Lodger, Pagemaster and Wanted: Dead or Alive. She made her New York stage debut at the Circle Repertory Company in the world premiere of John Bishop's Empty Hearts, for which she received a 1992 Theater World Award. In addition to her acting, in the last few years, Harris has chosen to focus on writing with her partner, Emmy Award winning writer/producer, Bob Brush, under their shingle Topanga Moon Productions. Harris was born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and raised in New Jersey. Her mother was a high school science teacher and her father a football coach at Princeton University. She spent 12 years in the modeling world living in New York and Europe before stumbling into the acting business. Harris is an avid athlete, animal lover and who, as a "full time hobby" buys old houses, redesigning and renovating them. She lives in New York with her husband and whichever of their four children happen to drop in.
Ex-husband David Hume Kennerly was the official White House photographer during the administration of former U.S President Gerald Ford.
As Mel Kennerly, she won quite a bit of money on the TV game show "The $10,000 Pyramid" in September of 1985. She introduced herself as a professional dog trainer.
Trains for triathalons.
Son, Byron Kennerly, born 1984.
Daughter, Madeline Smith, born 1990.
Named as one of "Americas 10 Most Beautiful Women" by Harpers Bazaar in 1989.
Graduate of New Brunswick High School, New Brunswick, New Jersey. Class of 1974, who voted her "Most School Spirit."
While living as a teenager in New Brunswick, New Jersey, she worked at the local Dairy Queen.
Mel is actually short for Melon, which was how her baby sister pronounced Mary Ellen when she was very young, and the nickname stuck.
