Sheree J. Wilson

3/5

Biography

Sheree J. Wilson has gained worldwide recognition starring in two enormously popular long running television series. Appearing in the hit series Dallas for five seasons playing opposite Patrick Duffy, and then for the entire eight year run of Walker, Texas Ranger opposite Chuck Norris. Currently, Ms. Wilson has starred and produced two feature films, Easy Rider: The Ride Back, a prequel to the cult favorite movie Easy Rider, and The Gundown. She also co-produced a zombie/comedy called Dug Up. While studying for her degree in fashion merchandising and business, Sheree secretly vied for a career in show business. As with many actors, that 'lucky break' came shortly after graduation in 1981 while working in Denver on a fashion shoot. One of the photographers thought Sheree was the model, and introduced her to Vicki Light, head of The Light Company. Vicki in turn introduced her to Wilhelmina, the modeling agenCY from New York, who signed her on the spot. Sheree promptly moved to Manhattan and within eighteen months, had appeared in over thirty commercial campaigns for Clairol, Sea Breeze, Keri-Lotion and Maybelline. Her print work ran in such popular magazines as Mademoiselle, Glamour and Redbook. After three years of modeling, Sheree's agent, Vicki Light, called her with an audition in a feature film, urging her to move to Los Angeles. She won the starring role, opposite Louise Lasser, Brian James and Reed Burney, in "Crimewave", a 1984 black comedy directed by Sam Raimi. Three days after that film wrapped, she was cast in "Velvet," an ABC/Aaron Spelling MOW/series pilot, in which she played a female "James Bond" character opposite Shari Belafonte. Within the next year, she had a lead with Tim Robbins in "Fraternity Vacation", a summer comedy in which she played an intellectual beauty who was the object of everyone's desire. Producers began to take notice of this dynamic newcomer to Hollywood, and soon she starred in the 1985 CBS television miniseries "Kane & Abel," with Peter Strauss. This immediately led to "Our Family Honor," a CBS drama about Irish cops vs. the Mafia, in which she starred with Ray Liotta, Michael Madsen and Eli Wallach. Her career continued to grow including "News at Eleven" with Martin Sheen. And then, in 1986, television producer Leonard Katzman called Sheree to talk about a part he thought was tailor-made for someone with her classic beauty and sassy, fun-loving, energetic nature. The role was that of 'April Stevens' on the CBS mega-hit series "Dallas." For five seasons she played a brainy, wealthy femme fatale. Her character went from being one of the most powerful women in Dallas and J.R. Ewing's nemesis, to being one of the warmest characters in town, eventually marrying Bobby Ewing, the show's ultimate good guy. Ultimately, April Stevens was gunned down during her honeymoon in Paris. Bowing out with a bang, Sheree's performance earned her the "Soap Opera Digest Award" for Best Death Scene. In fact, Sheree was pregnant and wanted to leave in order to fully devote herself to motherhood. At the end of 1992, she signed to do the lead female role of 'Alex Cahill' in "Walker, Texas Ranger," opposite Chuck Norris, which ran for eight seasons. The daughter of two IBM executives, Sheree was born in Minnesota and moved to Colorado at the age of seven, where she learned to ride horses. Her superb equestrian skills won her first place riding cutting horses in the 1995 National Multiple Sclerosis Rodeo. Her love of horses continues to this day - as she recently rescued a retired racehorse and in 2008 helped establish the "White Bridle Humane Society", a horse rescue equine therapy non-profit organization in Texas of which she serves as vice-president. Currently, Sheree resides in Los Angeles.

  • Primary profession
  • Actress·producer·writer
  • Country
  • United States
  • Nationality
  • American
  • Gender
  • Female
  • Birth date
  • 12 December 1958
  • Place of birth
  • Rochester· Minnesota
  • Education
  • University of Colorado Boulder

Movies

TV

Books

Trivia

Has two sons: Luke Wilson DeRobbio (b. June 4, 1990) and Nicolas DeRobbio (b. August 6, 1997) with husband Paul Thomas DeRobbio.

Won first place riding cutting horses in the 1995 National Multiple Sclerosis Rodeo

Her two regular TV characters, "April Stevens-Ewing" ( "Dallas" ) and "Alex Cahill-Walker" ( "Walker, Texas Ranger" ) both met deaths by gunshot. April was shot while being rescued from terrorists on her honeymoon to Bobby Ewing (Patrick Duffy ) and died shortly afterward. Alex was shot in the courthouse at the end of the Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial by Fire reunion movie. She was wounded in the chest, fell to the floor and was shown apparently dead (wound was dead center) in the closing shot of the movie. (Walker (Chuck Norris ) had just left the courthouse to investigate something and was--for the first time--not there to save her).

Best known by the public for her starring roles as April Stevens-Ewing on "Dallas" and as Alexandra "Alex" Cahill-Walker on "Walker, Texas Ranger" .

She had lots of acting mentors: Barbara Bel Geddes , Kathryn Hepburn , Grace Kelly , Audrey Hepburn , Larry Hagman , Chuck Norris and of course Meryl Streep along with Susan Sarandon.

One of only four people to appear in

Exactly

The "Walker, Texas Ranger" pilot, "One Riot, One Ranger", and the finale, "The Final Show/Down". The four, in credits order, were: Chuck Norris (Walker), Clarence Gilyard Jr. (Trivette), Sheree J. Wilson ("Alex Cahill", later Alex Cahill-Walker), and Marshall R. Teague ("Orson Wade" in the pilot, and "Emile Lavocat"/"Mills {Moon} Lavocat" in the two-hour, multiple-timeline finale).

Quotes

We were out getting grubby like pioneers. Mom had to check our heads for,ticks.

Comments