Dorothy Lyman facts for kids

Dorothy Lyman (born April 18, 1947) is an American actress, director, and producer. She is well-known for her roles in popular TV shows. These include playing Gwen Frame on Another World and Opal Sue Gardner on All My Children. She also starred as Naomi Harper in the funny sitcom Mama's Family.

Life and Career Highlights

Dorothy Lyman was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her father, Hector H. Lyman, worked as a stockbroker. She began her acting career in 1971 on the soap opera A World Apart. She played a character named Julie Stark. Later, she appeared on The Edge of Night and then joined Another World. On Another World, she played Gwen Parrish Frame from 1976 to 1980, and again in 1989.

Winning Awards for Acting

One of her most famous roles was Opal Sue Gardner on All My Children. She played this character from 1981 to 1983. Her performance was so good that she won two Daytime Emmy Awards. She won for Outstanding Actress in a Supporting Role in 1982. The next year, in 1983, she won for Outstanding Lead Actress. This showed how talented she was in daytime television.

Dorothy also appeared in other soap operas. She played Rebecca Whitmore on Generations and Bonnie Roberts on The Bold and the Beautiful.

Life on Mama's Family

In 1983, Dorothy Lyman became very popular as Naomi Harper on the sitcom Mama's Family. She was part of the show for all six seasons. During the early days of Mama's Family, she was also still acting on All My Children. This meant she flew between New York City and Los Angeles every week. She called this busy time "All My Paychecks" because she was earning money from both shows.

Behind the Camera

After Mama's Family ended in 1990, Dorothy Lyman started working behind the scenes. She became a producer and director. She directed and produced 75 episodes of the hit sitcom The Nanny. She even made a special guest appearance on that show. Lyman also had a recurring role on Bob, a TV series starring Bob Newhart.

Film Appearances

Dorothy Lyman has also appeared in several movies. She had a small role in I Love Trouble in 1994. This film starred Nick Nolte and Julia Roberts. She also appeared in the 2001 movie Blow with Johnny Depp. Later, she was seen in the films World Trade Center and The Departed, both released in 2006.

In 2007, she guest-starred in Battlestar Galactica. She played the mother of a main character, Starbuck. She also appeared on the TV show Reba as Reba's mother. More recently, she was in an episode of The Blacklist in 2019.

Personal Life

Dorothy Lyman has been married twice. From 1971 to 1983, she was married to director and actor John Tillinger. They have two children together. Their daughter, Emma Tillinger Koskoff, is a successful producer who has been nominated for Academy Awards. Their son, Sebastian Tillinger, is an actor. Dorothy later married French film producer Vincent Malle. They also have a son together.