Erika Slezak facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Erika Slezak
Erika Slezak with her father, Walter Slezak, on the set of One Life to Live (1974)
Born	(1946-08-05) August 5, 1946 (age 78) Hollywood, California, U.S.
Alma mater	Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1971–present
Known for	Victoria Lord
Television	One Life to Live
Spouse(s)	Robert Daniel Mooney ​ (m. 1968⁠–⁠1971)​ Brian Davies ​ ​ (m. 1978)​
Children	2
Parent(s)	Walter Slezak Johanna Van Rijin
Relatives	Margarete Slezak (aunt) Leo Slezak (grandfather)
Awards	Daytime Emmy Award (1984, 1986, 1992, 1995, 1996, 2005) Soap Opera Digest Award (2002)

Erika Slezak (born August 5, 1946) is an American actress. She is most famous for playing the character Victoria "Viki" Lord on the TV show One Life to Live. This show was a popular daytime soap opera. Erika played Viki from 1971 until the show ended on TV in 2012. She also returned for an online version of the show in 2013.

Erika Slezak is known as one of the actors who has played the same role for the longest time in American television. She has won six Daytime Emmy Awards for her role as Viki. This is more than any other actress in daytime drama.

About Erika Slezak

Early Life and Training

Erika Slezak was born in Hollywood, California. Her family has roots in Czech, Austrian, German-Jewish, and Dutch backgrounds. Her father, Walter Slezak, was a famous Austrian actor who won a Tony award. Her mother was Johanna "Kaasi" Van Rijn. Erika's grandfather was the well-known opera singer Leo Slezak.

Erika grew up in Greenwich, Connecticut. She went to high school at the Convent of the Sacred Heart, Eden Hall in Torresdale, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. When she was 17, Erika was accepted into the famous Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. She was one of the youngest students ever to join this school. She graduated in 1966. After her training, Erika became a respected theater actress. She performed in cities like Milwaukee, Chicago, and Houston.

Her Famous Role: Viki Lord

In 1971, Erika Slezak tried out for a role on another ABC soap opera called All My Children. She didn't get that part. However, the network offered her the role of Victoria "Viki" Lord Riley on One Life to Live (often called OLTL).

Erika played Viki for 42 years. During this time, she won six Daytime Emmy Awards. This is a record for a female performer in daytime television.

In 2011, the ABC network announced that OLTL would be canceled. Its last TV episode aired in January 2012. However, a company called Prospect Park decided to bring the show back online. In 2013, Prospect Park launched new online versions of One Life to Live and All My Children. Erika Slezak returned to play Viki in the revived series. These new episodes were filmed in Stamford, Connecticut. They started streaming on Hulu, Hulu Plus, and iTunes on April 29, 2013, and continued until August 19, 2013.

Other Acting Work

Besides One Life to Live, Erika Slezak has acted in other projects. In 1996, she played Jean Roberts in a television film called Full Circle. This movie was based on a novel by Danielle Steel.

In 2018, Erika appeared on the Fox TV series The Resident. She played Dr. Eileen Jacoby in an episode called "Haunted." In 2019, she acted alongside Jeff Daniels in the drama film Guest Artist. This movie was based on a play Jeff Daniels wrote. Later that year, she was a guest star on the CBS police drama Blue Bloods. She returned to the show again in 2022.

In 2019, Erika Slezak was interviewed for an episode of the ABC news show 20/20. This episode focused on the murder of actress Rebecca Schaeffer, who had acted on One Life to Live in the 1980s.

Personal Life

Erika Slezak is married to Brian Davies. They have two children, Michael and Amanda. In 2003, Erika's daughter, Amanda Davies, played a younger version of her mother's character, Victoria, in flashback scenes on One Life to Live. Sadly, Amanda Davies passed away on January 29, 2024.

Awards and Achievements

Erika Slezak has won six Daytime Emmy Awards for "Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series". She was nominated nine times for her role as Victoria. She won in 1984, 1986, 1992, 1995, 1996, and 2005. This makes her the actress with the most wins in this category.

She also won a Soap Opera Digest Award in 2000. This award was for "Favorite Couple" and she shared it with her co-star Mark Derwin.

Daytime Emmy Award wins

Soap Opera Digest Award wins

Filmography

See also

In Spanish: Erika Slezak para niños