Nancy McKeon facts for kids
Nancy Justine McKeon was born on April 4, 1966. She is an American actress. She is famous for playing Jo Polniaczek on the TV show The Facts of Life. She also played Jinny Exstead on the show The Division.
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Early Life
Nancy McKeon was born in Westbury, New York. Her parents are Barbara and Donald McKeon. She started her career very young. At just two years old, she modeled baby clothes for the Sears & Roebuck catalog. Her family lived in Forest Hills, New York for part of her childhood.
Acting Career
Starting Out Young
Nancy McKeon appeared in soap operas like The Secret Storm and Another World. In 1979, a casting director noticed her. This was after she showed she could cry on cue in a Hallmark ad. She was then chosen to play tomboy Jo Polniaczek. This role was for the second season of The Facts of Life. She also voiced many cartoon characters. One of these was Scruffy for ABC Weekend Special.
While working on The Facts of Life, Nancy had tutors on set. She had gone to Catholic school before that. She once joked about getting detention. This was for not following school rules, like wearing her favorite patent leather shoes.
Adult Roles
In 1990, Nancy was considered for the main role in the TV show Working Girl. But the part went to Sandra Bullock instead. In 1994, Nancy and Courteney Cox tried out for the role of Monica Geller on Friends. Courteney Cox got that role. In 1995, Nancy starred in her own show, Can't Hurry Love. It lasted for one season. In 1998, she was in the show Style & Substance with Jean Smart.
From 2001 to 2004, Nancy played Inspector Jinny Exstead. This was on the police drama The Division on Lifetime. Her real-life pregnancy was even written into the show. From 2009 to 2010, she had a role in the Disney Channel Original Series Sonny with a Chance. She played Connie Munroe, the mother of Demi Lovato's character.
Nancy also starred in many TV movies. These included A Cry for Help: The Tracey Thurman Story. In this movie, she played Tracey Thurman. She also played a woman wrongly accused of murder in The Wrong Woman. In Strange Voices, she played a woman with schizophrenia. She even produced some of these movies. Her company was called Forest Hills Entertainment.
In 1999, she wrote and directed a short film called A Wakening. She said directing was a dream of hers. The film won two awards at film festivals. She also directed two episodes of The Division. In 2003, Nancy starred in the movie Comfort and Joy. She has also read several audiobooks.
In 2019, she made a short appearance in You Light Up My Christmas. This movie starred her Facts of Life co-star Kim Fields. Other cast members from the show were also in it. Nancy was meant to have a bigger part. However, a family emergency kept her from filming more. Also in 2019, Nancy shared that she was in a new Amazon series. It is based on the young adult novel Panic. The first season came out in 2021.
Personal Life
While Nancy was on The Facts of Life, she and her parents met Pope John Paul II. She called the experience "electric." She said he had a special "aura" around him.
Nancy dated actor Michael J. Fox for three years. They met on the set of High School U.S.A. (1983). She said they kept their relationship very private. Nancy and Fox appeared together on the game show Tattletales.
In 2003, Nancy married film technician Marc Andrus. They had met eight years earlier while working on a movie. They wanted a small wedding. Only 20 guests were there.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Where the Day Takes You | Vikki | |
| 1994 | Teresa's Tattoo | Sara | |
| 1995 | The Wrong Woman | Melanie Brooke | |
| 1997 | Just Write | Bride | |
| 1999 | A Wakening | Short film; Director, writer |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Starsky & Hutch | Vikki Mayer | "The Crying Child" |
| 1978 | Return to Fantasy Island | Ann | TV film |
| 1978 | Alice | Girl Orphan | "Who Ordered the Hot Turkey?" |
| 1978 | A Question of Love | Susan Moreland | TV film |
| 1979 | The Love Boat | Penny Barrett | "Daddy's Pride" |
| 1979 | The Puppy's Great Adventure | Dolly (voice) | TV film |
| 1980 | Stone | Jill Stone | TV series (9 episodes) |
| 1980 | The Puppy's Amazing Rescue | Dolly (voice) | TV film |
| 1980 | The Trouble with Miss Switch | Amelia Daley (voice) | TV film |
| 1980 | Scruffy | Scruffy (voice) | TV film |
| 1980 | ABC Afterschool Special | Lucy Twining | "Schoolboy Father" |
| 1980–81 | Thundarr the Barbarian | Tye / Tai (voice) | "Harvest of Doom", "Last Train to Doomsday" |
| 1980–88 | The Facts of Life | Jo Polniaczek | TV series (189 episodes) |
| 1981 | ABC Afterschool Special | Nancy Parks | "Please Don't Hit Me, Mom" |
| 1981 | Alice | Kimberly | "Alice's Halloween Surprise" |
| 1981 | The Puppy Saves the Circus | Dolly (voice) | TV film |
| 1982 | Miss Switch to the Rescue | Amelia Daley (voice) | TV film |
| 1982–83 | The Scooby & Scrappy-Doo/Puppy Hour | Dolly (voice) | TV series (13 episodes: The Puppy's New Adventures segment) |
| 1982 | The Facts of Life Goes to Paris | Jo Polniaczek | TV film |
| 1983 | Dusty | Slugger | TV film |
| 1983–84 | The Puppy's Further Adventures | Dolly (voice) | TV series (8 episodes) |
| 1983 | High School U.S.A. | Beth Franklin | TV film |
| 1985 | Poison Ivy | Rhonda Malone | TV film |
| 1985 | This Child Is Mine | Kimberly Downs | TV film |
| 1986 | Firefighter | Cindy Fralick | TV film |
| 1987 | The Facts of Life Down Under | Jo Polniaczek | TV film |
| 1987 | Strange Voices | Nicole 'Nikki' Glover | TV film |
| 1989 | A Cry for Help: The Tracey Thurman Story | Tracey Thurman | TV film |
| 1990 | The Hitchhiker | Dawn Wilder | "New Dawn" |
| 1991 | Lightning Field | Martha Townsend | TV film |
| 1992 | Baby Snatcher | Karen Williams | TV film |
| 1993 | Love, Honor & Obey: The Last Mafia Marriage | Rosalie Profaci Bonanno | TV film |
| 1995 | A Mother's Gift | Margaret Deal | TV film |
| 1995–96 | Can't Hurry Love | Annie O'Donnell | TV series (19 episodes) |
| 1998 | Style & Substance | Jane Sokol | TV series (13 episodes) |
| 1999 | In My Sister's Shadow | Joan Connor | TV film |
| 1999 | Touched by an Angel | Rachel Waters | "The Last Day of the Rest of Your Life" |
| 2001–04 | The Division | Inspector Jinny Exstead | TV series (88 episodes) Director: episodes "Full Moon" (S2), "The Cost of Freedom" (S3) |
| 2003 | Comfort and Joy | Jane Berry | TV film |
| 2004 | Category 6: Day of Destruction | Amy Harkin | TV miniseries |
| 2006 | Wild Hearts | Emily | TV film |
| 2007 | Without a Trace | Gail Sweeney | "Absalom" |
| 2009–10 | Sonny with a Chance | Connie Munroe | TV series (5 episodes) |
| 2011 | Love Begins | Millie | TV film |
| 2018 | Dancing with the Stars | Contestant | TV series (5 episodes) |
| 2019 | You Light Up My Christmas | Kathy | TV film |
| 2021 | Panic | Jessica Mason | TV series (6 episodes) |
Awards and Nominations
Marco Island Film Festival
- 2000: Won, "Audience Award for Best Short Drama"—A Wakening
- 2000: Won, "Crystal Palm Award for Best Short Film"—A Wakening
Prism Awards
- 2003: Nominated, "Best Performance in a Drama Series Episode"—The Division
- 2003: Nominated, "Best Performance in a Drama Series"—The Division
- 2004: Nominated, "Best Performance in a Drama Series Multi Episode Storyline"—The Division
- 2007: Nominated, "The 'When Bad Teens Go Good' Award"—The Facts of Life
- 1982: Nominated, "Best Young Comedienne in Motion Picture or Television"—The Facts of Life
- 1983: Won, "Best Young Actress in a Television Special"—Please Don't Hit Me, Mom
- 1983: Won, "Best Young Actress in a Movie Made for Television"—The Facts of Life Goes to Paris
- 1983: Won, "Best Young Actress in a Comedy Series"—The Facts of Life
- 1984: Nominated, "Best Young Actress in a Comedy Series"—The Facts of Life
See also
In Spanish: Nancy McKeon para niños
