Judith Chapman (born Judith Shepard on November 15, 1951) is an American actress, best known for soap opera roles, particularly as Natalie Bannon Hughes in As the World Turns (1975–1978), Charlotte Greer on Ryan's Hope (1983), Ginny Blake Webber on General Hospital (1984–1986), Sandra Montaigne on One Life to Live (1987), Anjelica Deveraux on Days of Our Lives (1989–1991, 2018), and Gloria Abbott Bardwell on The Young and the Restless (2005–2018, 2020–).

Judith Chapman
Born
Judith Shepard

(1951-11-15) November 15, 1951 (age 73)[1]
Alma materStephens College
OccupationActress
Years active1967–present
Known forThe Young and the Restless
Days of Our Lives
General Hospital
Ryan's Hope
Spouse
Nelian Tyree
(m. 1984; div. 1986)

Life and career

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Chapman was born in Greenville, South Carolina. She is the daughter of retired United States Air Force brigadier general Leland C. Shepard Jr. Her older sister Patty Shepard also worked as an actress. She debuted at the age of 16 in the Spaghetti Western Up the MacGregors! (1967). After getting a degree in theater from Stephens College, she headed to New York, where she joined the Actors Studio and began working in commercials and theater.[2] In 1977, she made her American big screen debut in the psychological horror film False Face.[3]

Chapman has appeared on several daytime dramas since the mid-1970s. Her first soap role was scheming Natalie Bannon (one of Tom Hughes' wives) on CBS soap As the World Turns from 1975 to 1978. She guest-starred on prime time series include Kojak , Fantasy Island, Barnaby Jones, The Incredible Hulk, Galactica 1980, The Love Boat, and two times on Magnum, P.I.. She had a recurring roles on Flamingo Road and The Fall Guy. In 1977, she tested for the role of Pam Ewing on CBS primetime soap opera, Dallas.[4]

A four-month stint as the mysterious Charlotte Greer on Ryan's Hope in 1983 brought Chapman critical acclaim. Her role had her character as part of a revenge plot against the Ryan family after lying to the press that she was Frank Ryan's ex-wife. She joined the cast of General Hospital the following year as the devious Ginny Blake who was the biological mother of Mike Webber, adopted by Rick and Lesley. After Lesley's "death", Rick and Ginny married in an attempt to share custody and fell in love after Ginny was found to be the killer of D.L. Brock. She received Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Daytime Drama nomination for her performance. After that stint ended, she had a brief role on One Life to Live as Sandra Montaigne, a con-artist out to scam ex-boyfriend Jonathan Russell. She was the third former General Hospital actress to play the role of Anjelica Devereaux Curtis on Days of Our Lives, playing that part from 1989 to 1990 and briefly in 1991.

Chapman had supporting roles in films And God Created Woman (1988), Dead Space (1991), Fire on the Amazon (1993), Night of the Running Man (1995), 28 Days (2000), and The Sweetest Thing (2002). She appeared in three episodes of Murder, She Wrote, and five times on Silk Stalkings as different characters. She starred in the LGBT comedy film Saugatuck Cures (2015), and in 2021 played Nancy Reagan in the biographical drama King Richard.[5]

Chapman made her first appearance on The Young and the Restless after that, briefly subbing for Jess Walton as Jill Abbott. She joined the cast of The Young and the Restless full-time in January 2005, replacing Joan Van Ark in the contract role of Gloria Fisher.[6] In March 2011, it was announced that Chapman had been taken off her contract and bumped to recurring.[7] In October 2014, it was announced that she would make a guest appearance as Gloria on The Bold and the Beautiful. She appeared in a few more episodes of The Young and the Restless in 2015 and 2016. She played Diana Cooper on Days of Our Lives for two months in 2019, then returned to Y&R.[8][9]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1967 Up the MacGregors! Dundalks Donovan
1977 Scalpel Heather/Jane aka False Face
1981 Inmates: A Love Story Leslie
1981 The Five of Me Sally
1982 Desire Julie Seaver
1982 Farrell for the People Victoria Walton-Mason Television film
1983 Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E. Z-65 Television film
1988 And God Created Woman Alexandra
1989 Chameleons Lainie Roberts
1991 Dead Space Dr. Emily Stote
1993 Fire on the Amazon Sandra
1994 Night of the Running Man Roz Chambers
1994 Mortal Fear Helen Brennquist Television film
1998 Scorpio One Gibson
2000 28 Days Deirdre
2002 The Sweetest Thing Judy's Mother
2013 Liz & Dick BelasAir Socialite Television film
2015 Saugatuck Cures Maggie Callaghan
2021 King Richard Nancy Reagan

Television

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References

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  1. ^ "Judith Chapman | Movies and Filmography". AllMovie.
  2. ^ Mistretta, Amy (June 9, 2015). "Judith Chapman".
  3. ^ "Scalpel" – via www.rottentomatoes.com.
  4. ^ Curran, Barbara A. (2005). Dallas: The Complete Story of the World's Favorite Prime-Time Soap. Cumberland House Publishing. ISBN 978-1581824728.
  5. ^ Dawn, Randee (March 16, 2020). "Judith Chapman Cast As Nancy Reagan in Film on Tennis Legends Venus & Serena Williams".
  6. ^ Kroll, Dan J. (December 20, 2004). "With Van Ark out, Judith Chapman is Y&R's new Gloria". Soap Central. Retrieved August 16, 2012.
  7. ^ Kroll, Dan J. (March 4, 2011). "Judith Chapman dropped to recurring status". Soap Central. Retrieved August 16, 2012.
  8. ^ Thomas, Michael. "Judith Chapman Exits Days of Our Lives!".
  9. ^ Maloney, Michael (28 January 2019). "Judith Chapman Talks Her Return to 'Days of Our Lives' as the Mother of Greg Rikaart's Leo". TV Insider.
  10. ^ Logan, Michael (October 21, 2014). "Exclusive: Y&R's Judith Chapman Heads to The Bold and the Beautiful". TV Guide. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
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