Rebecca Andrea Thompson (born January 6, 1960)[1] is an American actress, known for her roles on the television series Falcon Crest, Babylon 5, JAG, 24, and NYPD Blue.
Andrea Thompson | |
|---|---|
 Thompson in 2013 | |
| Born | Andrea Rebecca Thompson January 6, 1960 Dayton, Ohio, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, journalist |
| Years active | 1986–present |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
Early life
editAndrea Thompson was born January 6, 1960, in Dayton, Ohio.[1] When she was six, her family moved to Australia. She left high school at 16, and after an extended period of travel, she moved to New York City. She began modeling and studied acting at the Strasberg Studio and the Herbert Berghof Studio under Uta Hagen.[2]
Career
editActing career
editThompson began her career as a voiceover artist, which continues today. Her first significant film role was in the 1987 film Wall Street. In 1989, she was cast on the soap opera Falcon Crest as the scheming Genele Ericson during the show's final season, and played photojournalist Maggie Dawson in the Season 3, Episode 2 of the series Quantum Leap. In 1991, she played Nurse Helen Caldwell in the comedy film Delirious. In 1993 she was cast on the science fiction television series Babylon 5 as telepath Talia Winters. Thompson left the series in the middle of its second season.
Thompson moved on to join the cast of JAG midseason as Commander Alison Krennick, an aide to the Judge Advocate General of the Navy and direct supervisor of Harmon Rabb. She was among several actors who left the show when it was canceled by NBC after one season before CBS picked it up. She then went on to play Detective Jill Kirkendall on four seasons of crime drama NYPD Blue, leaving in April 2000 to pursue a career in journalism.[3]
Journalism career
editThompson started to prepare for her journalism career in 1999, by earning her GED and working for one year with Jack Hubbard, associate director of Stanford University's News Service and a veteran journalist of CBS News.[4][5] During this time, she also took a writing seminar with KGO-TV's feature reporter Wayne Freedman.[6] She began her work with CBS affiliate KRQE in Albuquerque, New Mexico, as a general assignment reporter[7] for $26,000 per year.[8]
Thompson joined CNN Headline News as an evening anchor in June 2001.[9] CNN had laid off 400 of 4,000 employees in January, and was refocusing on personalities to draw in younger viewers.[10][11] Her first words on-screen as reporter were "Hi, I'm Andrea Thompson, and unless you've been living in a cave, you probably already know that."[12] Her hiring generated controversy in journalism circles, mostly because Thompson had just one year of journalism experience.[11] Nude pictures and videoclips of Thompson taken from her 1980s-era movies also began circulating on the Internet, causing some embarrassment for CNN.[13] Thompson left the network in March 2002.[14] During an appearance in January 2003, she made a statement indicating she left CNN because she disagreed with the way the news was handled, "Basically... you just give the viewers enough to scare the hell out of them, and not any real valuable information. And we saw so much of that after Sept. 11 that I thought was, frankly, irresponsible."[15]
After leaving CNN, she went to work for Court TV, introducing episodes of NYPD Blue and Forensic Files, as well as narrating the documentary series The System.[16] She began hosting Psychic Detectives in 2003.[17]
Return to acting
editThompson had a recurring guest role as Doctor Nicole Duncan on the third season of the television series 24, first appearing on that show in November 2003.[18]
In 2007, she appeared in season two of Bones in the episode "Spaceman in a Crater".
In 2009, she played Field Agent Anne Hudson in "Outfoxed", a season five episode of the series Criminal Minds.
Personal life
editThompson was married to David Guc from 1987 to 1990, and to Babylon 5 costar Jerry Doyle from 1995 to 1997. In 1992 she gave birth to a son.[1][2]
References
edit- ^ a b c "Andrea Thompson Biography (1959-)". Film Reference. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
- ^ a b "The Official Andrea Thompson Website". timem.com. Archived from the original on October 16, 2009. Retrieved September 6, 2009.
- ^ "Moving From Fantasy To Facts", CBS News, May 17, 2000
- ^ Gliatto, Tom (March 19, 2001) "Copping a New Beat". People, Vol. 55 No. 11
- ^ Hanania, Joseph (May 21, 2000). "A Sultry New Reporter For the Nightly News". The New York Times
- ^ Lafayette, Jon (June 2000). "Blues" to news with mixed reviews, Electronic Media, 19 (26):3
- ^ CNN, August 8, 2001 "CNN Headline News co-anchors Miles O'Brien and Andrea Thompson" Archived January 2, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "The Biz: Court TV tries to spice up Saturday". Advertising Age, August 2002
- ^ Furman, Matt (April 24, 2001). "Reporter, Former NYPD Blue Star Andrea Thompson Joins CNN Headline News". Time Warner
- ^ Brook, Tom (August 10, 2001). "CNN sets sights on young". BBC
- ^ a b Johnson, Cory (May 1, 2001). "CNN Goes Ahead With Thompson Hire". TheStandard.com. Archived from the original on May 1, 2001. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
- ^ "Victory for old guard as actress quits TV news". The Independent, March 17, 2002
- ^ "The New CNN: All the Nudes Fit for Air". Fox News, May 3, 2001
- ^ "Andrea Thompson Quits As CNN Anchor" Archived July 28, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. People
- ^ Coleridge, Daniel R. (January 14, 2003). "NYPD Blue Gal Meets Psychic Detectives". TV Guide. Archived from the original on March 14, 2010.
- ^ "Former 'NYPD Blue' Actor and CNN Anchor Andrea Thompson to host Saturday night programming block on Court TV". Court TV. May 28, 2002. Archived from the original on March 23, 2005.
- ^ "NYPD Blue Gal Meets Psychic Detectives". TV Guide, January 14, 2003
- ^ Adalian, Josef. "Thompson garners '24' gig", Variety August 14, 2003