To some, PRIVATE BENJAMIN will always be thought of as Goldie Hawn. But to others, she will be another actress, one that may not be as well known, Lorna Patterson.
Lorna actually played the character longer. For three seasons on CBS, running 39 episodes between 1981 and 1983, Lorna played Judy Benjamin, everyone’s favorite spoiled princess turned army soldier.
Lately, Lorna hasn’t been heard from much.
PRIVATE BENJAMIN may not even be the role you remember her from. After beginning her career in guest roles in several TV shows she played one of the flight attendants in a little film called AIRPLANE.
She had the unforgettable moment, playing the guitar to the sick girl.
She followed that role up with a TV movie, SIDNEY SHORR: A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND, as a single mother who befriends a lonely older man (who was supposedly gay, but that was just hinted at in the story) played by Tony Randall. This film went on to become the sitcom LOVE, SIDNEY, with Lorna being replaced by Swoosie Kurtz.
She was most likely replaced since she went on to star in PRIVATE BENJAMIN.
PRIVATE BENJAMIN, the series, was a popular show, enough that it aired in syndication for much of the 1980’s. Lorna appeared along with original film cast members Eileen Brennan and Hal Williams.
PRIVATE BENJAMIN turned out to be the biggest role of her career. She would act throughout the rest of the 80’s, in guest starring roles in various TV series, such as HOTEL and, once again, MURDER SHE WROTE but never in a starring role like in PRIVATE BENJAMIN. There was a 1991 episode of MAJOR DAD and her last appearance was a 1993 TV show called BASIC VALUES.
So, what ever happened to her?
In 1983, she married actor Robert Ginty (THE EXTERMINATOR, countless TV series). It appears that this coincides with her drop off of acting. She became a wife.
Later (date unknown) they were divorced and she married Michael Lembeck. Michael Lembeck you may remember as one of the husbands in the later seasons of ONE DAY AT A TIME. He is now a major television director. They are still married and have two children.
Lorna has become a stage actress. She was one of the founding members of the Musical Theatre Guild in Los Angeles. She still acts there today.
Thursday, January 03, 2008
What Ever Happened to Lorna Patterson
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5 comments:
I always watched PRIVATE BENJAMIN & totally always remember Lorna. That series seems to have fallen off the face of the Earth-I haven't seen it anywhere for years. When my partner & I watched AIRPLANE a couple of months ago, I made a point of saying Lorna played Private Benjamin in the TV series & my partner just totally did not remember her at all. Too bad, she was really very funny on the show-didn't Eileen Brennan reprise her film role? She was always so funny.
Hey, do you remember a really kind've stupid 70's sitcom (but I always watched it-even in reruns) called CARTER COUNTRY? Now that's a show nobody seems to remember-Victor French & Richard Paul (two 70's tv regulars) were two of the stars. It wasn't "bad," but it was pretty corny if I remember right.
I think you got me! I don't remember CARTER COUNTRY.
MZ-let me see if I can find some info or links & will post them here-I have the theme song for it playing in my head today. Believe me, it was really pretty lame if I reember right-it was just typical cornball 70's humor.
For some reason, they played it in syndication for awhile here eve after it went off the air. It took place partly in a small town police station & it's big thing was that they had their first African American officer & of course, that created trauma for all the local stereotypical rednecks.
Well, I struck out on Youtube, but here are some links on CARTER COUNTRY:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carter_Country
http://www.retrojunk.com/details_tvshows/1659-carter-country/
http://timstvshowcase.com/carter_c.html
At least it proves I'm not losing it! It did exist! LOL! :)
My family lived right behind Lorna's in Whittier when we were little kids, a block wall separating the residences. She came over to play with my sister frequently and she was always a sweetie, as I remember. I'm happy she found a career in performing and wish she would surface again, her talent is missed.
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