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Christina Ann "Kristy" McNichol (born September 11, 1962) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Leticia “Buddy” Lawrence on the television drama series Family and as Barbara Weston on the sitcom Empty Nest.^[1] She is also the sister of former child actor Jimmy McNichol. McNichol retired from acting when she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 1992.^[2]

Early life and career

McNichol was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Carolyn McNichol Lucas, a business manager and actress, and Jim McNichol, a carpenter.^[3] Her father was Scottish and her mother of Palestinian background.^{[citation needed]}. She has got two brothers from that marriage: Thomas and Jimmy McNichol. Her parents divorced when she was six years old. When Kristy was 19 her mother remarried her German friend Siegfried Lucas (b 11.12.1953) who now lives in Germany again. In the same year Carolyn and Siegfried adopted Kristy's sister Jennifer Lucas.

Kristy McNichol appeared with her brother Jimmy in commercials and later, on her own, in guest appearances on such other series as Starsky and Hutch, The Bionic Woman, Love American Style and The Love Boat thanks to family friend Desi Arnaz. Her first stint as a series regular came with the role of Patricia Apple in the short-lived CBS television series Apple's Way (1974).

In 1976, McNichol was cast as Buddy in the television drama series Family (1976–80), for which she earned two Emmy Awards for Best Supporting Actress in a Dramatic Series (1977 and 1979). Many actors and actresses also guest-starred on the show, including Helen Hunt, Michael J. Fox and Leif Garrett. The show, produced by Aaron Spelling, was considered a breakthrough for television drama that dealt with "real life" issues.^{[citation needed]}

In December 1977, McNichol appeared on The Carpenters at Christmas TV special, performing several musical numbers with the duo. Following this in 1978, McNichol and her brother Jimmy made their own foray into music and recorded an album, Kristy & Jimmy McNichol, for RCA Records. The album included the single "He's So Fine" (a cover of The Chiffons 1963 hit) which peaked at #70 on the Billboard chart. The McNichols promoted the album at New York's Studio 54 discothèque, with other big-name celebrities in attendance such as Brooke Shields. In December 1978, McNichol would appear in another Carpenters holiday special, The Carpenters: A Christmas Portrait, this time with her brother Jimmy.

By this time, McNichol was one of the biggest teen stars of the era and appeared on various chat shows, including The Mike Douglas Show and Dinah!, as well as several appearances on Battle of the Network Stars and other celebrity-based shows. Also in 1978, she starred in the acclaimed made-for-television film adaptation of Bette Greene's Summer Of My German Soldier.

McNichol began her feature film career in the Burt Reynolds comedy The End in 1978. She later co-starred with Tatum O'Neal, Matt Dillon, and Cynthia Nixon in the hit coming of age movie, Little Darlings, in 1980. She appeared with Dennis Quaid and Mark Hamill in The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia (1981), for which, at age 19, she received an unprecedented six-figure salary. The same year, she co-starred in Neil Simon's Only When I Laugh for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress.

By 1982 McNichol's fortunes began to decline. She starred in the multi-million-dollar budgeted musical spoof The Pirate Movie alongside Christopher Atkins, but the film flopped at the box office. Later that year, McNichol failed to return to the set of Just The Way You Are after the production had halted for Christmas vacation. By this time, rumors of McNichol's alleged drug use were rife and it was often attributed as the cause of her increasingly problematic behavior later attributed to bipolar disorder. Although McNichol eventually completed the film, her reputation was severely damaged by the incident. Just The Way You Are under-performed at the box-office, despite a healthy opening weekend. After one more unsuccessful starring vehicle, 1986's Dream Lover, McNichol was subsequently offered only B-film titles and television movies. She supported lead actress Susan Sarandon in the 1986 TV movie Women of Valor, about American nurses being incarcerated in a Japanese concentration camp during World War II, and also appeared in cameo roles in two theatrical films of 1988: You Can't Hurry Love and Two Moon Junction.

In 1988, McNichol played Barbara Weston on the NBC sitcom Empty Nest, a spin-off from The Golden Girls. However McNichol's attendance once again became a concern, and she left the series in 1994 when she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.^[4] She returned to the series for its final episode in 1995, which was effectively her last ever screen appearance as an actress, though she went on to voice characters in the animated TV series Extreme Ghostbusters (1997) and Invasion America (1998).

Post-acting life

"A lot of people have wondered what I've been up to. I retired from my career after 24 years. My feeling was that it was time to play my biggest part – MYSELF! I must say that it has been the best thing that ever happened to me. So many fans are disappointed that I'm not currently acting, however some may not realize that the process I'm in at this time is necessary and vital for my personal happiness and well-being."^{[cite this quote]}

McNichol resides in Los Angeles, California. Since retiring from the screen, she has taught acting at a private school in Los Angeles and devoted much of her time to charity work.^[5]

Filmography

Films

TV series

TV appearances

Awards

• Emmy(s) Best Supporting Actress, Drama Series - Family (1977),(1979) ^[1]
• Favorite Young Performer - People's Choice Award (1980) ^[1]
• Young Artist Award - Only When I Laugh (1982)
• Razzie Award - Two Moon Junction (1989)
• Nominated for two Golden Globe Awards for Best Supporting Actress (Family - 1979), (Only When I Laugh - 1982) ^[6]

References

External links

• Kristy McNichol at the Internet Movie Database
• Kristy McNichol at TV.com