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Ana Alicia Ortiz Torres (born December 12, 1956) is a Mexican-American retired actress who performed in theatre and on television. After getting her television start by spending a year on the daytime soap-opera Ryan's Hope, she gained international recognition for her role as scheming vineyard heiress Melissa Agretti on the long-running primetime soap opera Falcon Crest which she portrayed for seven seasons from 1982 until 1988. She has also performed in few single episode guest-starring roles on various televisions shows or in television movies most years from the late-1970s to the mid-1990s.
On summer break after her freshman year, Ortiz auditioned for The Adobe Horseshoe Dinner Theatre outside El Paso, Texas. The theatre offered her a position as a recurring actress in all feature productions. The opportunity would allow her to work with name actors from Hollywood and New York and receive a large weekly salary. She accepted the offer and also acquired her actor's equity card through her term. She left Wellesley College, instead pursuing her bachelor's degree in drama at the University of Texas at El Paso to be closer to her mother and three brothers.
Her first professional role under an AEA contract was as one of the Pigeon Sisters in a production of The Odd Couple starring Bob Denver at The Adobe Horseshoe Dinner Theater in El Paso.
Ana Alicia spent the next three years performing in main stage productions at UTEP as well as having significant roles in the Adobe Horseshoe repertoire.
Now going by "Ana Alicia" professionally, she landed several guest roles in episodic television, including Starbuck's love interest, Aurora, in the 1979 Battlestar Galactica episode "Take the Celestra" and Gloria Alonzo in the episode "Space Croppers" of the series sequel Galactica 1980. Between these she appeared as Falina Redding in the Buck Rogers in the 25th Century episode "Vegas in Space." In 1979 Ana Alicia appeared in the made-for-TV movie The Sacketts as Drusilla, the love of Tyrell Sackett. The movie was based on the Louis L'Amour books The Sacketts and The Daybreakers. She played a major role in the 1981 TV movie Coward of the County, which also starred Kenny Rogers, and was based on his hit song of the same name. In 1982, she was cast in the role of spoiled, selfish vineyard heiress Melissa Agretti on Falcon Crest as a replacement for actress Delores Cantú who had played Melissa for one episode in early 1982. Ana Alicia appeared in the 1983 TV-movie, Happy Endings, opposite John Schneider and her former Ryan's Hope co-star, Catherine Hicks.
In 1989, Ortiz appeared with Raúl Juliá in the movie Romero, her only non-television film role, apart from Halloween II in 1981. Then in 1990, Ana Alicia appeared in the 1990 made-for-TV movie Miracle Landing as flight attendant Michelle Honda. The film is based on an in-flight accident aboard Aloha Airlines Flight 243 that occurred in April 1988. Ana Alicia continued to play guest roles on episodic television, including two episodes in the action series Renegade which reunited her with her former Falcon Crest screen husband Lorenzo Lamas.
Alicia sang two songs on the soap, Falcon Crest. The first song was "Goody Goody", a famous 1936 song composed by Matty Malneck with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. The song was first sung by Bing Crosby. The second song was "Body and Soul". It was written by Edward Heyman, Robert Sour, Frank Eyton and Johnny Green in 1930. The song was presented by Libby Holman in the revue Three's a Crowd and used as the theme of the 1947 film, Body and Soul, becoming a jazz favorite. Falcon Crest Blog: Ana-Alicia singing on Falcon Crest
In October 2010, Ana Alicia appeared in a promotional video for the Norwegian television show Gylne Tider. She and other celebrities filmed a cover of The Beatles song "Let It Be". Celebs sing "Let It Be" for Gylne Tider, Leslie Nielsen cameos.
Ana Alicia was the national spokesperson for The Humane Society of the United States. She has given out awards promoting Hispanic accomplishments in the media from the Golden Eagle Awards.
Family
Alicia married producer and entrepreneur Gary R. Benz on April 24, 1994; they divorced in 2016.
Filmography
+Television 1977–1978 Ryan's Hope Alicia Nieves 1978 The Next Step Beyond Angela Mendoza Episode "Portrait of the Mind: (1.9) 1979 The Hardy Boys Suzanne Clifford Episode "Life on the Line" (3.10) 1979 Battlestar Galactica Aurora Episode "Take the Celestra" (1.20) 1979 The Sacketts (TV movie) Drusilla 1979 Buck Rogers in the 25th Century Falina Redding Episode "Vegas in Space" (1.3) 1979 The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo Millie Rogers Episode "The Boom Boom Lady" (1.9) 1980 Galactica 1980 Gloria Alonzo Episode "Space Croppers" (1.9) 1980 Quincy, M.E. Nurse Nancy Berger Episode "No Way to Treat a Patient" (5.22) 1980 Roughnecks (TV movie) Yolanda Suarez 1980 Condominium (TV movie) Thelma Messenkott 1981 B. J. and the Bear Dolores Episode "Seven Lady Captives" (3.11) 1981 Coward of the County (TV movie) Violet 1981 The Ordeal of Bill Carney (TV movie) Lisa Saldonna 1982 McClain's Law Episode "A Matter of Honor" (1.8) 1982 Tattletales Herself 5 Episodes 1982–1988 Falcon Crest Melissa Agretti Cumson Gioberti 173 Episodes 1983 Happy Endings (TV movie) Veronica 1983 Battle of the Network Stars XV Herself - CBS Team 1984 Hollywood '84 (TV miniseries) Herself Episode (1.2) 1984 The Love Boat Samantha Gregory Episode " My Mother, My Chaperone/Present, The/Death and Life of Sir Alfred Demerest, The/Welcome Aboard: Part 1: (8.11) 1984 The Love Boat Samantha Gregory Episode "My Mother, My Chaperone/Present, The/Death and Life of Sir Alfred Demerest, The/Welcome Aboard: Part 2" (8.12) 1985 Hotel (TV series) Mary Ellen Carson Episode "Bystanders" (2.17) 1986 The CBS Easter Parade (TV special) Herself - Host 1987 (TV movie) Herself 1988 Moonlighting Mary Erin-Gates Episode "And the Flesh Was Made Word" (4.14) (as Ana-Alicia) 1989 Falcon Crest Samantha Ross 5 Episodes 1990 Miracle Landing (TV movie) Michelle Honda (as Ana-Alicia) 1991 Life Goes On Shanna Grey Episode "Lighter Than Air" (2.21) 1993 Rio Shannon (TV movie) Dolores Santillan 1994 Murder, She Wrote Sgt. Hilda Dupont Episode "Northern Explosion" (10.11) 1994 Acapulco H.E.A.T. Linda Davidson Episode "Code Name: Easy Riders" (1.12) 1994 Renegade Dr. Grace Prescott Episode "Sheriff Reno" (2.19) (as Ana-Alicia) 1996 Renegade Angela Baptista Episode "Hard Evidence" (4.19) (as Ana-Alicia) 1997 Duchess of Earl / Businessman's Daughter Episode "The Pied Piper" (5.2) (Voice) 2004 E! True Hollywood Story Herself Episode "Scream Queens" 2015 Frontera Roja Soila Episode "Reencuentros" (1.1)
Music
+Singing 1985 Falcon Crest (TV series) "Mairzy Doates" Episode "Cold Comfort" (4.23) 1987 Falcon Crest (TV series) "Goody Goody" Episode "Cold Hands" (6.23) 1987 Falcon Crest (TV series) "Body and Soul" Episode "Body and Soul" (6.24) 1987 Falcon Crest (TV series) "Body and Soul", "Goody Goody" Episode "Loose Cannons" (6.25)
Theatre
1973 "The Odd Couple" Pigeon Sister Adobe Horseshoe Dinner Theater "Busybody" Adobe Horseshoe Dinner Theater "Boeing, Boeing" Adobe horseshoe Dinner Theater
Awards and nominations
+Awards 1986 Soap Opera Digest Awards Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role on a Prime Time Serial Falcon Crest 1988 Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role: Prime Time 1989 Outstanding Villainess: Prime Time 1990 Outstanding Supporting Actress: Prime Time
External links
Categories: Mexican Film Actresses, Mexican Television Actresses, Mexican Actresses, American Actors Of Mexican Descent, American Soap Opera Actresses, American Stage Actresses, American Film Actresses, American Television Actresses, Mexican Emigrants To The United States, Actresses From El Paso, Texas, University Of Texas At El Paso Alumni, Living People, 20th-century American Actresses, 20th-century Mexican Actresses, 21st-century Mexican Actresses, 21st-century American Actresses, 1956 Births
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