Kirstie Alley

 ( 1951 Births ) 

In 1982, Alley made her film debut in in the role of the Vulcan Starfleet officer Lieutenant Saavik. The Saavik character became very popular with Star Trek fans, but Alley chose not to reprise the role in the next two film sequels so the role was recast.

From 1983 to 1984, she was a regular on the ABC television series Masquerade. In the years following, Alley starred in a number of smaller films, including One More Chance, Blind Date and Runaway.

In 1985, she starred in the ABC miniseries North and South, and also portrayed feminist icon Gloria Steinem in the television movie A Bunny's Tale. In 1987, Alley starred alongside Mark Harmon in the comedy film Summer School. The film was a box office success, grossing over $35 million in the United States. She followed up with roles in films such as Shoot to Kill (1988), Madhouse (1990), and Sibling Rivalry (1990).

In 1987, Alley joined the cast of the NBC sitcom Cheers, where she played Rebecca Howe. She replaced Shelley Long. Alley remained with the show for six years until its eleventh and final season,Interview with Kirstie Alley. The Howard Stern Show, December 4, 2013. and earned an Emmy Award and Golden Globe.

In 1989, she starred with John Travolta in Look Who's Talking. The film grossed over $295 million worldwide. They then went on to make two other films centered on the same theme, Look Who's Talking Too (1990) and Look Who's Talking Now (1993). After two Emmy Awards nominations for her work on Cheers, in 1988 and 1990, Alley won the Emmy on her third nomination, in 1991. In her acceptance speech, Alley memorably thanked "my husband Parker, the man who has given me the big one for the last eight years."

Alley earned her second Emmy for the 1994 television film David's Mother. For her contributions to the film industry, Alley received a motion pictures star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard in 1995. Her later films included Village of the Damned (1995), It Takes Two (1995), Deconstructing Harry (1997), For Richer or Poorer (1997), and Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999).

From 1997 to 2000, Alley played the title character and was executive producer in the NBC sitcom Veronica's Closet, where she earned another Emmy and Golden Globe nomination. From 2000 to 2004, she served as a commercial spokesperson for Pier 1 Imports, and for Jenny Craig from 2004 to 2007. In 2005, Alley played a fictionalized version of herself on the show Fat Actress. In 2010, she was in the reality show Kirstie Alley's Big Life. From 2011 to 2012, Alley appeared as a contestant on seasons 12 and 15 of Dancing with the Stars, partnering with Maksim Chmerkovskiy.

Beginning in December 2013, TV Land aired a sitcom that centered on Alley as Broadway theatre star Madison "Maddie" Banks, who reconnects with her adult son who she gave up for adoption shortly after he was born. The series was titled Kirstie, and reunited her with former Cheers co-star Rhea Perlman and Seinfeld star Michael Richards. The series ran for five months.

In 2018, Alley appeared on season 22 of the British series Celebrity Big Brother; she finished in second place.

In 2019, Alley returned to the game show Match Game, where she was a contestant in 1979, this time as a celebrity panel. Host Alec Baldwin surprised Alley with a clip from the original series. This made her only the second former contestant to return as a panelist. (The first was actress Brianne Leary, who was a contestant in 1976 and a panelist in 1979.)

In 2022, Alley competed in season seven of The Masked Singer as "Baby Mammoth" of Team Cuddly.