Morgan Fairchild rocks 'Fashion House'
By Anonymous Saturday, September 09, 2006, 12:40 AM EDT
MORGAN FAIRCHILD
Fairchild's involvement in raising funds for AIDS research and education kicked into high gear approximately 25 years ago, when it was announced that 13 cluster cases of Kaposi's sarcoma, "the gay cancer," emerged in New York and 11 cluster cases of pneumocystis carinii pneumonia were found in San Francisco.
All fired up on AIDS-related issues and an early gay-rights advocate, the actress immersed herself in medical research and kept abreast on developments.
"When it became a medical crisis," she said, "I was the only person in Hollywood who could go on 'Nightline' with Ted Koppel to explain a retrovirus in layman's terms, have it treated as a disease, and try to take the fear mentality out of it."
A member of the House Entertainment Industry Task Force, she also helped produce the AIDS prevention video "Safe Sex for Men and Women," and in 1985 testified before a special Congressional Committee on AIDS to warn, "Africa would be set back two or three generations because the disease would take their best and their brightest ... just as their economies are expanding and modernizing."
Between such exhausting activities as co-founding the Environmental Communications Office and sitting on the board of directors of the Hollywood Women's Political Committee, Fairchild finds time to play nasty, scheming, blond vixens on television - lots of them. This time, she stars in the sudser "Fashion House" - along with Bo Derek, Tippi Hedren and a huge cast of unknowns.
Patterned after hot and clammy Mexican and Colombian telenovelas - but shot in San Diego - "Fashion House" will air on the spanking-new MyNetworkTV channel five nights a week over the 13 weeks it takes to complete the show's 65-episode story arc. And if you dare to miss anything, recap episodes focusing on the previous week's storylines will air on Saturdays.
Fairchild, a sensuous beast at 56, plays Sophia Blakely, a manipulative, wealthy and revengeful investor who has hated Maria for so long that she can't remember why anymore.
The reason for getting involved with "Fashion House," according to Fairchild, "is that I'm intrigued by the whole concept of the new network and how it's marketing this show. And I like being part of a cutting-edge project, as when I was Mindy's rival for Mork's affection on 'Mork & Mindy' during the first season, or doing a little cameo on 'PeeWee's Big Adventure' long before it was trendy."
A campy romp, Fairchild sees the project as a whole lot of fun.
"Bo and I slug it out all the time - she can throw a punch and take one. We haven't done a Joan Collins-Linda Evans-in-the-pool yet, but stay tuned. The biggest problem is trying not to break up while doing and saying bitchy things to each other."
Dallas born and bred, Fairchild - born Patsy Ann McClenny - was introduced to an acting class by her schoolteacher mother at age 10 after she proved too timid to deliver a book report in class. By 12, she had joined a children's theater group; two years later, she was a finalist in the Miss Teenage Dallas pageant. At 16, she was a stand-in for Faye Dunaway in "Bonnie and Clyde."
Encouraged to change her given name by her actress sister, Cathryn Hartt, before splashing down in New York in 1971, Fairchild also gave modeling a shot before signing up as cold-blooded killer Jennifer Pace Phillips on the daytime soap "Search for Tomorrow." She went on to prime-time stints on "Flamingo Road," "Paper Dolls" and "Falcon Crest."
She created the Jenna Wade character during an incredibly short stint on "Dallas," but when she was forced to give it up due to a previous series commitment, the part was filled by Priscilla Presley. A very brief period on "The City" (formerly "Loving") in the mid-'90s sated her thirst for daytime programs.
A serious Marilyn Monroe memorabilia collector who seldom takes herself seriously, Fairchild has guest-starred on hundreds of TV shows - including recurring characters on series ranging from "Friends" to "Roseanne." Her movies may be few, but she picks up the slack touring with such plays as "The Graduate" and cranking out telefilms, including the upcoming "Initiation of Sarah" and "Shock to the System."
Her home is in Los Angeles with longtime boyfriend Mark Seiler, a film producer, but busy schedules often leave them to wave to each other from passing airliners at 35,000 feet over Oklahoma.
"It's a virtual marriage," Fairchild said. "It's hard to make a relationship work in this crazy business, but we fully understand it."
"Fashion House" premieres Sept. 5, 9 p.m., on MyNetworkTV.
