Karen
Lynn Gorney was born on January 28, in Beverly Hills, the
daughter of Jay Gorney, a Detroit attorney turned songwriter
after his move out west. He would later pen the immortal
"Brother, can you spare a dime?". Her mother, an actress,
and a writer and a dancer from Chicago, now lives in New
York. Her brother, Daniel, makes his home in Athens, Greece.
Karen, not interested in a career
as a "...blonde with silicon bosoms" chose to move to New
York where she enrolled at the High School of Performing
Arts. Later, she would attend Carnegie-Mellon in Pittsburgh
where she would earn a BFA in Acting/Speech, on a full
scholarship, and move on to a Master's degree in Acting, as
a Fellowship Student, at Brandeis University.
Her dramatic training included
studies with Jane Hoffman, Chris Ceraso-Ensemble Studio
Theatre, Ed Kovens, and last but certainly not least, the
Stratford Shakespeare festival, again, on a full
scholarship.
After working in regional theatres
in the Boston area, "All My Children" called, in 1970, and
Karen would become, for the first time, Tara Martin, a role
she created.
As Tara, Karen captivated the
audience; she was the very image of the modern young woman,
struggling with life and love.
Then, along came "Saturday Night
Fever."
Karen Lynn Gorney was chosen as
John Travolta's romantic lead in the 1978 John Badham hit
film, "Saturday Night Fever." Little did she know that the
movie would become the most recognizable symbol of an era,
effectively turning her into a cultural icon. As
"Stephanie," she made us laugh, again captured our hearts,
and made us want to cheer her on through her struggles to
make a life for herself, out of Bay Ridge and into the real
world.
She
continues to grace the large and small screen with movies
like Men in Black; Ripe, Law and Order; and the stage with
both Shakespearian and Modern Plays (see current News and
Resume.)
Karen was married, in July 1995, to
Mark Toback, a New York City musician who had been a buddy
since 1987. Karen loves cats and has two of them, enough to
keep her hands full! They are The Space Cadet and The
Buddha, a 3-year old, energetic brother/sister team. Karen
describes them as being "Part Abyssinian, part Siamese, part
nuts..."
She describes her hobbies as being
gardening, cooking, painting and ballet, and she admits a
particular fondness for decoration. Karen just finished THE
DUCHESS AND THE DUKE, playing the "Duchess of Windsor,"
first presented at the Greenwich Street Theatre, NYC this
spring. The production will continue this fall Off B'way,
after Karen returns from the NorthEastern Shakespeare
Ensemble in New Hampshire where she will play "Olivia" in
12th NIGHT."
