Kellie Martin Appears in Various Articles

Kellie Martin has of course appeared in several articles over the years. I had the luck to dig up three excellent articles out of the archives of the Internet.

The first article documents how big a life transition it was for Kellie to move and go to work on the set of Christy. The second article is during a time when Kellie was deciding whether or not to go to Yale. The last article is from the good old days when Kellie starred as Becca on Life Goes On. I hope you find these as enjoyable as I did.

Life after Life Goes On

Barney Rosenzweig remembers the sinking feeling he got last summer when he surveyed scores of dolled-up teenagers trying out for his new CBS miniseries, Christy, about a straitlaced young schoolmarm who leaves her comfortable North Carolina home in 1912 to teach destitute youngsters in the hills of Appalachia: "They were all too sophisticated or sexualized" says the executive producer. "You could see it in their eyes, in the way their mouths moved. Then Kellie walked in, sat down and started talking. I wrote 'Bingo' next to her name."

The wholesome contender was Kellie Martin, 18, best-known for her four-season, Emmy-nominated run as Becca on ABC's Life Goes On. On Life, she played opposite Chris Burke as the serious-minded younger sister of a teenage boy with Down syndrome. She brought to the part an appealing blend of gravity and vivacity--qualities that Christy needed as well. "Christy has a lot of faith in people, and so do I," says Martin. "We're both naive and both sheltered. Christy is just me."

On location in Tennessee, Martin grew alongside her character. "Christy leaves home to work for the first time, and so did I," she says. "On Life Goes On, I was the baby on the set. In Tennessee suddenly my character was in charge of a bunch of children younger than me. I had to cook for myself. I worked long hours. I matured a lot in those four months."

At home, she hasn't been quite as sheltered as she makes out. Her parents divorced two years ago, and Kellie lives with her mother, Debbie, a former kindergarten teacher, and sister Heather, 15, in a three-bedroom apartment in the San Fernando Valley. She and her father, Doug, a retail executive, are still close and play tennis on weekends. But since the divorce, she says, "our house is more girly now, with flowers and everything."

It was girlish games of make-believe that first got Kellie interested in acting. When she was 7, her aunt--a governess for Michael Landon's children--got her an audition. Kellie landed a guest spot on Landon's Father Murphy, which led to parts on TV (thirtysomething) and in movies (Jumpin' Jack Flash). Now Martin longs for serious roles ("Anne Frank or Juliet or Ophelia") or perhaps something that would take her to Paris. "If I could be doing anything right now it would be sitting by the Seine, eating bread and writing," she says, still in thrall after a recent 10-day vacation in France. "My goal is to live in Paris."

But not right away, because that would mean leaving behind her boyfriend of the past year, actor Scott Weinger, 18, of Full House, whom she met during his guest spot on Life Goes On when Kellie was 13. Weinger will enter Harvard in the fall, and Kellie will attend Yale--if, that is, her series isn't picked up next month. "I'm in limbo," she says, "but it's a good limbo." Weinger seems less sure about that. "We intended to go to school an hour and a half apart, so we'd see each other all the time," he says. "If she becomes an ultra-mega star and gets all kinds of marriage proposals, what am I going to do?"

That's the least of her mother's worries. "I hope that when she goes on to school, she finds something to do when she's not acting," says Debbie. "I hope that isn't where her self-worth would come from." Not to worry, Mom. "I would love to write," says Kellie, all youthful enthusiasm. "I would love to direct. And I may find something I didn't know about." After all, she says confidently, "that's what you go to college for."

Going Together?

The hard part was getting accepted. Now actors Kellie Martin and Scott Weinger visit Yale to decide where they (and their relationship) are headed.

Kellie Martin and Scott Weinger (a star of ABC's Full House) have been best friends for years. "We met when we were thirteen," recalls Kellie, who's been acting since she was seven. " He was a guest star on the first episode of Life Goes On." Though they only recently starting dating, they've been through a lot together, including the pressures of growing up onscreen--and supersmart! Deciding which college to go to (and whether to go together) was tough, so Kellie and Scott checked out Yale for themselves. Seventeen came along for the ride. "I'd already accepted, so fortunately I loved it!" says Kellie. As for Scott? "He was still trying to decide, but we agreed that our relationship wouldn't affect which schools we chose."

Kellie could be better prepared than the average freshman: After four years as Becca on Life Goes On (at presstime, she'd just received an Emmy nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series), she now studies creative writing and science at UCLA, takes acting and ballet classes, has appeared in Steven Spielberg's new NBC show, Sea Quest--and puts on a play a week with an improv group. She even took her SATs--and finished a term paper--last year while filming on location in Florida. "I'm used to being on the set ten hours a day, so it's hard to learn to relax," she admits. "I do sleep--but I hate it!" (She'll feel right at home at Yale, where she plans to act, direct, produce--and spend her share of all-nighters in Sterling, the main library.)

Scott loved Yale, too, but ultimately decided on Harvard. "We won't be that far apart," Kellie points out. "Still, being on different campuses is like being in separate worlds." What they did agree on: taking time off before tackling freshman year. "I've got a few projects to finish up and a little growing up to do," says Kellie. "I just didn't feel ready this year--I cried at the thought of leaving, and I cried at the thought of not going. But I'm just deferring--I'm definitely headed for Yale!"

Kellie Goes On

Oh my gosh, Mom!" shrieked sixteen-year-old Kellie Martin. "I just got asked to the prom!" Unfortunately for Kellie--and for the cute guy in Oregon who had extended the invitation via fan letter--her taping schedule for Life Goes On doesn't allow time off for proms. "I did call to thank him," says Kellie.

A few months later on the show, Kellie's character, Becca Thacher, and her then-TV boyfriend, Tyler Benchfield, were dressed for the prom when her pregnant TV mom went into labor. Says Kellie, "We all ended up taking her to the hospital."

Even though that's the closest she has ever come to "the big night out," Kellie's heard enough about it from her friends to know what goes on. "You rent a limo, go to a nice restaurant, then to the dance, then to a party, then out for an early breakfast. It's definitely something I want to experience," says Kellie. She hopes to go this year with her real-life boyfriend, actor Joey Lawrence, who plays Joey Russo on Blossom. "He's a sophomore," says Kellie. "A younger man." Until then, it's back to long days of studying lines, taping the show, and taking classes in twenty-minute intervals with her tutor on the set. It's a life the Los Angeles-born actress has learned to love since she won her first part on the TV show Father Murphy at age seven. Many acting classes, commercials, and guest appearances later, she landed her role on Life Goes On.

"The show challenges me," says Kellie. "I always get new things to do. Comedy comes easy for me since I'm generally a happy person, but drama--especially crying scenes--is more difficult." That's why Kellie's story line for this season just may be her most demanding: She tries to help her new friend, Jesse McKenna, deal with the fact that he's tested HIV-positive. "It's changed the way I feel about AIDS," she says. "People think that you can't get it if it's the first time you're having sex. But it can happen to anyone. Once I got scared after I shook hands with someone who had AIDS, but then I thought, Wait, you can't get it this way; I'm not being smart about it." Now Kellie and her coworkers are getting involved in AIDS projects to educate others.

One thing Kellie and her TV persona have in common: They both had their first kiss on the screen. "It was the scariest thing I've ever done in my life," she says. "I was thirteen and he was twenty-three! It was so technical--there was a camera in my face and I had to make sure I didn't block his light or the camera angle. And there were all these people around. Now," she adds, " I love it when they write me kissing scenes."

And why not? It's probably one of the most exciting parts of her job. And we do mean job. "Some people think I just ended up on a hit series, but I worked hard to get here. Even the extra-stuff--like modeling for SEVENTEEN--is hard work, but since I don't get to do it too often, it's more glamorous for me." So are talk shows. "I've been on Good Morning America, and I did Arsenio once--that was so cool!"

That's what Kellie's thirteen-year-old sister, Heather, thought too--especially when Kellie had to buy a new outfit for the show. "We share all our clothes," says Kellie. "And when I go to work, I only wear my own clothes for about an hour a day; then I take them off and dress for the show. That's why the clothes I've outgrown are in great shape." Offscreen, Kellie's style is casual, usually jeans and a blazer or a dress if she's going out--which is basically Becca's style too. "Sometimes I borrow clothes from the show for the weekend," Kellie adds. So where do we sign up for acting lessons?

So now that Becca's getting hipper, prettier, and more confident, what's in store for her? "You know what?" says Kellie. "When they hand me a script, I'm just as surprised as everyone else." As for her own future, the 5'3-1/2" brunette is less in the dark. She plans to give her business-manager mom a break and jet off to college on the East Coast. "I want to major in English literature, minor in film, and do plays on the side," says Kellie. "Ultimately I'd like to direct ... maybe even win an Academy Award." Just like her idol, Jodie Foster. But after being recognized by a crowd at a Janet Jackson concert, where guards had to escort her and costar Chris Burke (he plays Corky) back to their car, she has just one wish: "I wouldn't want to be a superstar, like Julia Roberts or Madonna, and be on the cover of Us magazine when I'm twenty--that's how you know you're really hot. I'd rather have a long, respected career." We think she's off to a pretty great start....

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