arts and entertainment
a
Tom Dyer
manda BearSe waS
the cover girl on the very first issue of Watermark back in August 1994. But the actress, famous for her role as ditzy Marcy D’Arcy on the hit television series Married… with Children (1987-1997), played a far more significant role in LGBT history. A year before she graced our cover, Bearse became the first actor on a primetime network show to come out. The Advocate cover story was big news and broke ground for Ellen, Rosie and a cavalcade of entertainers.
Bearse is also hometown hero. At Winter Park High School, legendary theater teacher Ann Derflinger encouraged her acting talent. In 1981, Bearse went to New York and landed a role on the soap opera All My Children that lasted for three years. In 1985, director Tom Holland cast Bearse in his horror classic Fright Night. As Amy Peterson, Bearse transitioned from girl-next-door to bloodsucker and joined Kirsten Dunst (Interview With the Vampire) as one of the most memorable female vampires in film history. Bearse will join fellow cast members and other horror stars (Neve Campbell, Malcolm McDowell, Burt Reynolds, Barry Bostwick) at Spooky Empire’s Ultimate Halloween Weekend at the Hyatt Regency Orlando from Oct. 30-Nov. 1. Bearse directed more than 30 episodes of Married… with Children. She’s spent the bulk of her career since behind the camera, directing episodes of Reba, Mad TV, The Jamie Foxx Show, Dharma & Greg, and Veronica’s Closet. In 2006 she teamed with Rosie O’Donnell to direct The Big Gay Sketch Show on Logo. I spoke with Bearse by telephone from her home on Vashon Island, Washington, a picturesque island in the middle of Puget Sound where she lives with her wife, Carrie Schenken. “We were living in Seattle and when I discovered
loCal leGend
cOntinued On pg. 38 | uu |
winter park’s amanda bearse was an lgbt groundbreaker. sHe returns Home to celebrate FrigHt nigHt at spooky empire.
watermark Your lgbt life.
Oc tOb er 22 - NOv emb er 4 , 2015 // Issue 2 2. 2 2
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