Michael Learned

Michael Learned (born April 9, 1939) is an American actress, known for her role as Olivia Walton in the long-running CBS drama series The Waltons (1972–1981). She has won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series four times, which is tied for the record of most wins with Tyne Daly. Three of the wins were for The Waltons (1973, 1974, 1976), while the other was for Nurse (1981-1982).

Early life Learned was born in Washington, D.C., the eldest daughter of Elizabeth Duane ("Betti"; née Hooper) and Bruce Learned, a diplomat. Her maternal grandfather also worked for the United States Foreign Service (of the U.S. State Department), and was an attaché for the United States Embassy in Rome (Italy). She has five younger sisters: Gretl, Susan, Sabra, Dorit and Philippa. She lived on a Connecticut farm for the first 10 years of her life. Learned said that her parents never explained why she received a masculine first name, once saying of her father: "All he told me was that if I had been a boy, I would have been named Caleb, but I was a girl, so I was called Michael." When she was 11, Learned moved to Austria, where her father worked for the U.S. Department of State. At this time, she attended Arts Educational School, Tring, (now the Tring Park School for the Performing Arts in Tring, Hertfordshire, England, (United Kingdom). During this time, she discovered the theater and acting, and decided to make acting her life's work.

Career Television and film Her first substantial role in either film / motion pictures or television was as the character Olivia Walton, the wife of John Walton, Sr. on The Waltons drama / nostalgia television series, which ran for nine seasons from 1972 to 1981. For the first five seasons of the show she was billed as "Miss Michael Learned" because she was relatively unknown at the time and producers wished to avoid confusion among viewers about her gender. By the sixth season, as the show continued its success after the departure of co-star Richard Thomas (born 1951), these concerns had been alleviated and the "Miss" was dropped from Learned's billing in the credits. She was nominated for six Emmy Awards as Lead Actress in a Drama, winning three times. After the end of the sixth season, she agreed to appear for one more season on the condition that she would not have to work the full nine months schedule. After the seventh season she left the show. Her character's abrupt disappearance in Season 7 was explained by Olivia developing tuberculosis and entering a sanatorium in hot and dry Arizona. She returned briefly in Season 8 and later appeared in four of the six subsequent Waltons sequel / reunion made-for-TV films and specials made, with three during 1982 and during the 1990s (1993, 1995 and 1997). For her portrayal of Olivia Walton, Learned was also nominated for four Golden Globe Awards. During her run as Olivia Walton, Learned and The Waltons co-star, Will Geer, also appeared together in the 1974 made-for-TV movie Hurricane.

Learned made her big screen debut in 1980, playing the supporting role in the drama film Touched by Love. She later appeared in Power (1986) and Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story (1993), and well as number of made-for-television movies. Learned starred as Nurse Mary Benjamin in the hospital drama Nurse, which ran on the CBS-TV network for six episodes in the spring 1981 and then for the following 1981–1982 seasons. Though the series was well received critically, it was not a big ratings success and lasted only two partial seasons. Nevertheless, Learned was nominated for two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actress and won yet another Emmy for this role in 1982. She later had starring roles in the unsuccessful 1988 series drama Hothouse and the 1989 sitcom Living Dolls and reprised her Waltons role for a number of television movies and reunions in the 1990s. In 1995, during the second season of The Secret World of Alex Mack, she guest-starred as a ghost who regretted the decisions of her long-estranged granddaughter, revealed at the end to be the show's main villain, Danielle Atron (Louan Gideon). In 2005, Learned played Judge Helen Turner on the ABC-TV network's daytime soap operas All My Children and One Life to Live as part of the "baby switch" storyline on both shows. She guest-starred in Scrubs as Mrs. Wilk in five episodes from the show's fifth season. She played Shirley Smith on ABC's other long-running soap opera General Hospital in 2010. In late 2011, Learned played Katherine Chancellor on the CBS daytime soap opera, The Young and the Restless, filling in for longtime actress Jeanne Cooper, who was on extended medical leave from the series. In 2022, Learned returned to television with starring role in the Netflix limited series, Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story playing Catherine Dahmer, Jeffrey Dahmer's grandmother.

Theatre In the late 1960s, Learned and her husband Peter Donat appeared in various roles with the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, California. She has appeared in many stage productions on Broadway in off Broadway, in New York City and elsewhere, including the 2006–2007 national touring production of the play On Golden Pond.

In the fall of 2008, she starred in the Innovation Theatre Works' production of Driving Miss Daisy, playing the title role of retired Atlanta, Georgia school teacher Daisy Werthen, opposite Willis Burks II as Hoke and Dirk Blocker as Daisy's son Boolie. She reprised the role opposite Lance E. Nichols as Hoke at the Judson Theatre Company in March 2013.

Personal life Learned has been married four times. Her first husband was Canadian-American actor Peter Donat (1928–2018), whom she married in 1956 when she was 17 years old. The marriage was dissolved 16 years later in 1972. She had three sons by that marriage, one of whom is actor and business executive Lucas Donat (born 1962). Her second marriage, to Glen Chadwick, lasted only from 1974 to 1976 and also ended in divorce. In 1979, she married actor-screenwriter William Parker. Doherty died in 2025.

In a 2002 article she wrote for the Daily Word, a publication of the Unity Church, Learned states that at the time she was cast in The Waltons in 1971, she had "hit rock bottom". Then, at age 32, Learned realized she was an alcoholic. Taking herself to former husband Peter Donat's remote cabin on the California coast, she decided to "get sober" and that her time there was the beginning of a spiritual journey. Learned further stated in the article that she has been sober since 1977.

Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1980 Touched by Love Dr. Bell 1986 Power Governor Andrea Stannard 1993 Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story Vivian Emery 1997 Life During Wartime 2000 For the Love of May Mary Lou Short film2005 Lethal Eviction Elsa Loggerheads Sheridan Bellamy 2007 The Killer The Innkeeper Short film 2009 An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong Nana Louis Hanlon 2014 Unplugged Grandma Katie Short film The Parcel Beverly After Life Gloria 2018 Second Acts Lee Marston Short film

Television films Year Title Role Notes 1963 The Other Man 1974 Hurricane Lee Jackson It Couldn't Happen to a Nicer Guy Janet Walters 1978 Little Mo Eleanor Tennant 1980 Nurse Mary Benjamin A Christmas Without Snow Zoe Jenson 1982 Mother's Day on Waltons Mountain Olivia Walton 1984 The Parade Rachel Kirby 1986 A Deadly Business Ann Picnic Rosemary Sidney 1986All My SonsKate Keller American Playhouse 1987 Mercy or Murder? Skipper 1988 Roots: The Gift Amelia Parker 1990 Gunsmoke: The Last Apache Mike Yardner 1991 Aftermath: A Test of Love Irene Murder in New Hampshire: The Pamela Wojas Smart Story Judy Smart Keeping Secrets Marion Mahoney 1992 Mattie's Waltz Mattie 1993 A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion Olivia Walton 1995 A Walton Wedding 1997 A Walton Easter 1998 A Father for Brittany Edna Humphreys 2017 Life Interrupted Marni Woodworth

Television series Year Title Role Notes 1968 Wojeck Nina Eden 2 episodes 1972–1979 The Waltons Olivia Walton 168 episodesPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (1973–1974, 1976)Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Television Series Drama (1973–1976)Nominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (1975, 1978–1979)1973 Gunsmoke Mike Yardner Episode: "Matt's Love Story" May Lassiter Episode: "A Game of Death... An Act of Love Part 2" Match Game 73 Herself Episode: "1.6" 1973–1974 Insight Sister Janet 2 episodes 1974 Police Story Linda Keitlinger Episode: "Love, Mabel" 1981–1982 Nurse Nurse Mary Benjamin 25 episodesPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama SeriesNominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series 1984 St. Elsewhere Sister Millicent Domencia 2 episodes 1988 Hothouse Dr. Marie Teller 7 episodes 1989 Murder, She Wrote Maria Hudson Episode: "Trevor Hudson's Legacy" Who's the Boss? Trish Carlin 2 episodes Living Dolls Trish Carlin 12 episodes 1990 Wiseguy Rachel 2 episodes 1994 Reading Rainbow Herself Episode: "Appelemondo's Dream" 1995 The Secret World of Alex Mack Ghost of Paradise Valley Episode: "The Secret"1998 Profiler Helen Waters 3 episodes Promised Land Dolly Carstens Episode: "The Secret of Bluestem"2000 Pensacola: Wings of Gold Congresswoman Benedict Episode: "Article 32" So Graham Norton Herself Episode: "3.8" 2003 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Candace Lamerly Episode: "Privilege" 2005 All My Children Judge Turner Episode: "1.9044" One Life to Live Hon. Judge Turner 2 episodes 2006 Scrubs Mrs. Wilk 7 episodes 2009 Cold Case Louise Patterson '09 Episode: "WASP" 2010 General Hospital Shirley Smith 21 episodes2011 Mr. Sunshine Maggie Episode: "The Best Man" The Young and the Restless Katherine Chancellor 13 episodes 2022 Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Catherine Dahmer