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Constance Towers took over the role of Helena Cassadine in 1997. Her elegance, charisma, and beauty made it hard to believe that she was one of the most villainous women on daytime television. Although cold, calculating, and fabulously malicious, the matriarch of Port Charles' Cassadine family does in fact have a soft spot for her grandson Nikolas.
Constance had dreams as a child of one day being an opera singer and at the age of eleven, actually turned down a contract from Paramount Pictures. Her family then moved to New York where she attended both the Julliard School of Music and the American Academy of the Dramatic Arts. Her first professional role was in a summer production of Carousel, which inspired her to forget her operatic aspirations and pursue a career in musical theater. She is now a respected veteran of Broadway who is remembered most for her starring role as Mrs. Anna in the 1978 revival of The King and I. Ms. Towers' other stage appearances include The Sound of Music, Kiss, Me Kate, 42nd Street, Oklahoma!, Camelot and Mame.
Constance has been honored for her work on stage on many occasions. She won the New York Critic's Outer Circle Award for Excellence in Theater, the American Academy of the Dramatic Arts Achievement Award, and the Best Musical Actress of 1974 from the New Jersey Drama Critics Association. In addition to her numerous stage appearances, she is also an accredited actress in television and motion pictures. Her big screen debut came opposite John Wayne and William Holden in John Ford's The Horse Soldiers. Her recent films include A Perfect Murder with Gwyneth Paltrow, and The Relic. She has appeared on many television shows including a starring role on Capitol, and guest appearances on such series as L.A. Law, Designing Women, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Providence, Baywatch, and Frasier. She received an Emmy nomination for her dramatic performance in the Television Network special, Once in Her Life.
Constance has been married to John Gavin since 1974, and she has four children, Michael and Maureen McGrath, Cristina and Maria Gavin; and a grandson, Gavin Patrick McGrath. Through her husband's work as the former U.S. ambassador to Mexico, Constance has been able to be involved with numerous charitable organizations. After the 1985 Mexico City earthquake she founded Project Connie, an organization that offered aid to those in need of medical and rehabilitation assistance. To date, the organization has provided a new orphanage in Mexico City, adoption placements in U.S. homes for over 20 children from Mexico and El Salvador, and helped aid many devastated families in rebuilding their homes and helping them start new lives. In addition, Constance now sits on the boards of the Children's Bureau of California, the National Health Foundation, and The Red Cross and The Blue Ribbon of Los Angeles.
Constance Towers feels she had a wonderfully blessed life, both personally and professionally, and her greatest desire is to share those blessings with others all around the world. She is doing that through her acting and vocal gifts, and through her dedicated work with Project Connie.
Acting Portfolio
Providence
Candice Whitman-Cromwell
2000
Kelly Kelly
Kate
1998
General Hospital
Helena Cassadine
December 19, 1997 to April 9, 2002; October 16-17, 2003; December 24, 2003; January 16, 2004 to October 2004; January 2005; April to May 2005; October 2005; November 2005; January 2006; April 13-21, 2009; June 4, 2009
Sunset Beach
Julianna Deschanel
1997
The Young and The Restless
Audrey North
1996
Capitol
Clarissa McCandless
1982-1987
Caroline in the City
Barbara
1995) --->
Silk Stalkings
Karen Krane
1994) --->
Thunder in Paradise
Cavanna
1994) --->
Frasier
Clarise
1994) --->
Thunder in Paradise
Cavanna
1994) --->
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Ambassador Taxco
1993) --->
Civil Wars
1992) --->
Sidney Sheldon's The Sands of Time [TV Movie]
1992
2000 Malibu Road
Camilla
1992
Baywatch
Maggie James
1992) --->
Memories of Midnight [Mini-Series]
1991
Matlock
Alice Wyndemere
1991) --->
Designing Women
Louise Pollard
1990) --->
Christine Cromwell
1989) --->
MacGyver
Francine Leyland Dalton
1989) --->
Midnight Caller
Teresa Chandler
1989) --->
L.A. Law
Charlotte Kelsey
1988) --->
1987) --->
Murder, She Wrote
Margaret Witworth
1987) --->
On Wings of Eagles [Mini-Series]
Margot Perot
1986
Capitol
Clarissa McCandless
1982-1987
Fantasy Island
Maggie Dunphy
1981) --->
The Rockford Files
Sally Packard
1979) --->
Fantasy Island
Shirley Forbush
1979) --->
Hawaii Five-O
Mrs. Thorncrest
1975) --->
Love Is a Many Splendored Thing
Marian Hiller
1971-1972
The Bell Telephone Hour
Herself
1966) --->
Perry Mason
Leona Devore
1965) --->
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre
Louise Menke
1965) --->
The Outer Limits
Laura James
1964) --->
Perry Mason
Joanne Pennington
1964) --->
Perry Mason
Natalie Graham
1964) --->
Perry Mason
Esther Metcalfe
1963) --->
Perry Mason
Jonny Baker
1961) --->
Zane Grey Theater
Beth Woodfield
1961) --->
Adventures in Paradise
Laura
1960) --->
State Trooper
1957) --->
A Perfect Murder
Sandra Bradford
1998
The Relic
Mrs. Blaisedale
1997
Thunder in Paradise 3
Cavanna
1995
The Next Karate Kid
Louisa 'Louisa-San' Pierce
1994
The Nutt House
Mrs. Henderson
1992
Sylvester
Muffy
1985
Fast Forward
Jessie Granger
1985
The Naked Kiss
Kelly
1964
Fate Is the Hunter
Peg Burke
1964
Shock Corridor
Cathy
1963
Sergeant Rutledge
Mary Beecher
1960
The Horse Soldiers
Hannah Hunter
1959
Bring Your Smile Along
Nancy Willows
1955
THEATRE
The King and I
At the Uris Theatre.
Ari
At the Mark Hellinger Theatre.
The Engagement Baby
At the Helen Hayes Theatre.
Anya
At the Ziegfeld Theatre.
Daytime Emmys Nomination, Television Network special, "Once in Her Life"
DATE OF BIRTH: May 20, 1933
HEIGHT: 5'8"
HAIR:White
EYES: Hazel
MARITAL STATUS: Married; John Gavin (1974)
News Archive: GH confirms the return of Helena Cassadine. [May 13, 2011]
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