Wilma Jeanne Cooper
Genoa City Presence
Katherine Chancellor (1973 to Present)
At a Glance
Jeanne Cooper joined the cast of The Young and the Restless in 1973 as Katherine Chancellor, the grande dame of Genoa City. She has been nominated for Emmy Awards as Outstanding Leading Actress in 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1999. She won a Soap Opera Digest Award in 1989 as Outstanding Leading Actress and received the magazine's Editor's Award that same year. She also received the MVP Award from Soap Opera Update in 1990. She was the recipient of the Woman of the Year Award from the Pasadena Playhouse Alumni & Associates in 1989.
Jeanne has had a wide ranging television career including appearances in the series The Twilight Zone, Perry Mason, Maverick, and Ben Casey, a performance for which she received an Emmy nomination. She appeared with her son, actor Corbin Bernsen, in the television series LA Law (a role for which she received an additional Emmy nomination), Touched by an Angel and the television movie Beyond Suspicion.
Jeanne was also seen in the motion pictures The Man from the Alamo, The Boston Strangler and Tony Rome. Her theatrical productions include On the Town, The Miracle Worker, Plain and Fancy and a successful touring production of Plaza Suite. She also starred in Love Letters at the Canon Theater in Beverly Hills, California.
Jeanne attended the College of the Pacific and performed in the Civic Light Opera Company and Revue Theater in Stockton. She graduated from the famed Pasadena Playhouse School.
Jeanne founded a national volunteer support network called the Katherine Chancellor Society. She donates her time to several charities, hospitals and organizations, including the Humane Society of Hawaii, Greenpeace, the National Wildlife Association, and the Children's Hospital of Toronto. Additionally, her other charity work includes Children's Cancer Research (London), House of Hope (San Diego, California) and Drive By Agony (Lynwood, California).
She is the mother of three children, Caren, Collin, and Corbin and grandmother to eight. She currently lives with her two grandsons, Weston and Harrison, in Los Angeles.
Acting Portfolio
TELEVISION
Beyond Suspicion
Renata
1993
The Young and the Restless
Marge Cootridge
1989-1990
The San Pedro Bums
Mrs. McClory
1977
Sweet Hostage
Mrs. Withers
1975
The Young and the Restless
Katherine Chancellor
1973 to Present
The All-American Boy
Nola Bealer
1973
Bracken's World
Grace Douglas
1970
The Ford Television Theatre
Lois Powell
1956
Playhouse 90
Receptionist
1956
Crusader
Helen
1956
Crossroads
Mrs. Hinton
1956
Front Row Center
Leslie
1956
Highway Patrol
Laura Douglas
1956
The Man Behind the Badge
1955
Death Valley Days
1954-1955
The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse
Martha
1954
The Adventures of Kit Carson
Joyce Hadley
1953
Acting Portfolio
FILM
Carpool Guy
Mrs. Lunsford
2005
The Tomorrow Man
Jeanine (Present Day)
2001
Zach Shepard's Mother
1992
Kansas City Bomber
Trainer Vivien
1972
There Was a Crooked Man
Prostitute
1970
The Boston Strangler
Cloe
1966
Tony Rome
1967
Lorna Boyd
The Glory Guys
Mrs. Rachael McCabe
1965
Black Zoo
Edna Conrad
1963
The Commies Are Coming, the Commies Are Coming
Helen Donovan
1962
House of Women
Helen Jennings
1962
13 West Street
Mrs. Quinn
1962
The Intruder
Vi Griffin
1961
Let No Man Write My Epitaph
Fran
1960
Unwed Mother
Mrs. Horton
1958
Plunder Road
Fran Werner
1957
5 Steps to Danger
Helen Bethke, RN
1957
The Houston Story
Madge
1956
Over-Exposed
Renee
1956
Calling Homicide
Darlene Adams
1956
The Naked Street
Evelyn Shriner
1955
The Man from the Alamo
Kate Lamar
1953
Shadows of Tombstone
Marge
1953
The Redhead From Wyoming
Myra
1953
Awards & Acclaim
Daytime Emmys Winner, Lifetime Achievement Award (2005)
Daytime Emmys Winner Outstanding Lead Actress (2008)
Daytime Emmys Nomination, Outstanding Lead Actress (1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1999, 2007, 2008, 2009)
Daytime Emmys Nomination, Outstanding Supporting Actress (2005)
Daytime Emmys Pre-Nomination, Outstanding Lead Actress (2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010)
Daytime Emmys Pre-Nomination, Outstanding Supporting Actress (2005)
Soap Opera Digest Awards Winner, Outstanding Lead Actress (1989)
Soap Opera Digest Awards Winner, Editor's Award (1989)
Soap Opera Update Winner, MVP Award (1990)
Pasadena Playhouse Alumni & Associates Winner, Woman of the Year Award from the Pasadena Playhouse Alumni & Associates (1989)
Vital Statistics
PLACE OF BIRTH: Taft, California
DATE OF BIRTH: October 25, 1928
HEIGHT: 5' 3 1/2"
HAIR:Blonde
EYES: Blue
MARITAL STATUS: Single/Divorced; Harry Bernsen (1954 - 1977)
CHILDREN: Three; Corbin Bernsen, Collin Bernsen and Caren Bernsen.
News Archives
News Archive: Cooper wins first Daytime Emmy award. [Jun 20, 2008]
News Archive: Cooper to play porn queen in new movie, dual role on Y&R. [Oct 3, 2008]
News Archive: Jeanne Cooper earns chance to repeat as Daytime Emmy winner. [May 14, 2009]
