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If one measures Hollywood stars by such traditional markers as
grace, beauty, and sophistication, then Stefanie Powers harkens
back to Hollywood's Golden Era when stars were the essence of what
everybody dreamed to be. And if one measures the quality of a person
by their sense of dedication, their concern for the world around
them, by their ability to step outside themselves and see the greater
importance of community and society, then Stefanie Powers exemplifies
the "new Hollywood" -- smart, charismatic, committed and,
yes, sexy.
Actress Stefanie Powers, whose charming and thoughtful real-life
personality may most closely resemble stunning renaissance woman
Jennifer Hart, the character she portrayed on the hit television
series "Hart to Hart," has combined a natural curiosity
and passion for knowledge, world travel, and diverse cultures into
both an award-winning acting career and an equally active life of
heartfelt philanthropic work. The cornerstone of that work is the
William Holden Wildlife Foundation, a public charity dedicated to
the preservation of wild animals, which Stefanie helped to found
in honor of the late actor and for which she serves as president.
The William Holden Wildlife Education Center, which currently serves
10,000 students a year, is located near the Mount Kenya Safari Club
and the Mount Kenya Game Ranch started by Holden in the late 1950's
before conservation became a popular issue.
"The Foundation is an extremely large commitment," Stefanie
admits, "but it's not something I entered into without understanding
the full impact of the obligation. It's a lifelong commitment that
sometimes monopolizes one hundred percent of my time."
What's perhaps staggering for most of us who would find either acting
or extensive social work, each full-time occupations in themselves,
is that Stefanie's life only begins there. She makes the term well-rounded
a severe understatement. To begin, she runs her own production company,
which always has several projects brewing. Her acting credits include
28 feature films, such as "Experiment in Terror," "The
Interns," "McClintock!," "Die Die My Darling,"
"Love Has Many Faces," "Stagecoach," "Herbie
Rides Again" and "The Man Inside." Her television
credits include three television series: "The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.,"
"The Feather and Father Gang," and, of course, "Hart
to Hart." Her many mini-series include "Washington: Behind
Closed Doors," "Deceptions," "Mistral's Daughter,"
"At Mother's Request," "Burden of Proof" and
"Beryl Markham: A Shadow on the Sun," which she also produced.
Powers has also appeared on stage in many musical productions, including
"Oliver," "Annie Get Your Gun," "My Fair
Lady," and the London production of "Matador." She
also starred as the legendary Margo Channing in the revival of "Applause--The
Musical All About Eve" during its U.S. tour, showcasing her
singing and dancing prowess for American audiences. She was reunited
with Robert Wagner in the play "Love Letters" in London's
West End, followed by tours of the play in many cities in the U.S.
and Canada. The "Hart to Hart" pair later recreated their
weekly TV series in eight 2-hour movies for NBC-TV and The Family
Channel.
Powers recently hosted the well-received seven-part series on personal
investing called Funding Your Dreams for the PBS Network and participated
as a correspondent for Mungo Park, Microsoft's on-line adventure
magazine. She also hosted a 13-part series on wine for the Romance
Classics network called Wine Express and is the subject of a Lifetime
Intimate Portrait produced for Lifetime Television.
Travel has always been an important part of her life, and in pursuit
of more meaningful experiences, she has taught herself to be conversant
in seven languages. "I never travel frivolously," says
Stefanie. "There is always some prevailing curiosity or interest
which involves me wherever I go." She travelled to the Czech
Republic for the Family Channel's "The Good King," a special
and enjoyable experience since it was near enough to Poland to visit
during filming (she is of Polish descent), but vacationing is not
a part of her lexicon. "I don't 'do' holidays well, sitting
around drives me mad."
As if that's not enough, she launched a fragrance line on QVC called
Rare Orchid that, in keeping with her environmental concerns, is
created by capturing the orchid's scent in the wild and replicating
it without harming the plant itself. "It's a way to borrow
from nature without destroying," she explains. She is also
involved with several American zoos (among them, the Cincinnati
Zoo and Zoo Atlanta) where she works with species survival programs
and has released two home videos, one on horseback riding and the
current "Stefanie Powers' Broadway Workout" from Lightyear
Entertainment, a 47-minute fitness workout underscored with Broadway
showtunes. "Every once in a while, all these things come crashing
together," comments Stefanie on her crowded schedule. "You're
obviously going to have those moments if you involve yourself with
a lot of things."
What's her solution? Just keep going. "I feel very privileged
to have been on the tail end of the 'Star System,'" explains
Stefanie. "I began to work at 15, and when I was put under
contract at Columbia, they still believed in 'grooming' their young
hopefuls. That process allowed me to learn how movies were made
since the studio was my playground. In many ways, the experience
of working with such movie greats as John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara,
Bing Crosby, Van Heflin, Glenn Ford, Lee Remick, Lana Turner, Cliff
Robertson, David Niven, Claudia Cardinale, helped to give me a sense
of the importance of balancing career and life. Tahlulah Bankhead
and Helen Hayes became friends after our work together and gave
me a sense of appreciation and respect for all those greats who
set such a high standard for all of us to follow.
"But they all said the same thing -- 'when the makeup comes
off, you still have to go home and face your life; make sure it
is as satisfying as the one you left at the dressing table.' I think
I have."
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