Karen Lynn Gorney

Actress

KAREN LYNN GORNEY

Karen Lynn Gorney was born on January 28, in Beverly Hills, the daughter of Jay Gorney, a Detroit attorney turned songwriter after his move out west. He would later pen the immortal "Brother, can you spare a dime?".

Karen moved to New York where she enrolled at the High School of Performing Arts. Later, she would attend Carnegie-Mellon in Pittsburgh where she would earn a BFA in Acting/Speech, on a full scholarship, and move on to a Master's degree in Acting, as a Fellowship Student, at Brandeis University.

After working in regional theatres in the Boston area, "All My Children" called, in 1970, and Karen would become, for the first time, Tara Martin, a role she created. As Tara, Karen captivated the audience; she was the very image of the modern young woman, struggling with life and love. Then, along came "Saturday Night Fever."

Little did she know when she was chosen as John Travolta's romantic lead in the 1978 John Badham hit film, "Saturday Night Fever," that the movie would become the most recognizable symbol of an era, effectively turning her into a cultural icon. As "Stephanie," she made us laugh, again captured our hearts, and made us want to cheer her on through her struggles to make a life for herself, out of Bay Ridge, and into the real world.

After a long gap from the public eye, during which she managed an art gallery in Manhattan, Gorney eventually returned to acting in the early 1990s, appearing in small roles in such films as “The Hard Way” (1991), “Ripe” (1996), and “Creating Karma” (2006), and returned to “All My Children” during 1995 in cameo spots.

More recently, she has guest-starred in several TV shows, including “Law & Order,” “The Sopranos,” and “Six Degrees,” as well as doing independent films and off-Broadway shows.

Karen's many independent films include “A Crime” (2006), with Harvey Keitel, and “Searching for Bobby D” (2005), with Sandra Bernhard. She was featured in the role of the Judge in the 2008 independent feature film “Dear J.”

Along with her acting work, Gorney is a singer and has released three albums: “Used to Love You Madly,” “Hot Moonlight!,” and “The Dance of the Deadly’s.” She has performed at various jazz clubs and cafes.

Karen's CD "Hot Moonlight!" is available on Amazon, and on her website. It has received international acclaim.