Cybill Shepherd

Cybill Lynne Shepherd, born February 18, 1950, is an American actress, singer, and former model. She gained widespread recognition with her film debut and breakthrough role as Jacy Farrow in Peter Bogdanovich's coming-of-age drama The Last Picture Show (1971). Over her multi-decade career in film and television, she has earned three Golden Globe Awards and performed across drama, comedy, and stage productions.

Shepherd was born in Memphis, Tennessee, as the second of three children. While attending East High School, she won the Miss Teenage Memphis title and represented her city at the 1966 Miss Teenage America pageant at age 16, receiving the congeniality award. She went on to compete in the 1968 Model of the Year contest at age 18, leading to fashion modeling assignments through high school and afterward. In 1970, her appearance on the cover of Glamour magazine caught the eye of film director Peter Bogdanovich, leading to her debut casting.

Following the success of her debut, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination, Shepherd starred opposite Charles Grodin in Elaine May's hit comedy The Heartbreak Kid (1972). She collaborated further with Bogdanovich on Daisy Miller (1974), the musical At Long Last Love (1975), and the 1990 sequel Texasville. She also launched a singing career in 1974 with the album Cybill Does It...To Cole Porter. After playing Betsy in Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976), she appeared in films such as The Lady Vanishes (1979), Chances Are (1989), Woody Allen's Alice (1990), Once Upon a Crime (1992), Do You Believe? (2015), Being Rose (2017), and How to Murder Your Husband: The Nancy Brophy Story (2023).

Shepherd's first major television role came as Colleen Champion in the drama series The Yellow Rose (1983). Her career-defining role was Madelyn Hayes on the detective comedy-drama Moonlighting (1985–1989) alongside Bruce Willis, for which she won two Golden Globe Awards for Best Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy. She later starred as Cybill Sheridan on the sitcom Cybill (1995–1998), earning her third Golden Globe Award. Her subsequent television work included roles on The L Word, Psych, 8 Simple Rules, and the television movie and series The Client List.

In addition to film and television, Shepherd performed in regional theater, touring productions such as Lunch Hour, and made her Broadway debut in the 2012 revival of Gore Vidal's The Best Man. In 2000, she hosted a short-lived talk show adaptation of Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus and published her bestselling autobiography, Cybill Disobedience, co-written with Aimee Lee Ball. She has also been active in advocacy for gay rights, same-sex marriage, and abortion rights, receiving a National Ally for Equality award from the Human Rights Campaign in 2009.