HELGENBERGER ROLLS WITH THE CHANGES
Scripps Howard News Services / Reading Eagle
July 16, 1995
The former K.C. on âChina Beachâ plays a molecular biologist in the surprise hit âSpecies.â
The flaxen-haired Marg Helgenberger has changed a lot since she played the brittle K.C. on âChina Beach.â
Thereâs a good reason, she says, as she smooths the skirt of her blue-and-white checked sundress over her slender legs. Helgenberger is now the mother of a 4-year-old son.
âOh, you become a much better person,â she says, leaning forward. âThings start to make sense to you and you see a continuum of life. And you see what life is for and about.â
The Nebraska-born actress â who once worked in the corn fields picking tassels of corn â was never exactly a prima donna.
When she was discovered by a talent scout in a college production of âThe Taming of the Shrew,â she didnât wing off to Broadway with a dog-eared copy of Stanislavski under her arm. She finished school first.
Then a stint on the soaper âRyanâs Hopeâ sent her to Hollywood, where she snagged the role in âChina Beach.â
Itâs quite a leap from the camp-following prostitute to molecular biologist, but thatâs what she plays in the current sci-fi thriller, âSpecies.â
This is her second science-fiction foray. She starred in TVâs âThe Tommyknockersâ recently, and thatâs fine with her (though her secret longing is to play an action heroine like Linda Hamilton in âTerminatorâ or Sigourney Weaver in âAlien.â)
These are strong women, she says, and she likes that because Helgenberger herself is strong and rooted and provident.
She wasnât always that way. She is inclined, she says, to sit back and let things happen to her. âBut this business is too competitive,â she shakes her head, âand one has got to be more aggressive and go for things. Those are the ones that succeed. Talent is such a small fraction of what makes a successful movie star. Because itâs so much about other things,â she says, waving her right hand in a sweeping arc, âdrive, passion, and whatever you want. Thatâs probably No. 1.â
Married to actor Alan Rosenberg â who plays Cybill Shepherdâs ex-husband, Ira, on âCybillâ â Helgenberger laughs when she talks about the differences between them.
Grinning, she says, âMy husband gets by on talent and his personality. He doesnât network or stay in shape. Thatâs fine, just sit back and watch ESPN or maybe play golf. Heâs very smart and funny and people love him.â
One of those people is Helgenberger, who considers herself more driven. âIâm much more disciplined about staying in shape and taking care of myself, whereas Alan couldnât care less. Heâs a Jew from New Jersey. Iâm a Catholic girl from Nebraska â we couldnât be more opposite.â
Though she has been working for 14 years in an environment thatâs light years from her hometown of North Bend (population 1,200), Helgenberger sees it for what it is.
âItâs a hard business,â she says. âItâs hard on a person emotionally, psychologically â and it can be hard on a person financially because there are ups and downs. Itâs a field I chose and succeeded in, but itâs not always easy. Iâm constantly having to deal with that, especially being a woman. Iâm not 20 years old anymore, and a womanâs life span in this business is very short. Itâs a cruel business to women. Thank God I got that message early, back in my late 20s.â
Helgenberger is 36 but she realizes that show business often panders to youth.
âThank God that one of the things that got me by is that Iâve always tried to improve myself and be a better actress,â she says.