Courtney Thorne-Smith

Courtney Thorne-Smith
Thorne-Smith in 2013
Born	November 8, 1967 San Francisco, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1986–present
Spouse(s)	Andrew Conrad (m. 2000–01) Roger Fishman (m. 2007)
Children	1

Courtney Thorne-Smith (born November 8, 1967) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Alison Parker on Melrose Place, Georgia Thomas on Ally McBeal, Cheryl in According to Jim, and her recurring role on Two and a Half Men as Lyndsey McElroy.^[1]

Early life

Thorne-Smith was born in San Francisco, California, and grew up in Menlo Park, a suburb south of San Francisco. Her father, Walter Smith, was a computer market researcher, and her mother, Lora Thorne, was a therapist. They divorced when Courtney was seven years old and she lived with both parents at different stages. She has an older sister, Jennifer, who is an advertising executive. She attended Menlo-Atherton High School, in Atherton, California, and graduated from Tamalpais High School, in Mill Valley, California, in 1985. She also performed with the Ensemble Theater Company in Mill Valley while attending high school.

Career

Films

Thorne-Smith made her first film appearance in the 1986 feature film drama Lucas, alongside Winona Ryder, Corey Haim, and Charlie Sheen. She was also involved in a number of movies in the late 1980s, such as Welcome to 18 (1986),^[2] Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise (1987), Summer School (1987), and Side Out (1990). In 1998, she starred in the box office flop Chairman of the Board with Carrot Top. In 2009, she appeared in Sorority Wars.

Television

She appeared on a few mid-1980s television series such as Growing Pains and the short-lived Fast Times, as well as made-for-television movies including The Thanksgiving Promise and Infidelity before landing a regular role in the short-lived sitcom Day by Day with Douglas Sheehan, Linda Kelsey and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. In 1990, she was featured in six episodes of L.A. Law as Laker Girl Kimberly Dugan.

Her first notable starring television role was as Alison Parker on Melrose Place from 1992 to 1997. During this time, in 1995, she starred in a made-for-television movie Beauty's Revenge which was also marketed in CD and DVD form as "Midwest Obsession".^[3] Following this, she went on to play Georgia Thomas on Ally McBeal from 1997 to 2000. Thorne-Smith originally auditioned for the title role in the show, which ultimately went to Calista Flockhart. Her character was written out of Ally McBeal at the beginning of season four in 2000, though she returned for occasional guest appearances afterwards.

From 2001 to 2009, she starred as Cheryl on According to Jim. In 2007, her real-life pregnancy was hidden on the show at first, but was then written into the plot.^[4] On February 18, 2010, she signed on to play Alan Harper's girlfriend, Lyndsey McElroy, in season seven of Two and a Half Men.^[5] She appeared in two episodes of season seven and several others in seasons eight through twelve.

Writing

On September 18, 2007, Thorne-Smith's novel, Outside In, was published by Broadway Books in New York.^[6]

Spokeswoman

In 1997, she became a spokeswoman for Almay cosmetics, being the face of their new "Skin Stays Clean" line of make-up. She is also a spokeswoman for the Atkins diet.^[7]

Personal life

In the early 1990s, Thorne-Smith dated Andrew Shue, her on-screen lover from Melrose Place. In June 2000, the actress married geneticist Andrew Conrad; the couple divorced in January 2001.

On January 1, 2007, she married Roger Fishman, president of the marketing firm the Zizo Group and author of the book "What I Know."^[8] On January 11, 2008, aged 40, she gave birth to their first child, Jacob Emerson Fishman.^[9]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1986	Welcome to 18	Lindsey
1986	Lucas	Alise
1987	Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise	Sunny Carstairs
1987	Summer School	Pam House
1990	Side Out	Samantha
1995	Whisper of the Heart	Shiho Tsukishima	Voice role 2006 Disney dub
1997	The Lovemaster	Deb
1998	Chairman of the Board	Natalie Stockwell
2005	Batman: New Times	Catwoman/Ms. Kitka Karenska	Voice role

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1986	Fast Times	Stacey Hamilton	Main role (all 7 episodes)
1986	The Thanksgiving Promise	Sheryl	Movie
1987	Growing Pains	Photography class student	Episode: "Nude Photos"
1988–1989	Day By Day	Kristin Carlson	Series regular (33 episodes)
1990	L.A. Law	Kimberly Dugan	6 Episodes
1990	Anything But Love	Allison Andrews	Episode: "All About Allison"
1992	Jack's Place	Kim Logan	Episode: "Everything Old is New Again"
1992	Grapevine	Lisa	Episode: "The Lisa and Bill Story"
1992–1997	Melrose Place	Allison Parker	Series regular (158 episodes)
1994	Breach of Conduct	Helen Lutz	Movie
1995	Beauty's Revenge	Cheryl Ann Davis	Movie
1996	Partners	Danielle	Episode: "The Year of Bob?"
1997	Duckman: Private Dick/Family Man	Herself	Episode: "Bonfire of the Panties"
1997	Spin City	Danielle Brinkman	Episode: "Starting Over"
1997–2002	Ally McBeal	Georgia Thomas	Main role (69 episodes)
1999	Partners	Gina Darrin	Episode: "Always..."
1999	Ally	Georgia Thomas	12 of 13 episodes
2000	Norm	Rebecca	Episode: "Norm and the Hopeless Cause"
2001–2009	According to Jim	Cheryl	Main role (182 episodes)
2009	Sorority Wars	Lutie Parker	Movie
2010–2015	Two and a Half Men	Lyndsey McElroy	Recurring role: 52 episodes (seasons 7–12)
2016	Fresh Off The Boat	Anne	Episode: "Jessica Place"

Awards and nominations

Year	Association	Category	Nominated work	Result
1998	Screen Actors Guild	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (shared with rest of cast)	Ally McBeal	Nominated
1999				Won
2000				Nominated

References

1. Full cast for "Two and a Half Men" at The Internet Movie Database
2. Welcome to 18 profile, Internet Movie Database; accessed May 1, 2014.
3. "Beauty's Revenge" at The Internet Movie Database
4. Courtney Thorne-Smith's Pregnancy Written into Show, TVGuide.com, October 22, 2007.
5. Rick Porter (February 18, 2010). "Courtney Thorne-Smith woos one of 'Two and a Half Men'".
6. Outside In reviewed, USA Today Book Review, September 20, 2007.
7. "Why Courtney Lives Atkins", atkins.com.
8. Clinton, Ivory (January 9, 2007). "Courtney Thorne-Smith Marries". People.com.
9. "Courtney Thorne-Smith Has a Boy". People.com. January 11, 2008.

External links

• Courtney Thorne-Smith at the Internet Movie Database
• Courtney Thorne-Smith at AllMovie