Quirky Santa Barbara

- Nancy Grahn Made A Small Part Big By Playing Julia As A Neurotic - July 29, 1992

 

On a recent visit to Skokie to see her family, actress Nancy Grahn slips into the deli in a floral shift, with no makeup and little fanfare.

Under normal show-biz circumstances, the actress would be swamped by fans.

Grahn stars as lawyer Julia Capwell on NBC`s ``Santa Barbara``, and though the soap has consistently ranked in the bottom one-third of daytime dramas over its eight years, the critics have raved and fans in 35 countries have clamored for its sophisticated humor and depiction of California lifestyles.

``I`m like Madonna in France,`` Grahn says, with a laugh. ``My pictures are plastered on the subways.``

Grahn, playing Julia for seven years, has transformed the role from a supporting role to an atypical romantic leading lady. Her character is grounded in reality and illuminated with quirks.

``People relate to my character so much. They say, `I know this woman!` I think it`s because I brought a neurosis to her,`` Grahn says, picking at a bialy.

``There`s so many characters in daytime, there`s just not enough situations to make everyone original. So making her somewhat neurotic made her look more film-like to me.``

Born and raised in Skokie, Grahn began her professional acting career when she landed a plum role at 19 in a Goodman Theatre production of ``Guys and Dolls.``

``It made me feel connected,`` says Grahn. ``I never saw myself married but I always saw myself acting. It was something I had command of. Besides, there was nothing else I could do. I can`t type, I can`t sew, I can`t cook.`` Grahn moved to New York the next year, where she studied with famed Method acting instructor Sandy Meisner and went on to play everything from Shakespeare to ``Little House on the Prairie.``

In 1985, Grahn moved to Los Angeles and joined the cast of ``Santa Barbara.``

``It was the only soap that I considered doing,`` she says. ``It was so witty and literate.

``We sort of catapulted females on soaps into the `90s,`` Grahn adds, noting that she and the show`s writing team were in sync.

``Usually a romantic lead is more of a heroine, the pretty princess. Julia had a baby on her own. She contracted for it even though she hated the man at the time; she thought he had good genes.

``She`s the most political female in daytime. She`s pro-choice, and a bleeding heart Democrat.``

Still it wouldn`t be soap without hyperbole, and Grahn`s character has had her share of troubles to endure: Julia has been held captive, raped by an environmentalist, lived with an alcoholic and married her baby`s surrogate father (Mason, played by ex-``Dynasty`` star Gordon Thompson), all the while practicing witty repartee as well as law.

Grahn, who won an Emmy in 1989 for her wide-ranging characterization, says with a laugh: ``We`ve kept her very versatile, from farce to very serious.

``It`s the only way you can do a character on a soap. Otherwise the audience will get bored. I don`t want anyone to ever anticipate what I`m going to do. I want them to be surprised.

``I try to act truthfully in imaginary situations,`` she adds. ``It`s like peeling the layers of an onion. You have to keep asking the question

`Why?` all the time. `Why would she say this, why would she do this?` ``

Why does Grahn ask why? To keep her character honest, she says.