Marcia Strassman |
Wiki |
Marcia Strassman (born April 28, 1948) is an American actress best-known for her roles as Julie Kotter in the TV sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter and Diane Szalinski in the 1989 feature film Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and its first sequel.
Strassman was born in New York City. Among her earliest acting credits was an appearance in an episode of The Patty Duke Show. In 1967, she became a recording artist for UNI Records. Her debut single, "The Flower Children", was a top 40 hit in many West Coast U.S. markets, most notably hitting #4 in San Diego and #2 in San Francisco; the track also hit the top 40 in Vancouver, Canada. However, the single failed to break out nationally in either country, stalling at #103 (U.S.). Strassman's followup release, "The Groovy World of Jack & Jill," charted in Denver but virtually nowhere else. A third single, 1968's "Star Gazer" (produced by Kim Fowley), failed to chart anywhere and brought Strassman's brief recording career to a close.
Returning to acting after a gap of a few years, Strassman landed the recurring role of nurse Margie Cutler in the earliest episodes of M*A*S*H. A regular character who was also shown in the opening title sequence when the series began, she disappeared from the show and was cut from the title sequence after appearing in just six episodes.