Facts of Life Star Joins Cast of Water Grave
Actress Julie Ann Piekarski is best known for her role as Sue Ann Weaver on The Facts of Life, but the St.Louis native got her first big break in 1977 when Disney cast the 12-year-old as a Mouseketeer on The New Mickey Mouse Club.
Her growing popularity on that show led to Julie to being cast as Sue Ann Weaver as part of the original cast of the popular NBC TV sitcom The Facts of Life. She went on to appear in several television shows, including Diff’rent Strokes, General Hospital, Quincy, M.E., and Three’s Company.
Most recently Julie has been cast in the role of Dr. Mandy Coleman, Medical Examiner, in the upcoming streaming series, Water Grave: Season 1 of The Abbey Rhodes Mysteries.
BuddyHollywood.com: We’re thrilled that you have joined the cast of Water Grave: Season 1 of The Abbey Rhodes Mysteries. I understand you’re already starting to make friends with other cast members.
Julie Piekarski: Yes. It has been so sweet. Eugena (Kuzmina) and Kristen (Sweeney) both tagged me and reached out on Instagram. So we’re friends now and following each other on social media. Which is really nice because it always helps to have a cohesive cast who actually like each other.
BuddyHollywood.com: I do have a little anecdote for you before I get started, because this just happened yesterday. A well know country music artist has just joined the cast, I’ll hold off on his identity until we make the formal announcement, but he asked about who else was in the cast, and we told him that you were playing Dr. Mandy Coleman, the medical examiner, and that you were on The Facts of Life tv show, and he said, “I love Facts of Life!” and starts singing the theme song. And then he said, “Now I’ve got that song in my head and I can’t get it out.” I thought you might get a kick out that story.
Julie: Oh, I love it! And it’s so true. It’s like when you go to Disneyand and see A Small World, you know, then you get that one in your head. It’s an ear worm. It’s funny how music can do that.
Julie Piekarski & Phil Vassar
BuddyHollywood.com: I’m excited to have you as part of the cast which includes a number of veteran actors as well as a fair number of fresh faces. I feel like one of the things that you’re going to bring to the cast of Water Grave is a certain level of maturity and seasoned experience. I think having someone like you on the set, who has essentially grown up in the industry, is going to elevate the quality of the newer actors’ performances. As they say, a rising tide lifts all ships.
Julie: I mean, obviously everyone wants to do their best, but it’s not about all about me. It is more about the final product that we put oput. And in the beginning, we’re all trying to figure out who our characters are. And then, eventually, when you find where your character lands, then you can kind of speak into that. I always believe you have to be open to what the writer envisions, so that’s kind of how I walk onto a new set and with a new cast. There’s always something to be learned.
And let me tell you, when you’re with people you’ve never worked with, whether they’re seasoned or they’re brand new, there’s a different kind of chemistry. And you know, just because I’m seasoned, I can still learn from others as well. To be honest with you, Mike, I am such a people person, I feed off of the energy of interacting with my fellow actors. The delivery from your scene partners can totally change your whole interpretation of how you’re going to feel, and your emotions, and how you’re going to respond, because you’re not trying to do lines, you’re trying to listen, and respond, and move the story along.
BuddyHollywood.com: You’ve kind of grown up in the entertainment community. Can you talk a bit about that?
Julie: When I was 12 years old, Disney went on a big nationwide talent search. Nowadays, that doesn’t sound like much, because you got American Idol, and The Voice, and all these talent discovery shows. But back then it was really unheard of. There were over 30,000 kids across the United States that auditioned. You had to send your resume and pictures. And I did. I was blessed to grow up in St. Louis where they had a wonderful regional theater, and I had been doing shows there, so I had a little bit of a resume. And I got invited to a live audition in Chicago, which led to a call back a couple of weeks later. I was hoping to maybe just get cast as an honorary mouseketeer, but when the call came I had been selected as one of the 12 mouseketeers.
It was literally a life-changing experience, and I have to tell you, Mike, I was very blessed with my schooling, and with my parents, and with how I was raised. It kept me grounded. I eventually got an agent and did some other auditions and landed a role on The Facts of Life. But my schooling was always very important to me, and I wanted to go to college. I was actually accepted into Stanford, but that was too far away from LA for me to work and do both, so I went to UCLA.
Phil Vassar and Kristen Sweeney star in the upcoming streaming series, Water Grave.
BuddyHollywood.com: What was the impetus for your decision to leave Hollywood?
Julie: It’s kind of crazy, because I left at the peak of my career, but I lost my dad at a young age. He died from a heart attack when he was 56. So I wanted to go back to home, which was in St. Louis at that time. I went back there and ended up getting married and raising a family there. I ended up working for a local TV station there as their entertainment reporter, which was a great experience, because I got to come back to LA lay on those movie junkets, and interview people like Robin Williams, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, and Oprah Winfrey. That was always fun.
I’m in a new season now, living in Birmingham, Alabama, and love it here. It’s wonderful being close to my daughter and Birmingham is a great town, near Nashville and Atlanta, not too far from New York. And my youngest is in New York performing on Broadway, so I yeah, it’s all good.
BuddyHollywood.com: At this stage of your career, what do you look for in a production? What are your must haves before you take a role?
Julie: I always ask myself, is this is this my purpose? Is this where it is? And is this where my talents lie? I definitely want roles that will challenge me. I’d love to do some good old-fashioned comedy. I grew up on Carol Burnett, and I got to work with John Ritter, so I would love to have a well-written comedy project. And I’m at in my stage of life where Id like to do something that digs down deep, something that lets people know they’re not alone. And there is a little part of me that would love to get on Dancing with the Stars.
BuddyHollywood.com: You’ve joined the cast of Water Grave: Season 1 of The Abbey Rhodes Mysteries in the role of the medical examiner, Dr. Mandy Coleman. What was that attracted you to the roll?
Julie: It’s wasn’t even just the role per se; it was just reading the script. It is so important to me for it to keep my attention. And I really could not put it down, so that’s huge for me. The second is the twist and the turns—I am one of those people that within the first five minutes of a whodunit I already know who did it, and there are only a few shows that are on TV that are very unpredictable. And with the screenplay for Water Grave, wow, I didn’t see that coming. I the intellectual, smart, cleverness of the way it was written was amazing!And I do love the characters relationships to each. And the character that I will be playing, I Love her little relationship. There’s a little cuteness, sassy, fun playfulness there. And you need to have a bit of lightheartedness when you’re dealing with certain scenes that are kind of heavy. But I also love the two detectives, Sam and Abbey. I love that their relationship that kind of simple and yet complicated at the same time, and how they bring out the worst of each other, and force their past experiences to the surface, and yet they complement each other as well.
The Seven Questions
What’s your favorite sound?
Julie: The laughter of my grandchildren.
What makes you happy?
Julie: Getting things done. I’m one of those list-making, productive people, so I get very happy when I get things on my list done. But I have found a joy in dancing. I used to dance, because I had to learn something for a show or something. And now, when I dance, I dance for myself and I just feel rejuvenated.
What makes you angry?
Julie: Lies. I cannot stand to be lied to. I cannot tolerate that because then the trust is broken on a deeper, stronger level. And anything that deals with hurting, abusing, or trafficking children. All of that really makes me angry.
What is the secret of success?
Julie: To be yourself. To be true and authentic to who you are, and to be grounded in faith.
Who would be your guests at a dream dinner party?
Julie: I think I’m gonna say Gene Kelly, Abraham Lincoln, and Jacqueline Kennedy.
What is the epitaph that’s written on your headstone?
Julie: What I would like it to say is, “Here lies a woman, who through dedication and unconditional love for all of her children and grandchildren, made a difference in their lives, and left this world a better place.”
When you get to heaven, what is the first thing you would like to hear God say to you?
Julie: My precious child. You passed the test and remained faithful. Look around you. This is your reward.
Last words?
Julie: I get a lot of questions from people who want to know how to get involved with the entertainment industry. But that is a hard question to answer, because this industry is constantly changing. There is a part of show business that I think helps people who are involved with it. It teaches you to speak, to stand in front of people, it gives you confidence. It teaches you about rejection, and yet you learn that life goes on. But I would say, at the end of the day, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. And that’s true whether you’re working in the entertainment industry or if you’re in the medical field. Watch your priorities, don’t get caught up so much in one thing that you’re missing out on what truly matters in this life.
Visit Julie Piekarski online at https://www.instagram.com/juliepiekarskiprobst/
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