Catherine Hicks - Artikel - Women And Success Magazine Fall 1999 - Englisch

Heaven on Earth

BY MARGOT HARRIS

With two loving families - one on the surprise TV hit 7th Heaven and one in "real life" - actress Catherine Hicks counts her blessings

Catherine Hicks is being tempted to indulge in the calorie-laden huevos rancheros on the breakfast menu at the Regent Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills. Instead, Hicks, who stars as Annie Camden, the wonderfully human mother of seven on The WB network's toprated 7th Heaven, opts for the cholesterol-free Alternative Breakfast - but with cheese (a no-no in LA). Considering the well-thumbed paperbook by a popular priest and The New York Times sticking out of her tote, the evidence is clear: After more than 20 years in the business, Hicks has not gone Hollywood. In fact, it's her Catholic upbrining that Hicks mentions first on her gratitude list. "I'm grateful for my faith, my childhood and my education," says Hicks, 47. "And that my mother is still alive at 84." She also adores her "handsome guy" husband and "awesome daughter." And though the waiter addresses her by name without the benefit of an introduction, the star saves the most obvious blessing for last: "I get to act every day."
Hicks, dressed in casually chic black (short skirt, jacket, leggings and suede flats), first caught Hollywood's attention with an Emmy nomination for her portrayal of Marilyn Monroe in the 1980 TV movie Marilyn: The Untold Story. She also starred in the soap Ryan's Hope and in such big-screen movies as Star Trek IV, Peggy Sue Got Married and Garbo Talks. On a movie set in 1988, Hicks met her husband, Kevin Yagher, a special effects artist 11 years her junior. "I told him I was 28," Hicks laughs. "He said, 'Catherine, I do make-up. Don't you think I know?'"
Despite such early success, it wasn't until three years ago that Hicks found her most popular role as Annie Camden. Or maybe the role found her. "I prayed it in," says Hicks, a practicing Catholic who majored in English and theology at Notre Dame University, before winning a drama scolarship to Cornell University, where she earned a master of fine arts degree in acting.
"Bail me out, please, God," she remembers saying. "Where will a job come from?" Though her husband can support her and their 7-year-old daughter, Catie, Hicks was looking for the income to maintain a nearby home for her recently widowed mother. "I had gone through my pension to keep it," says Hicks, "and my business manager and my husband were saying, 'You have got to sell.' It was so inconceivable to me. But what could I do? So I got a Realtor and put the sign up - then I'd call and say, 'Take it down!' I was just biding my time."

DIVINE INTERVENTION
Lo and behold, the King of Prime Time, producer Aaron Spelling - the same force behind steamy nighttime soaps Melrose Place and Dynasty - called Hicks to offer her the part on 7th Heaven, his new series about a minister and his wife struggling to keep their brood on the moral up-and-up. "I really think," says Hicks, "that if you ask - and you do other things or a right nature - you receive." She is well aware of how fortunate she is to have a thriving acting career. "7th Heaven is a miracle."
Indeed it is. The drama, which airs on the up-and-coming cable WB network, has more than triplet its viewership since it launched during the fall of 1996 on Monday nights. In fact, it's the family-focused 7th Heaven that continues to set WB ratings history - not the network's much-hyped teen trio of Felicity, Dawson's Creek and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode that featured Annie giving birth to twins shattered the WB ratings record and drew more viewers in its time slot than NBC's Mad About You and Suddenly Susan. And the show's February 1999 sweeps ratings were up 63 percent over the previous year's rating.
"I knew the script was good and the pilot was good. I knew that Stephen [Collins, who plays the Rev. Eric Camden, her husband] and I enjoyed working together," Hicks says. "I also knew that - because it was a small network - there was nothing in the wings waiting to replace us. They needed us."
"I knew they'd give us a long time. It was such a slow build, but from day one, the response was such that once people tuned in, they never tuned out. Because of the depth and the wit of Brenda's [Hampton, the series' creator and writer] writing and the humor, it could only grow."
It has. And with skyrocketing ratings, Hicks finds herself surrounded by more and more fans. "I can see in the eyes of the women who come up to me, and in the eyes of the children and the fathers and the single people, the young and the old - they are passionate about the show and they thank me for it. I've never had that happen before."

ADJUSTING TO SUCCESS
While Hicks enjoys the perks of her newfound fame, she is still adjusting to the time crunch associated with starring on a hit weekly TV show. Most of all, she's faced the challenge of balancing the demands of work and the needs of her family - particulary her daughter's. At first, "Catie and I were having a horrible time separating," Hicks remembers. "It was weird for her. Until then, I had been a partially working, full-time mom." And despite her positive relationships with the cast, she admits, "I was crabby, thinking 'Why am I spending time with these kids, when I have a real kid at home who's dying to be with me?'"
Over time, the two have created solutions that help them to be flexible and to make the most of their time together. Because Catie's school is close to the Santa Monica set and Hicks works irregular hours, they often can get together during the day. "Whenever there's down time, we visit," Hicks says. "I'll go see her or she'll come to me."
Co-star Collins occasionally observes Hicks' confilct on the set. "When you're a parent and you're close to wrapping and it's just before three o'clock," he says, "you think, 'If we finish this scene in the next 10 minutes, I can change and pick up my kids at school!' I can see that look on Catherine's face. And then three o'clock goes by. And dinner goes by. But she's too professional to say anything to anybody."

MAKING TIME FOR PRIORITIES
Hicks has learned to get creative in using even small snippets of free time to handle business and steal time for herself. During her drive to the set, she checks in with her mother on the phone, or takes care of other family duties. Hicks is also making the most of every available second work. "Part of the life on this set," says Collins, "is seeing Catherine on her portable phone, walking in for a take. They're literally saying 'Speed. Scene 48.' And she's whispering, 'OK, I gotta go!' She's managing a household from here and, God love her, that's incredably hard to do."
When she's not on the set, Hicks' little oasis of calm includes a daily 20-minute "quickie Mass" after dropping Catie at school. "Or when I'm at my mom's and Catie's playing with the girls next door - then it's peaceful. Or maybe I'll go to lunch and read The New York Times."
And just as her TV counterpart is devoted to her husband, so too is Hicks. She and Yagher make a point of reviving the romance that brought them together more than a decade ago. "We play our Frank Sinatra songs," she says. "We look at pictures." And today they share one of the strongest bonds of all - parenthood. "We look at our daughter and feel connected," she says.
During 7th Heaven's three-month filming hiatus, Hicks spends extra time with the other moms at Catie's Catholic school - who have inspired her to be as active as possible in Catie's school life. "The other mothers volunteer for everything," she says. "They run the Brownie meetings, they do everything Annie Camden does. As a result, their kids are doing really well academically. Even in first grade, the pattern is set." And even when 7th Heaven is filming, "It seems as if I'm at the school every spare minute. I'm determined, for my daughter's sake, to be as participatory as I can, even with the demands of my job."
Hicks also is planning to work with Catholic Relief Services as an extension of her faith, hoping to spread the message of its work on behalf of the needy around the world. "They have Mother Teresas everywhere," she says. "Paul Newman donates his proceeds to them and he's not even Catholic. So I'm talking with them to see how I can help." Her decision to reach out doesn't surprise anyone who knows her. "Catherine is a lifetime, never-been-lapsed Catholic who really practices her faith." says Collins. "She never proselytizes and she's not in anyone's face, but it's a very, very deep part of who she is."
At the moment, Hicks relishes the time spent with her family. "We make sure we put Catie on her own stage," she says. "She plays baseball and soccer and we go to all her practices. At night we read and I tuck her in, and in the morning, I make her breakfast and lunch - peanut butter and jelly the way she likes it, or tuna salad that's moist enough." Sounds a lot like Annie Camden. And so not Hollywood.




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© 2002 Catherine Hicks amazing