Deborah Raffin
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Bibliography
Biography
With her classic good looks, Los Angeles native Deborah Raffin seemed destined for show biz stardom. But while she has worked steadily since the 1970s, she has never found a signature role to propel her to fame. The daughter of 1940s starlet Trudy Marshall, Raffin worked as a model and, after branching out into acting with a few early roles, landed a high-profile part opposite Kirk Douglas in the 1975 adaptation of the Jacqueline Susann best-seller, "Once Is Not Enough." She starred as an innocent woman sent to prison in the 1976 TV film "Nightmare in Badham County," which made her a star in China when the film was released there theatrically; she appeared in "God Told Me To," Larry Cohen's oddball sci-fi mystery, in the same year. Despite nearly landing leads in "Grease" and "Superman," Raffin started finding more opportunities in television than on the big screen. In 1981, she played the Goldie Hawn role in the short-lived TV adaptation of the hit comedy "Foul Play," and in 1985, she played the romantic interest in the Charles Bronson vigilante vehicle, "Death Wish 3." She landed a recurring role in the popular Aaron Spelling drama "7th Heaven" in 1996 but had more success co-founding (with her then-husband, producer Michael Viner) the pioneering audio books company Dove Audio.
Filmography
Director (Feature Film)
Cast (Feature Film)
Writer (Feature Film)
Producer (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Director (TV Mini-Series)
Cast (TV Mini-Series)
Producer (TV Mini-Series)
Life Events
1973
Made her feature film debut in "40 Carats" opposite Liv Ullmann and Gene Kelly
1975
Cast in the romantic drama "Once Is Not Enough," starring Kirk Douglas
1976
Starred in the TV movie "Nightmare in Badham County" (ABC), which was a theatrical hit in China
1980
Played actress Brooke Hayward opposite Jason Robards in "Haywire" (CBS)
1985
With music producer husband Michael Viner, launched Dove Books-on-Tape
1988
Co-starred with Pierce Brosnan in the NBC miniseries "Noble House"
1988
Co-produced the CBS miniseries "Windmills of the Gods"
1990
Compiled celebrities' Christmas anecdotes for the book <i>Sharing Christmas</i>
1991
Played a telepathic woman in the cult film "Scanners II: The New Order"
1996
Cast in a recurring role as Aunt Julie on the family drama series "7th Heaven" (The WB, The CW)
1997
Sold the Dove Books-on-Tape Company
1999
Made her directorial debut with the drama "Family Blessings," which she co-directed with Nina Foch
2003
Helmed two episodes of "7th Heaven"
2008
Guest starred as a doctor on ABC Family's "The Secret Life of the American Teenager"
Family
Companions
