Penny Johnson Jerald
Biography
Biography
Penny Johnson Jerald was an award-nominated American actress who possessed the versatility to immerse herself in comedic, science fiction and dramatic roles. Some of her best known roles were on television, which included Beverly Barnes on "The Larry Sanders Show" (HBO 1992-98), Kasidy Yates on the syndicated sci-fi series "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" (1993-99), and Sherry Palmer on "24" (Fox 2001-2010). She was born Penny Johnson on March 14, 1961 in Baltimore, MD. Passionate about acting, she attended the prestigious Juilliard School of Drama, where she showed off her ambition and knack for fiery roles. Looking to blaze her way through the television and film industry, she flew off to London mere minutes after graduating from Juilliard to make her mark as an actress. She immediately found her footing as Jerald's first credited role was on the anthology television series, "American Playhouse" (PBS 1982-1993), where she played the eponymous character on the episode titled "The Files of Jill Hatch: Part I." Jerald immediately followed it up with two small roles in feature-length films, as Genevieve in "Swing Shift" alongside Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn, and Wes Craven's "The HIlls Have Eyes Part II" where she died a gruesome death in the hands of the movie's murderous cannibal.
Jerald then began to seriously pursue her acting career in television. In 1984, she made guest appearances on two popular police shows, "T.J. Hooker" (ABC 1982-85, CBS 1985-86) and "Hill Street Blues" (NBC 1981-87), before settling in a recurring role on "The Paper Chase" (CBS 1978-79, Showtime 1983-86). Based on John Jay Osborn Jr.'s novel of the same name, Jerald played Vivian Conway, a law student at Harvard University. For several years afterwards, Jerald was persistent in her acting career, taking on small roles on various television shows. She worked alongside Bill Cosby on an episode of "The Cosby Show" (NBC 1983-92), right before she landed a lead role on a short-lived television series, "Homeroom" (ABC 1989). A vehicle for the comedian Darryl Sivad, Jerald played Sivad's wife for the show's 13-episode run. It would be several more guest stints on numerous TV shows and few more years before she nabbed the role of Beverly Barnes on HBO's hit comedy series "The Larry Sanders Show." For nearly the next six years, Jerald played the personal assistant of the show's titular late night talk show host.
During her time on "The Larry Sanders Show," she and her husband Gralin Jerald founded the Outreach Christian Theatre Company in 1994, where she taught acting workshops, and produced and directed plays. In the same year, she was introduced to the world of televised science fiction, when she was tapped to make an appearance on an episode of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" (1987-1994). After making connections with the show's creators, they had her return for another spin-off series, "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," where she played Captain Kasidy Yates, the headstrong and independent wife of Captain Benjamin Sisko. A couple of years after her space-faring days had ended, she transferred over to the world of counter-terrorism on Fox's "24." In her beefiest role to date, Jerald played Sherry Palmer, the tough-as-nails and ambitious wife of presidential candidate David Palmer. In the subsequent two seasons, her character became one of the show's frequent antagonists. In 2011, ABC welcomed Jerald to the cast of their hit crime series, "Castle" (2009-16). Jerald's fiery personality was on full display as Captain Victoria Gates, the uncompromising head of New York 12th Precinct.
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Cast (TV Mini-Series)
Life Events
1983
Television acting debut in "American Playhouse"
1992
Landed the role of Beverly Barnes on "The Larry Sanders Show"
1995
Played Kasidy Yates on "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine"
2001
Appeared on "24" as Sherry Palmer
2011
Played Captain Victoria Gates on "Castle"
