Marlo Thomas

Margaret Julia Thomas, known professionally as Marlo Thomas, was born on November 21, 1937, in Detroit, Michigan, and raised in Beverly Hills, California. The eldest child of comedian Danny Thomas and Rose Marie Cassaniti, she grew up in a Lebanese American and Sicilian American household. Her siblings include a sister, Terre, and a brother, producer Tony Thomas. Her godmother was actress Loretta Young. The nickname "Marlo" derived from her childhood mispronunciation of "Margo," the name her family used for her. Thomas attended Marymount High School and later earned a teaching degree from the University of Southern California, where she was a member of the sorority Kappa Alpha Theta.

Before establishing herself as a leading television presence, Thomas built her early career through guest appearances on programs including Bonanza, McHale's Navy, Ben Casey, The Donna Reed Show, My Favorite Martian, and 77 Sunset Strip, among others. In 1961, she and her father appeared together in the CBS episode "Honor Bright" of Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre, playing Laurie and Ed Dubro. Her stage career began to take shape in 1965 when director Mike Nichols cast her in the London production of Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park, alongside Daniel Massey, Kurt Kasznar, and Mildred Natwick.

Thomas rose to national prominence starring as Ann Marie in the ABC sitcom That Girl, which aired from 1966 to 1971 and produced 136 episodes. The series followed a young single woman pursuing an acting career in New York City, and Thomas was among the first women to produce her own television series, following Gertrude Berg, Lucille Ball, and Betty White in that distinction. When both ABC and sponsor Clairol pushed for the series finale to end in a wedding, Thomas refused, arguing the message would be harmful to her female audience. That Girl has remained popular in syndication.

Following the end of That Girl, Thomas studied at the Actors Studio under Lee Strasberg until his death in 1982, and subsequently with his disciple Sandra Seacat. She won a Primetime Emmy Award for Best Dramatic Actress in 1986 for the television film Nobody's Child, acknowledging both teachers in her acceptance speech. Over the course of her career, Thomas received three Primetime Emmy Awards, a Daytime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Peabody Award for her television work, and was inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame. She also received a Grammy Award for the children's album Marlo Thomas and Friends: Thanks & Giving All Year Long.

Thomas's Broadway career spanned from 1974 to 2011. Nichols directed her again on Broadway in 1986 in Andrew Bergman's Social Security, co-starring Ron Silver and Olympia Dukakis. She also starred in the play Thieves and in Six Degrees of Separation, and appeared in additional productions including George is Dead, The Shadow, and The 24 Hour Plays 2004.

In 1972, Thomas released the children's book Free to Be... You and Me, inspired by her young niece Dionne Kirchner. The project expanded into recordings and television specials, including Free to Be... You and Me in 1972 and 1974, and Free to Be... A Family in 1987, developed with Christopher Cerf. That same year, she served as a California delegate to the Democratic National Convention in Miami Beach and participated in a McGovern presidential campaign event at Madison Square Garden, reciting a parody of Erich Segal's Love Story before 19,000 people. In 1973, Thomas joined Gloria Steinem, Patricia Carbine, and Letty Cottin Pogrebin in founding the Ms. Foundation for Women, the first women's fund in the United States.

Thomas had a recurring role on the television series Friends from 1996 to 2002, appearing in three episodes as Sandra Green, the mother of Rachel Green. She also made guest appearances on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Ballers, The New Normal, and Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later, and narrated the Investigation Discovery series Happily Never After. Her film credits include Jenny (1970), Thieves (1977), In the Spirit (1990), and The Real Blonde (1997).

Thomas served as National Outreach Director for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, founded by her father Danny Thomas in 1962. In 2004, she created the Thanks & Giving campaign to support the hospital. In 2014, President Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Thomas was married to television host and writer Phil Donahue from May 1980 until his death in August 2024.