Emma Samms

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location = Willesden, London
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Emma Samms (born Emma Samuelson on 28 August 1960) is a British television actress.

Biography

Emma Samuelson trained as a ballet dancer at the Royal Ballet School but had to stop dancing at 15 after an injury to her hip. She then decided to train as an actress, changing her name to Emma Samms as there was already an "Emma Samuelson" registered at actors union Equity.

Career

Samms has played Holly Sutton Scorpio on the daytime soap opera "General Hospital" in three stints: 1982 to 1985; 1992 to 1993; and again in 2006. During her early 90's tenure with the show, she also played the role of Holly's lookalike half-sister, Paloma, who was a heroic revolutionary. Paired with Tristan Rogers, she became one half of one of General Hospital's most popular and successful couples - Robert and Holly Scorpio.

Samms moved onto prime-time drama in 1985, replacing Pamela Sue Martin in the role of Fallon Carrington Colby in "Dynasty". Although a talented actress, the recast proved to be controversial and viewers found it difficult to accept her in the role. She was introduced to viewers in episodes of "Dynasty" before becoming one of the main stars of the spin-off series "The Colbys". When "The Colbys" was axed after two seasons, Samms returned to "Dynasty" for its last two seasons and later the mini-series "". In 1995, she appeared in the prime time soap, "Models Inc." as the villainous Grayson Louder.

As a result of her return to the UK, in 2003 she appeared in four episodes of the BBC series "Holby City" and in 2005 had a small run on the BBC daytime series "Doctors".

In February 2006, Samms made a 7-episode return to "General Hospital", in which long time fans were dismayed by the very out of character writing that was provided for Holly. But despite that, the incredible chemistry between Emma and Tristan Rogers was still very evident. Samms returned to do a three-week stint on GH in May 2006; her first appearance aired on 1 May, in which Holly was the object of a renewed rivalry between Luke and Robert in an adventure-type "on the run" storyline. Holly's character was somewhat softened from the previous appearance but still not in line with what long time viewers would prefer. However, fans were still treated to some nice Robert and Holly moments. On 30 June she made a cameo appearance to usher Luke off canvas for Anthony Geary's annual vacation.

Samms also appeared as a presenter (alongside Tristan Rogers) at the 2006 Daytime Emmy Awards in Hollywood on 28 April. Emma was a hairdresser on the BBC Children in Need reality series "Celebrity Scissorhands" that aired from 3 November to 17 November.

On 20 September 2007 Samms guested on the long-running ITV series The Bill, in which she played drug addict Ella Winstanley.

Personal life

Samms lived in Los Angeles during the height of her career, but returned to England after her last divorce to raise her two children. Before leaving LA in 1999, she sold her white piano to her friend Kin Shriner.

During the height of her "Dynasty" fame, and once while filming "General Hospital", she turned down the offer to be Playboy's centerfold twice. She was most likely asked because of her measurements of 38-25-35 (Source: Celebrity Sleuth magazine). She got so into method acting for her General Hospital role that she became certified as an emergency medical technician in Los Angeles.

Engaged to Marvin Hamlisch in the early 1980s, she has been married three times: Bansi Nagji (1991-1992); Tim Dillon (1994-1995); and John Holloway (1996-2003). She and Holloway had two children, Cameron (born 1997), and Beatrice (born 1998).

In 1984 Samms and her "General Hospital" co-star Tristan Rogers went public with their real-life romance, but the relationship ended when she left the daytime soap for her role in "The Colbys".

In 1983, Samms and her cousin, film producer Peter Samuelson, co-founded the Starlight Children's Foundation, which merged with Steven Spielberg's Starbright Foundation, and is now known as the Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation, an organization that helps seriously ill children and their families cope with their pain, fear and isolation through entertainment, education and family activities. The organization was Samms's response to losing her brother, Jamie, who died at age nine from aplastic anemia.

Misc.

In episode 42 of The Larry Sanders Show it is revealed that Larry was so obsessed with Emma Samms that there is a police report on his disturbing her.

Emma lives near Stroud, Gloucestershire , England.

Television Filmography

*"General Hospital" as Holly Sutton Scorpio (1982-1985, 1992-1993, 2006)
*"Dynasty" as Fallon Carrington Colby (1985-1989)
*"The Colbys" as Fallon Carrington Colby (1985-1987)
*"" as Fallon Carrington Colby (1991)
*"" as Arianna Carlin Luthor (1993)
*"Models Inc." (TV series) as Grayson Louder (1994-1995)
*"Dynasty Reunion: Catfights & Caviar" (2006)

Filmography

*1979 - "Arabian Adventure"
*1981 - "Goliath Awaits" (TV)
*1984 - "Ellis Island" (TV series)
*1989 - "The Lady and the Highwayman"
*1990 - "The Shrimp on the Barbie"
*1991 - "Bejewelled" (TV)
*1991 - "Delirious"
*1993 - "Robin Cook's Harmful Intent" (TV)
*1994 - "Treacherous Beauties" (TV)
*2002 - "Pretend You Don't See Her" (TV)
*2005 - "The Marksman" (direct to DVD)
*2005 - "Supernova" (TV)
*2008 - " (Shark Swarm ) (Hallmark movie)(TV)

External links

*imdb name|id=0759924|name=Emma Samms
*tvtome person|id=5800|name=Emma Samms
* [http://www.emmasamms.net EmmaSamms.net]
* [http://www.starlight.org/site/c.fuLQK6MMIpG/b.1406297/k.2D21/Donate_Now.htm Starlight Starbright Webpage] .