Celebrity Nooz: Stefanie Powers

Stefanie Powers (Actress) - Hart to Hart

Updated: 5/22/19

Name: Stefanie Powers

Birth Name: Stefanie Zofya Paul

Born: November 2, 1942 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Claim To Fame: Stefanie Powers is an American actress best known for her role as Jennifer Hart in the American mystery series Hart to Hart, with Robert Wagner, which aired for five seasons from 1979 to 1984.

Family Life: Powers was married to actor Gary Lockwood from 1966 to 1972. After her divorce she had a relationship with actor William Holden until his untimely death in 1981. On April 1, 1993, she married Patrick Houitte de la Chesnais; the couple divorced in 1999.

Info: Born in Hollywood, California.

Alternate Names: Stefania Federkiewicz, Taffy Paul, and Stephanie Powers.

Powers was a cheerleader at Hollywood High School; one of her schoolmates was Nancy Sinatra.

At age 16, she was put under studio contract with Columbia Pictures, and as was an industry custom in those days, she changed her name to 'Stefanie Powers' as part of the deal.

For her role as Jennifer Hart, Powers received two Emmy Best Television Actress nominations, and five Golden Globe Award Best Television Actress nominations.

Powers was the founder and president of the William Holden Wildlife Foundation and a director of the Mount Kenya Game Ranch and Wildlife Conservancy in Nanyuki, Kenya.

In the United States, she works with both the Cincinnati Zoo and Atlanta Zoo. She devotes a great deal of time to the cause and is an international guest speaker on wildlife preservation.

In 1992, Powers was a recipient of a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6776 Hollywood Boulevard, category 'Television', presented by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.

Powers was awarded the Sarah Siddons Award in 1993 for her stage performance in Love Letters.

In November 2008, Powers, who was a smoker for 20 years, was diagnosed with alveolar carcinoma, a form of lung cancer. She had surgery to remove part of her right lung the following January.

On March 12, 2011, Powers received the Steiger Award (Germany) for accomplishment in the arts.

On November 6, 2017, Powers was honored by the Palm Springs Women in Film & Television Organisation (PSWIFT) with the "9th Annual Broken Glass Award" for her work as an actress, author and animal advocate. PSWIFT presents this award to outstanding women from the Film and Television industry who have "broken through the glass ceiling" in the field of entertainment, the arts and philanthropy.

In May 2018, Cambridge Arts Theatre announced the United Kingdom stage tour production of James Roose-Evans' adaptation of Helene Hanff's novel 84 Charing Cross Road, which starred Powers as Helene Hanff, and Clive Francis as Frank Doel. The production ran from May-June of that year.

Trivia: Is fluent in six languages.

In same ballet class as a youngster with Natalie Wood and Jill St. John.

Met future co-star and life-long friend Robert Wagner on the set of West Side Story (1961) prior to being let go from the cast because she was too young for her role as a Jet Girl.

Campaigned for Robert F. Kennedy during his 1968 presidential campaign.

As an avid polo player, she was among the first foreign members of the Royal County of Berkshire Polo Club in the United Kingdom, whose membership includes HRH The Prince of Wales. In 2005, she competed in the Joules United Kingdom National Women's Championships at Ascot.

Her stage appearances in the United States include "Annie Get Your Gun", "Oliver", "Applause" (the revival), "Sunset Boulevard" and "Gotta Dance" directed by Jerry Mitchell.

Where Are They Now: Powers is still acting on ocassion. She's part of the dramatic film The Artist's Wife with co-stars Lena Olin and Bruce Dern. It's currently in post-production.

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