Lifetime Intimate Portrait
Intimate Portrait, Premiered on Monday, July 8th, 2002 on Lifetime TV Network.
In Her Own Words:
"I was dopey…I was very, very, very socially uncomfortable." — Erika Slezak
"My father pulled me aside one day...and told me everything bad he could think of about the business. I was sort of shell-shocked — but undeterred." — Erika Slezak
"My life has been big magic. I'm not really waiting for the shoe to drop. I keep thinking [that] one day I'll have to pay for all this. I hope I don't." — Erika Slezak
For more than 30 years, Erika Slezak has reigned over the soap opera "One Life to Live" as a larger-than-life character with multiple personalities and husbands. In real life, she's a grounded, one-man woman. Slezak was destined to be a star. The daughter of a legendary character actor and the granddaughter of a world-renowned opera singer, her childhood was both glamorous and nomadic.
Despite her father's discouragement, Slezak began pursuing acting in high school. In 1964, at the age of 17, she headed for London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, becoming one of the youngest students ever accepted to the prestigious school.
Two years later, she returned to the United States, determined to make it in the theater. She appeared in almost 20 plays in the Midwest before heading to New York City, where she caught her big break when she was cast as Victoria Lord Buchanan on the popular soap opera "One Life to Live." Slezak made her debut on the show on March 17, 1970. Critics and audiences alike loved Slezak's delicious portrayal of a woman afflicted by a multiple-personality disorder; her versatile performance has won her several awards over the years. In August 1978 Slezak married an up-and-coming actor named Bryan Davies, who started working more and more in Los Angeles. The frequent separations put a strain on the young couple's relationship; Davies decided to move back to New York after the couple's two children were born. While her husband stayed home to raise the kids, Slezak became the family's sole breadwinner.
By the early 1980s, Slezak was enjoying a comfortable home life and a successful career. All that changed with one phone call. Her father committed suicide in April 1986. The following year, her mother died of a fatal asthma attack. Slezak's work became an outlet for her grief. In 2000, Slezak celebrated her 30th anniversary on "One Life to Live." She has earned her place in the soap opera history books and has fostered a new generation of actors, namely her daughter, Amanda.
Five Things You Must Know
1. Erika Slezak's sister, Ingrid, is an attorney and her brother, Leo, is a pilot.
2. Sometimes she has to memorize 30 pages of dialogue in one night.
3. Slezak speaks fluent German.
4. She raises money for cancer awareness.
5. Slezak loves the fact that being an actress has allowed her to spend a lot of time being a mother.
