Childhood & Early Life
Stephanie Lyla Kramer was born on August 6, 1956, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., to Oscar Kramer, a professional violinist who played for ‘Los Angeles Philharmonic’ and several big bands, and his wife, Grace Kramer, an artist and former model.
Kramer attended the 'Chatsworth High School' and then 'The American Academy of Dramatic Arts/West.'
She is a trained mezzo-soprano and has a string of theater and musical credits to her name. Growing up, she listened to eclectic rock, pop, classical, and folk music. The 1812 'Overture' used to be her lullaby.
Kramer always displayed an inclination toward performing arts and had also been part of several school plays.
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Career
Kramer made her screen debut in 1977, with a single-episode appearance in the ‘ABC’ action–drama 'Starsky and Hutch.' She subsequently made brief appearances on a string of TV shows, such as 'Eight Is Enough,' 'The Hardy Boys'/'Nancy Drew Mysteries' (as 'Jill Sommers'), 'The Runaways, (as ‘Lillian’) 'Fantasy Island' (as 'Contessa Christina Kastronova'/'Denise Morot'), 'The Secret Empire' (as 'Princess Tara'), 'Married: The First Year' (as 'Sharon Kelly'), 'Vegas' (as 'Cathy'), 'Dynasty' ('Melanie'), 'Bosom Buddies' (as 'Jennifer'), 'Knots Landing' (as 'Marni'), 'The Devlin Connection' (as 'Gwendoline Adams'), 'Trapper John, M.D.' (as 'Cheryl'), 'The Man with Two Brains, (as a beautiful girl hit by a car),' ‘The A-Team (as ‘Fire Chief Annie Sanders'), and The New Mike Hammer’ (as 'Lisa Weldon').
In 1983, Kramer appeared as 'Claudia' in an episode of the ‘NBC’ sitcom 'We Got It Made.' In 1984, she appeared in another ‘NBC’ drama, 'Riptide' (as 'Tracy'), and the ‘CBS’ action–comedy 'The Dukes of Hazzard' (as 'Anna Louise'). Just 2 days after she finished her part in 'We Got It Made,' Kramer was cast in a pilot for Stephen Cannell and ‘NBC.’ However, it was not picked up for a series.
Just a month later, she collaborated with Cannell and ‘NBC’ again, for the pilot of their next project, the crime drama 'Hunter.' After a shaky start, the pilot turned out to be a huge success, and the channel ran it for seven consecutive seasons. It was Kramer's breakthrough project.
She played the role of 'Detective Sgt. Dee Dee McCall' in six of its seasons (130 episodes), from 1984 to 1990. Decades later, she regained the international fame she had got through the series, when she appeared in the ‘NBC’ TV movies 'Hunter: Return to Justice' (2002) and 'Hunter: Back in Force' (2003). Both had Kramer starring opposite her series co-star Fred Dryer.
‘Hunter: Return to Justice' was a hit and registered the highest ratings of the season. The channel added five more episodes to the show. With this, 'Hunter' became the only show ever to make such a grand comeback with its original cast members. Kramer reprised her role in all five additional episodes aired in 2003.
In 1986, Kramer announced her collaboration with the music composer of 'Hunter,' Mike Post, for a rock album. However, the album was never released, and she left the show in 1990. The media reported that she had quit because she wanted to focus on her music career.
Kramer displayed her music skills in several variety specials. She was featured in the 1986 ‘Easter Special’ episode for British–American stand-up comedian and singer Bob Hope's show 'Fifty Stars Celebrate Bob Hope’s 85th Birthday' on ‘NBC’ in 1988.
She hosted and performed at the annual ‘Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade’ twice, for which she received a 'Daytime Emmy Award' nomination for 'Outstanding Special Class Programming' and won three 'First Americans in the Arts Awards' in the ‘Best Actor’ category, one each in 1995, 2002, and 2003.
She starred as 'Angie' opposite David Hasselhoff (as 'Don Gregory') in the 1985 ‘NBC’ movie 'Bridge Across Time' (also known as ‘Terror at London Bridge’). She was also seen in brief roles in 'Take My Daughters, Please' (as 'Jessica Fletcher') and the 1988 miniseries 'Favorite Son' (as 'Stevie Chandler').
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In 1990, Kramer began filming for the ‘CBS’ movie 'Coins in a Fountain,' adapted from John H. Secondari's novel of the same name. The movie featured her in the lead role of 'Nikki Taylor.' Soon after the shoot was over, she was cast as twins 'Carol Mallory' and ’Lynn Cameron,’ opposite ‘Frederic Forrest,’ in the 1992 feature 'Twin Sisters.' After she finished her run on 'Hunter,' she moved to England to start working on a music album with producer Nils Lofgren. However, the album was never released.
Subsequently, Kramer made appearances in several TV projects, such as 'Beyond Suspicion' (as 'Karen Rikehardt'), 'Thrill' (as 'Teresa Colson'), 'Abducted: A Father's Love' (as 'Loretta Hymens'), and an episode of the ‘CBS’ crime drama 'Moloney' (as 'Rebecca Kitchens').
She starred as a high-school guidance counselor named 'Sarah Ann Collins' in the 1995 ‘NBC’ movie 'Deceived by Trust.' Among Kramer's last film appearances in the previous millennium was her portrayal of 'Helene' in the 1999 acclaimed feature 'The Dogwalker.'
On October 12 that year, Kramer’s debut album, 'One Dream,' was released. The album showcased her talent as a composer and lyricist. It consisted of 10 adult contemporary songs, of which most were original compositions. Continuing with her acting projects, she appeared in a brief role in 'Twice in a Lifetime' (as 'Delia Harmony'/'Dana Rudolph').
Kramer played 'Kate Mosley-Dorsey' in the 2006 'ABC-Family' film 'The Cutting Edge: Going for the Gold.' In 2008, her second album, 'The Great American Song Book,' hit the shelves. It offered 14 covers of classic hits that she had recorded during her live one-woman show, performed at various national venues. That year, she was a U.S. representative at the 'International Music Festival' held in Queretero, Mexico.
Kramer has also written for films and TV shows in collaboration with writer-producers David Chisolm and Chip Hayes. She was part of the book-reading session for the New York musical 'A Twist of Fate.' Kramer was a special guest in the Los Angeles stage production of 'Menopause- The Musical.'
In 2012, she was seen as the powerful witch 'Kate Meade' of the ''Meade'' clan in the ‘CW’ series 'The Secret Circle' and as 'Vivian Brentson' in an episode of 'CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.'
In 2015, Kramer was honored with the title of "Icon of Television" at the 55th 'International Television Festival' in Monte Carlo. The following year, she made a guest appearance as lawyer 'Dee Sanders' in the 'Pure Flix' web series 'The Encounter.' She played 'Dorothy Calvin' in the 2019 'Hallmark' TV movie 'A Merry Christmas Match.'
