Editing Ilene Kristen

{{COI|date=March 2022}}
{{short description|American actress}}

{{Infobox person   
| name = Ilene Kristen
| image =Ilene Kristen 2014.jpg
| image_size = 
| caption =Kristen in 2014
| birth_name = Ilene Schatz
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1952|07|30|mf=yes}}
| birth_place = [[Brooklyn]], [[New York City]], U.S.
| occupation = Actress
| years_active = 1971–present
| website = http://www.ilenekristen.net/
}}

'''Ilene Kristen''' (born '''Ilene Schatz'''; July 30, 1952) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as [[Delia Ryan]] in the [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] soap opera ''[[Ryan's Hope]]'' (1975–1979, 1982–1983, 1986–1989) and her [[Emmy Award|Emmy]]-nominated performances as [[Roxy Balsom]] on ''[[One Life to Live]]'' (2001–2012).

==Early years==
{{BLP sources section|date=March 2022}}
Ilene Kristen was born Ilene Schatz in [[Brooklyn]], New York City,<ref name="Ilene Kristen 411">{{cite web |url=http://www.soapoperadigest.com/ilene-kristen-411 |title=Ilene Kristen 411 |work=[[Soap Opera Digest]] |access-date=2014-06-26 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203133559/http://www.soapoperadigest.com/ilene-kristen-411 |archive-date=2014-02-03 }}</ref> the elder child of Arthur Schatz of [[Williamsburg, Brooklyn]] and Myrna Levin of [[Borough Park, Brooklyn]]. Her father was a hairdresser who owned a series of beauty parlors across [[Manhattan]], Brooklyn, and [[Palm Beach, Florida]]. She has a younger sister, Karen Schatz. 

She lived in Brooklyn until the age of 13 when her family moved to the [[Forest Hills, Queens|Forest Hills]] area of [[Queens]], where she lived for two years. In 1968, the family moved to the [[Upper West Side]] of [[Manhattan]]. She attended PS 217 in Brooklyn, Russell Sage Junior High School in Queens, and [[Professional Children's School]] in Manhattan. She then went to [[Finch College]] where she majored in Drama and minored in Art History.

She studied dance under Sara Felcher, [[Alwin Nikolais]], and [[Matt Mattox]]. Her early inspirations were [[Bambi Linn]] and [[Sondra Lee]]. She decided to become a professional actor after seeing the [[Off-Broadway]] musical, ''[[The Fantasticks]]''. She later studied acting with [[Jack Waltzer]].

==Career==
{{BLP sources section|date=March 2022}}
Her first television appearance was in 1961 {{cn|date=March 2022}} on bandleader [[Ted Steele (bandleader)|Ted Steele]]'s ''Dance Party'', based in [[Newark, New Jersey]]. {{cn|date=March 2022}} 

Her first professional job was on NBC's ''[[The Bell Telephone Hour]]'' as a dancer when she was 14 years old. She was brought on board by the show's choreographer [[Matt Mattox]]. Kristen was a dancer in the ensemble of the 1967 musical ''Henry, Sweet Henry'', based upon ''[[The World of Henry Orient]]''. This was the first of several collaborations with the choreographer [[Michael Bennett (theater)|Michael Bennett]], with whom she later worked on the television show ''Let Us Entertain You'' (starring [[Robert Morse]]) and the show ''Pinocchio'' (with [[Peter Noone]] of [[Herman’s Hermits]]).

In her senior year of professional children’s school, she was on the road with a comedy revue, ''The Six New Happenings''. The revue toured in Dallas and Houston. They were booked in the largest room at the Sahara Hotel in [[Lake Tahoe]]. But once the Sahara realized that most of the cast was under-aged, had them kicked out, replaced by [[Johnny Carson]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.welovesoaps.net/2010/01/flashback-ilene-kristen-1977.html|title= FLASHBACK: Ilene Kristen - 1977: The No. 1 villainess of TV soaps |work=Us Magazine |access-date=2019-09-06}}</ref>

She was set to replace the lead actress in the show ''Steambath'', but the show was closed before Kristen got to take over the role. Its producer Dick Scanga felt bad for Kristen, so he offered her a job in his producing office. She ended up working odd jobs on major Broadway productions: catering the opening-night party of the show ''Lenny'' (which later became the 1974 [[Lenny (film)|film]] by [[Bob Fosse]]) and gold-leafing in [[Robin Wagner (designer)|Robin Wagner]]’s scenery department for ''[[Jesus Christ Superstar]]''. She made her screen debut in the female lead role in the 1971 comedy film ''[[Preacherman]]''.

Her big break came when she auditioned for the role of Patty Simcox in the original Broadway production of ''[[Grease (musical)|Grease]]'' (1972), in which she starred for two years.

In 1975, she auditioned for and landed the role of Delia Ryan in the [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] daytime soap opera ''[[Ryan’s Hope]]''. She worked on the show until 1979, when she moved to California. In [[Los Angeles]], she appeared in film ''[[Why Would I Lie?]]'' starring [[Treat Williams]]. She played Winona, a prostitute, in [[The Lady in Red (1979 film)|The Lady in Red]] (her scene was with [[Christopher Lloyd]]), then did an episode of ''[[Family (1976 TV series)|Family]]''. In 1982, she also played [[Peter Falk]]'s sister-in-law in a stage production of ''Knives'', which was written and directed by [[John Cassavetes]].

On television in 1982, she did a stint on ''[[One Life to Live]]'' as [[Georgina Whitman]]. She appeared in the comedy revue ''Strange Behavior'' (1983-84), which led to her being considered for a role on NBC’s ''[[Saturday Night Live]]''. She also starred in [[Charles Strouse]]’s and [[Warren Leight]]’s ''[[Mayor (musical)|Mayor]]'', the musical based on [[Ed Koch]]’s [[memoir]] of the same name. She played [[Leona Helmsley]], the “Queen of Mean,” among other characters.<ref name=soaps>{{cite web|url=http://soapcentral.com/oltl/theactors/kristen_ilene.php |title=About OLTL: About the Actors &#124; Ilene Kristen &#124; One Life to Live @ |publisher=[[SoapCentral]] |access-date=2014-06-26}}</ref>

In 1986, after starring in [[Moss Hart]]’s ''Light Up the Sky'', Kristen was asked to return to ''Ryan’s Hope''. Kristen, always adept with comedy, says that her last four years at ''Ryan’s Hope'' were happy ones, as the writers gave her a lot of funny material to work with. During this period (1986-90), Kristen toured around the club circuits, performing with rock bands and jazz musicians at [[Mikell's]] on the [[Upper West Side]]. She did another off-Broadway show, ''Cowboy'', a musical tribute to the life of the painter [[Charles Marion Russell|Charlie “Kid” Russell]].

During the final three years of ''[[Ryan’s Hope]]'', Kristen worked at a homeless shelter, the Prince George. Through the [[Children's Aid Society]], she served as the kids’ introduction to the arts and movies. A group of these children later appeared on several episodes of ''Ryan’s Hope''.

From 1990-1991, she starred in ''[[Loving (TV series)|Loving]]'', portraying Norma Gilpin, a dees-dems-doze broad from Brooklyn. She was coupled with the [[Tony Award]]-winning actor and director [[Walter Bobbie]], who had originated the role of Roger in the Broadway production of ''[[Grease (musical)|Grease]]'' alongside Kristen in 1972. After that stint, Kristen did three off-Broadway productions: ''All That Glitters, Trust'', and ''The Gig'' at the Goodspeed. She was also Madeleine Thompson, an alcoholic wannabe socialite, on ''[[Another World (TV series)|Another World]]''.

In the late 1990s, Kristen served as the co-artistic director and literary manager for Musical Theatre Works, alongside [[Gordon Greenberg]]. She came out to California to serve as one of the producers for the film ''Angels with Angles'', starring [[Frank Gorshin]] and [[Rodney Dangerfield]].

After returning to New York City in 2001, she was approached the day before the [[September 11 attacks]] for the role of the gambling, beer-guzzling and always-inappropriate hairdresser [[Roxy Balsom]] on ''[[One Life to Live]]''.<ref name="daytime confidential">{{cite web |url=http://tvfanonline.libsyn.com/dc_308_ilene_kristen_interview |title = Daytime Confidential : DC #308: Ilene Kristen Interview}}</ref><ref name="soap central">{{cite web |url=https://www.soapcentral.com/oltl/news/2020/0617-ilene_kristen_ryans_hope.php |title = Ilene Kristen shares colorful One Life to Live, Ryan's Hope memories {{!}} OLTL on Soap Central}}</ref> At that point in time, she had begun to question the importance of acting; she’d always seen performance as a healing art, and felt that the kind of character that she wanted to create should be entertaining, vivacious, and funny—because people needed it.<ref name="daytime confidential"/><ref name="soap central"/> She ended up playing Roxy Balsom for ten years. Kristen was nominated for two consecutive [[Daytime Emmy Awards]] in 2004 and 2005 in the [[Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series|Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series]] category for her role as Roxy in ''One Life to Live''.<ref name="Ilene Kristen 411"/>

After ''One Life to Live'' was off the air, she featured on ''[[General Hospital]]'' as Delia, her character from ''Ryan’s Hope'', between 2013 and 2015. Kristen guest-starred in the number of television shows, including ''[[Law & Order]]'', ''[[The Sopranos]]'', ''[[Law & Order: Special Victims Unit]]'', and ''[[Unforgettable (2011 TV series)|Unforgettable]]''.<ref>{{cite web |author=Jillian Bowe |url=http://daytimeconfidential.zap2it.com/2013/08/27/ilene-kristen-becomes-unforgettable |title=Ilene Kristen Becomes 'Unforgettable' |work=Daytime Confidential |date=2013-08-27 |access-date=2014-06-26 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202154438/http://daytimeconfidential.zap2it.com/2013/08/27/ilene-kristen-becomes-unforgettable |archive-date=2014-02-02 }}</ref> In the fall of 2013, she appeared on ''[[General Hospital]]'' reprising her old role of Delia Ryan from ''[[Ryan's Hope]]'' who was revealed to be Ava Jerome's natural mother, and made periodic appearances as the storyline dictated.<ref>{{cite web |author=Luke Kerr |url=http://daytimeconfidential.zap2it.com/2014/01/21/ilene-kristen-checks-back-into-general-hospital |title=Ilene Kristen Checks Back Into General Hospital |work=Daytime Confidential |date=2014-01-21 |access-date=2014-06-26 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202154451/http://daytimeconfidential.zap2it.com/2014/01/21/ilene-kristen-checks-back-into-general-hospital |archive-date=2014-02-02 }}</ref>

Kristen is a supporter of the emerging digital series genre and has appeared on the Daytime Emmy-winning series [[The Bay (web series)|The Bay]] and [[Pride The Series|Pride: The Series]]. In 2018, she played Dolly Faye in ''Mélange''. The pilot featured [[Morgan Fairchild]] and was written and produced by [[Tom D'Angora]].

==Personal life==
{{BLP unsourced section|date=March 2022}}
Kristen currently resides in Manhattan with director [[Gary Donatelli]]. She has been a member of the [[Ensemble Studio Theatre]] since 1984 and she is on their Board of Directors.

==Music==
{{BLP unsourced section|date=March 2022}}
Throughout the 1990s, she was a regular performer with her band at the [[Triad Theatre]].

In 2015, Kristen released her first album, ''I’m Not Done With U Yet!'', produced by Scott Yahney and self-penned with various co-writers. It is available on [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]] and [[iTunes]].

As a songwriter, Ilene has penned album cuts for teenage phenom [[Kaitlyn Lusk]] and jazz guitarist [[Chuck Loeb]], as well as produced for the label Tuxedo Records.

==Jean Renoir Cinema==

In 1977, Kristen founded the Jean Renoir Cinema with Ray Blanco, a young Cuban anti-[[Fidel Castro|Castro]] emigré, and Nancy Newell, one of the first women ever admitted to the Projectionists Guild.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1977/03/18/archives/new-jersey-weekly-renoir-cinema-opens-without-illusions-a-theater.html|author=Anna Quindlen|title=Renoir Cinema Opens Without Illusions|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=1977-03-18|access-date=2019-09-06}}</ref> Through Blanco’s distribution company, Bauer International (later Liberty Films), the Renoir saw through the first U.S. theatrical distributions of [[Wim Wenders]]’s early German features (including ''[[Kings of the Road]]'' and ''[[Alice in the Cities]]''), as well as films by [[Hans-Jürgen Syberberg]], [[Alexander Kluge]], [[Gregory Nava]]’s ''[[The Confessions of Amans]]'', and [[Martha Coolidge]]’s ''[[Not a Pretty Picture]]''. The Jean Renoir also presented the first American screenings of films from [[Luis Buñuel]]’s Mexican period, including ''[[Illusion Travels by Streetcar]]'', ''[[Daughter of Deceit]]'', and ''[[El Bruto]]''.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iS_TAwAAQBAJ&q=ray+blanco+jean+renoir&pg=PA12|author=John Pierson|title=Spike, Mike, Slackers & Dykes: A Guided Tour Across a Decade of American Independent Cinema|date=15 April 2014|publisher=University of Texas Press |isbn=9780292757684|access-date=2019-09-06}}</ref> The Renoir also mounted one of the first significant film festivals devoted to Cuban cinema in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/11141/comments|title=Jean Renoir Cinema—A Cinema Treasures Thread|access-date=2019-09-06}}</ref>

In the opening weekend, Blanco and Kristen screened films by its namesake director [[Jean Renoir]]: ''[[Toni (1935 film)|Toni]]'', ''[[La Marseillaise (film)|La Marseillaise]]'', and ''[[La Bête Humaine (film)|La Bête Humaine]]''. The lobby featured a framed personal letter from Renoir, which gave Kristen and Blanco permission to use his name for the theater.

The Renoir remained open until the end of 1977 due to plumbing and landlord problems.

During this time, Kristen produced a film, ''The Aftermath'', starring [[Karen Allen]].

==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! class="unsortable"| Notes
|-
| 1971
| ''[[Preacherman]]''
| Mary Lou
|
|-
| 1979
| ''[[The Lady in Red (1979 film)|The Lady in Red]]''
| Wynona
|
|-
| 1979
| ''Night-Flowers''
| Krishna Woman
|
|-
| 1980
| ''[[Family (1976 U.S. TV series)|Family]]''
| Lotus
|Episode: "Such a Fine Line"
|-
| 1980
| ''[[Why Would I Lie?]]''
| Waitress
|
|-
| 1982
| ''[[One Life to Live]]''
| [[Georgina Whitman]]
|Recurring role
|-
| 1985
| ''[[Desperately Seeking Susan]]''
| Party Guest
|
|-
| 1987
| ''[[The Shaman]]''
| Helen
|
|-
| 1975–1979, 1982–1983, 1986–1989
| ''[[Ryan's Hope]]''
| [[Delia Ryan]]
|Series regular<br>Nominated - [[Soap Opera Digest Awards|Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Comic Performance by an Actress: Daytime]] (1988)<br>Nominated - [[Soap Opera Digest Awards|Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Villainess: Daytime]] (1989)
|-
| 1990–1991
| ''[[Loving (TV series)|Loving]] ''
| Norma Gilpin 
|Series regular
|-
| 1994
| ''[[Law & Order]]''
| Sandra Krane
|Episode: "Blue Bamboo"
|-
| 1995
| ''[[Another World (TV series)|Another World]]''
| Madeline Thompson 
|Series regular
|-
| 1999
| ''Vivid''
| Susan
|
|-
| 2000
| ''[[The Sopranos]]''
| Smoker
|Episode: "[[House Arrest (The Sopranos)|House Arrest]]"
|-
| 2001
| ''[[Third Watch]]''
| Flynn
|Episode: "Walking Wounded"
|-
| 2001–2012
| ''[[One Life to Live]]''
| [[Roxy Balsom]]
|Series regular (2001-2004), Recurring (2004-2012)<br>Nominated - [[Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series]] (2004-2005)<br>Nominated - [[Soap Opera Digest Awards|Soap Opera Digest Award for Favorite Return]] (2003)
|-
| 2005
| ''Tinsel Town''
| Attorney
|
|-
| 2005
| ''The Signs of the Cross''
| Mrs. Coyne
|
|-
| 2007
| ''Mattie Fresno and the Holoflux Universe''
| Liz
|
|-
| 2007
| ''[[The Black Donnellys]]''
| Claire
|Episode: "The World Will Break Your Heart"
|-
| 2007
| ''[[Knock Knock (2007 film)|Knock Knock]]''
| Sexy Librarian
|
|-
| 2008
| ''Manhattanites''
| Marilyn Marsden
|
|-
| 2011
| ''Hunting Season''
| Mrs. Klein
| 
|-
| 2012
| ''[[Law & Order: Special Victims Unit]]''
| Evelyn Higgins
|Episode: "Father's Shadow"
|-
| 2013
| ''[[Unforgettable (2011 TV series)|Unforgettable]]''
| Naomi McKinnon
|Episode: "Line Up or Shut Up"
|-
| 2013
| ''American Hunger''
| Sydney Fisher
|Short film
|-
| 2013–2015
| ''[[General Hospital]]'' 
| [[Delia Reid Ryan]]
|Recurring role
|-
|2013–2016
|''[[Pride The Series|Pride: The Series]]''
|Eleanor Brixton
|Recurring role
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|0471544}}
* [http://www.ilenekristen.net/ Ilene Kristen Official Web Site]

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kristen, Ilene}}
[[Category:American soap opera actresses]]
[[Category:American stage actresses]]
[[Category:Actresses from Brooklyn]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:1952 births]]
[[Category:21st-century American actresses]]