Michele Lee

Michele Lee began her screen career in 1961 with an appearance on the television sitcom The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. During the 1960s, she appeared in the film adaptation of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, followed by starring roles in The Comic (1969) and The Love Bug (1969). That year, she also starred in a television production of Roberta and recorded the Billboard Hot 100 single “L. David Sloane.” In addition to her recording work, she released albums with Columbia Records and performed on original Broadway cast recordings.

Lee returned to Broadway in Seesaw (1973–1974), earning a Tony Award nomination. Throughout the 1970s, she appeared in numerous television series, including Marcus Welby, M.D., Alias Smith and Jones, Night Gallery, Love, American Style, Fantasy Island, and The Love Boat. She also starred in the 1974 television pilot The Michele Lee Show.

From 1979 to 1993, Lee starred as Karen Fairgate in the primetime drama Knots Landing, appearing in all 344 episodes of the series. Her performance earned three Soap Opera Digest Awards for Best Lead Actress (Primetime) and an Emmy Award nomination in 1982. During the series’ run, she also directed several episodes.

Following the conclusion of Knots Landing, Lee starred in and produced the television film Big Dreams and Broken Hearts: The Dottie West Story (1995). She became the first woman to star in, direct, and produce a Lifetime television movie with Color Me Perfect (1996). She reprised her role in Knots Landing: Back to the Cul-de-Sac (1997) and portrayed Jacqueline Susann in Scandalous Me: The Jacqueline Susann Story (1998).

Lee returned to Broadway in The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife (2000), earning a Tony Award nomination in 2001. She later appeared in the feature film Along Came Polly (2004), guest-starred on Will & Grace (2005), participated in the special Knots Landing Reunion: Together Again (2005), and provided voice work for Family Guy (2010).

In 2015, Lee returned to Broadway as Madame Morrible in Wicked. In 2025, she reunited with Knots Landing co-stars for the podcast We're Knot Done Yet.