Family Card - Person Sheet
NameLynda Jean Cordova Carter 
Birth24 Jul 1951
Notes for Lynda Jean Cordova Carter
{geni:about_me} Rarely in Hollywood casting history was an actor or actress so perfectly matched to his or her role, as that of Lynda Carter – the delight of all teenage boys and the envy of all girls – during her amply bosomed run as the Amazon princess on the 1970s hit TV show, ''Wonder Woman'' ( 1975-79). So perfectly did she embody the role in the public’s mind, the actress could unfortunately do little else, having been stereotyped as the iconic DC Comics’ heroine for more than 30 years since the show first premiered.
She was born Linda Jean Cordoba Carter (she later changed to the more exotic ‘Lynda’) in Phoenix, Arizona in July 1951, to a family of Irish/Hispanic descent. Her father, Colby Carter, is an art dealer of Irish English descent andher mother, Juana Córdova, is of Spanish Mexican descent with roots in Chihuahua, Mexico and previously worked in the telephone industry. Carter grew up an avid reader of the Wonder Woman comic books. She went to Arcadia High School in Phoenix and Kachina Elementary School in Glendale, Arizona.
Although she appeared on Lew King’s talent show aged five, it wasn’t until her teenage years that she began pursuing a career in show business, initially as a singer. Playing in her local pizzeria, she fronted a series of high school bands before joining The Garfin Gathering, at the age of 17.
The band had its first professional engagement as an opening act at the Sahara Lounge in Las Vegas, which lasted three months. As Lynda was underage, throughout the season she could not enter through the casino – she had to slip in through the hotel’s kitchen.
When little became of singing, Lynda decided to enter a beauty contest. With her statuesque good looks and beautiful blue eyes, she easily won Miss Phoenix, then Miss Arizona and ultimately Miss World-USA.
By 1974, she had moved to Hollywood and studied acting. An unsuccessful audition for TV producer, Larry Gordon, led to him recommending Lynda to his friend, Douglas Kramer, who was looking for a beautiful actress with the chutzpahof a [http://www.geni.com/people/Mary-Tyler-Moore/6000000009999128267 Mary Tyler Moore], but with outstanding athletic ability. The role was DC Comics' ''Wonder Woman''.
Lynda beat over 2,000 actresses to the role she would become synonymous with. The pilot aired in November 1975 to tremendous rating success. Despite initial network concerns that Lynda might be “too sexy” in her revealing superhero costume, the show went on to run until 1979. Increasingly camp, later episodes had titles like 'Disco Devil' and 'Stolen Faces'.
Little thereafter would not match the lasso-wielding heroine, but Lynda did have some success with TV specials and a detective series with [http://www.geni.com/people/Loni-Anderson/6000000016024413923 Loni Anderson] called ''Partners in Crime''. After a sabbatical looking after her family, Lynda returned as a Principal of a High School for Young Superheroes, in the Disney film ''Sky High''.
===Personal Life===
Carter has been married twice. Her first marriage was to her former talent agent Ron Samuels from 1977 to 1982. In January 1984, Carter married Washington, D.C., attorney Robert A. Altman, law partner of Clark Clifford (and now CEO of ZeniMax Media). The Altmans have two children, James (born 1988) and Jessica (born 1990), and live in Potomac, Maryland.
Sources: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynda_Carter Wikipedia], [http://www.starpulse.com/Actresses/Carter,_Lynda/Biography/ Starpulse], [http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/lynda-carter.html Biography], [http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/lynda-carter.html The Biography Channel], [http://movies.yahoo.com/person/lynda-carter/biography.html Yahoo! Movies], [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004812/ Filmography on IMDB]
She was born Linda Jean Cordoba Carter (she later changed to the more exotic ‘Lynda’) in Phoenix, Arizona in July 1951, to a family of Irish/Hispanic descent. Her father, Colby Carter, is an art dealer of Irish English descent andher mother, Juana Córdova, is of Spanish Mexican descent with roots in Chihuahua, Mexico and previously worked in the telephone industry. Carter grew up an avid reader of the Wonder Woman comic books. She went to Arcadia High School in Phoenix and Kachina Elementary School in Glendale, Arizona.
Although she appeared on Lew King’s talent show aged five, it wasn’t until her teenage years that she began pursuing a career in show business, initially as a singer. Playing in her local pizzeria, she fronted a series of high school bands before joining The Garfin Gathering, at the age of 17.
The band had its first professional engagement as an opening act at the Sahara Lounge in Las Vegas, which lasted three months. As Lynda was underage, throughout the season she could not enter through the casino – she had to slip in through the hotel’s kitchen.
When little became of singing, Lynda decided to enter a beauty contest. With her statuesque good looks and beautiful blue eyes, she easily won Miss Phoenix, then Miss Arizona and ultimately Miss World-USA.
By 1974, she had moved to Hollywood and studied acting. An unsuccessful audition for TV producer, Larry Gordon, led to him recommending Lynda to his friend, Douglas Kramer, who was looking for a beautiful actress with the chutzpahof a [http://www.geni.com/people/Mary-Tyler-Moore/6000000009999128267 Mary Tyler Moore], but with outstanding athletic ability. The role was DC Comics' ''Wonder Woman''.
Lynda beat over 2,000 actresses to the role she would become synonymous with. The pilot aired in November 1975 to tremendous rating success. Despite initial network concerns that Lynda might be “too sexy” in her revealing superhero costume, the show went on to run until 1979. Increasingly camp, later episodes had titles like 'Disco Devil' and 'Stolen Faces'.
Little thereafter would not match the lasso-wielding heroine, but Lynda did have some success with TV specials and a detective series with [http://www.geni.com/people/Loni-Anderson/6000000016024413923 Loni Anderson] called ''Partners in Crime''. After a sabbatical looking after her family, Lynda returned as a Principal of a High School for Young Superheroes, in the Disney film ''Sky High''.
===Personal Life===
Carter has been married twice. Her first marriage was to her former talent agent Ron Samuels from 1977 to 1982. In January 1984, Carter married Washington, D.C., attorney Robert A. Altman, law partner of Clark Clifford (and now CEO of ZeniMax Media). The Altmans have two children, James (born 1988) and Jessica (born 1990), and live in Potomac, Maryland.
Sources: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynda_Carter Wikipedia], [http://www.starpulse.com/Actresses/Carter,_Lynda/Biography/ Starpulse], [http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/lynda-carter.html Biography], [http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/lynda-carter.html The Biography Channel], [http://movies.yahoo.com/person/lynda-carter/biography.html Yahoo! Movies], [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004812/ Filmography on IMDB]