Sheila Wills

{{short description|American actress (born 1947)}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Sheila Wills

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| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1947|8|11}}{{cite web|title=Birth reference results for: Sheila Wills DeWindt|url=https://www.familysearch.org/search/record/results?count=20&query=%2Bgivenname%3ASheila~%20%2Bsurname%3ADeWindt~|work=Familysearch.org|access-date=November 27, 2018}}

| birth_place = Louisiana{{cite magazine|title=Sheila De Windt: BJ And Bear Star Says Beauty Can Be A Handicap|date=August 6, 1981|magazine=Jet|pages=54–56|publisher=Johnson Publishing Company|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MkIDAAAAMBAJ&q=sheila+de+windt&pg=PA54|access-date=January 2, 2017}}

| nationality = American

| other_names = Sheila DeWindt

| citizenship =

| education =

| alma_mater = Occidental College{{cite magazine|author1=Sylvia P. Flanagan|title=Sheila DeWindt Combines Successful Career With Motherhood|date=October 21, 1985|magazine=Jet|pages=55–57|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9rADAAAAMBAJ&q=sheila+de+windt&pg=PA57|access-date=January 2, 2017}}

| occupation = Actress

| years_active = 1975–present

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| known_for =

| credits = Role as Angie on NBC-TV series B. J. and the Bear, numerous TV series guest or recurring appearances

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| spouse = Hal DeWindt (1977-1981)

| partner = Philip Michael Thomas (1982-?){{cite book|title=Celebrity Beat|date=May 9, 1983|publisher=Jet|page=54|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7EEDAAAAMBAJ&q=sheila+de+windt&pg=PA54|access-date=January 2, 2017}}

| children = Melody Thomas
India Thomas

| relatives = Deborah Lacey (sister){{cite book|title=Celebrity Beat|date=March 3, 1986|publisher=Jet|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D7QDAAAAMBAJ&q=sheila+de+windt&pg=PA53|access-date=January 2, 2017}}

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Sheila Wills (born August 11, 1947) is an American actress, also known as Sheila DeWindt. She is known for her regular role on the television series B. J. and the Bear, and recurring roles on series including Days of Our Lives, Battlestar Galactica, and Generations.{{cite book|author1=Kathleen Fearn-Banks|title=The A to Z of African-American Television|date=August 4, 2009|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=9780810863484|page=106|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U1Pe45NhU08C&q=sheila+de+windt&pg=PA106}}{{cite magazine|title=People Are Talking About...|date=May 21, 1990|magazine=Jet|pages=55|publisher=Johnson Publishing Company|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7K8DAAAAMBAJ&q=sheila+de+windt&pg=PA55|access-date=January 2, 2017}}

Early life and education

Wills was born in Louisiana and raised in Los Angeles, California. She started working at a young age, stating in 1982, "I've had a job since I was 11 - it might have been waiting tables or cleaning houses... but it helped me attain a goal".{{cite magazine|title=Sheila De Windt Plays Tough Cop On TV|date=May 3, 1982|magazine=Jet|pages=58–59|publisher=Johnson Publishing Company|access-date=January 2, 2017|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dD0DAAAAMBAJ&q=sheila+de+windt&pg=PA59}} Wills graduated from Occidental College, where she later became an assistant dean of admissions. She had always wanted to be an actress, and quit her job in education shortly after attending an actor's workshop in Los Angeles in 1975.

Career

Before landing the role of Angie on B.J. and the Bear, Wills made guest appearances on a number of television series, including Baretta, Kojak, Quincy, and The Six Million Dollar Man. Later television appearances included McClain's Law, The Jeffersons, and The A-Team. Wills has also modeled and appeared in commercials and films, including Goldengirl, Youngblood, and The Concorde... Airport '79.

Personal life

The actor's workshop Wills attended in 1975 was run by producer/director/actor Hal DeWindt. Wills and DeWindt married two years later. The couple divorced in 1981, and the actress returned to using the name Wills some years later. Following her divorce, Wills had a relationship with actor Philip Michael Thomas. Wills and Thomas had two children together, Melody and India.{{cite magazine|author1=Carol Wallace|title=The Ego Has Landed|url=http://people.com/archive/cover-story-the-ego-has-landed-vol-24-no-24/|magazine=People|access-date=January 2, 2017|date=December 9, 1985}}

Filmography (selected)

=Film=

class="wikitable sortable"
Year

! Title

! Role

! class="unsortable" | Notes

1979

| The Concorde... Airport '79

| Young Girl

|

1979

| Goldengirl

| Debbie

|

1978

| Youngblood

| Joan

|

1978

| A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich

| Admissions Clerk

|

=Television=

class="wikitable sortable"
Year

! Title

! Role

! class="unsortable" | Notes

2022

|NCIS: Los Angeles{{Cite web |title=Sheila Wills {{!}} IMDbPro |url=https://pro.imdb.com/name/nm0223179/ |access-date=2023-03-04 |website=pro.imdb.com}}

|Thelma

|One episode

2022–present

| All American

| Ms. Maritta

| Two episodes

2003

| Scrubs

| Wife

| Episode: My Friend the Doctor

1997

| 7th Heaven

| Teacher

| Episode: Dangerous Liaisons: Part 2

1996

| Sweet Temptation

| Lawyer

| TV movie

1995

| Beverly Hills, 90210

| Professor Helen Kincaid

| Episode: Breast Side Up

1995

| Tyson

| Ruth Roper

| TV movie

1994

| Jack Reed: A Search for Justice

| Mary Alice

| TV movie

1994

| I Spy Returns

| Lily Scott

| TV movie

1992

| Swamp Thing

| Daphne Scott

| Episode: Dead and Married

1990

| Shannon's Deal

| Liz Washington

| Episode: Custody

1989

| Knots Landing

| Ticket Taker

| Episode: Road Trip

1989

| Hunter

| Donna Carlisle

| Episode: Teen Dreams

1989

| Generations

| Rita Barton

|

1988

| Cagney & Lacey

| Stacey

| Episode: "Amends"

1988

| The Bold and the Beautiful

| Beverly Murdock

| Three episodes

1986

| The A-Team

| Deborah Duke

| Episode: The Duke of Whispering Pines

1985

| Stir Crazy

| Angela

| Episode: The Ping Pong Caper

1984

| Webster

| Ms. Oliver

| Episode: Dreamland

1983–1984

| Days of Our Lives

| Joan Hopkins

| Two episodes

1983

| The Powers of Matthew Star

| Kerry

| Episode: Brain Drain

1982

| The Jeffersons

| Dede Sanderson

| Episode: Appointment in 8-B

1982

| The New Odd Couple

|

| Episode: That Was No Lady

1981

| McClain's Law

|

| Episode: A Time of Peril

1981

| B. J. and the Bear

| Angie

| Fifteen episodes

1980

| Galactica 1980

| Stewardess

| Episode: The Night the Cylons Landed: Part 1

1980

| Quincy, M.E.

| Katya Hester

| Episode: T.K.O.

1979

| Buck Rogers in the 25th Century

| Major Fields

| Episode: Planet of the Slave Girls

1978

| Battlestar Galactica

| Lieutenant Deitra

| Two episodes

1978

| Switch

| Cleo Johnson

| Episode: Photo Finish

1978

| Baretta

| Minnie

| Episode: The Bundle

1977

| Kojak

| Leilah

| Episode: The Summer of '69: Part 1

1976–1977

| The Six Million Dollar Man

| Rhonda/Saleslady

| Two episodes

1975

| Marcus Welby, M.D.

| Clerk

| Episode: The Medea Factor

References

{{reflist}}