Patricia Richardson
Richardson after the 1994 Emmy Awards
Born	Patricia Castle Richardson (1951-02-23)February 23, 1951 (age 74) Bethesda, Maryland, U.S.
Education	Southern Methodist University (BFA)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1974–present
Known for	Jill Taylor inHome Improvement
Spouse	Ray Baker ​ ​ (m. 1982; div. 1995)​
Children	3

Patricia Castle Richardson (born February 23, 1951)^[1] is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Jill Taylor on theABC sitcomHome Improvement, for which she was nominated four times for thePrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series^[2] and twice for theGolden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical.^[3] She also received anIndependent Spirit Award nomination for her performance inUlee's Gold (1997).

Richardson attended multiple schools includingHolton-Arms School andHockaday School.^[4][5] She is a 1972 graduate ofSouthern Methodist University,^[6] where she was friends with classmatesBeth Henley andStephen Tobolowsky, who was slated to be a cast member ofHome Improvement, but had other contractual commitments when the series began filming. Tobolowsky initially suggested to producers ofHome Improvement that Richardson be considered for the role of Jill Taylor afterFrances Fisher was deemed too serious for the role.

Richardson began as theunderstudy for the role of Gypsy Rose Lee inAngela Lansbury's Broadway production ofGypsy: A Musical Fable in 1974, also playing several small chorus parts.^[6] In the next ten years she worked in regional theater, commercials, and other Broadway and Off- Broadway plays. She had roles in programs such asThe Equalizer,Spencer For Hire, andKate & Allie. She appeared in one episode ofThe Cosby Show in the third season with her real-life husband, playing a woman giving birth to her ninth child. Richardson also appeared in the filmsChristmas Evil andC.H.U.D.. In 1989, she appeared in one episode ofQuantum Leap as a radio station owner.

In 1983, she left New York for LA briefly to do a sitcom centered onKatey Sagal's twin sisters,Liz andJean Sagal, calledDouble Trouble, forNorman Lear. When asked to go back and do a second season after her contract had expired, she passed in order to stay in New York and continue performing in Beth Henley'sThe Miss Firecracker Contest off-Broadway. A few years later Allan Burns, who co-createdThe Mary Tyler Moore Show, brought her back to Los Angeles to star in two sitcoms he produced:Eisenhower and Lutz andFM. Both shows ran for 13 episodes.

In 1991, three months after giving birth to twins, Richardson became a last-minute replacement for Frances Fisher in what would be her breakout role as Jill Taylor on the ABC sitcomHome Improvement. Richardson received fourEmmy nominations, and twoGolden Globe nominations in this role.^[6] While working onHome Improvement, she hosted the Emmys withEllen DeGeneres, starred in the miniseriesUndue Influence with Brian Dennehy,Sophie and the Moonhanger onLifetime withLynn Whitfield, and earned anIndependent Spirit nomination in 1997 for her first major theatrical film role inUlee's Gold.

In 2002, Richardson replacedJanine Turner in the Lifetime medical drama seriesStrong Medicine, as a new character, Dr. Andy Campbell.^[7] She was nominated for two Prism Awards for her work inStrong Medicine. After three seasons on that show, she was cast in a recurring role as Sheila Brooks, campaign manager for Republican presidential candidateArnold Vinick (Alan Alda) in the final two seasons of NBC political dramaThe West Wing.

Richardson appeared in the first season ofLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit. In 2008, she was the executive producer of the video documentaryLong Story Short, which tells the story of Larry and Trudie Long, a popularAsian Americannightclub act of the '40s and '50s, told through the eyes of their daughter and her friend, actressJodi Long. In 2010, she appeared in an NBC made-for-TV film,The Jensen Project, and in 2011, she appeared in the Lifetime television filmBringing Ashley Home, also starringA.J. Cook andJennifer Morrison. In 2012, she starred in thecoming-of-age filmBeautiful Wave and in the following year appeared in theHallmark Channel TV filmSmart Cookies. Since then, Richardson has filmed several small independent films and two more movies for theHallmark channel,Friend Request andSnow Bride.^[8]

On the twelfth episode of the fourth season ofLast Man Standing titled "Helen Potts", Richardson guest-starred as the titular character and reunited with her formerHome Improvement co-star,Tim Allen. At the end of the episode, it was revealed that one of her sons' name is Randy, who was portrayed by her otherHome Improvement co-star;Jonathan Taylor Thomas. She returned as Helen Potts in the next season.

In 2015, she ran for the position of national president of theSAG-AFTRA, after she had served on the board for one term. She lost the election narrowly to incumbent PresidentKen Howard. She was re-elected to the National and Local Los Angeles Boards of SAG-AFTRA.

In 2016, Richardson returned to the stage in Steel Magnolias at theBucks County Playhouse inNew Hope, Pennsylvania. This production was directed by four time Oscar nomineeMarsha Mason, and also starredElaine Hendrix,Lucy DeVito,Jessica Walter andSusan Sullivan.^[9][10]On June 9, 2016, this production became the highest-grossing show in the history of the Bucks County Playhouse.^[11]

Richardson married fellow actorRay Baker in 1982. They had three children together: Henry Richardson Baker, twins Roxanne Elizabeth Baker and Joseph Castle Baker, before they divorced in August 1995. Richardson is the godmother of actressBetty Gilpin, the daughter of actorJack Gilpin.^{[citation needed]}

Richardson had a long-term relationship with retiredpsychologist Mark Cline, whom she had met when they were both students atSouthern Methodist University.^[7]

Richardson served many years on the Board of Directors and is the National Spokesperson for "Cure PSP", a patient advocacy and research organization forprogressive supranuclear palsy,corticobasal degeneration,multiple system atrophy and related "Prime Of Life" diseases. Her father died of PSP in 2005.^[12][13]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toPatricia Richardson.

• Patricia Richardson atIMDb
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• 1951 births
• Actresses from Maryland
• American film actresses
• American television actresses
• Living people
• Actors from Bethesda, Maryland
• Southern Methodist University alumni
• 20th-century American actresses
• 21st-century American actresses
• Hockaday School alumni
• California Democrats
• Maryland Democrats
• Methodists from Maryland

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