Michael Learned

Michael Learned (born April 9, 1939) is an American actress, known for her role as Olivia Walton in the long-running CBS drama series The Waltons (1972–1979). She has won a record four Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series; three for The Waltons (1973, '74, '76), and one for Nurse (1982). 2Early life Learned was born in Washington, DC, the daughter and oldest child of Elizabeth Duane "Betti" (née Hooper) and Bruce Learned, a diplomat. Her maternal grandfather was an attaché for the United States Embassy in Rome. She lived on a Connecticut farm with her five sisters for the first 10 years of her life. Learned said that her parents never explained why she received a masculine first name, and that others often did not believe "Michael" was her given name. When she was 11, Learned moved to Austria, where her father worked for the U.S. State Department. At this time, she attended Arts Educational School, Tring, now Tring Park School for the Performing Arts in Tring, Hertfordshire, England. During this time, she discovered the theater and decided to make acting her life's work. 2Career 3Television She was billed as "Miss Michael Learned" on The Waltons (which ran from 1972–1981) because she was relatively unknown at the time, and producers wished to avoid confusion among viewers about her gende