What is Didi Conn's Net Worth?
Didi Conn is an American actress who has a net worth of $1.5 million. Did Conn is best known for playing Frenchy Facciano in the 1978 musical film "Grease" and Denise Stevens on the television sitcom "Benson" from 1981 to 1984. She also had main roles on the sitcom "The Practice" and the children's show "Shining Time Station." Elsewhere on television, Conn was a regular celebrity guest on such game shows as "Match Game," "Whew!," and "Pyramid."
Early Life and Education
Didi Conn was born as Edith Bernstein on July 13, 1951 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City into a Conservative Jewish family. She has a younger brother named Richard who became a singer and musician. Conn was educated at Midwood High School.
Television Career
Conn made her television debut with a bit part in Gene Roddenberry's TV movie "Genesis II" in 1973. After that, she had guest roles on "Happy Days" and "The Rookies." Conn had her first main role on television from 1976 to 1977, playing Helen on the Danny Thomas sitcom "The Practice." She subsequently appeared in the television films "Three on a Date" and "Murder at the Mardi Gras," and served as a panelist on the game show "Match Game." From 1980 to 1981, Conn voiced the character Cupcake on the Saturday morning animated show "The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang." In the latter year, Conn began her longest-running television role, on the ABC sitcom "Benson." She joined the series in season three as Denise Stevens, the chipper and naive new personal secretary to Robert Guillaume's titular character. Eventually, her character married Ethan Phillips's character Pete Downey. Conn left "Benson" in 1984. She went on to appear in episodes of such shows as "Hotel," "Cagney & Lacey," and "Highway to Heaven," and in the animated television special "Star Fairies."
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In 1989, Conn began starring as station master Stacy Jones on the children's television show "Shining Time Station." She was originally joined by Ringo Starr, Brian O'Connor, Leonard Jackson, Jason Woliner, and Nicole Leach. However, only Conn and O'Connor remained on the show for its second and third seasons through 1993. Conn also reprised her role in a number of "Shining Time Station" television specials. Elsewhere in the 1990s, she had guest roles on "Civil Wars," "L.A. Law," and "Cybill." In the early 2000s, Conn lent her voice to episodes of the animated children's series "Rugrats," "Stanley," and "The Wild Thornberrys." Later, from 2008 to 2010, she appeared in three episodes of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit." Conn went on to appear in an episode of "Transparent" in 2015. The following year, she had a cameo as Vi in the Fox special "Grease Live!" In 2019, Conn competed in the 11th season of the British competition series "Dancing on Ice" as the oldest contestant ever on the show. With her professional partner Łukasz Różycki, she was eliminated in the fourth week. Conn later appeared in episodes of the shows "Blue Bloods" and "Harlan Coben's Shelter."
Film Career
In 1977, Conn made her big-screen debut as the star of Joseph Brooks's romantic drama film "You Light Up My Life." The same year, she voiced the titular doll in the musical fantasy film "Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure." Conn subsequently played Donna DeVito in the 1978 comedy "Almost Summer." A couple of months after that, she had her most iconic role: Frenchy Facciano, one of the Pink Ladies, in the film adaptation of the musical "Grease." The highest-grossing film of the year, it spawned the sequel "Grease 2" in 1982, with Conn reprising her role as Frenchy. In the meantime, Conn starred in the Academy Award-winning short film "Violet." She wouldn't appear on the big screen again until 2000, when she reprised her "Shining Time Station" role as Stacy Jones in the children's fantasy adventure film "Thomas and the Magic Railroad." Conn next had a small part in the 2002 biopic "Frida." Her later credits include the comedies "Most Likely to Murder" (2018) and "The Mimic" (2020).
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Stage Career
In addition to her screen acting, Conn has performed on the stage on several occasions. She has acted in Broadway productions of "Lost in Yonkers," "The Green Bird," "Say Goodnight, Gracie," and "Middletown," as well as in a production of "The Underpants" in Hartford, Connecticut in 2014.
Personal Life
Conn married her first husband, Frank, in 1975. They divorced three years later. In 1984, she wed composer and songwriter David Shire. Conn has two children, including an adopted son named Daniel who has autism. Because of him, she has been a prominent activist for autism awareness and research.
