Meg Bennett

American actress, model and writer

Meg Bennett

Born|

Helen Bennett

(1948-10-04)October 4, 1948
Died| April 11, 2024(2024-04-11) (aged 75)
Alma mater| Northwestern University
Occupations|

* Writer
* actress
* model

Meg Bennett was an American television soap opera writer, occasional actress and model. She is married to ex-General Hospital head writer Robert Guza Jr.

## Early life[edit]

Born Helen Bennett ( October 4, 1948,[citation needed]\- April 11,2024) Meg is the eldest daughter of a printing company executive and a psychologist, and grew up in Pasadena, California. She majored in drama at Northwestern University, was homecoming queen, acted in summer stock during college breaks, and worked as a model, including an appearance in Life magazine.[1][2] She changed her name to Meg because there was already a Helen Bennett registered with the Screen Actors' Guild.[3]

## Career[edit]

In 1971 she was hired as the "Cadillac Eldorado convertible girl" for a New York auto show, which prompted her to move to Manhattan. There she appeared on the game show Three on a Match, where she won $10,000 in prizes and was an undefeated champion. She was an original cast member of the Broadway production Grease, which led to her being cast on the daytime soap opera Search for Tomorrow in 1974. She played the role of the good girl Liza for three years, then left New York for California. She also appeared occasionally as a panelist on Match Game.

Bennett suffered a bout of hepatitis, and once recovered, she was cast as Julia Newman on The Young and the Restless in 1980. She played the role on-and-off for six years, during which time she impressed Bill Bell, the creator of the show, with her on-set skills as a script doctor. He asked her to write for the show in 1981, and thereafter she began doing double duty as writer and actress on the show.[4] Her writing duties usurped her acting career, and she shared an Emmy award with the rest of the writing staff for General Hospital in 1995. She still acts occasionally, playing such roles as the villainous Allegra on General Hospital.[5] She was fired in 2011 by Garin Wolf after his promotion to head writer.

### Positions held[edit]

The Bold and the Beautiful

* Script Writer: 1987–1989
* Executive Storyline Consultant: August 6, 2002 – October 2004 (hired by Bradley Bell)

General Hospital

* Breakdown Writer: 1987–1989; 1994–1997 (hired by Claire Labine); 1999 – December 2000; April 3, 2009–July 2011
* Actress: Allegra Montenegro (August 2005)

General Hospital: Night Shift

* Script Writer: August 9 – October 4, 2007

Generations (hired by Sally Sussman Morina)

* Writer: 1989–1990

Santa Barbara

* Breakdown Writer: 1991–1993
* Actress: Megan Richardson 1989

Sunset Beach

* Associate Head Writer: 1997
* Co-Head Writer: October 1997 – August 1998

The Young and the Restless

* Script Writer: 1981–1987
* Actress: Julia Newman 1980–1984, 1986–1987, 2002, 2018, 2020

## Personal life[edit]

She met her husband Robert Guza Jr. when they were both hired to write for a soap opera. They have collaborated ever since, writing for several soap operas.

In 2003, they bought a Beverly Hills home formerly owned by Boris Karloff, then Gregory Peck, for $2.8 million.[6]

## Awards and nominations[edit]

Daytime Emmy Award

* Nomination, 2003, Best Writing, Bold and The Beautiful
* Win, 1995, Best Writing, General Hospital
* Nominations, 1995, 1997 and 2000, Best Writing, General Hospital
* Nomination, 1986, Best Writing, The Young And The Restless

Writers Guild of America Award

* Nomination, 1997 season, Sunset Beach
* Wins, 1994, 1995 and 1997 seasons, General Hospital
* Nominations, 1993–1997 seasons, General Hospital
* Wins, 1991 and 1992 seasons, Santa Barbara

## References[edit]

1. ^ Marian Christy, "Meg Bennett And Her Search For Tomorrow", United Features Syndicate in Reading Eagle, June 27, 1975.
2. ^ "Bold, Bright Outfits for a Colorful City", Life, Nov 11, 1966, p. 87 (describing her as "18-year-old Helen Bennett, a Northwestern freshman").
3. ^ "Meg Bennett's one of a kind career", Daily TV, 1985, reprinted in Santa Barbara: le site Français, Archived December 31, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
4. ^ Susan Champlin, "As Soap Star and Scriptwriter, Meg Bennett Faces Double Duty on the Young and the Restless", People, June 6, 1983.
5. ^ "A leg up on Allegra", Soap Opera Digest, August 29, 2005, archive copy here
6. ^ "Putting his castle on ice", Los Angeles Times, June 29, 2003.

## External links[edit]

* Meg Bennett at IMDb