Yes, she's been written about too!!!
"It's what happens to child actors who more or less grow up on a TV show," the former Facts of Life star says. "Everyone thinks they know us."
But Cohn doesn't see herself as a living, breathing Natalie Green, the chubby, cherubic wiseacre who attended Eastland School for Girls. She's merely the actor who played that part for nine seasons (1979 - 88). "It's a double-edged sword," she says.
"You're grateful and appreciative that people liked you and remember you. But on the other side, you're like, "Well, shoot, I would like a career.' You know you have more to offer, and it gets frustrating when you aren't given the chance."
Cohn, now 33, is no stranger to the we know her, we like her, she's good, but she's wrong mantra of some casting directors. Meanwhile, she usually rejects Natalie-like parts. As a result, Cohn has had a low profile in recent years.
After Facts, Cohn--who describes herself as "single and looking, but not pathologically"�co-starred in Second Half, a short-lived 1993& - 94 sitcom. Since then, she has kept busy doing voices for cartoons and a lot of fund-raising and charity work while staying sharp for the right acting opportunity.
"One of the best pieces of advice I got was from Sally Field. She said, "Mindy, I was the Flying Nun and Gidget for years. And it only took one casting director to see me as Sybil, and all of a sudden I was a movie star.' She said, "If you have the talent, then all it takes is perseverance.'
"So that's my philosophy: If you believe in yourself, the chances and the opportunities will come around."
� 1999, Biography Magazine.
Thursday, May 25, 2000
Mindy Cohn, known to millions of Gen-Xers as bouncy Natalie Green on the long-running sitcom The Facts of Life, is entertaining a new generation of couch potatoes thanks to her role as type-A terror Nancy on the Fox Family Channel cartoon The Kids From Room 402.
"The producers probably won't like this, but I always describe her as Peppermint Patty on acid," Cohn tells the TV Guide Channel. "She is so high-strung and so intense, and I really love playing her because I'm very much that way. She's very dramatic and everything is just very important and very crucial. It's her way or no way, but she's not a bully. She just is very demanding � and she'll grow up to rule the world, I'm convinced. So that's Nancy."
A far cry from her days as neurotic Natalie � especially since Cohn doesn't have to spend hours in hair and makeup. "It's the best! You don't care what you look like as long as you sound right," she explains. "There's a different kind of camaraderie that I've noticed. I guess it has a lot to do with how you look and the vanity of [stardom]. When you're on a TV show it's like, 'Is my wardrobe OK? Is my makeup OK? Does she look better than I do?' You can't help but get caught up in that. And here it's just not about that, so there is a real sense of joy. You just go into a room and play for a while!" � Jonathan Reiner
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