Katherine Marie Helmond (July 5, 1928, Galveston, Texas) is an American film, theater and television actress.
Katherine Helmond is best-known for her role as "Jessica Tate", the addled matriarch of the TV sitcom Soap. She was a lead player on the series from 1977 until it was cancelled in 1981. She later starred as "Mona Robinson" in the sitcom Who's the Boss? with Judith Light, Alyssa Milano, Danny Pintauro, and Tony Danza.
Helmond guest-starred on Everybody Loves Raymond as "Lois", Debra Barone's mother (and Ray Barone's mother-in-law), who has no idea how devious her son-in-law is or why her husband Warren (played by Robert Culp) left her for a rather worn-out older woman. She has also appeared on The Wild Thornberrys as the voice of a dugong in the episode, "Reef Grief". Maxim magazine recently named her #9 on their TV's Best Nymphoslist for her role as "Mona Robinson".
She appeared in the 1981 film Time Bandits as "Mrs. Ogre", and in the 1985 film Brazil as "Mrs. Ida Lowry", the plastic surgery and youth-obsessed mother of the principal character, Sam Lowry (played by the Welsh actor, Jonathan Pryce). She also appeared in the 1987 film Lady in White. From 1995-1997, she starred in the sitcom Coach as Doris Sherman, eccentric owner of the fictional Orlando Breakers professional football team, and voiced the Model T "Lizzie" in Pixar's Cars (2006).
She was nominated for Broadway's 1973 Tony Award as Best Supporting or Featured Actress (Dramatic) for Eugene O'Neill's The Great God Brown.
She was nominated for an Emmy for her role of Jessica Tate four times in a row (1978-1981) as Best Actress in a Comedy Series. In 1988 and 1989 she was nominated again, this time as Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role of Mona Robinson and in 2002 she was nominated as Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her role in Everybody Loves Raymond.
She has been married to her second husband, David Christian, since 1962; they have no children. She has homes in Los Angeles, New York City, Long Island and London.
