If I ever watched the TV show Wonder Woman, it was by chance. Yet, it was nigh unto impossible for me to have not seen Lynda Carter in that spangled costume in ads, on notebooks, in magazines, usually in her superhero pose.
So I recognized her instantly when I recently saw her in episodes from 2005 of Law and Order, and its spinoff, Special Victims Unit. Her character was NOT heroic. She’s been a working performer for a lot of years.
From Biography: “The youngest of four siblings raised in Arizona, Carter studied performing and by her mid-teens was fronting bands as lead vocalist. Although she qualified for an academic scholarship to attend Arizona State University, Carter opted for a life on the road, touring and performing in venues from the Catskills to Las Vegas.”
She segued into modeling. “Participating in beauty pageants brought the titles of Miss Arizona and then Miss World U.S.A… The pageant titles helped land acting auditions and in 1975 she burst onto television screens as Wonder Woman, and with the role came fame on a global level.”
She married “Hollywood producer and manager Ron Samuels in 1977,” which she describes as “an unfortunate chapter.” They divorced in 1982.
True love
She met attorney Robert Altman – not to be confused with the film director – and married him in 1984. They built a house in Potomac, MD, just outside D.C. They raised their children James (b. 1988) and daughter Jessica (b. 1990) there. Lynda was also “a fundraiser and advocate for causes important to her such as Pro-Choice rights for women, equality for the LGBTQ population and Susan G. Komen for the Cure.”
Unfortunately, Robert Altman died in February 2021 at the age of 73 from complications from a medical procedure.
She wrote on her website: “Robert is the love of my life and he always will be. Our 37 years of marriage were an extraordinary gift. We shared the passion I hope everyone is lucky enough to experience in their lifetime. We protected each other and were each other’s champions always.”
She had battled alcoholism in her past. But she’s been sober since 1998.
Like a good mom, she’s using her site to plug her daughter’s 2020 EP No Rules. It includes at least two covers, Spooky (Classics IV) and Sunny Afternoon (The Kinks). Lynda has rekindled her own love of music, and the two women have performed together.
In June 2021, Lynda bought a Florida condo for $15 million
A few months ago, Chuck Miller went gaga over an encounter with the performer.
Here’s to a Wonderful day for Lynda Carter as she turns 70 today.