Ask American Profile

Jeanetta Jones, Moira Kelly, Zina Bethune, Craig T. Nelson

What do you know about Jeanetta Jones of The Weather Channel?
—Harley B., Texas

Jeanetta Jones, a native of Plainview, Texas (pop. 22,336), graduated from the University of Georgia with a bachelor’s degree in broadcast news, wanting to report anything but the weather. After graduation, she worked at a Macon, Ga., TV station reporting on everything, including weather. On her next job in Spartanburg, S.C., a temporary fill-in weekend weather job turned into two years and "in that two years, I figured out I was having more fun doing the weather than I was doing the news," Jones says. "The news was so depressing and when I did the weather, I felt like I was providing a true service for people. A lot of times we don’t take the weather seriously, but during severe weather season, we can help keep people out of harm’s way." A month after she sent a tape to The Weather Channel in 1986, she was hired. Married for 12 years and the mother of a 9-year-old daughter, Jones, 44, also has expanded her horizons to include another passion—jewelry—by opening a store in Macon, called The Bling, which carries fashion jewelry.

Whatever became of Moira Kelly from The Cutting Edge movie?
—Monika A., Iowa

She plays single mother Karen Roe on the WB show One Tree Hill. She also spent a year on The West Wing, playing political consultant Mandy Hampton. Born in Long Island, N.Y., Kelly once revealed, "My mother always called me ‘Clara Bow’—I was such a dramatic child—so I think acting was in my blood." In addition to The Cutting Edge, she also starred in the films Billy Bathgate and Chaplin, as well as voicing the character Nala in The Lion King. Married with two children, Kelly splits her time between New York and Los Angeles.

I would like to know what happened to Zina Bethune of The Nurses.
—Louise S., Alabama

Zina Bethune has always had a passion for both acting and dance. She was just 15 when she starred in the 1960s TV series The Nurses and was already being groomed to be a star ballerina, which unfortunately was not to be, so she continued acting. After the TV show, she appeared in Who’s That Knocking on My Door? and the daytime soap Love of Life, moving from New York to Los Angeles in the mid-1970s. Her life was altered in her early teens, when disabilities began affecting her legs, feet and back. Rather than being discouraged, she overcame them and began working with disabled children. "I realized how dance transcends all the supposed limitations," explains Bethune, who was born with the spine disease scoliosis and suffers from hip and glandular problems. In 1980, she started Bethune Theatredanse, where she adapts screenplays and plays as multi-media experiences. "I try to utilize all the art forms I care about in my work," says Bethune, who lives in Los Angeles with her husband of 27 years. Since 1982, she has led a dance and drama outreach program called Infinite Dreams that has worked with more than 1,000 disabled children. She has performed for presidents and traveled all over the world with this group. "I guess there are reasons I have had so many illnesses, because it led me down a road perhaps I would not have traveled, and it’s been extraordinarily rewarding."

I have enjoyed watching Craig T. Nelson on Coach and The District. What can you tell me about his former theatrical background and personal life?
—Laura K., Vermont

Nelson was born April 4, 1944, in Spokane, Wash. A former writer for The Tim Conway Show, he made his mark in movies with 1982’s Poltergeist, and has been a constant presence in television and film since 1971, including movies such as Silkwood, The Killing Fields and Ghosts of Mississippi. The Emmy Award winner is versatile—he also voiced the roles of Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible in the 2004 film The Incredibles and directed episodes of both series. A devotee of racecar driving, he’s been married to actress Doria Cook-Nelson since 1987 and has three children from a previous marriage.

Upload Your Own Stories, Photos and Videos

Every week, American Profile magazine brings you stories that celebrate the people and places that make America great. Now we want to hear your stories and see your photos, videos and even audio.

 Start Uploading Now!

 

Discuss this Article