Jill Eikenberry and Michael Tucker

Biography

Accomplished actors Jill Eikenberry and Michael Tucker are perhaps best known for their portrayals of Ann Kelsey and Stuart Markowitz on NBC's long-running hit series "L.A. Law." In addition to appearing in numerous television movies and feature films, Jill has earned four Emmy nominations, two Golden Globe nominations, was a regular on the acclaimed HBO series "Tracey Takes On..." starring Tracey Ullman, and has hosted "Chicken Soup for the Soul."

After attending Barnard College in New York, Jill attended Yale Drama School. Jill had an extensive theater career on and off Broadway, including roles in "Beggars Opera," "All Over Town" directed by Dustin Hoffman, "Summer Brave," Wendy Wasserstein's "Uncommon Women," in which she also appeared opposite Meryl Streep in the PBS-TV version, Tennessee Williams' "The Eccentricities of a Nightingale," "Watch on the Rhine," and "Onward Victoria." For her performance in Lanford Wilson's "Lemon Sky" and Richard Greenberg's "Life Under Water" she was recognized with Obie Awards.

She made her feature film debut in 1976 in "Between the Lines" opposite John Heard, Jeff Goldblum and Lindsay Crouse; then starred in "Rich Kids," with John Lithgow; "Butch and Sundance: The Early Days," MGM's "Hide in Plain Sight," opposite James Caan, "Arthur," in which she played Dudley Moore's jilted fiancee, and again opposite John Lithgow in "The Manhattan Project." Having tackled theater and film, Jill turned to television, starring first in ABC-TV's "Swansong," with David Soul and then in "Orphan Train" for CBS-TV.

Jill has also appeared in the CBS mini-series "Kane and Abel," "Family Sins," "A Stoning in Fulham County," "My Boyfriend's Back," "Cast the First Stone," the four-hour mini-series "An Inconveniant Woman," with Jason Robards, "Ties that Binds," with Peter Coyote, "My Very Best Friend" starring opposite Jaclyn Smith, Showtime's "Chantilly Lace," and its sequel "Parallel Lives." Recently, Jill Eikenberry has completed an independent feature film entitled "Manna from Heaven." She has guest-starred on the television series as "Strong Enough," "Judging Amy," and performed on stage in "The Vagina Monologues."

Michael, born and raised in Baltimore, attended Carnegie Tech Drama School where he performed in more than 40 plays. After graduation, Michael took several acting jobs in theater around the country, eventually ending up in Washington, D.C. at the Arena Stage. He made his Broadway debut in "Moonchildren" with Jill, and has appeared in "Waiting for Godot," "Mother Courage," "The Rivals," "Trelawny of the Wells," with Meryl Streep and John Lithgow, as well as "The Merry Wives of Windsor," "Measure for Measure," and "The Comedy of Errors." He has also starred in "The Tempest" at San Francisco Geary Theater.

Michael Tucker's film credits include Woody Allen's "Radio Days," and "Purple Rose of Cairo," Barry Levinson's "Diner" and "Tin Men," "The Eyes of Laura Mars," "Checking Out," "For Love of Money" with Michael J. Fox, "Mighty Ducks II," and "Till There Was You" Jeanne Tripplehorn.

His television credits include "Maximum Liability;" the Emmy Award-winning mini-series "Concealed Enemies;" the three-hour Emmy Award-winning TV movie "Day One;" "Too Young to Die;" starring Juliette Lewis and Brad Pitt, and the recent NBC movie "Growing up Brady," among others. Michael can also be seen in the acclaimed HBO series "Tracey Takes On..." starring Tracey Ullman and "Tracey Takes on New York." Recently, Michael has guest-starred on "The Practice," and had a recurring role on "Family Law."

Together, Jill and Michael have appeared on stage in A.R. Gurney's "Love Letters," on television in "Hill Street Blues," "A Family Again," "Assault and Matrimony," "A Town Torn Apart" and "Archie's Wife," which also features their daughter, Alison.

Jill Eikenberry has co-produced a one-hour documentary for NBC entitled "Destined to Live," which dealt with the emotional aspects of breast cancer, from diagnosis to recovery. Jill battled the disease in 1986 and was aware of the importance of letting other women know that they were not alone and could recover and lead full and normal lives. Jill and Michael are dedicated to telling their important story with humor and hope, always stressing breast cancer education, early detection research, and treatment. Jill says, "Our experience with breast cancer forced us to face the fact that we are going to die one day. The question became, 'how do we want to live?'" "Destined to Love" was honored with a Humanitas Award.

In 1986, Michael Tucker received the Good Guys Award from the National Women's Political Caucus in recognition of his efforts on behalf of numerous cases affecting women. Michael is the author of I Never Forget a Meal: An Indulgent Reminiscence, part memoir, part cookbook. In this witty autobiography, he captures his passion of living, loving, learning, acting, and lifelong love affair with food.

Jill & Michael both appeared in NBC's "L.A. Law -- The Movie," in May 2002. Married for 30 years, Jill and Michael live in Mill Valley, California. They have two children, Alison and Max.