Martha Byrne

Martha Byrne
Byrne on the ATWT farewell event in Hilversum (The Netherlands).
Born	Mary Martha Byrne (1969-12-23) December 23, 1969 Ridgewood, New Jersey, U.S.
Occupation	Actress, singer, television writer
Spouse(s)	Michael McMahon (1994–present)
Website
marthabyrne.net

Mary Martha Byrne (born December 23, 1969 in Ridgewood, New Jersey) is an American actress, singer and television writer. In 2008, she left CBS's As the World Turns as the passionate role of Lily Walsh Snyder. In 2009, she was featured on ABC's General Hospital as Andrea Floyd. She briefly served as a script writer for the CBS Daytime soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful.

Career

Featured roles

Byrne began acting at a young age when she joined the cast of the Broadway musical Annie, where she played the role of July.

She was a featured actor on a number of prime time episodic television programs, including Kate and Allie, Murder, She Wrote, Parker Lewis Can't Lose, Jake and the Fatman, In the Heat of the Night, and Hearts are Wild. Byrne also appeared in several television movies, with featured roles in When the Cradle Falls and Pink Lightning.

Byrne's best known film role would be the title character in the 1983 film Anna to the Infinite Power, and in 2010 provided the commentary for the DVD release.

Daytime television

Byrne is best known for her role on the CBS Daytime soap opera As the World Turns, portraying Lily Walsh Snyder. She initially assumed the role from Lucy Deakins in May 1985 and played Lily until October 1989, when she left the show and Heather Rattray assumed the role of Lily. Byrne returned in April 1993.

Byrne became part of a "supercouple" when then-Head Writer Douglas Marland paired Lily, a "poor little rich girl", with hard-luck farmhand Holden Snyder, played by Jon Hensley.

In 1987, Byrne was involved in controversy when she taped Lily's first love scene months before her own 18th birthday. Lily lost her virginity to the character of Dusty Donovan; to add to the controversy, actor Brian Bloom, who was playing Dusty, was even younger than Byrne. This provoked controversy (as teenage characters are generally portrayed by actors who are a few years older, and therefore of consenting age).

From 2000 until 2003, Byrne assumed a double role when she played Lily's long-lost twin, Rose D'Angelo who was created by Hogan Sheffer.

On February 29, 2008, TV Guide reported that Byrne will be leaving As the World Turns and will be off the air by April 2008. The show's executive producer Christopher Goutman stated, "We made Martha an incredibly generous offer in hopes that she would remain a valuable member of the ATWT cast. Unfortunately, Martha has decided to leave despite our best efforts to keep her."^[1] Byrne would later assert that the contract negotiations fell through because As the World Turns refused to guarantee her the same number of episodes to appear in that she appeared in 2007. She further added that a casting call was made for her successor during her contract negotiations, which further fueled her drive to leave. Byrne's last airdate on the show is April 22, 2008; her successor, Noelle Beck, appeared in the role of Lily beginning in May 2008.

Byrne was hired as a script writer by Bradley Bell for The Bold and the Beautiful in early 2009.

On May 14, 2009 Martha was hired by ABC's General Hospital to take a recurring role as Andrea Floyd the wife of Port Charles current mayor Garrett Floyd. She debut on June 17, 2009 and she exited the role on September 9 of the same year.

Music

Byrne is also a singer. She contributed a Christmas medley to the 1994 RCA release, A Soap Opera Christmas. She released her self-titled album Martha Byrne in 1996.

She has also released a second album, Woman Thing Music. Byrne again was the subject of controversy, as the sponsor of the second album was Philip Morris. The CD could only be purchased in conjunction with the purchase of cigarettes, or at one of the "Woman Music Thing" concerts that Philip Morris sponsored. Byrne eventually withdrew endorsement from the music label, as she did not want to be associated with a product that could encourage underage smoking.

In 2006 Byrne released a third album, The Other Side.

Awards and recognition

Byrne is an eight-time Daytime Emmy Award-nominee, winning Outstanding Younger Actress in 1987 and Outstanding Lead Actress in 2001.

Personal life

Byrne has been married since 1994 to Michael McMahon, a former undercover officer in the New York City Police Department.^[2] She grew up in Waldwick, New Jersey^[3] and lives in nearby Ridgewood.^[4]

Their first child, Michael Terrence McMahon, was born on May 29, 1998. An episode of the TLC series A Baby Story chronicled her second pregnancy and the birth of her son, Maxwell Vincent McMahon, on September 3, 2002. Their third child and first daughter, Annmarie, was born June 12, 2006.

Filmography

Writer

Producer

References

External links

• Official website
• Martha Byrne at the Internet Movie Database
• Martha Byrne at AllRovi