Helen Wagner (Nancy Hughes McClosky)

Helen Wagner, who has played the role of Nancy Hughes on As the World Turns since it premiered on CBS on April 2, 1956, is the program's sole original cast member.

After making her television debut in the role of a queen in a fairy tale that General Electric produced on its experimental station in Schenectady, New York, she appeared in numerous dramatic television roles, including live productions of Studio One, Philco Radio Television, and Suspense. Later, Charlie Ruggles selected her to play his daughter in the series The World of Mr. Sweeney, a role she played for five years.

Helen's Broadway credits include the Sigmund Romberg/Oscar Hammerstein musical Sunny River; Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!; The Bad Seed; My Name Is Acquilon with Jean Pierre Aumont and Lilli Palmer; and Love of Four Colonels with Rex Harrison and Lilli Palmer.

She toured as Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire with Lee Marvin; and appeared in regional theater in Illinois as Eleanor in The Lion in Winter and in all of the women's roles in Lovers and Other Strangers. She has performed in many off-Broadway and summer stock productions, at hospital benefits, and in Gilbert & Sullivan tours. She also sang with the St. Louis Municipal Opera.

Helen studied at Monmouth College in Illinois, earning degrees in dramatics and music. In New York, she continued her voice and piano training, gaining experience as a soloist in various church choirs.

In 1988, her college alma mater awarded Helen an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters. The next year, to replace the college's turn-of-the-century "little theater" with a state-of-the-art theater, Helen chaired a national committee that raised more than one million dollars.

On November 1, 1990, Monmouth College's new theater's opening night, Helen reprised her role as Eleanor in The Lion In Winter in a production directed by her husband, Broadway producer Robert Willey.

Helen enjoys reading, needlepoint, and knitting. Helen was born in Lubbock, Texas; her birthday is September 3.


	With Love To... The SOAPS! Hunt Block (Craig Montgomery) \| Larry Bryggman (Dr. John Dixon) \| Martha Byrne (Lily / Rose) - ADDED PICTURES \| Terri Conn (Katie Peretti Frasier) \| Trent Dawson (Henry Coleman) \| Scott DeFreitas (Andy Dixon) \| Ellen Dolan (Margo Hughes) \| Tom Eplin (Jake McKinnon) \| Eileen Fulton (Lisa Grimaldi) \| Hunter Garner (Billy Ross) \| Christopher Goutman (Executive Producer) \| Brett Groneman (Will Munson) \| Napiera Danielle Groves (Bonnie McKechine) \| Don Hastings (Dr. Bob Hughes) \| Kathryn Hays (Kim Hughes) \| Benjamin Hendrickson (Hal Munson) \| Jon Hensley (Holden Snyder) \| Kelley Menighan Hensly (Emily Stewart) - ADDED PICTURES \| Scott Holmes (Tom Hughes) \| Scott Holroyd (Paul Ryan) \| Elizabeth Hubbard (Lucinda Walsh) \| Lesli Kay (Molly Conlan) - ADDED PICTURES \| Craig Lowlor (Adam Munson) \| Paul Leyden (Simon Frasier) - ADDED PICTURES \| Marie Masters (Dr. Susan Stewart) \| Tony Musante (Joe D'Angelo) \| Kim Onasch (Jennifer Munson) \| Michael Park (Jack Snyder) \| Peter Parros (Dr. Ben Harris) \| Colleen Zenk Pinker (Barbara Montgomery) \| Todd Rotondi (Bryant Montgomery) \| Kristina Sisco (Abigail Williams) - ADDED PICTURES \| Christpher Tavani (Luke Snyder) \| Paul Taylor (Issac Jenkins) \| Chad Tucker (Curtis Tompson) \| Helen Wagner (Nancy Hughes McClosky) \| Maura West (Carly Tenney) - ADDED PICTURES \| Kathleen Widdoes (Emma Snyder) Helen Wagner (Nancy Hughes McClosky) Helen Wagner, who has played the role of Nancy Hughes on As the World Turns since it premiered on CBS on April 2, 1956, is the program's sole original cast member. After making her television debut in the role of a queen in a fairy tale that General Electric produced on its experimental station in Schenectady, New York, she appeared in numerous dramatic television roles, including live productions of Studio One, Philco Radio Television, and Suspense. Later, Charlie Ruggles selected her to play his daughter in the series The World of Mr. Sweeney, a role she played for five years. Helen's Broadway credits include the Sigmund Romberg/Oscar Hammerstein musical Sunny River; Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!; The Bad Seed; My Name Is Acquilon with Jean Pierre Aumont and Lilli Palmer; and Love of Four Colonels with Rex Harrison and Lilli Palmer. She toured as Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire with Lee Marvin; and appeared in regional theater in Illinois as Eleanor in The Lion in Winter and in all of the women's roles in Lovers and Other Strangers. She has performed in many off-Broadway and summer stock productions, at hospital benefits, and in Gilbert & Sullivan tours. She also sang with the St. Louis Municipal Opera. Helen studied at Monmouth College in Illinois, earning degrees in dramatics and music. In New York, she continued her voice and piano training, gaining experience as a soloist in various church choirs. In 1988, her college alma mater awarded Helen an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters. The next year, to replace the college's turn-of-the-century "little theater" with a state-of-the-art theater, Helen chaired a national committee that raised more than one million dollars. On November 1, 1990, Monmouth College's new theater's opening night, Helen reprised her role as Eleanor in The Lion In Winter in a production directed by her husband, Broadway producer Robert Willey. Helen enjoys reading, needlepoint, and knitting. Helen was born in Lubbock, Texas; her birthday is September 3.