Early life

Shari Lynn Belafonte was born in New York City, the second daughter of Marguerite (née Byrd), a psychologist, and Harry Belafonte, a singer and actor. She attended Windsor Mountain School in Lenox, Massachusetts and Buxton School in Williamstown, Massachusetts, then Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts before transferring to Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh where she earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Drama.

Career

Belafonte began her career as a model, becoming a successful cover girl model and appearing in commercials for Calvin Klein jeans. She made her feature film debut in 1982 in the movies Time Walker and If You Could See What I Hear. She then worked as a production assistant and assistant director in public television on the East Coast before moving to Los Angeles, where she became an assistant to the publicist at Hanna-Barbera productions. While getting her hands wet "behind the scenes", she also received a number of modeling and commercial assignments, and was known to have appeared on the covers of over 300 magazines as of 2015.

Early in her career, Belafonte landed a role alongside The Beastmaster's Marc Singer when he portrayed singer Tom Sullivan in the feature film If You Could See What I Hear. Other feature films include The Time Walker, Speed Zone, the made-for-television horror-comedy film The Midnight Hour, in which she also sang a song titled "Get Dead", and Fire, Ice and Dynamite. The television producer Aaron Spelling chose her as a finalist for Julie Rogers on Charlie's Angels, a role written with her specifically in mind, but the part instead went to Tanya Roberts. In 1984, Spelling did choose her for another pilot, this one for the action-adventure series Velvet alongside Leah Ayres, Mary Margaret Humes, and Sheree J. Wilson. In the same year, Spelling signed Shari as Julie Gilette in the ABC television series Hotel, in which she starred during the show's five-year run, which extended from 1983 to 1988. It was during this time that Shari began her music career by signing a contract to record on the Metronome Records label, releasing two albums in Europe; these were The Eyes of Night in 1987 and Shari in 1989.

Belafonte made her theatrical debut in Tamara, playing the title role in the long-running Los Angeles production. Shortly thereafter, she starred as Dr. Laura Wingate in the USA Network's dramatic series Beyond Reality, which ran for two years. In addition, Shari also co-hosted the syndicated series Lifestyles with Robin Leach and Shari Belafonte, an updated version of Leach's signature program, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. As of 2006, Shari could be seen hosting a travel program called "Travels In Mexico And The Caribbean With Shari Belafonte" on NYCTV.

Belafonte's multi-faceted career also includes moderating and voiceovers. She has producing credits for theater, public and network television, and feature films. In addition to her affiliation with numerous children's, animal, and environment causes, she has also become the international spokesman for the Starlight Children's Foundation. Named by the Wall Street Journal as one of the top ten celebrity endorsers, Shari has been the spokesman for numerous corporations including Bally's International Health and Fitness, Slim-Fast, Diet System 6, and most recently, Estroven.

Belafonte also provided the voice of Lupé, the leader of the Wolf Pack, in Sonic the Hedgehog, Gerald's mother, Mrs. Johanssen, in four episodes of Hey Arnold!, Diana Cruz in an episode of The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest, and the undead Southern belle zombie Blanche in Gravedale High.

In mid-December 2015, it was announced that Belafonte would take over the role of Mayor Janice Lomax from Saidah Arrika Ekulona on January 19, 2016, on the ABC daytime soap opera General Hospital.

Personal life

Belafonte has been married twice: First to Robert Harper (May 21, 1977 - 1988). She has been married to Sam Behrens since December 30, 1989. Belafonte posed nude for Playboy in the magazine's September 2000 edition, and herself was an avid photographer.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref
1982	Time Walker	Linda Flores	Also known as Being from Another Planet B-movie directed by Tom Kennedy.
	If You Could See What I Hear	Heather Johnson	Biography/drama movie about blind musician Tom Sullivan. Directed by Eric Till.
1983	Overnight Sensation	Daphne
1989	Speed Zone	Margaret	Also known as Cannonball Fever A comedy film set around an illegal cross-country race (inspired by the Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash).
1990	Murder by Numbers	Lisa	Directed and written Paul Leder.
	Fire, Ice and Dynamite	Serena	German original title Feuer, Eis und Dynamit German feature length sports film directed by Willy Bogner. Sequel to Fire and Ice.
1997	Mars	Doc Halliday	Directed by Jon Hess.

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref
1981	ABC Weekend Specials
	The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo	Bank Teller
	Hart to Hart	Cleo	Episode: "The Latest In High Fashion Murder" (S 2:Ep 17)
1982	Trapper John, M.D.	Maggie	Episode: "Three on a Mismatch" (S 4:Ep 4)
	Diff'rent Strokes	Monique	Episode: "The Older Woman" (S 5:Ep 7)
1983-1988	Hotel	Julie Gillette	Main cast
1983	Family Feud	Herself
	Battle of the Network Stars	ABC Team	Episode: "Special #15" (S 8:Ep 1)
1984	Velvet	Julie Rhodes	A made-for-television film directed by Richard Lang.
	The Love Boat	Guest	Episode: "Love Is Blind/Baby Makers/Lady & The Maid/Luise Rainer" {S 7:Ep 22)
	Battle of the Network Stars	Host	Episode: "Special #16" (S 8:Ep 2)
1985	Matt Houston	Joanna	Episode: "New Orleans Nightmare" (S 3:Ep 18)
	The Midnight Hour	Melissa Cavender	Also known as In the Midnight Hour. An American comedy-horror film. A made-for-television film directed by Jack Bender.
1986	Kate's Secret	Gail	A made-for-television film directed by Arthur Allan Seidelman
1987	Square One TV	Herself	Episode: "Episode 107" (S 1:Ep 7)
	The Late Show	Herself	Original Host was Joan Rivers. Episode: "October 13, 1986" (S 1:Ep 3)
1989	The Women of Brewster Place	Cameo appearance	Uncredited American television miniseries based upon the critically acclaimed 1982 novel of the same name by Gloria Naylor.
	Hanna-Barbera's 50th: A Yabba Dabba Doo Celebration	Herself	Also known as A Yabba Dabba Doo Celebration: 50 Years of Hanna-Barbera. A live-action and animated television special hosted by Tony Danza and Annie Potts.
	Perry Mason: The Case of the All-Star Assassin	Kathy Grant	12th made-for-television film based on Perry Mason.
1990	Gravedale High	Blanche	Also known as Rick Moranis in Gravedale High Animated series Main cast
1991	The Jaleel White Special	Herself
1991-1993	Beyond Reality	Laura Wingate	Main cast
1994	Sonic the Hedgehog	Lupé	Episodes: "Cry of the Wolf" (S 2:Ep 10) "The Doomsday Project" (S 2:Ep 13)
	French Silk	Martine	A romance film based on the romance novel written by Sandra Brown and published in 1992. A made-for-television film.
1995	The Heidi Chronicles	April Lambert	A made-for-television film by Wendy Wasserstein adapted from her play of the same name.
1996-1997	Hey Arnold!	Mrs. Johanssen	Recurring seasons 1 and 2.
1997	The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest	Diana Cruz	Episode: "Other Space" (S 2:Ep 16)
1998	Babylon 5: Thirdspace	Elizabeth Trent	A made-for-television film that is part of the Babylon 5 science fiction universe. Written by J. Michael Straczynski and directed by Jesús Salvador Treviño.
	Loving Evangeline	Ellen Beecham	A made-for-television film
2000	The Octopus Show	Narrator
2001	The District	Esther Henderson	Episode: "The Project" (S 2:Ep 4)
2003	It's Christopher Lowell	Herself	Episode: "Do-Gooders" (S 5:Ep 11)
2004	The Oprah Winfrey Show	Herself
2008	Nip/Tuck	Catherine Wicke	Episode:"Lulu Grandiron" (S 5:Ep 12)
2010	Miami Medical	Kimberly Davis	Episode: "Golden Hour" (S 1:Ep 5)
2016	General Hospital	Mayor Janice Lomax	Recurring

Discography

• Eyes Of Night (1987)
• Shari (1989)

Staff work

• The Big Empty (2003) - Still Photographer
• Betrunner (2004) - Still Photographer
• Betty's Treats (2004) - Still Photographer/Producer
• Lonesome Matador (2005) - Still Photographer

[ Source: Wikipedia ]