PHILLIPS
Laura

• 1. Career

Laura Mackenzie Phillips is an American actress. She is the daughter of seminal folk-rock musician John Phillips of The Mamas and the Papas and his first wife Susan Adams. Her best-known roles include Carol Morrison in the film American Graffiti, Julie Cooper Horvath on the sitcom One Day at a Time, Molly Phillips on Disney Channel’s supernatural series So Weird, and Barbara "Barb" Denning in Orange Is the New Black.

Career

Phillips was 12 years old during the filming of American Graffiti, and 13 when the movie was released. She was cast as Carol Morrison, a young girl accidentally picked up by hot rodding teenager John Milner (Paul Le Mat). Because of California state law, producer Gary Kurtz became Phillips's legal guardian for the duration of the filming.

Phillips gained stardom in the 1970s playing teenager Julie Cooper (when the character got married, her married name was Horvath) on the long-running television show One Day at a Time, for which she earned $50,000 a week. During the show's third season in 1977, Phillips was arrested for disorderly conduct. Because of her drug and alcohol abuse, Phillips began arriving late and was even incoherent for rehearsals. The producers ordered her to take a six-week break to overcome her addiction but were ultimately forced to fire her in 1980.

After two near-fatal overdoses, Phillips entered Fair Oaks Hospital voluntarily for treatment. In 1981, the producers of One Day at a Time invited her back to the show. However, in 1982, Phillips relapsed into cocaine use and the following year, she collapsed on the show's set. After refusing to take a drug test, she was fired permanently, and her character written out of the series. In 1992, Philips entered a drug rehab program for nine months.

From the mid 1980s to the early 1990s, Phillips performed as a singer and toured with a re-formed version of The Mamas & the Papas, known as The New Mamas and The Papas.

In 1999, Phillips co-starred with Cara DeLizia in the Disney Channel series So Weird, playing a fictional rock star named Molly Phillips. She sang original songs written by show producers Jon Cooksey and Ann Marie Montade. In 2002, she appeared in the Disney Channel original movie Double Teamed. Phillips guest-starred on episodes of ER, Without a Trace, 7th Heaven, Cold Case, and Beverly Hills, 90210.

Phillips won an Honorary Best Actress award on March 20, 2011, at the closing night awards gala of the Female Eye Film Festival in Toronto for her performance as Sharon in the 2010 independent film Peach Plum Pear. While in Toronto, she was interviewed on Canada AM, ET Canada, and The Marilyn Denis Show.

In 2016, Phillips began working at the Breathe Life Healing Center in West Hollywood, California as a drug rehab counselor.

In 2017, Phillips appeared in an episode of the rebooted One Day at a Time as Pam Valentine. The role was apt, given Phillips's history: she portrayed a counselor. She reprised the role in 2019, in two episodes of the third season.

In 2018, Phillips appeared as Barbara Denning in episodes of the Netflix original Orange Is the New Black.