Didi Conn

Edith "Didi" Conn is an American actress.

She was a panelist in three incarnations of Match Game:
 * Match Game (1973)
 * Match Game PM
 * Match Game Hollywood Squares Hour

Career
Conn made her debut as an actress in the 1960s. Her notable roles include:


 * Laurie Robinson in You Light Up My Life, 1977
 * Frenchie in the feature films Grease (1978) and Grease 2 (1982)
 * Helen in The Practice (1976–77)
 * Denise Stevens Downey in Benson (1981–85)
 * Stacy Jones in Shining Time Station (1989–95)[1]

Conn provided the voice for Raggedy Ann in the animated feature Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure (1977) directed by Richard Williams. Her voice is one of her trademarks. She appeared as a celebrity guest in game shows.

In 2013, she starred as Pearl in the play A Heap of Livin' by Elliot Shoenman at The Odyssey Theatre in Los Angeles.

In January 2016, she had a cameo as Vi in the Grease: Live television special on Fox, thus being the only actress to appear in all three screen adaptations of the franchise. In addition, she has appeared in numerous other roles on television.

In 2018, it was announced that Conn would be a contestant in the eleventh series of Dancing on Ice. At 67, she was the oldest person ever to have competed in the show. She, alongside her professional partner Łukasz Różycki, were eliminated in Week 4, after the judges saved Saara Aalto and Hamish Gaman in the skate-off.

Activism
Conn's son Daniel was diagnosed with autism. On 13 November 2008, she was named national celebrity spokesperson for Autism Speaks. Before that, she was a spokesperson for the National Alliance for Autism Research, now part of Autism Speaks. She has performed at benefits for Foundation for Educating Children with Autism (FECA).

On 27 September 2008, Conn performed with David Shire and Lynne Wintersteller at a benefit performance for Barack Obama in Nyack, New York.

Personal Life
Edith Bernstein was born in Brooklyn, New York City, and is the daughter of a clinical psychologist; "Didi" was her childhood nickname. She attended Midwood High School. Her brother is opera singer Richard Bernstein. She married her first husband, Frank "Frankie" Conn, in 1975, but they divorced in 1978. She has been married to composer David Shire since 1982. Conn is the stepmother of Matthew Shire, a Los Angeles screenwriter and the son of Talia Shire, who was David's first wife.