Youth
Kate was born in Birmingham, Alabama on October 28th, 1948. When she was young wanted she to be a tennis player. She started acting in her garage together with her sister but the "real" stagedebut was in high school. It was also during high school that decided to become an actress. The main reason for that was that she didn't want to stay in Alabama and become just an ordinary girl. To get a solid dramatic education she attended American Academy of Dramatic arts.

Early Career
Her first major TV-appearance was in Dark Shadows 1970. In this serie she played a ghost. then she had a role in the Jimmy Stewart Show before she met Aaron Spelling in the Rookies. She played the nurse Jill Danko. In this show was Kate the big star and when it came to an end they decided to make a new show who would be made especially for her. That show was Charlie's Angels.

The time as an angel
When Charlie's Angels first come on air in 1976, most people thought that Kate would be the star of the show, but that wasn't the case. Instead that was Farrah Fawcett the angel who got the most attention. Despite of that Kate worked in the show for 3 season. In my opinion was she clearly the best actress in the show but she was probably very limited by her role.

Late Career
Kate left Charlie's Angels 1979 when she wasn't allowed to play in Kramer vs Kramer due to some contract clauses. Meryl Streep won an Oscar for the Kate could have had. After Charlie's Angels Kate tried her hand at comedy in the television remake of Topper and hit the big screen with the cutting edge film Making Love, about a man and his struggle with homosexuality. Then she returned to the television screen and her next big success serie Scarecow and Mrs King, a sitcom were she played an agent and a suburban mom. She have also done some movies but none of them have been such a great succes as Charlie's Angels or Scarecow and Mrs King.

Private Life
Kate has during the years had reputation as being hard to work with and it has even been rumored that she took cocaine during the 80's. But that's just rumors and it have never been confirmed. She has also had some medical problems. Two breast cancer operations (1987, 1989) and a heart surgery (1994). Kate has one adopted son (Charles Taylor Jackson) who she adopted in 1995.