Born Marjorie Ellen Pivonka Mahoney on February 20, 1936 in Hays, Kansas, Marj Dusay is best known for her performances in soap operas such as Guiding Light, where she played Alexandra Spaulding. Before launching her acting career, Dusay was educated at University of Kansas where she left during her second year to pursue a modeling career. Along with her family, she moved to San Francisco, where she studied improv. Later, she moved to Los Angeles to launch her acting career, starting with her appearance on Peace in the Family. After appearing on talk shows, Dusay moved on to act in daytime drama series such as Santa Barbara and Capitol, and night time series such as Sons and Daughters, Studio 5B, Facts of Life, Bret Maverick and Cliff Hangers. She was cast to play Alexandra Spaulding on Guiding Light in 1993 and this portrayal earned her a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Actress in 1995.
Alexandra "Alex" Spaulding is played by Marj Dusay in Guiding Light. Alex, who was born to a wealthy family, ran away from home and journeyed across Europe and eventually married Baron Von Halkein, whom she later divorced. She then moved to Springfield and tried to reconnect with different members of her family, and was quite successful at doing so. Alex had two sons with Eric Luvonaczek and eventually settled down and married Cyrus Foley.
(Photo courtesy of CBS.com)