Veronica Hamel

Long before she showed up on the cover of TV Guide, Temple University graduate Veronica Hamel was a frequent visitor to that magazine's back cover, as a model in many a cigarette and cosmetic advertisement. The sloe-eyed, brunette actress began playing speaking parts on TV in 1975; that same year, she had an opportunity to co-star on Charlie's Angels, but turned the role down, obliging producer Aaron Spelling to cast Jaclyn Smith instead. In 1981, Hamel was cast as hard-driving public defender Joyce Davenport, the lover (and later wife) of police captain Frank Furillo (Daniel J. Travanti), on the weekly Hill Street Blues. She remained with the series until it left the air in 1987. The intensely dramatic roles played by Veronica Hamel in recent years are reflected by the titles of her made-for-TV starring films: Deadly Medicine (1991), The Baby Snatcher (1992), The Conviction of Kitty Dodds (1993), A Child's Cry for Help (1994) etc. - Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide