By Joe Puccio

You take the good,
You take the bad,
You take them both and there you have,
The facts of life

In show business, there is a widely held belief that in the vast majority of cases, child actors grow up being unable to transition to adulthood or to learn how to cope with a routine, “normal” existence, often leading to mental health issues, toxic relationships, economic hardship, or overall resentment. While certainly a valid assumption in plenty of instances (Lindsay Lohan, Gary Coleman, Amanda Bynes, to name a few) there are just as many examples of the complete opposite effect.

In the late 1970s, the television airwaves were loaded with standard fare for the era, from the slapstick-leaning, action-heavy The Dukes of Hazzard to the affluent Ewing family of the prime time soap opera Dallas to the zany high jinks of an extraterrestrial from Ork on Mork & Mindy. But at the tail end of the decade, in the summer of 1979, came an unassuming situation comedy about an all-girls boarding school in Peekskill, New York.

The Facts of Life starred venerable TV and film veteran Charlotte Rae as a housemother to a bevy of smart, spirited, strong, yet self-conscious, female students at the Eastland School, a fictional institute created for the NBC series. Joining Rae were seven fresh-faced young actresses that her maternalistic character, Edna Garrett, was responsible for, three of which were Julie Anne Haddock (Cindy Webster), Julie Piekarski (Sue Ann Weaver), and Felice Schachter (Nancy Olsen).

“I absolutely loved being on The Facts of Life,” Haddock beamed, in a chat with Generation X Wire. “I was about 13 years old and all my new friends were on it.”

Haddock played tomboy Cindy Webster on the show, an appropriate part considering her predilection for playing sports like softball as a youngster, despite, ironically, not actually resembling one. Initially cast as a country bumpkin with a heavy southern accent before the role was dropped, the intention was for Cindy to only appear on the first episode. But, fortunately for the sprightly ingenue, it shifted to a traditional cast member. “The morning after I filmed the episode, my agent called my mom and said not to send me to school that day,” she laughed. “At that point, the negotiations happened and the next thing I knew, I was a regular.”

For Piekarski and Schachter, the audition process was decidedly different than Haddock’s more straightforward one. Both girls originally read for entirely different projects and although they didn’t come to fruition, proved to be blessings in disguise.

“I had already been on The New Mickey Mouse Club as a Mouseketeer and from there I got called to try out for Little House on the Prairie,” Piekarski recollected. “I got to do a couple of readings with Michael Landon, which was great, and who didn’t have a crush on Michael Landon? I didn’t hear back, but soon after, my agent told me that I got The Facts of Life. Everything happens for a reason – and being from the Midwest and wearing braids and pigtails, like Sue Ann, helped,” she chuckled.

In Schachter’s case, the New York City native was flown to Los Angeles to audition for the moderately successful Hello, Larry, which featured M*A*S*H’s McLean Stevenson as a middle-aged divorcee struggling to raise his teenage daughters. When that didn’t pan out, another interesting opportunity arose.

“I actually was up for Diff’rent Strokes, in the Dana Plato role,” Schachter revealed. “But they were looking for the ‘All-American Girl,’ and in those days, that meant blond hair, blue eyes, and freckles. We’ve obviously come a long way since then,” she observed.

Perhaps it was meant to be since without Diff’rent Strokes, there would likely be no The Facts of Life as Strokes ultimately became the impetus for Facts, in the form of a spinoff with Rae’s Garrett character. “I was told that they were in the stages of creating a show with a bunch of girls in a school and I was actually the first one cast, after Charlotte. And the rest is history,” she continued.

As it turned out, The Facts of Life wound up lasting longer than its predecessor, remaining on the air until 1988 with over 200 episodes, making it one of the longest-running sitcoms of the 1980s. Its success, however, couldn’t be fully enjoyed by the trio of performers.

Before the start of its sophomore season, the producers believed that there were too many characters on the series, and given the limitations of the 22-minute sitcom format, made the call to write Haddock, Piekarski, and Schachter, as well as Molly Ringwald (Molly Parker), out of the show. At the time, the decision came as a shock to the actors, especially to Haddock, who was so heavily featured in the premiere installment, which included a storyline in which Blair Warner, played by Lisa Whelchel, insinuated that Cindy was a lesbian.

“It was, of course, really disappointing,” Haddock recalled. “I was really proud of that episode and how it was handled, as well as the entire season.”

“I do remember getting the call,” Piekarski said. “To be honest, I was surprised because there were at least five episodes where Sue Ann was the main character –  the IQ one, the dieting one, and the marijuana one all come to mind,” she added.

“It was kind of traumatizing for me at that age,” Schachter admitted. “I think I felt slighted.”

While the news was devastating, all three handled it remarkably well, displaying a maturity well beyond what their ages (Haddock was 14, Piekarski and Schachter were 16) would indicate.

Schachter, whose mother always stressed the importance of an education to fall back on, had just gotten accepted to Brown University, while Piekarski was a regular at The Muny, an esteemed St. Louis, Missouri-based musical theatre company. Haddock, meanwhile, had a soon to be released film on the horizon and was able to view the situation a bit differently.

“Quite frankly, I was never considered to be a comedic actress,” Haddock clarified. “It was out of my wheelhouse. Actually, my forte at the time was being able to cry on cue so I got lots of parts based on that skill,” she giggled.

Hollywood wasn’t an afterthought for the talented thespians after Facts, however, with many acting credits on their respective resumes. Schachter landed the infectious role of Bernadette in the 1982 Scott Baio cult classic Zapped! while Haddock dazzled audiences on the critically acclaimed drama The Great Santini with Robert Duvall. Piekarski appeared in a number of programs, including a fondly remembered 1983 episode of Three’s Company with physical humor expert John Ritter.   

“I’ve always loved old time physical comedy, like The Carol Burnett Show,” Piekarski explained. “That was the type of energy I felt on the Three’s Company set. John was so welcoming and we even got to do some improv in our scenes. The more he amped it up, I amped it up. He was obviously so much more experienced than me and he was willing to listen to my suggestions, which was amazing.”

Schachter, who edged out both Demi Moore and Helen Slater to score Zapped!, was incidentally the sole member of the cast to really be a teenager during the filming of the high school-set Carrie parody. And in an unusual twist of fate, the gig caused her to miss her real-life prom. “Hank Azaria, who I’m still friends with today, was going to be my prom date,” she shared. “My mother ended up flying him to LA and we went out to dinner instead.”

Although Piekarski’s aforementioned Little House on the Prairie tryout didn’t yield a spot, Haddock took part in a memorable episode titled “The Man Inside” about the relationship between an overweight father, played by Cliff Emmich, and his embarrassed daughter (Haddock). Appearances on The New Adventures of Wonder Woman, Gimme a Break!, and Mulligan’s Stew kept her in the spotlight as well. “Mulligan’s was so much fun and the cast was great,” Haddock noted. “Unfortunately, it was on against Eight is Enough, which ran away with it.”

One point that all three ladies beautifully illustrate is that life after acting can be quite fruitful.

Piekarski, who recently shot an independent film, with another scheduled for early next year, is quite the renaissance woman, with a background in biochemistry, in addition to communications, where she honed her skills conducting interviews with heavyweights like Steven Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey, and Robin Williams. Her children are also a testament to her aplomb, with all three involved in a variety of notable fields, such as medicine, gymnastics, and naturally, acting. “My youngest, Christian, did The Book of Mormon on Broadway and will be in a new Jerry Mitchell/David Foster musical called Boop next year,” she gushed.

The culinary arts came calling for Haddock, who obtained a degree from the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu institution and wrote for The Los Angeles Times food section for a spell, in addition to cultivating a career in advertising and marketing. “I teach cooking, I like to write, and I’m just a creative person,” she exclaimed, matter-of-factly.

Schacter, who dabbled in modeling and sports broadcasting over the years, discovered another interest working behind the camera. She has production credits on television mainstays like JAG and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and motion pictures such as The Twilight of the Golds and Uncle Sam. Teaching children with special needs has become a passion as well. “I love working with kids,” she declared. “It’s very rewarding.”

Despite the persistent rumblings of a potential modern day reboot of The Facts of Life, nothing has gotten past the preliminary stage. And while having mostly moved on from acting, all three ladies understand the impact they had and continue to have on current generations via nostalgia channels such as TV Land and Antenna TV – and are more than willing to take part in a proposed reunion.

While geographic logistics haven’t always allowed them to see one another in person, Haddock, Piekarski, and Schacter have remained close in the 45 years since they first met at the fictional Eastland School. It’s that friendship that will make their upcoming joint appearance at the Chiller Theatre convention in October extra special.

None of the three have ever taken part in a festival such as Chiller, where fans from around the world conjoin to meet their favorite celebrities from genres like film, music, sports, and of course, television. “I’m so excited that we’ll all be together after so many years,” Schachter enthused. “I can’t wait.”

“Through laughter and comedy, you can learn so much,” Piekarski summed up. “I’m so proud of what we all did on The Facts of Life. It was a blessing.”     

The Chiller Theatre convention takes place Friday, October 25, Saturday, October 26, and Sunday, October 27, at the Hilton Parsippany in Parsippany, New Jersey. Advance tickets are available here. Tickets will also be available in person.