Soap opera icon Kim Zimmer began her storied career at Grand Rapids Theater in Michigan, where she was raised alongside an older sister. Years later, her family moved and settled in Bellaire, Michigan. She attended Hope College there, taking classes that prepared her for an acting career. In the two years Zimmer spent at Hope, she played several leading roles on stage and realized she was set to become a professional performer. So she auditioned for the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco, California.
Zimmer soon learned she wasn’t ready to live in a big city and moved to Chicago. Her professional career began there on stage and it was only a matter of time before she debuted onscreen. Kim Zimmer’s love for theater rub off on soap opera which became her favorite staple. “My entire life was in daytime,” she told Soaps in one of her many interviews. “I love doing daytime television… Outside of theatre, soap opera was really what I loved more than anything. I did a lot of primetime television and it was boring,” added the actress.
Kim Zimmer’s Soap Opera Legacy Began With ‘One Life to Live’
The Grand Rapids, Michigan native transitioned from stage to the screens in the late 70s. She debuted in 1978 as Bonnie Harmon, a terrorist in Agnes Nixon’s One Life to Live. Stepping in front of the camera for the first time was scary for Kim Zimmer. “It’s terrifying but it was wonderful,” she recalled during a February 2022 interview with The Locher Room. Nevertheless, she tapped into her years of experience as a stage performer to deliver a performance that launched her storied career.
In 1979, the actress landed her first regular screen role, replacing Kathleen Turner as Nola Dancy Aldrich on NBC’s daytime drama The Doctors. She portrayed the character until 1982 when the show wrapped up. Demonstrating the depth of her talent in the series created by Orin Tovrov, Kim Zimmer positioned herself for more projects, including the role that cemented her status as a soap opera star. “That’s where I really got to stretch my wings,” she said of her time on The Doctors.
She Solidified Her Soap Status As Reva Shayne On Guiding Light
Kim Zimmer returned to One Life to Live as a series regular in 1983. This time, she took on the role of Echo DiSavoy, which she portrayed from March to October 1983. She would later return to the role in October 2010 after 27 years. This was after Guiding Light concluded in September 2009. She debuted as Reva Shayne in the CBS soap on November 28, 1983, and departed in August 1990. In April 1995, she returned for a second run and played the character until the series ended.
The Reva storyline spanned 21 years, making Zimmer one of the most popular divas on daytime dramas. When Guiding Light ended, the actress published I’m Just Sayin’!: Three Deaths, Seven Husbands, and a Clone! My Life as a Daytime Diva. The book follows her life and career as a soap star, especially her time on Guiding Light. “When you’re with a character that long, sometimes it makes you wonder, Who am I?,” she told The New York Times. “The book will correlate Reva to Kim, hopefully with humor,” added Zimmer.
What Was Special About Kim Zimmer’s Portrayal Of Reva Shayne
Kim Zimmer’s time on Guiding Light left a lasting impression, with a trove of memorable moments that made her character a fan favorite. From her first wedding to Robert Newman’s Josh Lewis to baptizing herself the slut of Springfield, Zimmer’s time on the show was unforgettable. Her performance resonated with the audience, winning multiple coveted awards, including the Daytime Emmy.
The role earned her at least 11 nominations for Daytime Emmy’s Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, of which she won four: first in 1985 and then in 1987, 1990, and 2006. Zimmer also bagged two Soap Opera Digest Awards in the same category out of multiple nominations. These include Best Death Scene, Outstanding Heroine, Outstanding Super Couple with Newman, and Favorite Daytime Super Couple with Larkin Malloy’s Kyle Sampson.
What Is Kim Zimmer Doing Now?
Now approaching her 70s, the Reva Shayne actress has slowed things down. She’s still active nonetheless, with a role in Emma Westenberg’s 2023 drama film Bleeding Love. Before that, she played Tori in Vince the Series, a web soap partly inspired by the Otalia (Olivia Spencer and Natalia Rivera Aitoro) storyline in Guiding Light. Kim Zimmer starred in other soap operas like Model Inc. and Santa Barbara in the 90s.
In May 2024, Kim Zimmer appeared alongside other daytime legends on The Locher Room’s benefit for Stand Up To Cancer. The actress divulged on the show that she was diagnosed with breast cancer in November and was receiving treatment. Interestingly, her character on Guiding Light was also diagnosed with breast cancer in a storyline that raised awareness about the condition on television. Check out 6 longest-running daytime soap opera.
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