Early life and education Born in
Detroit, Michigan, Moody was raised in Evanston, Illinois, a north suburb of
Chicago, Illinois. Her mother was a social worker and her father was a physician at a Chicago-area hospital. She attended
Evanston Township High School, graduating in 1963, and worked as a stewardess before moving to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. While working at the Playboy Club, Moody studied acting at the
Pasadena Playhouse. In 1973, Moody landed her first role as Denny in the American blaxploitation horror film
Scream Blacula Scream. Moody was the original Jenny Willis when the character was introduced in an episode of
All in the Family titled "Lionel's Engagement" which was first broadcast the 9 February 1974. By the time the pilot episode of
The Jeffersons aired in January 1975, the role was recast with
Berlinda Tolbert replacing her as Jenny Willis. In the fall of 1974, Moody landed the role of Tracy Curtis-Taylor in the ABC television series ''
That's My Mama with Clifton Davis and Theresa Merritt. Moody portrayed the character throughout the series first season, later being replaced by Joan Pringle at the beginning of the second season. According to a 1975 JET'' article, Moody's manager Michael Kogg described Moody's exit from the show as "she didn't like the part anymore". After her exit from ''That's My Mama
, Moody received a starring role in women in prison exploitation television film Nightmare in Badham County, later released to theaters as Nightmare'' in 1976. In 1977, Moody portrayed Irene Harvey in
Alex Haley's ABC television mini-series
Roots. Moody later reprised her role in
Roots: The Next Generations which aired in February 1979. From 1979 until 1980, Moody portrayed Polly Dawson in the ABC program
Soap. Moody had other television roles such as, Patricia Williams in
Knots Landing, and Nurse Julie Williams in
E/R. In 2000, Moody had a recurring role on the hit ABC daytime drama series,
General Hospital as
Florence Campbell.
Other ventures In the 1990s, Moody participated in public service radio spots for
Africare to help improve the livelihood of Africans, along with fellow
Roots cast members
Georg Stanford Brown and
Louis Gossett Jr. Personal life Moody has a daughter, Lisa Wright. Wright found Moody by doing a
23andMe DNA test and with the aid of Moody's brother. Prior to being reunited with her daughter, Moody spent years searching for her daughter, even enlisting the help of Alex Haley. == Filmography ==