Before Laurette Spang-McCook and John McCook settled down, she had become a TV star in her own right, appearing on shows such as “Happy Days,” “Emergency!,” and “The Love Boat.” She told The Wichita Eagle in 1978 that her path toward acting began after her father stopped financing her college studies since she spent her time partying. “For several months I didn’t speak to him, but then I realized he was right,” Laurette said.
Determined to make something of herself, she worked four jobs simultaneously and started taking acting classes. When her dad saw that she was serious, he helped her move to New York. It wasn’t long before Universal discovered her and she signed a contract with them. Providence followed the young star, and she booked a gig as Cassiopeia in the original 1978 TV series “Battlestar Galactica.” Although she was initially only supposed to have a short-lived guest role, Laurette became a series regular and even starred alongside the legendary Fred Astaire when he joined the cast.
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In a 1991 interview with South Florida Sun-Sentinel, John told the outlet that his wife decided to stay home after having their children. “I found that to be an amazing decision,” he said. “It is one that she has never tossed back at my face. Also, her having guested on almost every episodic show, she truly felt there was more that she wanted.” It seems that Laurette weighed up her choices, and decided that she wanted to raise her family for a few seasons.
