Sharon Lawrence

A prolific television and stage actress, Sharon Lawrence proved she had the stuff of small-screen success with her very first television role as ambitious assistant district attorney Sylvia Costas on "NYPD Blue" (ABC, 1993-2005). Her consistently praised performance earned the actress three Emmy nominations, and between regular detours back to Broadway, Lawrence continued to be a presence in primetime with a memorable season as a stay-at-home-prostitute on the saucy hit "Desperate Housewives" (ABC, 2004-2012). Several attempts to build dramas and comedy series around the actress proved short-lived, but in her lively appearances on many series including "Monk" (USA, 2002-09), Lawrence could always be counted on to deliver a smart, sharp-tongued law professional or a comically self-indulgent resident of the upper-middle-class.