Tracey Gold or Elizabeth Ward on Growing Pains

Wait a minute, that's not the real Carol Seaver!

When Growing Pains first aired in 1985, there was some weird mystery surrounding the role of Carol Seaver. Teen magazines like Bop, Tiger Beat and Teen Beat had us tweens pumped about the new show and it's new heartthrob, Kirk Cameron as Mike Seaver. The mags ran promotional photos of the young cast and also introduced us to Elizabeth Ward as Carol, Mike's brainy younger sister.

Jonathan Ward as Douglas Pembroke on Charles in Charge.

Actress, Elizabeth Ward hailed from Elkridge, Maryland and had a brother named Jonathan Ward best known as Douglas Pembroke during the first year of Charles In Charge. Here's where the confusion comes in. When Growing Pains first aired, that chick Elizabeth wasn't Carol! Carol was played by Benson star Missy Gold's little sister Tracey Gold!

Growing Pains cast with Tracey Gold as Carol. 

It turns out test audiences weren't feelin' the original Carol. Could you imagine being Elizabeth Ward? Seriously, picture it ... You're cast in a big-time sitcom alongside cute Kirk Cameron, promo photos are distributed to the media, you've told your friends to watch out for your new show and then in a flash the dream is over. 

A quick search on Elizabeth's IMDB resume shows her career in acting sorta ends around the time of the Growing Pains debacle. How devastating. According to Wikipedia, today Jonathan Ward owns an auto restoration shop, His sister is no longer acting. Her married name is Elizabeth Ward Langson and I found her on Facebook. Don't worry I didn't message her or anything. 

Click here to view the original Growing Pains pilot featuring Elizabeth Ward as Carol Seaver.

My Sinful Career Choice At Age 12

Yet another Catholic school horror story 
for your reading pleasure.

In this post on Wednesday, I promised to fill you in on this horrible forced career discussion I had with a fifth grade nun. Here ya go...

Eighth grade was a monumental year. As a Catholic school kid it meant graduation and confirmation. Big and exciting changes for a kid. Part of the confirmation process required each kid to survive an interview with an assigned random teacher. I was sent to speak with a 70-year-old fifth grade nun, Sr. Frances Dorothy.

I was sweaty and nervous. Sitting on a hard, creaking wooden chair next to her hulking metal desk, I tugged on my black snug-fitting polyester uniform skirt. Sitting meant the skirt would rise a bit above my knee and I dreaded her putrid frown. I did my best to brush off and flatten my goldenrod button-down blouse and hideous skirt-matching black polyester vest. No lie, I looked like a fat bumblebee. Only I wasn't  young and adorable like that little bumblebee girl in the Blind Melon video.

Not quite as cute in my yellow and black school uniform.

She rattled off several standard questions, which I answered as best I could. Things were going rather smoothly until we hit upon a question I wan't quite prepared for. "Have you thought about your future? What career path do you see yourself following?" Lady, I'm 12 -- I had late birthday syndrome making me younger than my classmates. What the hell kind of question is that? 

Sitting as straight as I could--posture was important to nuns--I told her the truth. We were taught as Christians that lying was a sin. It was always a no-win for me. My truths always got me detention. Kinda like the time I got busted for fessing up to forging Alfred's mom's signature on his failing quiz to protect him from getting in trouble -- the things we do for love.  

I longed to be a television actress. I felt movies would be too difficult to land, but maybe the chubby sidekick on a show or cute high school guy's younger sister. Ya know, like Tracey Gold in Growing Pains? I was going to make it. I attended Hofstra University's summer drama camp that past summer. I had talent. Not. 

I'd be happy just playing the chubby sidekick.

I blurted out my career plans as Sr. Frances remained still and tight-lipped. She cleared her throat and began to tell me how my career choice was sinful. It was a selfish world filled with money, backstabbing and booze. She reprimanded me and suggested I do some serious soul searching and find a more respectable career like nursing or teaching. 

Flustered and panicked, I began defending myself saying I would make large donations to Catholic charities. I told her many celebrities like Oprah and Bill Cosby help others. She didn't want to hear another word about it. The subject was changed and she shooed me out of her classroom. 

If Sr. Frances was alive today, I'd like to tell her I had four children's books published, but guess what? She'd be disappointed that they were all about, gasp, CELEBRITIES. Hey, if you can't be one, write about one. Right?

Thirsty for more tales from an EIGHTH grade nothing? Here's a diary entry from back in the day. Bonus picture of what I looked like that year. Ick.

What's In My Trapper Keeper? Tracey Gold!

As you know, I loved the ABC show Growing Pains. Growing Pains ran from 1985-1992 and took place on Long Island which I thought was so cool because as you know, I lived there. I was a big-time Kirk Cameron fan and in addition to sending him fan mail, I must have hit up Tracey Gold as well. Tracey portrayed his brainy sister Carol Seaver.

Funny, two weeks ago I brought you a signed photo of the Gimme A Break! cast starring Nell Carter. Did you know that Tracey Gold was almost cast as the youngest daughter? The role obviously went to Lara Jill Miller. 
  
I loved the Gold sisters. Tracey's younger sister, Missy Gold, appeared on the TV series Benson from 1979-1986.  Tracey Claire Fisher was born May 16, 1969 in New York City. Tracey Gold and her and her younger sisters Missy and Brandy went by the name Gold. Their mom Bonnie married a hot shot Hollywood talent agent named Harry Goldstein who adopted the girls when they were small. They changed their name and shortened it to Gold when they got into the biz. Gold is a much better stage name and makes for some fun headlines.
 
Sadly Tracey struggled as a teen with anorexia. Her beloved older friend and Growing Pains costar, Joanna Kerns introduced her to an actor she worked on a miniseries with named Roby Marshall. The two married in 1994 and have four sons together, Sage, Bailey, Aiden and Dylan. Tracey made headlines back in 2004 when her SUV tipped over in a highly publicized DWI accident--she was held on $50K bail. Sadly her hubby and children were in the car. In researching for this blog post, I've learned that Tracey Gold wrote a bio called Room to Grow, I'll be checking that out soon if it's still in print. I really did like her.