Marlo Thomas
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Marlo Thomas is an award-winning actress, author and activist whose body of work continues to have an impact on American entertainment and culture. She has been honored with four Emmy Awards, the Peabody, a Golden Globe, a Grammy and has been inducted into the Broadcasting Hall of Fame. In 2010, she released her sixth book -- and only memoir -- Growing Up Laughing: My Story and the Story of Funny, and launched her own web site, MarloThomas.com.

Ms. Thomas burst onto the scene in television’s That Girl, which broke new ground for independent women everywhere, and which she also conceived and produced. Her pioneering spirit continued with her creation of Free to Be... You and Me, a project that became a platinum album, bestselling book, Emmy Award-winning television special and a stage show. Throughout it all, she has remained a constant presence on television (Ugly Betty, Law & Order and Friends) and on and off-Broadway.

Her five bestselling books include Free to Be You and Me, Free to Be a Family, The Right Words at the Right Time (Volumes 1 and 2), and Thanks and Giving: All Year Long, the latter of which became a Grammy-winning CD. She has been honored for her activism with the Helen Caldicott Award for Nuclear Disarmament, the ACLU's Thomas Paine Award, the American Women in Radio and Television Satellite Award, and the William Kunstler Racial Justice Award.

Ms. Thomas is the National Outreach Director for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, which was founded by her father, Danny Thomas, in 1962. Her tireless efforts and ingenuity are behind countless fundraising and awareness campaigns designed to educate the public about the pioneering and life-saving work being done every day at St. Jude -- work that impacts the lives of children in communities across America.

Ms. Thomas lives in New York with her husband, Phil Donahue.
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Blog Entries by Marlo Thomas

Good News! 12 Inspiring Acts of Random Kindness

(3) Comments | Posted May 21, 2013 | 9:06 AM

I am an unrepentant news junkie. If I'm not getting the latest stories online, I 'm hearing them blaring from the TV in the next room. And have I introduced you to my husband, Phil? He makes me look uninformed. So, between the two of us, we're practically a 24-hour...

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The Powerful Message Within Angelina Jolie's Announcement

(341) Comments | Posted May 16, 2013 | 8:24 AM

I was as stunned as everyone else by Angelina Jolie's revelation on Tuesday that she'd had a double mastectomy to reduce her risk of developing breast cancer. That's not only because one of the most famous women in the world had managed to keep such a dramatic secret under wraps...

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12 Tips For Making New Friends At Any Age

(77) Comments | Posted May 14, 2013 | 9:16 AM

Having great friends is one of life's most wonderful rewards. I know I'd be lost without my closest girlfriends, and I realize how very lucky I am to have them in my life. Just knowing there is always someone to call, to confide in, to laugh and cry with is...

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"The Thing About My Mother..." Celebrity Friends Talk About Their Moms

(61) Comments | Posted May 10, 2013 | 9:40 AM

I've always said that my mother had the voice of an angel and the guts of a prizefighter, and she brought that unique combination of qualities to her parenting. Our house was always filled with music -- from the moment we woke up. And whenever she threw a dinner party,...

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Which Celebrities Were Once Teachers? A Pop Quiz

(49) Comments | Posted May 7, 2013 | 8:38 AM

It's the one thing I tell people about myself that always seems to surprise them: that I was a teacher.

I'd just graduated from the University of Southern California, and even though I knew I wanted to go into show business, I tried my hand at teaching for a while...

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The Curious History of Women Who 'Passed' As Men In Pursuit of a Dream

(253) Comments | Posted May 3, 2013 | 2:44 PM

Of the many things I can't imagine myself doing -- like jumping out of an airplane -- I'd have to say that posing as a man would be pretty difficult for me. And who'd believe it? I'd make such a tiny little guy.

Before Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, Julie Andrews...

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10 Tips for Great Sex in Your 40s, 50s and Beyond

(270) Comments | Posted April 30, 2013 | 9:24 AM

There's an old saying that sex is one of three topics of conversation that shouldn't be brought up at the dinner table (the other two being politics and religion). And that's the fun thing about having a website: it's not the dinner table!

So let's talk sex -- especially great...

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Photos of Phil and Me -- 33 Years and Going Strong

(205) Comments | Posted April 26, 2013 | 9:49 AM

It all seems like it was just yesterday. I was young, independent, and standing firm by my vow never to marry -- a promise I had kept for years, even as my girlfriends got married one by one by one.

But then I went on this talk show and...

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12 New Comedians to Watch -- and the Stars Who Gave Them Their Break!

(60) Comments | Posted April 26, 2013 | 8:54 AM

"You're going to be a star."

Those were the words Johnny Carson spoke to Joan Rivers on national television on the night of February 17, 1965. Only moments before, Joan had been an unknown and struggling comic -- an anxious but enormously talented fighter who had to tear down mountains...

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Hate the Gym? 11 Crazy Alternatives to Get in Shape

(129) Comments | Posted April 24, 2013 | 8:45 AM

And here I used to think I was trendy. Who knew I was so completely out of it?

When it comes to physical fitness, I've always opted for the tried, true and traditional. I'm perfectly happy with my light weight-training and a good jog in the park. The weight-training...

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Take Your Daughters and Sons to Work: It's Not Just For Fun

(75) Comments | Posted April 23, 2013 | 8:21 AM

It's that time again.

This Thursday, parents, children and caregivers around the country will participate in -- and celebrate -- another Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, and it never stops being inspiring to me. For those of us in the Ms Foundation who founded the...

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12 Ways to Be Green for Earth Day, and Every Day

(76) Comments | Posted April 22, 2013 | 8:45 AM

Climate change is one of those topics that practically dares you to step up to it. We know it exists and we know it's critical, but it's so enormous that it's hard to wrap your head around it.

We see the receding ice caps and dwindling numbers of polar bears;...

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Post-Boston: Coping With the Psychological Aftermath

(137) Comments | Posted April 19, 2013 | 8:58 AM

I love the New York Yankees, but I'll be honest with you. After this week's tragedy in Boston, I began to wonder if it would ever feel safe to attend a game again. If the Boston event confirmed one thing to us, it's that mass violence has officially entered the...

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Managing Your Money: 12 Things Every Woman Should Know

(92) Comments | Posted April 12, 2013 | 8:33 AM

Poor April -- how envious it must be of its monthly neighbors! March gets to have St. Patty's Day and May gets to have, well, May Day -- but April? All the crocuses in the world couldn't make us forget that most unlikely -- and unlikable -- day of the...

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Nothing to Sneeze At: 12 Easy Ways to Combat Spring Allergies

(65) Comments | Posted April 9, 2013 | 8:40 AM

If your nose is itchy and running as you read this, don't just reach for a tissue -- pour yourself a cup of peppermint tea, too. I'll explain.

For all of the wonderful things that come with spring -- the sun, the flowers, the singing birds, even the spring cleaning...

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Girls Rising: From Anne Frank to Malala Yousafzai

(40) Comments | Posted April 6, 2013 | 11:49 AM

"Stories can conquer fear," Nigerian novelist Ben Okri once said. "They can make the heart bigger."

There's a world of truth to that statement. As someone who comes from a long line of storytellers, I've always felt that our lives are just long and rich stories, knit together over the...

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Seasonal Ingredients: 10 Fresh and Healthy Recipes for Spring

(60) Comments | Posted March 28, 2013 | 9:00 AM

I don't know about you, but I love when spring comes around and I can start thinking about all the fresh fruits and vegetables that are coming into season. Strawberries, artichokes, pineapples, avocados and asparagus are all in season right now and ready to take center stage on the table....

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12 Tips From the Experts on Love, Romance and Relationships

(158) Comments | Posted March 26, 2013 | 8:11 AM

When I went on Phil Donahue's talk show in 1977, the handsome host knocked me for a loop. In the green room beforehand, he told me he wanted to talk to me about my mother (no one ever wanted to talk about my mother -- just my famous father), so...

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Brighten Up For Spring: 25 Easy Ways to Improve Your Life

(66) Comments | Posted March 22, 2013 | 8:29 AM

Anyone who knows me will tell you that I love when things are organized. When I first moved in with my husband and his teenage boys, I actually color-coded their towels. It worked! And my desk is an organizational work of art -- pens over there, paperwork over here and...

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Guys Who Get It: The Men of the Women's Movement

(2346) Comments | Posted March 11, 2013 | 9:13 AM

Here's a riddle:

A trucker is sitting in a bar next to a feminist. They've both had a lot to drink and they're arguing. The feminist says women have been oppressed for centuries -- the trucker says they haven't. The feminist says women deserve equal pay -- the trucker says...

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