The role of Ashley Abbott was played by three different actresses. Actress Eileen Davidson originated the role in 1982 and departed in 1988 when the role was recast with Brenda Epperson Doumani, who played the role until 1996. Shari Shattuck played the role from 1996 to February 22, 1999 The original actress, Davidson, returned to the role on March 19, 1999. Davidson was absent from the show during the summer of 2003 when she left on maternity leave.
Davidson's second run as Ashley ended on January 11, 2007 when she was fired from the show.. She was asked to join the show's "sister" soap, Bold and the Beautiful, as the same character. She first aired in that series on March 9, 2007. During her run on The Bold and the Beautiful, the actress made various guest appearances on The Young and the Restless: December 28, 2007 to January 3, 2008, February 27 and 28, 2008,March 25 and 26, 2008, June 19, 20 and 23, 2008.
In August 2008, it was reported that Davidson would be returning to The Young and the Restless full time. She last aired on The Bold and the Beautiful on July 4, 2008, but also put in one final appearance on November 25, 2008. Davidson's first date back at The Young and the Restless was September 26, 2008.





Ashley Abbott

PAST MARRIAGES

Brad Carlton (divorced)
Charles "Cole" Victor Howard (divorced)
Blade Bladeson (widowed)
Victor_Newman (divorced)
Dr. Stephen Lassiter (widowed)

FLINGS & RELATIONSHIPS

(From Y&R)
Brian (lab assistant)
Eric Garrison
Marc Mergeron
Victor_Newman
Matt Miller
Dr. Stephen Lassiter
Brad_Carlton
Blade Bladeson
Rick Bladeson
Adam Hunter
Kurt Costner
Cole Howard
Tom Fisher (deceased)
Paul_Williams
Will_Bardwell

RELATIVES

Brent Davis (father)
John Abbott (always believed he was her father - deceased)
Dina Abbott Mergeron (mother)
Jack Abbott (half-brother)
Traci Abbott (half-sister)
Billy Abbott (half-brother)
Keemo Volien Abbott (half-nephew)
Kyle Jenkins (half-nephew)
Colleen Carlton (half-niece)

CHILDREN

Abby Carlton (daughter with Victor Newman)
Robert Carlton (son with Brad Carlton - stillborn)
Aborted baby (with Victor Newman)


Ashley Abbott is one of Genoa City's long-running heroines, having faced both triumph and tragedy. Ashley, a successful chemist and cosmetics executive, grew up believing that John Abbott was her father, but learned as an adult that her mother, Dina Mergeron, had had an affair with golf pro Brent Davis, which resulted in Ashley's birth. The revelation came at a time when Ashley became romantically involved with business mogul Victor Newman, who fell in love with the beautiful Ashley. Arguably, Ashley regards Victor as the love of her life.
When Ashley discovered that she was pregnant with Victor's baby but also learned that his wife Nikki was dying, she didn't want Victor to leave his ill spouse for her and her baby so she chose to have an abortion. A subsequent nervous breakdown resulted in Ashley being cared for by Dr. Stephen Lassiter, a man whom she would later marry. Alas, their union was short-lived. Stephen's unstable former patient, Leanna Randolph, stalked Ashley and tried to kill her with a poisonous lei while Ash and Stephen honeymooned in Hawaii. Ironically, another of Stephen's unbalanced patients ended up killing him. Ashley found comfort in the arms of her former brother-in-law Brad Carlton, but shocked everyone when she impulsively wed Victor, now divorced from Nikki. Her stepdaughter Victoria, who wanted her parents to re-marry, sorely tested Ashley's new marriage. In time, Victor fell in love with Nikki again and he and Ashley split. The fragrance expert would go on to have other romances with mysterious photographer Alex Bladeson, widower doctor Kurt Costner and hunky novelist Cole Howard, to whom she was briefly married. When Ashley returned from a cruise and revealed she was pregnant, many believed a mystery man named Christian was the dad. In reality, Ashley had stolen Victor's specimen from his spiteful ex-wife Diane Jenkins so that she could have the baby of the man she always loved. Ashley wed Brad, who adopted Abby. The couple's happiness didn't last long, however, because Ashley found herself battling breast cancer. She survived but was devastated to learn that her best friend and doctor, Olivia Winters, had an affair with an estranged Brad while she was ill. Ashley and Brad reconciled and she became pregnant with his son. Tragedy struck when Ash was driving out to the Newman ranch to confront Victor over a business situation and was involved in a car accident. Ashley survived but her and Brad's son, whom they named Robert, did not. Olivia told a devastated Ash that she would likely never be able to have another baby. Abby saw a video that her ill mother made for her in which Ashley stated that Victor fathered the little girl. Before Ashley could tell Victor he was a father once more, Abby innocently informed the mogul that he was her "other daddy!" Soon, Ashley informed Brad that she wanted a divorce and then proclaimed her love to Victor, now happily re-married to Nikki. Ash was shocked and devastated when Victor told her he wasn't going to leave Nikki. Next, Ashley began seeing two men, who couldn't be more different from each other: upstanding private eye Paul Williams and nefarious con man Tom Fisher. Ashley conspired with Michael Baldwin to set up Tom, who was threatening her father's wife, Gloria. Ashley faced another series of blows when John (who went to his grave unaware that he was not Ash's biological father) was sentenced to jail for killing Tom and her new product "Glo Again by Ashley Abbott" may have caused the death of a Jabot customer. Her father's death drew her closer to her brother Jack, although she suspected Jack had been complicit in the sudden appearance of a handwritten, jailhouse will which left Gloria penniless. Ashley and Jack (whom she's been at odds with on and off over the years) are united in their intense dislike of Gloria. Ashley left town for awhile and lived in Los Angeles, working with Forrester Creations where she had brief romantic trysts with Rick Forrester and Ridge Forrester before moving on to troubled Storm Logan. Storm had shot Stephanie Forrester and when Ashley found out about it, she tried to break it off. Storm showed up with a gun and tried to explain his state of mind. His sister Katie rushed over to reason with him and tried to get the gun away from him, accidently shooting herself in the process. When Storm learned that Katie would need a heart transplant he killed himself and his heart was given to Katie. Nikki was very worried about her ex husband Victor after the death of his young wife Sabrina and tried to reach out to him while he grieved but her turned her away, blaming her marriage to David Chow as the reason that Sabrina and her unborn child died (a mob hit killed David Chow and Sabrina was in the car with him). When it looked like Victor had turned suicidal, Nikki turned to her old rival Ashley, convinced that only she could breakthrough to him. Ashley flew to Paris where Victor had been spotted and tracked down her old flame. He soon found comfort in Ashley's arms and agreed to return to Genoa City to reunite with family friends. Ashley followed with teen Abby in tow and moved in with the business mogul. Ashley quickly teamed up with her brothers, Jack and Billy, with the approval of her sister Traci, to bring Jabot back to it's former glory. Meanwhile, Victor went to work on finding justice. Adam aka Victor Jr. and Victor's chief nemesis, Jack Abbott had teamed up during Victor's absence and forged a phony journal they claimed was Victor's that revealed Victor as the murderer of Walter, the mob guy who had David Chow killed and who was responsible for Sabrina's demise. Victor was exonerated and Adam was arrested with Jack seemingly in the clear. Meanwhile, Brad Carlton decided that since Sharon had separated from Jack, they might be able to finally be together. Phyllis, worried about the lingering feelings between Nick and Sharon, steered Brad to the Abbott cabin where Brad declared his love to Sharon. Sharon turned him away. While heading back to town, Brad heard cries for help and quickly rescued Noah Newman from an icy grave. Noah was rescued but Brad went missing. Traci and Colleen began to worry when Brad didn't show up for dinner. Colleen asked J.T. to help her find her father. Ashley and Abby were worried as well. Soon worry turned to despair with Brad's body was found in the same icy lake that he had rescued Noah from. Brad had been a good friend to Ashley and a good father figure to Abby for many years. Victor is less than sympathetic as he and Brad had been rivals and enemies for many years.

The Bold and the Beautiful (2007-2008)

Ashley ended up in France on business, where she soon met up with Rick Forrester (Kyle Lowder), who was looking to launch a line of fragrances for Forrester Creations. A short time later, she ended up in Los Angeles, where she accepted a position working for Forrester Originals to design a fragrance to go with their new line of boutiques. She and Rick Forrester agreed to keep the romance they had in Paris in the past, as he was moving on with a new love interest, the much younger Phoebe (MacKenzie Mauzy).
Ashley began a relationship with Ridge Forrester (Ronn Moss) and they soon became engaged. However, Ridge's attentiveness to his true love Brooke in the aftermath of her rape created tensions in Ashley's relationship with Ridge. While Ashley was in Paris on business, Ridge and Brooke reconnected, and Ridge broke off his engagement to Ashley upon her return to L.A.
Brooke's brother Storm (William deVry) takes an interest in Ashley, but Ridge is worried about Ashley's safety because Storm has previously shot Stephanie (Susan Flannery). Ridge tells Ashley about the shooting, and it causes Ashley to drift away from Storm, who then tries to explain to her that he was not dangerous, even though Storm brings a gun to her apartment. The gun incident turns into a tragedy when Storm's sister Katie (Heather Tom) thinks her brother intends to harm Ashley and rushes in to get the gun away from Storm. Katie is accidentally shot and near death, in need of a heart transplant. Storm then shoots himself in the head, leaving a note that he wants his heart to save Katie's life. Ashley is shaken up about yet another failed romantic relationship.
When Felicia Forrester (Lesli Kay) told her that Forrester Creations would be putting their new fragrance line on hiatus, Ashley's role in the company began to diminish. Ashley moved with Abby to Europe where she worked at Forrester International in the pursuit of new endeavors. Ashley made one final appearance when she phoned Eric, announcing her intentions to resign from Forrester Creations and return to Genoa City, and thanked him for hiring her.


Eileen Davidson
(born June 15, 1959) is an American film and soap opera actress. She is known for her portrayal of Ashley Abbott on The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful, and for the multiple roles she portrayed on Days of our Lives.

Biography

Career

Davidson started her career as a model in Mexico City and California, eventually adding commercials and print work in Europe. Her agent had recommended that she take acting classes to get work in commercials, but she took to acting so well that she was sent out to auditions for acting roles. She originated the role of Ashley Abbott on The Young and the Restless in March 1982, beating out more than 100 candidates. The character of Ashley became a front-burner character, and Davidson became an integral part of the show. She quit the show in February 1989 and the producers took her recommendation of hiring a look-alike actress named Brenda Epperson Doumani, whom Davidson had discovered waiting tables at a charity function.
Davidson then appeared in primetime television, but her show, Broken Badges (1990-1991), flopped.[citation needed] She returned to daytime when she assumed the role of Kelly Capwell on Santa Barbara from May 1991 until the soap's cancellation in January 1993. She next appeared as Kristen Blake on Days of our Lives beginning in May 1993. As originally conceived, Kristen was a heroine, who had an Achilles' heel in that the show's supervillain, Stefano, had raised her after the death of her parents. James E. Reilly, who assumed head writing reins in 1993, began to make Kristen more of a villainess. Reilly eventually developed an outrageous second role for Davidson, having her play Susan Banks, a Kristen look-alike. Reilly eventually penned three more roles for Davidson (Sister Mary Moira, Thomas, and Penelope). Davidson enjoyed the challenge, but after playing so many multiple characters and making daytime television history, she decided to take a breather and leave the show. Her character, Kristen, intended to keep her other character, Susan, prisoner on an island, but Susan ultimately prevailed and Kristen has remained on the island and has not been heard from since. All related characters were last seen in May 1998. Davidson's five roles earned her a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in 1998.
After a year-long vacation, she returned to her role on The Young and the Restless in March 1999. After a successful return as Ashley Abbott, which included Davidson's second Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress, Davidson was fired from the show. In December 2006, Davidson told TV Guide that she was fired from Y&R due to lack of storyline.[1] Her last airdate as Ashley was January 11, 2007. According to co-star Melody Thomas Scott, the firing was protested behind the scenes of Y&R and was seen as unfair.[2] Scott said: "That was so heartbreaking. We're still upset about that. That was a blow. Terrible. Eileen Davidson was such a part of the core of the show and such a brilliant actress; beautiful and always prepared. It was crazy. I'm not the only one who feels that way." In a surprise move a few months later, Davidson signed a three-year contract with Y&R's sister soap The Bold and the Beautiful to once again play her Y&R character Ashley Abbott at the request of B&B executive producer Bradley Bell. She first aired on March 9, 2007.
Ken Corday called Davidson about a week before she was fired from Y&R to get permission to use a picture of her on Days of our Lives. The picture, which featured Davidson as Susan, was shown in December 2006.
After she was fired from The Young and the Restless but before being cast in The Bold and the Beautiful, her niece Devon Martt, a fashion designer, approached her about designing clothes together. Davidson liked the idea and formed a clothing company called Femmeology.
Davidson co-wrote her first novel with author Robert J. Randisi, a mystery set in the soap opera world titled Death in Daytime, released in October 2008. She is working on her next mystery novel Dial Emmy for Murder.
In July 2008, Eileen was downgraded to recurring status at B&B. She returned to Y&R full-time as Ashley on September 26, 2008.

Personal life

Davidson was born in Artesia, California, daughter of Charlotte, a homemaker, and Richard Davidson, an airplane parts manufacturer. Davidson has been married three times: first to actor Christopher Mayer from 1985-1986. After that marriage, she was romantically involved with her leading man from the feature film Eternity (1989), Academy Award-winning actor Jon Voight. Her second husband was former General Hospital and Port Charles and current As the World Turns actor Jon Lindstrom, to whom she was married from 1997 to 2000. She married actor Vince Van Patten, by whom she has one son, Jesse, born in 2003.
Her pregnancies contradict the rumors that she was a transsexual, a man who had had surgery to become a woman. In 1990, a transsexual actress and model named Caroline Cossey (a.k.a. Tula) was featured on an episode of Donahue. Many viewers confused Tula with Davidson, who admitted in a 1999 interview that she and Tula shared more than a few physical characteristics, but that the similarities ended there. The rumors that Davidson was born a man date back to at least 1985.