Sharon Marguerite Gless (born May 31, 1943) is an American actress and author, who is known for her television roles as Maggie Philbin on Switch (1975–78), Sgt. Christine Cagney in the police procedural drama series Cagney & Lacey (1982–88), the title role in The Trials of Rosie O'Neill (1990–92), Debbie Novotny in the Showtime cable television series Queer as Folk (2000–2005), and Madeline Westen on Burn Notice (2007–2013). A 10-time Emmy Award nominee and seven-time Golden Globe Award nominee, she won a Golden Globe in 1986 and Emmys in 1986 and 1987 for Cagney & Lacey, and a second Golden Globe in 1991 for The Trials of Rosie O'Neill. Gless received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1995. Early life and career A fifth-generation Californian, Gless was born in Los Angeles, the daughter of Marjorie (McCarthy) and sportswear manufacturing executive Dennis J. Gless. She was raised Catholic. She has two brothers, Michael McCarthy Gless and Arick Dennis Gless. Her parents divorced when she was in her teens. Her maternal grandfather was Neil McCarthy, a prominent Los Angeles attorney for Howard Hughes, who also had a large clientele of major film-studio executives and actors. Wanting to become an actress, she sought her grandfather's advice and he told her, "Stay out of it, it's a filthy business!" A few years later, though, when she spoke to him again about acting, he encouraged her, and gave her money for acting classes. She worked as a secretary for advertising agencies Grey Advertising and Young & Rubicam, and then for the independent movie production companies Sassafras Films and General Film Corporation. While she worked as a production assistant, Gless studied drama with acting coach Estelle Harman. In 1972, she signed a 7-year contract with Universal Studios, and remained under contract until Universal ended all contracts in 1981. Near the end of her contract, she was identified in the media as the last of the contract players, a salaried, old Hollywood apprentice system, which Universal was the last to employ. Actress Elizabeth Baur was Gless' first cousin. Career Film and television At the beginning of her career, Gless appeared in numerous television series and TV movies, such as Revenge of the Stepford Wives, Faraday & Company with Dan Dailey and James Naughton in 1973 and 1974, Adam 12 season six, episode 24, Emergency! as a sculptor in 1975, and The Rockford Files. She