Kirby Anders
Kirby Anders (formerly Colby) is a fictional character on the ABC prime time soap opera Dynasty. Portrayed by Kathleen Beller from 1982 to 1984, the character was introduced in the seventh episode of the series' third season, but was written out after the fourth season finale. Beller reprised the role for the 1991 miniseries, Dynasty: The Reunion.
| Kirby Anders | |||||||||
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 Kathleen Beller as Kirby Anders Colby | |||||||||
| Dynasty character | |||||||||
| Portrayed by | Kathleen Beller (1982–1991) Maddison Brown (2018–) | ||||||||
| Duration | 1982–1984, 1991, 2018– | ||||||||
| First appearance |
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| Last appearance |
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| Created by | Richard and Esther Shapiro | ||||||||
| Spin-off appearances | Dynasty: The Reunion (1991) | ||||||||
| Profile | |||||||||
| Occupation |
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 Maddison Brown as Kirby Anders | |||||||||
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In the story, Kirby is the daughter of the Carrington family's majordomo, Joseph Anders. Returning to Denver after years abroad, she becomes involved in a love triangle with Adam Carrington and Jeff Colby, who hate each other.
Kirby is portrayed by Maddison Brown in season two and season three of The CW's Dynasty reboot.
Original series
Appearances
Kathleen Beller debuted as Kirby in the November 17, 1982 third season episode "Kirby". Her last appearance in the original series was the May 9, 1984 season four finale episode, "The Nightmare".[1] Beller later blamed her departure from Dynasty on the new writers who were hired in 1984,[2] explaining that they had "lost interest in her character" and subsequently did not renew her contract.[3] She said at the time that she would return to the role if the show wanted her.[2]
Beller reprised the role for the 1991 miniseries, Dynasty: The Reunion.[4]
Storylines
Season three
Kirby, the daughter of Blake Carrington's majordomo, Joseph Anders, returns to Denver in "Kirby" (1982). Having grown up at the mansion, in recent years she had been studying in Paris, where she worked as a nanny but left her job after she became romantically involved with her (married) employer. Upon her return, she reconnects with her childhood playmate, Blake's daughter Fallon Carrington. As adults, however, the gulf between rich and poor is more of an impediment to their friendship. In "La Mirage", Fallon hires Kirby to be the nanny for her young son, L.B. Colby. Kirby immediately has eyes for Fallon's husband, Jeff Colby. In "Acapulco", Joseph warns Kirby not to interfere with the troubled marriage. But as Kirby watches Fallon's relationship with Jeff deteriorate—mostly due to Fallon's infidelities—she ingratiates herself with Jeff. During this time, Blake's son Adam Carrington is also attracted to Kirby. Jeff protects Kirby from Adam's unwanted advances, increasing tension between the two men. Adam rapes Kirby in "The Search". He offers her a job in "Two Flights to Haiti", which she declines. Adam attacks Kirby again in "Reunion in Singapore", but she is rescued by Jeff. In the heat of the moment, Jeff (who has recently divorced Fallon) proposes marriage to her. Jeff and Kirby are married in Reno in the next episode, "Fathers and Sons". In the season finale "The Cabin", Kirby learns that she is pregnant and realizes that the child is Adam's, but is afraid to tell Jeff.
Season four
Joseph commits suicide in the season four episode "The Bungalow", and Kirby is devastated. Blake explains that Joseph had tried to protect him by attempting to kill Blake's ex-wife Alexis Colby in the cabin fire, and when he failed, Joseph shot himself. Kirby suspects there is more to the story. She confronts Alexis in "The Hearing", and then tries to strangle her. Blake manages to stop Kirby. Jeff learns that Kirby is pregnant with Adam's child in "Peter De Vilbis", and attacks Adam in "The Proposal". When Adam learns why, he tells Kirby that he wants to be a father to their baby. Kirby plans to leave Denver but Jeff stops her, though she suggests that they divorce. In "The Wedding", Adam insists that Kirby will tell their child that he is the father, but when he learns that she is divorcing Jeff, he proposes. Kirby accepts in "Lancelot". She is diagnosed with hyperreflexia and hospitalized, after which she suffers from seizures and convulsions, and doctors are forced to operate. In "A Little Girl", Adam learns that Kirby's baby has not survived. Adam and Kirby decide to proceed with their wedding plans. To prevent them from marrying, Adam's mother Alexis offers Kirby a job in Paris. When Kirby refuses, Alexis tells her the real reason Joseph tried to kill her: to prevent her from revealing that Kirby's mother did not die when Kirby was a child—she had been institutionalized. Kirby is shocked. In "The Voice - Part 2", she visits the sanitarium and learns that her mother died a few years before. Investigating further, Kirby finds her father's suicide note in Blake's desk in "The Voice - Part 3". Driven to the brink, Kirby buys a handgun. Kirby tries to kill Alexis in "The Check", but is interrupted. In the season finale "The Nightmare", Kirby pulls a gun on Alexis but cannot bring herself to shoot. Alexis agrees not to press charges if Kirby leaves Denver. Kirby abruptly breaks off her engagement to Adam and leaves town.
Season eight
Kirby's older brother, Sean Rowan, comes to Denver and marries Alexis for avenging his father and sister. Kirby phones Sean and begs him to stop his vendetta but he does not care.
The Reunion (1991)
Kirby is working in Paris as a translator for the Consortium when she runs into Adam Carrington. Kirby and Adam rekindle their romance as she helps him and Blake regain control of Denver-Carrington. Kirby and Adam announce their plans to marry at the end of the miniseries.
Reboot
A Dynasty reboot premiered on The CW on October 11, 2017,[5] featuring Alan Dale as Carrington majordomo Anders.[6] In August 2018, The CW announced that Maddison Brown had been cast as Kirby for the second season.[7]
Before the premiere of season two, executive producer Sallie Patrick previewed, "we will come to see how Anders is keeping [Kirby] at arm's length, because not only do they have a complicated and fraught relationship, but she has an equally fraught relationship with the Carringtons, and Anders being the loyal friend to the family as well as an employee...she jeopardizes many things for him. He loves his daughter, of course, but he also has never felt adequate parenting her, which was why she was living with her mother for some time in Australia."[8]
Season one
In the April 2018 episode "A Line from the Past", Carrington majordomo Joseph Anders reveals to Sam Jones that he has a daughter named Kirby, who lives with her mother in Australia. Anders moves to call her, but hangs up.[9][10] In the season one finale "Dead Scratch", Steven and Fallon tell Sam that "psychopath" Kirby lived with the Carringtons when she was a child, and tormented Fallon. Sam in turn reveals that he invited Kirby to attend his and Steven's wedding. She later appears at the mansion and greets her father, her face unseen.[11]
Season two
Anders hides Kirby from the Carringtons in the season two premiere, "Twenty-Three Skidoo". Since she was suspected of arson as a child, Anders wants to keep her out of the way until whoever set the fire at Steven and Sam's wedding is arrested. After Kirby and Anders clash over her wild lifestyle and his mistrust, Kirby goes to stay with Jeff Colby.[12] In "Ship of Vipers", with the grand opening of Club Colby coming up, Kirby convinces Jeff's sister Monica to give her a job. In addition, she unleashes rats in a rival club to ensure that the opening night is a success. Kirby confronts Fallon at the club's opening and vows to get revenge against Fallon for having her shipped back to Australia as a child. However, Fallon later has Kirby arrested for assault. Kirby is released in "The Butler Did It" under the condition she attends therapy. During these sessions, Kirby unlocks a repressed memory of Anders arguing with Fallon's mother Alexis over a one night stand they once had. Alexis had caught Kirby listening in on the conversation and reprimanded her for it, leading to Kirby realizing that Alexis had framed her for arson, not Fallon. Kirby confronts Anders who goes on to confront Alexis, and Kirby secretly records Alexis confessing that Anders is the father to one of her children. Kirby believes this to be Fallon, but after she publicly exposes the affair, Anders confesses and reveals that Steven is his son. In "Snowflakes in Hell", Kirby shifts her scheming toward Alexis and plots to severe her ties with the Carringtons even further, accessing Steven's credit card information and making it seem like Alexis is responsible for expensive purchases. In "Queen of Cups", Kirby convinces Jeff to let her cater for one of his poker games in order to earn money to pay off Steven's credit card debt. Though she does not make the money she had intended, a new opportunity comes up with her acting as Steven and Sam's surrogate. Ultimately, this does not pan out in "That Witch", but she makes amends with Anders, who invites her to move back into the Manor. Kirby assists Sam with finding a nanny for L.B., a baby that was found on the Carrington property in "A Temporary Infestation". Kirby and Sam grow closer as friends and agree to get matching tattoos, leading to them both developing crushes on the tattoo artist and new nanny, Manuel, in "A Real Instinct for the Jugular". After L.B. is kidnapped, Kirby tries to be of assistance in "Crazy Lady". While she goes heavily ignored, she ventures out on her own and discovers that Manuel kidnapped the baby. With Anders' help, the baby is rescued, and Anders realizes that Kirby has grown up. Kirby crashes Fallon's girls trip in "The Sight of You", and she and Sam mutilate Liam's girlfriend Ashley when Fallon is trying to win him back. Kirby gets everyone to sing karaoke at a local bar once they've all been robbed, and Fallon sticks up for her in a barfight when Ashley comes looking for her.
References
- Schemering, Christopher (September 1985). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia (1st ed.). Ballantine Books. pp. 80–84. ISBN 978-0-345-32459-7.
- Hughes, Mike (February 16, 1985). "Kathleen Beller's on fast forward". The Santa Fe New Mexican. p. D-2.
- Michals, Bob (February 21, 1985). "Deadly Messages Places Beller In Jeopardy Again". The Palm Beach Post.
- Carter, Alan (October 18, 1991). "The Dynasty reunion". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 4, 2018.
- Andreeva, Nellie (June 8, 2017). "The CW Sets Fall 2017 Premiere Dates For Dynasty & Valor And Returning Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 8, 2017.
- Wagmeister, Elizabeth (March 8, 2017). "The O.C. Alum Alan Dale Joins CW's Dynasty Reboot". Variety. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
- Highfill, Samantha (August 14, 2018). "Dynasty casts Maddison Brown as Kirby Anders". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
- Byrne, Craig (October 12, 2018). "Dynasty EP Sallie Patrick Previews Season 2". Retrieved January 30, 2019 – via KsiteTV.com.
- Harrington, Delia (April 27, 2018). "Dynasty Episode 20 Review: 'A Line from the Past'". Den of Geek. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
- Reiher, Andrea (April 30, 2018). "Dynasty Gets a Little Too Convoluted With 'A Line from the Past'". Brit + Co. Retrieved May 2, 2018.
- Harrington, Delia (May 11, 2018). "Dynasty Episode 22 Review: 'Dead Scratch'". Den of Geek. Retrieved May 13, 2018.
- Harrington, Delia (October 13, 2018). "Dynasty Season 2 Episode 1 Review: '23 Skiddoo'". Den of Geek. Retrieved October 15, 2018.