Photo: Getty
She's a longtime friend of Prince Charles.
By Amy Lamare — Written on Dec 17, 2019
Who is Stefanie Powers? That's a good question. Although she's worked steadily over the decades, her claim to fame is the 1980's television show Hart to Hart, which ran from 1979 to 1984.
Now, she's picking a fight with Meghan Markle and Twitter is not having it.
In a new interview, Powers dishes on everything from her fame to surviving cancer to the mystery of Natalie Wood's death. And then she turns on Meghan Markle and says that her "job is to be Harry's wife, not change the Royal dynamic." Say it with me — OK, Boomer.
Powers became friends with Prince Charles through their mutual love of playing polo. She said that Markle should rethink her role in the palace. The 77-year-old said that Markle “wants to be a star, which, I’m sorry, is not what she is supposed to be doing.” Perhaps someone should point out to Powers that Markle was a star long before she ever met Prince Harry.
Powers really goes after Markle, saying, "Those headlines saying she was Hollywood royalty marrying British royalty. She had a role in a TV show. Please, she’s obviously not a great actress. She’s not gotten in the role she has taken on. Grace Kelly did, but then she was Hollywood royalty — not a bit player in a minor television series.”
Why does Powers have such a beef with Markle? Powers even goes after Prince Harry. It was suggested to Powers that perhaps Prince Harry and Markle want to change the royal dynamic together. She wasn't having any of that, either. She said, “Then he should get out of the job, too.” Oooooh, salty!
1. Who is Stefanie Powers?
Powers, born Stefania Zofya Paul November 2, 1942, in Hollywood, California to Polish parents. Her last name has often been cited as Federkiewicz. When she was 16, she was put under a studio contract with Columbia Pictures, which was how it worked in the movie industry back then.
As part of her contract, Columbia changed her name to the more Anglo-sounding Stefanie Powers. She appeared in a number of small and supporting roles in film in the 1960s. In 1966, she was cast in the starring role of the short-lived television series The Girl from U.N.C.L.E., a spin-off of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. The series only lasted one season.
2. She's best known for her role in Hart to Hart.
As mentioned, Powers is best known for a role she played 40 years ago. She was Jennifer Hart opposite Robert Wagner in the mystery series, Hart to Hart. Powers and Wagner also filmed eight Hart to Hart television movies in the 1990s. The Harts were a pair of amateur sleuths.
About playing Jennifer Hart, Powers said in her interview, "I loved playing Jennifer Hart. I love RJ. I loved our professional experience together. But Hollywood has a tendency to want to put you in a box because people’s imaginations are limited, which is odd as it is an industry which is supposed to be full of imagination. There is a stigma attached to a certain generation of women who came to people’s attention through glamorous or semi-glamorous roles. Nobody could see beyond that. My life has taken me in many other directions.”
3. Her partner and Robert Wagner's wife died within two weeks of each other.
Powers was partners with actor William Holden from 1972 until his death in 1982. Wagner's wife, actress Natalie Wood, drowned to death in 1982. The two actors were filming Hart to Hart and their partners died within two weeks of each other.
She said, "We were mid-filming. We had to go back. We had commitments. It was repulsive. Sometimes we felt we couldn’t do it. We couldn’t go on. I like to think we held each other up, which bonded us as human beings."
4. She had cancer.
In 2008, Powers was diagnosed with lung cancer. She was a smoker for 20 years. During 2008 and 2009, she was treated successfully for cancer in her right lung. On January 29, 2009, she underwent surgery to have part of her right lung removed.
5. Powers thinks Prince Charles will make a good king.
In the same interview, Powers, who's a long-time friend of Prince Charles, says she thinks he will make a good king. She said, "He will make a good king, I think, in spite of the fact he probably doesn’t want it — who knows? He has very big shoes to fill. The Queen is extraordinary.”
6. She has strong opinions about the Royal Family.
Powers said that Markle is trying to turn her role in the Royal Family into "The Adventures of Meghan in the Palace."
Powers added, "Britain is outstanding because of the royal family, and when a member of it misbehaves they shorten its viability. Prince Andrew is stupid. Both him and Harry have been making fools of themselves in common. Kate (Middleton) is impeccable, she doesn’t put a foot wrong."
7. Twitter is not standing for her shading Meghan Markle.
Twitter will be Twitter, no matter what. So it's no surprise that the Twitterverse is trolling Powers over her shading of Markle. A sampling:
- "I use to like watching the tv show “Hart to Hart” but not anymore after the vicious and bitchy comments @Stefanie_Powers made about the Duchess of Sussex.
- What an absolute ass! PS Miss Powers — I know who the Duchess is. I don't know who the hell you are. Please, lower your pedestal."
And, finally, someone called it as they see it:
Amy Lamare is a writer covering entertainment, pop culture, beauty, fashion, fitness, technology, and the intersection of technology, business, and philanthropy. You can find her on Instagram and Facebook.