Yancy Butler Biography

Yancy Butler (born July 2, 1970) is an American television and movie actress. She is the daughter of Joe Butler, drummer for the 1960 rock group The Lovin' Spoonful.

Butler majored in liberal arts, graduating from Sarah Lawrence College in 1991.

Her first major role was in the television series Mann and Machine in 1992, in which she played an android police officer partnered with a human. The series was set in Los Angeles in the near future. The series was co-created by Dick Wolf of Law & Order fame.

A year later, Butler starred in her second series, also for Dick Wolf. In South Beach, she played a con artist and thief who made a deal with the federal government: in exchange for their wiping of her criminal record, she does certain jobs for them. Only six episodes were produced.

Later, she appeared in Brooklyn South which ran for a full season in 1997-1998, and later starred in the TV series adaptation of the comic book Witchblade. This was her first series to survive more than one season.

She is an admitted alcoholic and has been arrested on more than one occasion. On November 24, 2003, she was ordered to enter a substance-abuse treatment program. Later, it was discovered she had injuries from acting and family problems which led to her alcohol abuse. Despite high ratings and critical acclaim, further production of Witchblade was cancelled a result of Butler going into rehab.

She recently returned to acting with the thriller film Bloodlines, which is scheduled for release in 2006.