# Lindsay Hartley
**Lindsay Hartley** (born Lindsay Nicole Korman, 1978) is an American actress, singer, writer, and director best known for playing Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald on the NBC soap opera *Passions* from 1999 to 2008 and for a subsequent career directing television movies for Lifetime and other outlets.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/bio/) • [2](https://lindsaynhartley.com/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1978, Palm Springs, California (IMDb lists Rancho Mirage); birth name Lindsay Nicole Korman[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/bio/) • [3](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lindsay-hartley/bio/3030399660/) |
| Signature role | Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald on *Passions*, NBC, 1999–2008, 1,267 episodes[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/) |
| Other soap roles | Arianna Hernandez on *Days of Our Lives* (2009–2010); Cara Castillo on *All My Children* (2010–2013)[2](https://lindsaynhartley.com/) |
| Award nominations | Three Soap Opera Digest Award nominations for *Passions*: Outstanding Female Newcomer (2000), Outstanding Younger Lead Actress (2003), Favorite Triangle (2005)[3](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lindsay-hartley/bio/3030399660/) |
| Television volume | Over 2,000 episodes of television across her soap and prime-time credits[2](https://lindsaynhartley.com/) |
| Directing | First feature *Forgotten Abduction* (June 2019, Lifetime); her site counts 30 features directed from 2020 to the present[2](https://lindsaynhartley.com/) |
| Marriage | Married *Passions* co-star Justin Hartley on May 1, 2004; divorced 2012; one daughter, Isabella[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/) |
## Early life and stage work
Hartley was born in the [Palm Springs, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/palm-springs-california), area and is of paternal Ashkenazi Jewish and maternal Greek and Italian descent.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/bio/) She sang from age eleven and was a national pre-teen talent winner in the Young Miss America Beauty Pageant.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/bio/) At fourteen she played Dorothy in *The Wizard of Oz* at the McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert, and at sixteen the family moved to Las Vegas, where she graduated from high school a year early and headlined as lead vocalist in the Sands Hotel afternoon show *Viva Las Vegas*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/bio/) Soap Opera Digest's profile adds that she was the youngest female performer on the strip in that role and worked on musical projects with [Jackie Jackson](https://www.edgepedia.org/jackie-jackson) and [Robin Thicke](https://www.edgepedia.org/robin-thicke) while taking classes at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.[5](https://www.soapoperadigest.com/actors/lindsay-hartley/)
She then moved to New York, where she performed on Broadway in *Grease!*; [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide) dates her first acting role in that production to age 18.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/bio/) • [3](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lindsay-hartley/bio/3030399660/) After the show closed she played Maria in a Civic Light Opera *West Side Story* in [Austin, Texas](https://www.edgepedia.org/austin-texas), and toured the Greek Islands in the rock opera *Pygmalion, the True Story*.[5](https://www.soapoperadigest.com/actors/lindsay-hartley/) In 1998 she settled in Los Angeles, playing the [Bride of Frankenstein](https://www.edgepedia.org/bride-of-frankenstein) in Universal Studios' *Beetlejuice's Rockin' Graveyard Review* before an agent sent her to audition for *Passions*.[5](https://www.soapoperadigest.com/actors/lindsay-hartley/)
## Passions and daytime career
Hartley originated Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald on *Passions*, which ran on NBC from July 5, 1999, and appeared in 1,267 episodes across the show's entire run through 2008.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/) • [6](https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/shows/passions) In a 2019 retrospective she recalled that her character declared on the first day of filming that she would marry Ethan Crane, a goal the story took nine years to reach.[7](https://www.soapoperadigest.com/content/catching-up-with-the-original-cast-of-passions-2/) In 2000 she was nominated for the Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Female Newcomer and wrote the song "Kiss Me" for her character, performing it on the show that year.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/bio/)
After *Passions* ended, she joined *Days of Our Lives* in 2009 as Arianna Hernandez, replacing Felisha Terrell in the contract role and reuniting with former *Passions* colleagues Galen Gering and Eric Martsolf.[8](https://www.soapoperanetwork.com/2009/07/lindsay-hartleys-passion-is-with-days) The character was killed off in October 2010, and within weeks Hartley was cast as Dr. Cara Castillo on *All My Children*, a role she played on ABC from 2010 to 2011 and again in the Prospect Park online revival in 2013.[5](https://www.soapoperadigest.com/actors/lindsay-hartley/) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/) She also appeared as the [DC Comics](https://www.edgepedia.org/dc-comics) character Mad Harriet during *Smallville*'s tenth and final season and guest-starred on *CSI: Crime Scene Investigation*.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/)
From 2020 to 2024 she periodically filled in for [Kelly Monaco](https://www.edgepedia.org/kelly-monaco) as Sam McCall on *General Hospital*, appearing in 16 episodes, including stints in 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2024.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/) • [9](https://www.soapoperadigest.com/content/lindsay-hartley-temporarily-replaces-kelly-monaco-as-ghs-sam/)
## Writing and directing
Hartley's move behind the camera began with screenwriting. Her first lead in a film was the Hallmark movie *On Paper* (2014), and in 2017 she starred in *Deadly Exchange*, the first movie she wrote; she went on to pen ten produced screenplays.[2](https://lindsaynhartley.com/) In June 2019 she directed her first feature, *Forgotten Abduction*, for Lifetime, a project she credits to producers Eric Woods and Stan Spry of Cartel.[2](https://lindsaynhartley.com/) • [10](https://www.soapoperanetwork.com/2022/03/general-hospital-passions-lindsay-hartley-fateful-journey-soaps-directing)
Since then she has directed more than twenty-five features for Lifetime, Hulu, Crackle, and QVC+, including *The Romeo and Juliet Killers* (2022) for Tubi, a true-crime drama based on the 2009 Tylar Witt and Steven Colver case.[2](https://lindsaynhartley.com/) • [10](https://www.soapoperanetwork.com/2022/03/general-hospital-passions-lindsay-hartley-fateful-journey-soaps-directing) Her site counts 30 features directed between 2020 and the present, with several more in post-production.[2](https://lindsaynhartley.com/) She has also produced, directed, and starred in the pilot for *Paranormal Nobodies*, a supernatural coming-of-age series.[2](https://lindsaynhartley.com/)
## Personal life
She married actor [Justin Hartley](https://www.edgepedia.org/justin-hartley), her *Passions* co-star who played Fox Crane, on May 1, 2004; they divorced in 2012 and have one daughter, Isabella.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/) • [11](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/korman-lindsay-1978)
## References
1. [Lindsay Hartley – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/bio/)
2. [Lindsay Hartley — Director & Writer, official site](https://lindsaynhartley.com/)
3. [Lindsay Hartley Biography, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lindsay-hartley/bio/3030399660/)
4. [Lindsay Hartley, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005102/)
5. [Lindsay Hartley News, Soap Opera Digest](https://www.soapoperadigest.com/actors/lindsay-hartley/)
6. [Passions, Television Academy Interviews](https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/shows/passions)
7. [Catching Up With The Original Cast Of PASSIONS, Soap Opera Digest](https://www.soapoperadigest.com/content/catching-up-with-the-original-cast-of-passions-2/)
8. [Lindsay Hartley's 'Passion' is with 'Days', Soap Opera Network](https://www.soapoperanetwork.com/2009/07/lindsay-hartleys-passion-is-with-days)
9. [Lindsay Hartley Temporarily Replaces Kelly Monaco As GH's Sam, Soap Opera Digest](https://www.soapoperadigest.com/content/lindsay-hartley-temporarily-replaces-kelly-monaco-as-ghs-sam/)
10. ['General Hospital' and 'Passions' Star Lindsay Hartley On Her Fateful Journey from Soaps to Becoming a Directing Maven, Soap Opera Network](https://www.soapoperanetwork.com/2022/03/general-hospital-passions-lindsay-hartley-fateful-journey-soaps-directing)
11. [Korman, Lindsay 1978–, Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/korman-lindsay-1978)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Soap operas and continuing serials › US and Americas daytime serials and characters › Daytime serial production and people*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license