Kami Cotler is most famous for playing the young Elizabeth in the American drama television program, “The Waltons” – Earl Hammer was the program’s creator, having written the book “Spencer’s Mountain” from which the show was based. Aside from being an American actress, Kami Cotler is also a staunch educator. She has a degree in Social Sciences from the University of California, Berkeley.
Early Life
Born on 17 June 1965, in Long Beach, California, Kami Ann Cotler was already acting at the age of six, as Elizabeth Walton in the ‘70’s show “The Waltons”.
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for tix: http://t.co/PQgORItaiN pic.twitter.com/GyZODQ3Vjb— Kami Cotler (@KamiCotler) August 25, 2015
Her Elizabeth was the youngest child of a family in Virginia during the Great Depression and World War II. Cotler was a mainstay of the show until she was sixteen years old – the show concluded in 1981. After her long stint in “The Waltons”, Kami tried a couple of auditions, where she was met with discouraging and mean looks. She didn’t remain for long in Hollywood, pursuing her passion for teaching and education.
Television and Movie Career
The 1971 film “The Homecoming: A Christmas Story”, was the inspiration for the 1972 to 1981 television show, “The Waltons”.
Kami Cotler was cast as the youngest of the brood of children in a family in Virginia. Her red hair for the role of Elizabeth became part of her signature look. Kami played Wendy Craddock in the television show “The Heist”, before she bagged her longest-running role in “The Waltons”, which aired for nine seasons.
“The Waltons” was set in a fictional community area in the mountains of Virginia. The real counterpart of the setting was the Schuyler community in Nelson County, Virginia, where Earl Hammer grew up.
Elizabeth, Kami’s character, was given to speaking her mind and being free-spirited. Later seasons showed Elizabeth sharing with her eldest brother, John-Boy’s fascination with reading and love for writing. She gets engaged to Drew, played by Tony Becker, in the final sequel movie. Kami went on to do other television shows, such as “Me and the Chimp”, a thirteen episode (one season) American situation comedy show created by Garry Marshall and Thomas Miller. She played as herself in 1979 in “Family Feud”, during the episode of “Duke of Hazzards vs. The Waltons”.
The time spanning from1980 until 2004 was all about playing Elizabeth in a series of six television movie sequels of the original “The Waltons”. The show garnered many awards. During the first season, the show was given a Peabody Award, and in 1973 it won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series. “The Waltons” was ranked No.34 by TV Guide on the list of 60 Best Series of All Time.
Teaching and Education Career
Kami Cotler’s heart is into teaching and education.
She opted to spend more time pursuing her passion for education, consequently reducing her acting stints for several years while she finished her degree. She was assigned to the Blue Ridge Mountains, Virginia, as a rural school-teacher during the ‘90s, returning n 2001 to California to teach 9th Grade in Environmental Charter High School. The year 2004 found Kami co-directing Ocean Charter School, then she founded her own educational consulting business in 2007.
In Los Angeles County, California, she served as founding Principal of Environmental Charter Middle School, and held a position as board member of the American Montessori Society.
Marriage to Kim Howard
Kami Cotler is married to Kim Howard. Little is known about their marriage, as Kami has remained far from the limelight since her last uncredited appearance in the television movie, “Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane”, which was released in 2018.
She has two children, Callan Freya and Cotton, with her husband Kim. From running her own travel company to managing a cafe in San Francisco, Kami has stayed private with her family life, preferring to keep everything low-key.
Net Worth and Salary
Kami Cotler has a net worth estimated at over $300,000, accumulated from her acting career, teaching roles, her own boutique travel company, and a San Francisco Cafe.
Physical Features and Style
Kami Cotler still wears her signature red hair from her days in the television series, “The Waltons”. Her eyes are a shade of hazel, and which are bright and smiling. She has a lot of freckles on her face. She is medium-built and has a very fair complexion. Her manner of dress and style was laid-back in the early days, and became less casual and more formal later on. She either wears her hair down or has it styled in a bun.