Season 5: Episode 19 - NEW Nancy McKeon Interview: Catching Up with Bernie From Michael Griffo's Pen Pals

Baring It All with Call Me Adam

This season on my podcast, Baring It All with Call Me Adam, I am spotlighting My Entertainment Idols.

Today I am catching up with Actress Nancy McKeon, who you know as Jo Polniaczek, from the beloved & long running 1980s series The Facts of Life.

Nancy is kicking off the return of Michael Griffo's play Pen Pals, when she steps back into the role of Bernie, beginning August 15, 2025.

In this NEW interview, Nancy is Baring It All with Call Me Adam about:

• Why she wanted to come back to Pen Pals
• Who she would write a Pen Pal letter to
• How she met her husband of 25 years
• Some behind the scenes info from The Facts of Life
• So much more

Pen Pals is the extraordinary story of two friends that unfolds over decades. With a rotating cast of renowned actors, no two performances will ever be the same.

Bernie and Mags live in two different countries, they’ve never met, and yet they’re best friends. Because they’ve been pen pals for over fifty years. Since they were teenagers, they’ve shared every aspect of their lives with each other. The trivial bits, the most intimate details, all the happiness, all the heartache. They’ve told each other things they wouldn’t dare tell another soul. Even though Bernie lives in New Jersey and Mags is from England, the women are closer to each other than anyone else in the world.

Come witness the journey of their lifetime. In their own words.

Pen Pals will run at the Daryl Roth DR2 Theater, with a rotating cast of stars, from August 15, 2025-December 21, 2025.

Nancy McKeon will be playing Bernie from August 15-31, 2025.

Click here to watch this interview in video format!

Special Thanks:

• Joe Trentacosta, JT Public Relations
• Theme Song by Bobby Cronin
• Podcast Logo by Liam O'Donnell
• Edited by Adam Rothenberg
• Underscore Music by Cutique

Connect with Me:

Website: www.callmeadam.com

Facebook: @CallMeAdamNYC

Instagram: @CallMeAdamNYC

More on Nancy McKeon:

An actress, director, and producer best known for playing the role of Jo Polniaczek on the beloved long-running 1980s sitcom, The Facts of Life. She starred in and produced the sitcom Can’t Hurry Love and starred with Jean Smart in the sitcom Style & Substance. She portrayed Inspector Jinny Exstead on the Lifetime police drama The Division from 2001 to 2004. She also directed two episodes.

Nancy starred in numerous made-for-TV movies in the 1980s and 1990s, some including A Cry for Help: The Tracey Thurman Story, in which she portrayed the title role of Tracey Thurman, and Firefighter portraying the first female firefighter in Los Angeles County. Strange Voices, she portrayed a woman with schizophrenia. Love, Honor and Obey; The Last Mafia Marriage, mini series with Eric Roberts.

She produced many of these movies through her film company, Forest Hills Entertainment. In 1999, she wrote and directed her own short film, A Wakening. The film won two film festival awards.