Mel Harris, who rose to stardom on the hit ’80s series Thirtysomething, just celebrated her 70th birthday, and she’s looking better than ever!
Harris skyrocketed to stardom in the role of Hope Steadman alongside actors Ken Olin, Polly Draper, Peter Horton, Patricia Wettig, Melanie Mayron, and Timothy Busfield in the ensemble series, which ran from 1987 to 1991 on ABC. She went on to appear in a variety of made-for-TV movies and starred on the sitcomSomething So Right for two years. More recently, she appeared on the Hulu series Shut Eye and the Bravo series Imposters. But we’re partial to her presence on social media, where Harris, who is a natural stunner with gray hair, shares fun content that includes baking pies, raising chickens, and making wreaths on her upstate New York farm. But in a new video, the star stepped into her 70th birthday earlier this week looking extremely elegant. It’s safe to say some people get better with age!
“I’m 70! Thank you for all the birthday wishes. I’m celebrating with a week in Maine (my first visit!) with my family. Blessed for what has brought me here, and excited for what is yet to come,” Harris captioned her video, which explored what her current self would tell her thirty-something self. The answer is quite poignant:
She’s a Talented Lifestyle Influencer
While most of us know her as an actress, a whole new generation is following Harris for her Instagram content. Of course, one topic that’s frequently brought up is her stunning gray hair.
“My gray is coming in nicely and I think I’ll be happy with it when it’s all in. But it’s a hard balance,” Harris told Next Avenue earlier this year. “I got a lot of comments on it. I mean, a lot of comments. A lot of people said, ‘You don’t need to ask other people for permission.’ I want to reply, ‘Clearly, you don’t know me’ (laughs). If the sequel goes and they want my hair to be more Hope’s color, then we’ll discuss that – you can have a wig or do temporary dyes. I think it would be great if one of the women were gray.”
She’s Still Close with Thirtysomething Star Patricia Wettig
While it’s been 35 years since the series went off the air, Harris is still friends with her Thirtysomething costar Patricia Wettig, who played Nancy on the series. Harris recently took to Instagram to wish Wettig a happy birthday. It’s a touching post that features a fun throwback to one of their scenes together on the legendary show.
This story was originally published by Parade on Jul 18, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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