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Beth Ehlers

Beth Ehlers built her career around a knack for giving complicated characters an approachable, human pulse. Born in Queens on July 23, 1968, she grew up in New York City and began appearing in television commercials at nine. Her first acting role came in the 1981 television film Family Reunion, starring Bette Davis, followed by appearances in television films including In Defense of Kids and Mystery at Fire Island. Ehlers made her big-screen debut in The Hunger alongside David Bowie and Catherine Deneuve. She later appeared in Hiding Out and joined the NBC series The Best Times. But the part that came to define her work was Harley Cooper on Guiding Light, a character she first played from 1987 to 1993. Introduced as a bad girl with a heart of gold, Harley developed into one of the show's central figures, with Ehlers finding the warmth beneath the character's unruly edges. After leaving Guiding Light and relocating to California, Ehlers worked as a production assistant on commercials and music videos. She returned to the soap for its 60th anniversary on January 17, 1997, and the strong fan response led to another run as a contract player. Across her time on the series, she received five Daytime Emmy nominations, covering the younger actress, supporting actress and lead actress categories. She was the first daytime actress nominated in all three. Guiding Light also gave Ehlers room to step outside Harley's usual world. In a 2006 collaboration with Marvel Comics, the character became a superheroine called The Guiding Light. The following year, Ehlers portrayed soap opera creator Irna Phillips in an episode marking the program's 70th anniversary. Ehlers left Guiding Light in 2008 and joined All My Children as Army lieutenant Taylor Thompson. She was later announced as part of the cast of River Ridge in 2010 and joined the serial drama podcast Forever and a Day in 2020. Her career remains closely associated with daytime drama, where sustained character work matters—and where her long history as Harley Cooper left its clearest mark.