"The Ranch" Star Debra Winger: 7 Things You Should Know About Her Life

Debra Winger is an American actress. The veteran has been a screen presence since the mid-70s and through sheer work ethic and dedication, has managed to stay relevant nearly five decades after her debut.

She is known for her starring roles in movies like An Officer and a Gentleman, Terms of Endearment, and Shadowlands, all of which landed her an Oscar nomination. 

She has also appeared in TV shows like Wonder Woman, Law & Order, In Treatment, and The Red Tent.

She also had a starring role in the Netflix sitcom, The Ranch.   

These are seven facts about Debra Winger:

7. She is a Mother of Two Children

Debra Winger is famously infamous for mixing business with pleasure. She has dated many of her co-stars; she dated her Cannery Row and Everybody Wins co-star Nick Nolte and was in a relationship with actor Andrew Rubin from 1977 to 1980.  

First Child with First Husband, Timothy Hutton 

After her three-year relationship with Rubin ended, she got into an on-again-off-again relationship with Bob Kerrey, the-then Governor of Nebraska, from 1983 to 1985. 

Her relationship with Kerrey ended for good when she eloped with actor Timothy Hutton in 1986. They officially married on March 16, 1986. 

With Hutton, Winger became a mother for the first time at 31 with the arrival of their son, Emmanuel Noah Hutton, on April 29, 1987. Known professionally as Noah Hutton, Emmanuel grew to become a documentary filmmaker.

Winger's marriage with Hutton ended in divorce -- finalized on March 1, 1990.    

Second Child with Second Husband, Arliss Howard    

Winger married for the second time to actor/director Arliss Howard, whom she met on the set of filming the 1993 romantic-comedy, Wilder Napalm. They got married three years later -- on November 28, 1996, to be exact.

Winger became a mother for the second time at 42 when she gave birth to her and Howard's son, Babe Howard, on June 15, 1997. Besides her two children, she also plays stepmother to Sam Howard, Arliss Howard's son from his previous marriage to Karen Mary Sellars.

6. When was Debra Winger Born? What is her Age, and Height?

Debra Winger was born Debra Lynn Winger on May 16, 1955, to meatpacker Robert Winger and office manager Ruth Felder. 

The 64-year-old -- soon to be 65 -- was born in an orthodox Jewish family in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, but moved to California when she was 5. 

She was a child prodigy and had graduated high school at 15. She was pursuing a career in criminology when an accident left her partially paralyzed and temporarily blind. Winger vowed that if her eyesight ever recovered, she would pursue her true passion: acting. Her vision eventually returned and she kept her vow and became an actress.

She is 5 feet 4 inches (1.63 meters) tall.

5. Starred opposite John Travolta in Urban Cowboy

Winger had her breakout role as Sissy Davis, opposite actor John Travolta, in the 1980 romantic-western, Urban Cowboy.

She played the love interest of Travolta's lead character, Bud Davis. For her performance, Winger was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles, as well as two Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress and New Star of the Year.

4. Starred in Netflix Sitcom, The Ranch

Winger starred as Maggie Bennett in the Netflix sitcom, The Ranch, as a series regular throughout its four-season run. The series premiered on Netflix on April 1, 2016, and concluded after its fourth season on January 24, 2020.

Based around the fictional Iron River Ranch, the series follows the everyday lives of the dysfunctional Bennett household of father, two sons, and an estranged wife.

Winger plays the estranged wife of Beau Roosevelt Bennett (Sam Elliott), and the mother of Colt Reagan Bennett (Ashton Kutcher) and Jameson "Rooster" Ford Bennett (Danny Masterson).      

Other prominent members of the cast include Elisha Cuthbert, Barry Corbin, Bret Harrison, Megyn Price, Kelli Goss, and Molly McCook.

3. Played Wonder Girl in Wonder Woman TV Series

Winger played Drusilla and her superhero alter-ego, Wonder Girl, in the 1975 TV adaptation of the DC Comics character of the same name, Wonder Woman. The revolutionary superhero TV series starred Lynda Carter as Diana Prince and her superhero alter-ego, the titular Wonder Woman.  

Drusilla is the younger sister of Diana Prince and Winger played the DC Comics character in the two-part 1976 episode "The Feminum Mystique", as well as the 1977 episode "Wonder Woman in Hollywood".

While most people saw her landing the role as a career breakthrough, Winger, who had an acrid relationship with the show's lead, Lynda Carter, sank her earnings from her appearances on the show to hire a lawyer to buy her out of her contractual obligations to the show.   

2. She is a Three-Time Academy Award-Nominated Actress 

On top of her many accolades, Winger is a three-time Academy Award-nominated actress.

She received her first nomination for playing Paula Pokrifki in the 1982 romantic drama, An Officer and a Gentleman.

She was nominated for her second Academy Award the following year for her turn as Emma Horton in the comedy-drama, Terms of Endearment. The movie featured an ensemble cast including Shirley MacLaine, Danny DeVito, Jack Nicholson, John Lithgow, and Jeff Daniels. The movie was nominated for eleven Academy Awards and won five.

Winger received her third Academy Award-nomination for her portrayal of Joy Gresham in the 1993 C. S. Lewis biopic, Shadowlands. Sir Anthony Hopkins played the English writer and Winger portrayed Gresham, his love interest.

1. Has a Net Worth of $16 Million

Debra Winger has a net worth of $16 million, as of May 2020. The 64-year-old -- soon to be 65 -- actress has a reputation for being hard to work with and has burned more than her fair share of bridges due to it. 

Despite her notoriety or maybe due to it, Winger has enjoyed a successful on-screen career. She made her debut in 1976 and burst into the scene with the 1980 movie, Urban Cowboy.

The three-time Oscar-nominated actress is known for her starring roles in movies like An Officer and a Gentleman, Terms of Endearment, and Shadowlands. 

On television, she has played the superhero Wonder Girl in the Wonder Woman TV series starring Lynda Carter and starred in the Netflix sitcom, The Ranch.