Salome Jens

Salome Jens (born May 8, 1935) is an American stage, film and television actress. She is perhaps best known for portraying the Female Changeling on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in the 1990s.

Jens was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Salomea (née Szujewska) and Arnold John Jens, a farmer and builder. In an article from July 1969, she remarked that "the only time I can imagine contemplating suicide would be if I was told that I had to go back and live in Milwaukee forever", a comment for which she later apologized.

Jens was a dramatics major at Northwestern University, and she was a dance student of Martha Graham. In New York she studied acting at HB Studio.

She appeared in the role of "The Thief" in the New York premiere production of Jean Genet's The Balcony. She won excellent notices playing Josie in A Moon for the Misbegotten at the downtown Circle in the Square Theatre in the late 1960s in New York, and she did a Cleopatra at Stratford.

Jens' film debut was in the title role of Terror from the Year 5000 (1958), which was later featured in the eighth Season of Mystery Science Theater 3000. She subsequently had roles in films such as Angel Baby (1961), The Fool Killer (1965), Seconds (1966), Me, Natalie (1969), Savages (1972), The Boy Who Talked to Badgers (1975), Diary of the Dead (1976), Cloud Dancer (1980), Harry's War (1981) and Just Between Friends (1986).

Jens appeared in the April 7, 1962, episode of The Defenders, "The Naked Heiress," where she portrayed a college educated stripper romantically involved with a much older professor who, in a drunken state, was tricked by her conniving mother into changing his will, making Jens's character the heir to his entire estate. In 1963 she appeared in an episode of The Untouchables, "The Man in the Cooler," an episode of The Outer Limits,"Corpus Earthling", and the I Spy episode "A Room with a Rack" in 1967, as a globe-trotting pilot friend of Kelly Robinson and Alexander Scott. She was cast as a prisoner in "The Wagon", a 1970 episode of Bonanza.

In 1971, she portrayed a widow with two children in the Gunsmoke episode, "Captain Sligo," with Richard Basehart in the title role as an Irish cattle buyer who courts her. In 1974 she guest-starred in an episode of McMillan and Wife, "Reunion In Terror", and on The New Land. She appeared on Gibbsville in 1976. In 1976–77 Jens played the role of Mae Olinski on the soap spoof Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. She appeared on the scripted talk show Meeting of Minds, hosted by Steve Allen (S03E05 and S03E06, 1979), portraying Empress Theodora.

In 1986 she appeared in The Colbys, Cagney & Lacey, and MacGyver. She appeared in several episodes of Falcon Crest (1987) and The Hogan Family (1989), and in a 1990 episode of The Wonder Years. Jens played Clark Kent's mother Martha Kent in several episodes of the TV series Superboy (1988-92). In 1992-93 she appeared in a three-episode arc of season 7 of L.A. Law. She appeared as Joan Campbell in several episodes of Melrose Place in season 1 (1992-93) and again later in an episode of season 6 (1997).

Jens appeared in the 1993 episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Chase, as a member of the race responsible for populating the galaxy with humanoid lifeforms, and had a recurring role spanning 5 seasons of Star Trek: Deep Space 9 as the totalitarian Female Changeling (1994-99).

Jens narrated a number of documentaries including The Great War and the Shaping of the 20th Century and the 1986 film, The Clan of the Cave Bear. She also voiced the female Guardian in the Green Lantern movie (2011).

• Back Stage West Garland Awards, 2007 award for her role in the play Leipzig