Sometimes you don’t find your true passion until later on in life. This can be said for Leah Ayres, who had the ability and notoriety to make it to the top of Hollywood but left it all behind to pursue her real dreams. Born in May 1957 in Maryland, Leah booked her first role at age 22 as Christy Bringham in one season of “Love of Life” in 1979. Tremendous opportunities kept on presenting themselves and she played the lead in comedy Mother and Me, M.D. and appeared in 4x Oscar Winning comedy All That Jazz all in the same year. Then, in 1981, she booked her one and only role in a horror film in the leading role as Michelle in The Burning. A slasher flick that followed a burn survivor seeking revenge on the camp counselors responsible for his scarring, The Burning was a box office bomb in The United States; grossing only $708,000 against a budget of $1,500,000. However, it recouped the loss by making $2,000,000 in ticket sales in foreign markets.
Ayers returned to television with two recurring roles in 1983 in “Nine to Five” and “The Edge of Night.” She also made guest appearances in “21 Jump Street,” “The A-Team,” “Hotel,” “Love Boat” and “Too Close for Comfort,” before playing the lead in spy drama Velvet (1984). Then she once again juggled two recurring roles by playing Mona Polito in “St. Elsewhere” from 1985 to 1986 and in “1st and Ten: The Championship” in 1987. Another huge opportunity came knocking in 1988 when Leah played the female lead in martial arts drama Bloodsport, the role she’s probably most known for today. Following a guest appearance in an episode of “Freddy’s Nightmares” in 1989 and playing Marcia Brady in “The Bradys” in 1990, Leah started to see fewer and fewer jobs in Hollywood.
She recurred as Pam in “Who’s the Boss” in 1991 and as Tara Flynn in “Walker Texas Ranger” in 1995. Her last credited roles would be guest spots in an episode of “The Journey of Allen Strange” and “Sliders” in 1998 before she quietly left the industry behind.
So, Where is Leah Ayres now?
It appears that her retirement was due to discovering her love for teaching children and yoga. During the latter part of her career as an actress, she pursued an education and graduated with her M.A. from Pacific Oaks College in California. She co-founded Imaginazium, LLC which “manufactures and sells innovative award winning educational toys, activity kits and guided imagery audio products that provide children with playgrounds for imagination.” She found love and married “Power Rangers: S.P.D.” and “Power Rangers: Mystic Force” writer Bruce Kalish, and they have one child together. Leah and Bruce write and produce Living Arts & Gaiam’s Yoga Fitness for Kids videos that are available in retailers across the United States, so she is still acting to some extent. She also appeared as herself in documentary Y Yoga Movie in 2008 and starred in the featurette ‘Summer Camp Nightmare’ with Leah Ayres, which can be found on Shout Factory’s 2013 re-release of The Burning.
