On November 15, 2016, actress Lisa Lynn Masters was found dead in a hotel room in Lima, Peru, and suicide is suspected. She was found hanging, and police say there were antidepressants nearby along with her cell phone that had instructions on how to contact her family in the US.
Peru21, a Lima newspaper, reported that her body was found in the capital on Tuesday. It said that Masters, who was in Peru to take part in a modeling event, apparently hanged herself with a skirt.
Masters appeared on a first-season episode of Kimmy Schmidt as “Dr. Goodman.” She has also guest-starred on episodes of Gossip Girl,Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Nashville.
“Lisa’s genuine warmth, generosity and tenacious strength will be deeply missed,” the Peru21 page says.
Masters was born in Omaha Nebraska, but grew up in Asheville, North Carolina. After graduating from Appalachian State University in Broadcasting she started her career as a news reporter.
Masters later moved to New York City working through Ford Models while attending Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism to earn her Masters Degree. Masters was pulled toward acting after being cast as a reporter in The Siege (1998). Although her scenes were completely edited out of the movie, she nevertheless abandoned her pursuit of news journalism, for her love for acting, and appeared in over 30 TV commercials and in films such as The Stepford Wives (2004).
Masters studied acting with The Barrow Group in New York City with Lee Brock and Seth Barrish, and Improvisation with Gary Austin, the original director of The Groundlings, the sketch comedy theater and springboard for dozens of Saturday Night Live (1975) alums.
She often gets cast as elegant or powerful female characters, as well as comedic roles, such as Ugly Betty (2006) , the indie film, Blumenthal (2013), and the stuttering, awkward lead character role in the off-Broadway comedy, “All In The Timing: The Universal Language.”
