Lecy Goranson

Becky Conner wants somebody to listen, and Alicia Goranson makes that small demand count. In Roseanne (1988), her place in the family depends on making Becky's concerns register among several other people's equally urgent ones. Alongside Michael Fishman as D.J. Conner, she helps the household feel occupied by people who have business of their own. We laughed at those competing demands and felt a little worn out by them, because Goranson helps make getting a hearing seem like work.

The series takes financial pressure seriously, which gives Becky's frustrations something firmer to rest on than a succession of complaints. Goranson's Becky is recognisable as a mall girl, but she gives us reasons to take the character seriously. Sara Gilbert is our particular reason to return, while Laurie Metcalf's less settled comic energy prevents the family exchanges from becoming a simple contest over the last word. The constant trading of sharp remarks can still become wearing, even with actors this good at delivering them.

Away from Becky, she played Young Hy in How to Make an American Quilt (1995), then Candace in Kimberly Peirce's Boys Don't Cry (1999). Peirce's film is painful and worth seeing, chiefly for Hilary Swank and Chloë Sevigny's convincing romance. Some of its supporting characters remain thin, so it is not the obvious starting point for someone interested specifically in Goranson. Her later appearance as Sandra in The Extra Man (2010) continued a film career largely spent in supporting parts.

Returning to Becky full-time in the 2018 revival of Roseanne, then continuing in The Conners (2018–2025), gave her room to develop the character further. The later performance brings more vulnerability alongside the one-liners, a welcome development for an actor so associated with family comedy. One role still accounts for much of her reputation, and the film work offers limited grounds for making larger claims. Start with Roseanne, and allow for a household that rarely gives anyone the last word for long.