Kate Linder. Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for Associated Television International
The Young and the Restless star Kate Linder isn’t ready to quit her side job as a United Airlines flight attendant.
“It’s really interesting because one day I get to be on the set, the next day I get to be here doing this Hollywood Christmas parade, and then I get to serve coffee at 35,000 feet,” Linder, 77, exclusively told Us Weekly on Sunday, December 1. “You don’t forget who you are that way. It keeps you grounded.”
More than four decades ago, Linder was cast as Esther Valentine on The Young and the Restless. This year, the CBS soap opera celebrated its 50th season.
“We just aired our 13,000th episode, and I was so honored to be part of that,” she told Us from the Hollywood Christmas Parade supporting Marine Toys for Tots. “It’s over 42 years and counting for me. I’m just absolutely thrilled.”
She’s also excited to see what comes next for her character. As Esther serves as a receptionist and the new manager of Crimson Lights coffee house, Linder explained that her character is busier than ever.
“I have all these jobs but Sharon’s in trouble right now, and Esther is extremely worried about it,” she teased. “There’s all kinds of great stuff coming up.”
When she’s not memorizing lines or filming on set, Linder is packing her suitcase and serving as a flight attendant for United Airlines. While serving snacks and drinks, the actress said she sometimes gets recognized by passengers.
“I was standing at the gate ready to get on a plane, and this woman looked at me and she said, ‘Kate Linder? No, you’re not,’” Linder recalled to Us. “And I said, ‘I was when I woke up. So something’s wrong. I don’t know what’s wrong.’ She couldn’t believe that I was going to be working that flight. And she ended up being on that flight.”
When soap opera stars leave their roles, it can be as shocking as their shows’ plotlines. Alison Sweeney surprised longtime Days of Our Lives fans in 2014 when she announced she’d be exiting the series after 21 years. “I’ve been on Days of Our Lives since I was 16 years old, and I have never […]
Part of the reason she keeps the job is because she knows how fortunate she is to have so many opportunities in and out of Hollywood.
“I’ve seen a lot of people that sometimes believe their own press,” Linder explained. “I feel so very fortunate to do what I do. This is all I’ve ever wanted to do. No one in my family was in the business, so it was always like taking one step forward and two steps back, and yet, how fortunate and how lucky am I?”
The Young and the Restless airs weekdays on CBS. Plus, see Linder when The Hollywood Christmas Parade airs on The CW Network Saturday, December 14, at 8 p.m. ET.
