Lynda Carter (born Linda Jean Córdova Carter; July 24, 1951) is an American actress, singer, songwriter, model, and beauty pageant titleholder, who was crowned Miss World America 1972.
Carter is most widely known as the star of the American live action television series Wonder Woman, in the role of Diana Prince / Wonder Woman, based on the DC comic book fictional superheroine character of the same name, which aired on ABC and later on CBS from 1975 to 1979.
Carter was born in Phoenix, Arizona, the daughter of Juanita (née Córdova) and Colby Carter. Her father is of English and Scots-Irish ancestry, and her mother, whose family hailed from Mexico, is of Mexican, Spanish and French descent. Carter made her public television debut on Lew King's Talent Show at age 5. During high school, Carter performed in a band called Just Us, consisting of a marimba, a conga drum, an acoustic guitar, and a stand-up bass played by another girl. When she was 16, she joined two of her cousins in another band called The Relatives. Actor Gary Burghoff was the drummer. The group opened at the Sahara Hotel and Casino lounge in Las Vegas for three months; because Carter was under 21, she had to enter through the kitchen.