Kim Delaney (born November 29, 1961) is an American actress known for her starring role as Detective Diane Russell on the ABC drama television series NYPD Blue, for which she won an Emmy Award. Early in her career, she played the role of Jenny Gardner in the ABC daytime television drama All My Children. She later had leading roles in the short lived TV drama Philly, part of the first season of CSI: Miami, and the first six seasons of Army Wives. She also appeared in Tour of Duty, Season 2 and the first two episodes of Season 3, playing a writer during the Vietnam War named Alex Devlin.
Delaney, an Irish American, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Joan and Jack Delaney, the only daughter of five children. Delaney's mother was a homemaker and her father a senior union official in the United Auto Workers. She was raised Roman Catholic. Delaney has brothers Ed, John, Keith and Patrick. While she was attending J. W. Hallahan Catholic Girls High School, she worked as a model for the Elite agency. Upon graduation, she went to New York and found employment there as a model. At the same time, she studied acting with William Esper.

Delaney first became known for her stint as innocent teenager Jenny Gardner Nelson on the soap opera All My Children, which also was her first job. She played the character from August 1981 to August 1984, earning a 1983 Daytime Emmy Award nomination, as well as a loyal fan base; a profile of the actress a decade later noted,

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