100 Actresses I Find Attractive
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Marisa Tomei was born on December 4, 1964, in Brooklyn, New York, to Patricia "Addie" (Bianchi), a teacher of English, and Gary Tomei, a lawyer, both of Italian descent. Marisa has a brother, actor Adam Tomei. As a child, Marisa's mother frequently corrected her speech as to eliminate her heavy Brooklyn accent. As a teen, Marisa attended Edward R. Murrow High School and graduated in the class of 1982. She was one year into her college education at Boston University when she dropped out for a co-starring role on the CBS daytime drama As the World Turns (1956). Her role on that show paved the way for her entrance into film: in 1984, she made her film debut with a bit part in The Flamingo Kid (1984). Three years later, Marisa became known for her role as Maggie Lawton, Lisa Bonet's college roommate, on the sitcom A Different World (1987).
Her real breakthrough came in 1992, when she co-starred as Joe Pesci's hilariously foul-mouthed, scene-stealing girlfriend in My Cousin Vinny (1992), a performance that won her a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. Later that year, she turned up briefly as a snippy Mabel Normand in director Richard Attenborough's biopic Chaplin (1992), and was soon given her first starring role in Untamed Heart (1993). A subsequent starring role -- and attempted makeover into Audrey Hepburn -- in the romantic comedy Only You (1994) proved only moderately successful.
Marisa's other 1994 role as Michael Keaton's hugely pregnant wife in The Paper (1994) was well-received, although the film as a whole was not. Fortunately for Tomei, she was able to rebound the following year with a solid performance as a troubled single mother in Nick Cassavetes' Unhook the Stars (1996) which earned her a Screen Actors Guild nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She turned in a similarly strong work in Welcome to Sarajevo (1997), and in 1998 did some of her best work in years as the sexually liberated, unhinged cousin of Natasha Lyonne's Vivian Abramowitz in Tamara Jenkins' Slums of Beverly Hills (1998). Marisa co-starred with Mel Gibson in the hugely successful romantic comedy What Women Want (2000) and during the 2002 movie award season, she proved her first Best Supporting Actress Oscar win was no fluke when she received her second nomination in the same category for the critically acclaimed dark drama, In the Bedroom (2001). She also made a guest appearance on the animated TV phenomenon The Simpsons (1989) as Sara Sloane, a movie star who falls in love with Ned Flanders. In 2006, she went on to do 4 episodes for Rescue Me (2004). She played Angie, the ex-wife of Tommy Calvin (Denis Leary)'s brother Johnny (Dean Winters). At age 42, Marisa took on a provocative role in legendary filmmaker Sidney Lumet's melodramatic picture Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007), in which she appeared nude in love scenes with costars Ethan Hawke and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Marisa then took on another provocative role as a stripper in the highly acclaimed film The Wrestler (2008) opposite Mickey Rourke. Her great performance earned her many awards from numerous film societies for Best Supporting Actress, a third Academy Award nomination, as well as nominations for a Golden Globe and a BAFTA. Many critics heralded this performance as a standout in her career.Happy Accidents.- Actress
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Brittany Murphy was born Brittany Anne Bertolotti on November 10, 1977 in Atlanta, Georgia, to Sharon Kathleen Murphy and Angelo Joseph Bertolotti. Her father's ancestry is Italian, and her mother is of Irish and Slovak descent. Her father moved the family back to Edison, New Jersey as a native New Yorker and to be closer to other siblings from previous marriages. While dining out one night in the presence of Hollywood royalty, Brittany at the age of 5 approached an adjoining table when Academy Award nominee Burt Reynolds and George Segal were seated. Brittany introduced herself to the Hollywood legends and confidently told them that someday she too would be a star.
She comes from a long line of international musicians and performers with three half-brothers and a sister. Angelo Bertolotti was torn from their tight-knit family as a made-man with the Italian Mafia. The Senior Bertolotti, who coined the nickname of "Britt" for his daughter, was also an entrepreneur and diplomat for organized crime families and one of the first to be subjected to a RICO prosecution. Brittany's interests and well-being were always her father's first goal and objective. To distance his talented daughter from his infamous past, Angelo allowed Sharon to use her maiden name for Brittany's, so that her shining star would not be overshadowed by a father's past, with the couple divorcing thereafter.
Brittany began receiving accolades and applause in regional theater at the early age of 9. At the age of 13, she landed several national commercials. She appeared on television and caught the attention of a personal manager and an agent. Soon, Brittany's mother Sharon turned full-time to being a "Stage Mom" where Angelo provided financial support throughout and their relationship is memorialized with a long and close history in pictures. The hopeful daughter and mother moved to Burbank, CA, where Brittany landed her first television role on Blossom (1990). Hearts and doors opened up for a starring role on Drexell's Class (1991), a short lived TV series.
Brittany's big screen movie debut started with Clueless (1995), where she was co-starring with Alicia Silverstone. Britt soared, demonstrating her musical and artistic talents with dramatic and comedic roles landing a nomination for best leading female performance in the Young Artist Awards for her role in the television film David and Lisa (1998). She garnered tremendous attention for her role in Girl, Interrupted (1999) with Academy Award winner Angelina Jolie. Brittany's band, "Blessed Soul" was growing with her as lead singer and Britt lent her vocal talents to the TV hit, cartoon sensation, King of the Hill (1997) as the voice of Luanne.
She is alleged to have been a witness in the case of the former Department of Homeland Security employee and persecuted whistleblower Julia Davis. According to Davis, Brittany and her fiancée Simon Monjack were then targeted for retaliation that included land and aerial surveillance and a threatened prosecution. Monjack was arrested and detained by the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Brittany and Simon confided in Alex Ben Block of the Hollywood Reporter, telling him in an interview that they were under surveillance by helicopters and their telephones have been wiretapped. This information was published by THR posthumously, in an article entitled "The Last Difficult Days of Brittany Murphy."
On December 20, 2009, Brittany Murphy died an untimely death. The LAPD and Los Angeles County Coroner closed the case within one hour, attributing her death to pneumonia and anemia. Five months after Brittany's unexpected demise, her husband Simon Monjack was found dead in the house he shared with Brittany. The chief/spokesperson at the Los Angeles County Dept of Coroner, Craig Harvey, stated that Simon also died from the same exact causes as his wife, namely pneumonia and anemia. Neither Brittany, nor Simon, were given a thorough and complete forensic autopsy for poisons. Brittany's father, Angelo "AJ" Bertolotti, is pursuing the investigation of the true reasons behind Brittany's and Simon's sudden demise, as he believes that the two were murdered. Abnormally high levels of heavy metals and poisons were discovered in Brittany's hair, tested by two other independent forensic labs with famed Pathologist, attorney Cyril Wecht concluded from the appearances, Brittany could have been murdered and should be exhumed. Her father Angelo is preparing court actions to ensure she obtains justice.The Ramen Girl.- Actress
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Hannah Dominique E. John-Kamen is a British actress. She is known for her roles as Dutch in the Syfy television series Killjoys, Ornela in the HBO series Game of Thrones, F'Nale Zandor in Steven Spielberg's Ready Player One, and Ghost in Ant-Man and the Wasp.
Hannah was born in Beverley, Yorkshire, England, the youngest of three children of a Nigerian forensic psychologist father and a Norwegian fashion model mother. She attended primary school in Kirk Ella and received her secondary education at Hull Collegiate School, and also trained at the National Youth Theatre in London. In 2012, she graduated from the Central School of Speech and Drama.
John-Kamen began her professional career in 2011 when she provided her voice for the video game Dark Souls. She then went on to make episode appearances in television series Misfits (2011), Black Mirror (2011), Whitechapel (2012), The Syndicate (2012), The Midnight Beast (2012) and The Hour (2012).
In 2012, John-Kamen landed the lead role of Viva in Viva Forever, a West End musical based on the songs of the Spice Girls. Written by Jennifer Saunders and produced by Judy Craymer, Viva Forever premiered on 11 December 2012 at the Piccadilly Theatre to largely negative reviews. The Daily Mirror, however, praised John-Kamen's performance, noting, "It's a shame a talented cast, especially Hannah John-Kamen's Viva and the rest of Eternity, are let down by a clichéd plot and leaden dialogue." The show was eventually closed on 29 June 2013.
2015 saw John-Kamen land a starring role in SyFy's Killjoys. In 2016 John-Kamen had a guest starring role on HBO's Game of Thrones. In 2016, she appeared in "Playtest", an episode of the anthology series Black Mirror. She also appeared in Season two of the UK series The Tunnel, and played Ghost in the superhero film Ant-Man and the Wasp.
On John-Kamen's role in Steven Spielberg's Ready Player One, Kristen Tauer wrote: "While much of "Ready Player One" takes place in a virtual reality world, John-Kamen's character is unique in that she is rooted in the reality throughout the film."Killjoys (TV series).- Actress
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Joanna Lumley was born on 1 May, 1946 in Kashmir, India, to British parents, Thya Beatrice Rose (Weir) and James Rutherford Lumley. Her father was a major in the Gurkha Rifles, and she spent most of her early childhood in the Far East where her father was posted.
An aspiring actress, she first came to fame as a model in London's swinging 1960s, where she was photographed by the greats, including her friend, the late Patrick Lichfield. She was designer Jean Muir's muse and house model for several years before carving a career as a freelance model where she became one of the top ten most-booked models of the 1960s.
Lumley's breakthrough role was as Purdey in The New Avengers (1976), a role for which over 800 girls auditioned. Purdey propelled Lumley to instant fame and created one of the "must-have" hairstyles of the 1970s -- the Purdey bob. Lumley became a pin-up figure for a generation of British males who grew up watching her as the high-kicking action girl.
Other roles followed, most notably as Sapphire in Sapphire & Steel (1979) opposite David McCallum -- a sci-fi precursor to The X-Files (1993) and an under-rated gem of a series which has gained a cult following in recent years, despite the fact it has only ever been shown ONCE on terrestrial TV. During the 1980s, Lumley returned to the theater, making notable appearances as "Hedda Gabler" and as "Elvira" in "Blithe Spirit" -- a role that seems tailor-made for her. Lumley also made appearances in several films, including Trail of the Pink Panther (1982), Curse of the Pink Panther (1983), and a screen-stealing role in Shirley Valentine (1989).
It was her reinvention as a comic actress in Absolutely Fabulous (1992) that shot Lumley to wider international acclaim. Her role as Patsy in Absolutely Fabulous (1992) is regarded as one of the greatest female comic performances ever, earning Lumley a stream of awards, including several BAFTAs. Since Absolutely Fabulous (1992), Lumley has cemented her role as one of the UK's most-loved & respected actresses. She is rarely off UK TV screens and has also built a successful film career as a character/voice-over actress.
She recently teamed up with the writer/director Hugo Blick for the series of acclaimed monologues Up in Town (2002) which were critically regarded as the performance of a lifetime, and the recent Sensitive Skin (2005).
In 2007, she returned to the stage for the first time in over a decade in a production of Anton Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard", directed by Sir Jonathan Miller.The New Avengers (TV series).- Actress
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Milla Jovovich is a Ukrainian-American actress, supermodel, fashion designer, singer and public figure, who was on the cover of more than a hundred magazines, and starred in such films as The Fifth Element (1997), Ultraviolet (2006), and the Resident Evil (2002) franchise.
Milica Bogdanovna Jovovich was born on December 17, 1975 in Kyiv, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union (now in Ukraine). Her Serbian father, Bogdan Jovovich, was a medical doctor in Kyiv. There, he met her mother, Galina Jovovich (née Loginova), a Russian actress. At the age of 5, in 1981, Milla emigrated with her parents from the Soviet Union, moving first to London, UK, then to Sacramento, California, and eventually settled in Los Angeles. There her parents worked as house cleaners for the household of director Brian De Palma. Her parents separated, and eventually divorced, because her father was arrested and spent several years in prison.
Young Milla Jovovich was brought up by her single mother in Los Angeles. In addition to her native Ukrainian, she also speaks Russian and English. However, in spite of her cosmopolitan background, Milla was ostracized by some of her classmates, as a kid who emigrated from the Soviet Union amidst the paranoia of the Cold War. Many emotional scars had affected her behavior, but she eventually emerged as a resilient, multi-talented, albeit rebellious and risk-taking girl. She was coached by her actress mother since her childhood, first at home, then studied music, ballet, and acting in Los Angeles.
She shot to international fame after she was spotted by the photographer Richard Avedon at the age of 11, and was featured in Revlon's "Most Unforgettable Women in the World" advertisements, and on the cover of the Italian fashion magazine 'Lei' which was her first cover shoot. She made her first professional model contract at the age of 12, and soon made it to the cover of 'The Face', 'Vogue', 'Cosmopolitan' and many other magazines. In 1994, she appeared on the cover of 'High Times' in the UK, at the age of 18. The total number of her magazine covers worldwide was over one hundred by 2004, and keeps counting. In 2004, she made $10.4 million, becoming the highest paid supermodel in the world.
Milla appeared in ad campaigns for Chanel, Versace, Emporio Armani, Donna Karen, DKNY, Celine, P&K, H&H, and continues her role as the worldwide spokesperson and model for L'Oreal. Thanks to their continued success with Milla, Giorgio Armani chose her to be the face of his fragrance, Night. In addition to Armani's fragrance, Milla was the face for Calvin Klein's Obsession and Christian Dior's Poison for over 10 years and has most recently become the new face for Donna Karan's Cashmere Mist fragrance, which debuts in August 2009. Milla continues to shoot with the fashion industry's most sought after photographers, including Peter Lindbergh, Mario Sorrenti, Craig McDean and Inez & Vinoodh.
Milla made her acting debut in the Disney Channel movie The Night Train to Kathmandu (1988) and she made guest appearances on television series including Married... with Children (1987) (in 1989 as a French exchange student), Paradise (1988) and Parker Lewis Can't Lose (1990). In 1988, at age 12, she made her film debut credited as Milla in a supporting role in Two Moon Junction (1988) by writer/director Zalman King. During the 1980s and early 1990s, she played several supporting roles as a teenage actress in film and on television, then starred in Return to the Blue Lagoon (1991). In 1997, she co-starred opposite Bruce Willis in the sci-fi blockbuster The Fifth Element (1997), then she starred as the title character of The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999).
In the early 2000s, Milla had a few years of uncertainty in her acting career due to the uneven quality of her films, as well as some hectic events in her private life. She appeared with Mel Gibson in Wim Wenders' The Million Dollar Hotel (2000) which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival. She went on to co-star with Wes Bentley and Sarah Polley in The Claim (2000) and in Ben Stiller's spoof of the world of models and high-fashion, Zoolander (2001).
Milla achieved box office success in the U.S. and around the world with the action-packed thriller, Resident Evil (2002), based on the wildly popular video game, Resident Evil. It was written and directed by Paul W.S. Anderson. Milla reprised her role as the zombie slaying heroine, Alice, in Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004), Resident Evil: Extinction (2007), Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010), Resident Evil: Retribution (2012), and again in Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016) A seventh resident Evil movie is in pre-production.
She received glowing reviews opposite Oscar-winner Adrien Brody and Illeana Douglas in Dummy (2002) which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival. In the spring of 2006, Milla returned to the big screen as action heroine, Violet, in the futuristic film Ultraviolet (2006) directed by Kurt Wimmer.
Focusing on her personal sense of style, her love of fashion led Milla and her friend and business partner, Carmen Hawk, to launch their Jovovich-Hawk clothing line, which achieved instant acclaim in the domestic and international fashion world. The fresh, unique line garnered the attention of red carpet watchers and fashion magazines, including American Vogue, who featured Jovovich-Hawk on their coveted list of "10 Things to Watch Out for in 2005." A student of voice and guitar since she was very young, Milla began writing songs for her first record at the age of 15.
Her first album, "The Divine Comedy", was released by EMI Records in 1994. Informed by her experiences as a child growing up as a Russian emigrant in the Red-bashing Reagan era, the introspective European-folkish debut drew favorable reviews for Milla's songwriting and performing. She continues to write music, and has had songs featured on several film soundtracks. She has been writing music and lyrics to her song-demos, playing her guitar and sampling other sounds from her computer, and allowing free download and remix of her songs from her website.
Charitable work also plays a major part in Milla's life. She has served as Master of Ceremonies and co-chaired with Elizabeth Taylor for the amfAR and Cinema Against AIDS event at the Venice Film Festival, and has been heavily involved with The Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, as well as The Wildlands Project.
For many years Milla Jovovich has been maintaining a healthier lifestyle, practicing yoga and meditation, trying to avoid junk food, and cooking for herself. Since she was a little girl, Milla has been writing a private diary, a habit she learned from her mother. She has been keeping a record of many good and bad facts of her life, her travels, her relationships, and all important ideas and events in her career, planning eventually to publish an autobiography. After dissolution of her two previous marriages, Milla Jovovich became engaged to film director Paul W.S. Anderson; their daughter, Ever Anderson, was born on November 3, 2007. They got married on August 22, 2009. Their second daughter, Dashiel Edan, was born on April 1, 2015.Resident Evil.- Actress
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This Spanish actress started studying dancing. Her teacher encouraged her to participate in her first film Obsesión (1977). After that, she was chosen by the director Narciso Ibáñez Serrador to be one of the co-hostesses of the famous TV contest Un, dos, tres... responda otra vez (1972) becoming very well known all over Spain. Since 1975 she also made several films in France and Italy. In Spain, she had her first success with Girl with the Golden Panties (1980), directed by Vicente Aranda. She has won twice the Best Actress Award at the San Sebastial Film Festival for El Lute: Run for Your Life (1987) and for Nobody Will Speak of Us When We're Dead (1995). In 1991 she won the Silver Bear at Berlin Film Festival for her work in Lovers: A True Story (1991).Tacones Lejanos (High Heels).- British-born actress Joanne Whalley has graced the big and small screens for decades. Known for such films as Scandal and Willow, she was a firm fixture on British TV screens including the hit series, The Singing Detective and nuclear industry drama The Edge Of Darkness, for which she received a BAFTA nomination. Her debut Hollywood film was break out hit Willow and in 2005, Joanne returned to UK television with the BBC thriller Child of Mine, before going on to film roles including Queen Mary in The Virgin Queen, and a starring role in tragic love drama Life Line. She appeared as Lorelei in the comedy The Man Who Knew Too Little, A Texas Funeral, The Guilty and played Jackie Kennedy in the miniseries Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis. Her more recent film roles include 44 Inch Chest with Ray Winstone and Tom Wilkinson and Francis Ford Coppola's Twixt. Other recent television credits include Gossip Girl, The Borgias for Showtime, Jamaica Inn with Sean Harris, Wolf Hall for the BBC and ITV's rendition of Beowulf. Joanne also starred as The Duchess of Burgundy in Starz series The White Princess. Other feature releases include Muse and the Untitled Apostle Paul project, directed by Andrew Hyatt.Scandal.
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Lola Glaudini is an American actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Elle Greenaway on CBS's Criminal Minds and for her role as Deborah Ciccerone-Waldrup on HBO's The Sopranos. Glaudini was born in Manhattan, New York. Her father, Robert Glaudini, is a playwright of Italian descent, and in whose play The Poison Tree she appeared at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles.Criminal Minds (TV series).- Actress
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Leah Marie Remini was born on June 15,1970 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York & was raised in Los Angeles, California. Leah was born to Vicki Julia Marshall, & George Anthony Remini, who owned an asbestos removal company. She has an older sister named Nicole and 4 half-sisters named Christine, Stephanie (died of cancer in 2013), Elizabeth & Shannon. She starred as Carrie Heffernan on the long-running CBS comedy series The King of Queens (1998-2007) and later co-hosted The Talk in 2010-11. Since 2016 she has created, hosted and executive produced co-produced the Emmy Award-winning A&E documentary series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath. Since 2020 Remini is producing and co-hosting the iHeart radio podcast Scientology: Fair Game
She was baptized Roman Catholic. When she was 8 years old, her mother joined the Church of Scientology, and Remini was thereafter raised as a Scientologist. Remini and sister Nicole were then taken to join Scientology's Paramilitary organization called the Sea Organization, where they were forced to sign billion-year contracts and work for their room and board. Sea Org children do not live with their parents and children of the Sea Org are treated as adults and work around the clock. Remini's mother decided to take her children out of the Sea Org and return to civilian Scientology life when Remini was thirteen years old. Remini moved to Los Angeles, California, with her mother and sisters, where she spent the remainder of her teenage years working to pay off their debt to Scientology called a Freeloader's Debt. Remini and family worked regular jobs to pay for Scientology services.
Remini and husband Angelo Pagán, baptized their daughter Sofia as a Catholic.
Remini left the organization in 2013. Two years later, Remini released her book, Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, her memoir became number one on The New York Times Best Sellers List. In 2016, she followed up her memoir with the two-time Emmy Award-winning documentary television series on the A&E network, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, where she created a platform for victims and survivors of Scientology. The Documentary Series received many awards in its three seasons; two Emmy Awards, 2019 Critics' Choice Real TV Impact Award, 2017 Television Critics Association Award for Outstanding Achievement in Reality Programming, 2018 Producers Guild of America Award for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television, 2018 NATPE Unscripted Breakthrough Awards for Best Innovation, 2019 IDA Truth to Power Award, CHILD USA 2019 Barbara Blaine Trailblazer Award, The Gracie Awards presented by the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation for On-Air Talent - Lifestyle and Entertainment and another Gracie Award for Non-Fiction Entertainment.
Remini reunited with her co-star Kevin James in CBS's Kevin Can Wait, as Vanessa Cellucci.
One of Remini's early television roles was on Who's the Boss? as Charlie Briscoe, which led to a spin-off series entitled Living Dolls, in which Remini starred with Halle Berry. The show premiered in late 1989 and ran for 12 episodes.
In 1991, Remini had a supporting role on the short-lived ABC comedy The Man in the Family. She then had recurring roles on Saved by the Bell, where she played Stacey Carosi, and on Evening Shade as Daisy, the girlfriend of Taylor Newton (Jay R. Ferguson). Remini then appeared in two more short-lived series, First Time Out (1995) and Fired Up (1997-98). In 1993, she appeared on Cheers as Serafina, the daughter of Carla and Nick Tortelli (Rhea Perlman and Dan Hedaya). In 1994, Remini auditioned for the role of Monica Geller on Friends, but the role went to Courteney Cox. Remini later appeared in the 1995 Friends episode "The One with the Birth" in which she played a pregnant woman. In 1998, Remini landed the role of Carrie Heffernan on the CBS sitcom The King of Queens. The series was successful, and ran for nine seasons from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007.
Remini had a supporting role in the comedy film Old School (2003). Remini also starred in her own reality show, Inside Out: Leah Remini, which was a documentary that aired on VH1 about Remini's wedding. Following the success of the wedding special, VH-1 documented the next phase of their lives with the birth of her daughter Sofia Bella. Remini has starred in nine-episode webisodes of In the Motherhood, along with Chelsea Handler and Jenny McCarthy.
In October 2011, Remini signed a talent development deal at ABC and ABC Studios that required the network and the studio to develop a comedy project for Remini to star in and produce.
Remini competed on season 17 of Dancing with the Stars, in which she was partnered with professional dancer Tony Dovolani. The couple made it to the 10th week of competition and reached 5th place. Remini later returned in season 19 as a guest co-host on week 6. She returned as guest co-host on season 21 during weeks 6 and 7.
In 2013, Remini joined the cast of the TV Land comedy The Exes, filling a recurring role starting in season three.
Remini created, produced, and starred in a reality television series titled Leah Remini: It's All Relative. The show focuses on Remini's family life. It premiered on TLC on July 10, 2014.
In August 2013, it was disclosed that Remini had filed a missing person report with the Los Angeles Police Department concerning Shelly Miscavige, the wife of Scientology leader David Miscavige, who had not been seen in public since 2007. After the report was filed, the Los Angeles Police Department investigated the matter, met, and spoke with her before closing the investigation and stating Remini's report was "unfounded". The Church said in a statement that the whole affair was simply harassment and a publicity stunt for Remini.
In 2020 Remini & her production company, "No, Seriously Productions" signed a production deal with Critical Content and continues to create content that is both entertaining and continuing to speak truth to power.
Remini released her memoir Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology on November 3, 2015. In a 2015 interview with People magazine, Remini stated that she was embracing Catholicism and found comfort in the religion's practices, contrasting her experiences with Scientology.King of Queens (TV series).- Actress
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Entrancing, gorgeous Lesley Ann Warren started gearing towards a life in show business right off the bat as a young ballerina who trained at the School of American Ballet at the age of 14. Little did she know that Hollywood stardom would arrive on her doorstep in the form of a "Cinderella" story.
The New York-born actress (August 16, 1946) is the daughter of a night club singer, Margot Warren (née Verblow), and real estate agent, William Warren. Her mother had earlier given up her own entertainment career for marriage and family. Growing up, Lesley attended the Professional Children's School at the age of 6 and High School of Music & Art as a young teenager. At age 17, she studied under Lee Strasberg at his Actors Studio, the youngest student to ever be accepted at the time.
Looking for on-camera work, the teenager appeared unbilled as Shelley Winters's young daughter in the melodrama The Chapman Report (1962) and was given a bit in the daytime TV show "The Doctors." The slender, young hopeful gathered early musical stage experience in such shows as "Bye Bye Birdie" (as swooning teen Kim McAfee), then made an auspicious Broadway debut in "110 in the Shade", the 1963 musical version of "The Rainmaker," and won Broadway's "Most Promising Newcomer" Award. She subsequently received the Theatre World Award for her lead work as a "cat burglar" opposite Elliott Gould in the very short-lived (8 performances) musical "Drat! The Cat!" in 1965.
The attention Lesley received from this brief stage venture, however, led to her capturing the beguiling title role in the Richard Rodgers/Oscar Hammerstein II TV musical production of Cinderella (1965) with Stuart Damon as her Prince and a glittering, all-star cast in support. The Walt Disney people immediate signed the exquisite "Cinderella" to a fresh-faced ingénue contract. Co-starring in the moderately-received musical showcases The Happiest Millionaire (1967) and The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band (1968), Lesley became convinced that she needed to quickly nip the saccharine stereotype in the bud if she was to grow and sustain as an adult actress.
Rebelling against her studio-imposed image, Lesley left Disney determined to pursue roles with more depth, drama and character. Changing her name temporarily to "Lesley Warren" to reinforce her more mature goal, she was hired in 1970 to replace Barbara Bain in the long-running espionage series Mission: Impossible (1966) when Bain left over contractual issues. Audiences were quite cool in their reception to the "new and improved" Lesley and didn't buy her as a femme-fatale replacement for the cool and aloof Ms. Bain.
After only one season, Lesley realized her mission to grow was impossible (in spite of an encouraging Golden Globe nomination) and left the show, seeking greener pastures in the TV mini-movie market. She displayed a wide range of vulnerable neurotics as well as sexier ladies that began to alter her pristine image. Such 1970s material included the plane crash adventure Seven in Darkness (1969) as one of several blind survivors; the love drama Love Hate Love (1971) co-starring Ryan O'Neal; a failed pilot in the title role of Cat Ballou (1971); a mild western as one of The Daughters of Joshua Cabe (1972); the exotic "silent star" biopic The Legend of Valentino (1975); the rags-to-riches story Harold Robbins' 79 Park Avenue (1977), for which she won a Golden Globe award; the epic WWII story Pearl (1978); and the social melodramas Betrayal (1978) and Portrait of a Stripper (1979). Lesley also impressed with her starring roles in the Civil War miniseries Beulah Land (1980) and as a Polish-Jewish immigrant in Evergreen (1985). On stage, she ambitiously attempted to recreate Scarlett O'Hara opposite Pernell Roberts's Rhett Butler in a 1973 Broadway-bound musical version of "Gone with the Wind: The Musical." The show quickly died on the West Coast before ever reaching New York.
In the early 1980s, Lesley's movie career resurrected itself with a priceless performance as kingpin James Garner's whiny-voiced, peroxide-blonde spitfire Norma Cassidy in the slapstick musical Victor/Victoria (1982). Earning both Oscar and Golden Globe nominations, this delightful, scene-stealing turn was followed by a couple of other quality offbeat films that were directed by Alan Rudolph -- Choose Me (1984) and Songwriter (1984). Warren went on to receive a Golden Globe nomination supporting Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson in the former, and a People's Choice Award for the latter. She continued to attempt to spread her wings as a worldly "cougar" type opposite young blond and boyish Christopher Atkins in the critically-panned drama A Night in Heaven (1983). She also played Miss Scarlet in the movie version of the board game Clue (1985).
Award-worthy TV roles for Lesley with a Golden Globe performance as a successful madam in the miniseries Harold Robbins' 79 Park Avenue (1977). She also received Emmy and Golden Globe noms as the conflicted wife of a naval officer turned Russian double agent (Powers Boothe) in Family of Spies (1990), as well as for her Cable Ace nom for her work as a barmaid who aspires to be a country-western singer in Baja Oklahoma (1988). In 1997, she returned to Broadway with the musical revue "Dream" co-starring Margaret Whiting, which focused on classic "Golden Age" standards.
Entering her sixth decade of acting, Lesley remains highly active well into the millennium with often high-maintenance roles in such films as the Losing Grace (2001), Secretary (2002), My Tiny Universe (2004), When Do We Eat? (2005), The Shore (2006), Stiffs (2010), I Am Michael (2015), The Sphere and the Labyrinth (2015) and 3 Days with Dad (2019). Among her later TV credits are "Touched by an Angel," "The Practice," "Less Than Perfect," "American Princess," and a recurring role as an overly dependent mom named Jinx in the mystery crime series In Plain Sight (2008). Her dim, riotous Norma Cassady role had TV often pitching her as a scatter-brained comedienne, as in her recurring TV guest parts on Will & Grace (1998) and Desperate Housewives (2004).
Lesley has a son, actor/producer Christopher Peters, from her 1967-'73 marriage to makeup artist/hair stylist-cum-film producer Jon Peters. Since 2000, she has been married to advertising exec and sometime actor Ron Taft, a former vice-president at Columbia.The Limey.- Actress
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
- Costume Designer
British actress Dame Diana Rigg was born on July 20, 1938 in Doncaster, Yorkshire, England. She has had an extensive career in film and theatre, including playing the title role in "Medea", both in London and New York, for which she won the 1994 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.
Rigg made her professional stage debut in 1957 in the Caucasian Chalk Circle, and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1959. She made her Broadway debut in the 1971 production of "Abelard & Heloise". Her film roles include Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream (1968); Lady Holiday in The Great Muppet Caper (1981); and Arlene Marshall in Evil Under the Sun (1982). She won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for the BBC miniseries Mother Love (1989), and an Emmy Award for her role as Mrs. Danvers in the adaptation of Rebecca (1997). In 2013, she appeared with her daughter Rachael Stirling on the BBC series Doctor Who (2005) in an episode titled "The Crimson Horror" and plays Olenna Tyrell on the HBO series Game of Thrones (2011).
From 1965 to 1968, Rigg appeared on the British television series The Avengers (1961) playing the secret agent Mrs. Emma Peel. She became a Bond girl in On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), playing Tracy Bond, James Bond's only wife, opposite George Lazenby. She was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) at the 1988 Queen's New Years Honours for her services to drama. She was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) at the 1994 Queen's Birthday Honours for her services to drama.
Dame Diana Rigg died of lung cancer on September 10, 2020, she was 82 years old.The Avengers (TV series).- Actress
- Producer
Annabella Sciorra was born on 29 March 1960 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. Annabella is an actor and producer, known for The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992) and Jungle Fever (1991). Annabella was previously married to Joe Petruzzi.Mr. Wonderful.- Actress
- Producer
Callie Thorne was born on 20 November 1969 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Necessary Roughness (2011), Homicide: Life on the Street (1993) and Prison Break (2005).Ed's Next Move.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Born in London, England and raised in European cities such as Paris and Geneva, Maryam d'Abo has rewarded audiences with her beauty and presence for over twenty years. Maryam first appeared in Xtro (1982), a gory horror film that is considered a cult entry in the genre. She appeared consistently throughout the mid-1980s in a variety of films, including two mini-series based on novels of author Sidney Sheldon: Master of the Game (1984) and If Tomorrow Comes (1986). She accepted "Laughter in the Dark" based on the Vladimir Nabokov novel. Her co-stars were Maximilian Schell and Mick Jagger. She thought it would be her big break, since it was a very challenging role, and she was in every scene. But financing fell through, and the film was never completed. The stress made her lose weight, and she appeared more mature. Which turned out to be just the right look for a classical cellist in her next film. Thus, her real big break came in the form of the James Bond film, The Living Daylights (1987). Maryam played Bond girl "Kara Milovy", opposite Timothy Dalton's "James Bond". The film gave her career a real jolt, and she found herself in leading roles throughout the early 1990s, in a variety of films. She based herself in both England and the USA, appearing in Shootfighter: Fight to the Death (1993) and the European horror movie Immortal Sins (1991). She played her hand in the erotic thriller genre, appearing in Tomcat: Dangerous Desires (1993), Tropical Heat (1993) and an episode of Red Shoe Diaries (1992), featured on the video [error]. She starred in more films throughout the mid-1990s, opposite the late Margaux Hemingway in Double Obsession (1992), a remake: The Browning Version (1994), a romantic comedy called Solitaire for 2 (1994), and thrillers such as Timelock (1996) and An American Affair (1997).
In 2002, Maryam drew on her experiences as a Bond Girl to write, produce and host Bond Girls Are Forever (2002), examining the culture and connotations of being a Bond girl, and the subsequent effects on a film career. This interesting documentary shed new light on the topic of James Bond films, and appeared on British and American television, whilst gaining a DVD release. Maryam strayed away from commercial features, opting to appear in a variety of television dramas, including: a TV mini series of Doctor Zhivago (2002) and Helen of Troy (2003). More recently, she appeared in San Antonio (2004), Evil Remains (2004), a movie filmed in France L'enfer (2005) and a direct-to-video sequel, The Prince & Me II: The Royal Wedding (2006). Maryam has displayed talent in a variety of genres, she continues to make guest appearances for her fans, and is likely to appear in more films. She also works on films with her husband director Hugh Hudson, whom she married in 2003. This striking blonde actress, a former Bond girl, holds her own up with the best of them.The Living Daylights.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Claudia Ohana was born on 6 February 1963 in Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She is an actress, known for The Next Victim (1995), Mais Forte que o Mundo: A História de José Aldo (2016) and Aventuras de um Paraíba (1982). She was previously married to Ruy Guerra.Erendira.- Throughout her diverse career, Selma Blair has been one of the most versatile and exciting actresses on screen. Blair's longstanding career began with her comedic roles in pop culture classics in the early 2000s. Blair has worked with an array of acclaimed directors including Guillermo del Toro and Todd Solodnz, to name a few. Additionally, Blair was named one of Time Magazine's Person of The Year in 2017 as one of their Silence Breakers.
Upcoming, Blair will be seen as the subject of the documentary, Introducing, Selma Blair, which premiered to rave reviews at the 2021 SXSW Festival. At the festival, the feature won the Special Jury Recognition for Exceptional Intimacy in Storytelling. Following SXSW, DEADLINE wrote "Selma Blair's unflinching and raw vulnerability in Introducing, Selma Blair, coupled with director Rachel Fleit's almost voyeuristic chronicling of her MS diagnosis, invites us not just to feel empathy for the star. More than that, it invites us into her fight, prompting anyone watching to feel joined with her in battle." The documentary, which reveals Blair's intimate and raw journey with Multiple Sclerosis, was acquired by Discovery+ and is slated for release in Fall 2021.
Previously, Blair starred in the comedy/horror thriller Mom and Dad, alongside Nicholas Cage. The film, which follows a teenage girl and her younger brother as they must survive a wild 24 hours during which a mass hysteria of unknown origin causes parents to turn violently on their own kids. The film premiered at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival and later screened at the 2017 Sitges Film Festival and the 2017 Molins Film Festival, where it was nominated for the Jury Prize for Best Film and the Audience Award for Best Films. VARIETY critic Dennis Harvey wrote "She [Blair] covers a gamut from bittersweet sympathy to farce to monstrousness, running amok like a cat on piano keys, yet hitting each note perfectly. "Mom & Dad" isn't the kind of movie they give acting awards to - but in a just world, it would be."
On television, Blair was recently seen co-starring as "Kris Jenner" in FX's The People vs. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story for Ryan Murphy.
Blair also starred in Todd Solodnz's Dark Horse in 2011 as Miranda (formerly 'Vi'), alongside Christopher Walken and Mia Farrow. The film debuted at the Venice Film Festival and was later released by Virgil Films & Entertainment. Blair also starred in Todd Solodnz's Storytelling in 2001.
In 2008, Blair reprised her role as Liz Sherman in Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy II: The Golden Army, after starring in the original Hellboy in 2004 (also directed by del Toro).
Blair is perhaps best well known for her scene stealing performance as 'Vivian Kesington' in MGM's hit Romantic comedy Legally Blonde, alongside Reese Witherspoon. The film was nominated in 2002 for a Golden Globe Award in the category of Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy.
In 1999, Blair played the role of Cecile Caldwell in Cruel Intentions, alongside Reese Witherspoon, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Ryan Phillippe. Columbia Pictures released the film, which was directed by Roger Kumble.
Other film credits include the YA film After (2019) and its sequel, After We Collided (2020), based on the popular romance novels of the same name. Blair also starred in Robert Benton's Feast of Love in 2007, and John Water's A Dirty Shame in 2004. In 2002, Blair reconnected with her Cruel Intentions director Roger Kumble in The Sweetest Thing for Columbia Pictures, alongside Cameron Diaz, Christina Applegate, and Jason Bateman.
Blair also starred on television as 'Kim' on Kath & Kim for NBC from 2008-2009, opposite Molly Shannon. Blair has made memorable guest star appearances including Friends, Another Life, Heathers, Portlandia and Web Therapy.
On stage, Blair starred in the World Premiere production of Rajiv Joseph's Gruesome Playground Injuries at The Alley Theater and was nominated for a Grammy Award for "Best Spoken Word Recording" for her reading of The Diary of Anne Frank.
Blair currently resides in Los Angeles.Kill Me Later. - The radiant Françoise Dorléac is better remembered today as the elder, ill-fated sister of French film star Catherine Deneuve. The Paris-born actress, however, was actually the first to become a star and had quite a formidable career of her own in the 1960s until it was cut short. Born into a theatrical family in 1942 (her father was actor Maurice Dorléac), Françoise first appeared on stage at the age of 10.
Entering the film industry with the movie short Mensonges (1957), she studied at the Conservatoire d'Art Dramatique (1959-1961) and had modeled for Christian Dior by the time she started making any kind of cinematic impact. Slim, gamine, pale-skinned and a real brunette stunner, Françoise graced a number of movies before hitting celebrity stardom with François Truffaut's melodrama The Soft Skin (1964) and the classic James Bond-like spy spoof That Man from Rio (1964), both released in 1964. The two films showed the polar sides of Françoise's incredible allure and talent. In the former she played an airline stewardess who falls into a tragic affair with a married businessman (Jean Desailly) and in the latter she played a fun and flaky heroine opposite Jean-Paul Belmondo. Unlike Catherine, Françoise proved a carefree, outgoing presence both on and off camera. Known for her chic, stylish ways and almost unbridled sense of joie-de-vivre, she continued making strong marks as the adulterous wife in Roman Polanski's black comedy Cul-de-sac (1966) and even joined Gene Kelly, George Chakiris, and her sister, who was now a cinematic star by this time too, in the rather candy-coated The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967), a colorful movie which paid homage to the Hollywood musical. She and Catherine, who looked quite similar, played singing twins who dream about living in Paris.
Her fun and funny side was always an asset and often revealed as in the films as Arsène Lupin contre Arsène Lupin (1962) and Male Hunt (1964). Branching out now in such non-French movies as Genghis Khan (1965), Where the Spies Are (1965), and Billion Dollar Brain (1967), the luminous Françoise was on the brink of international stardom when her rental car flipped and burned on a roadway in Nice, France on June 26, 1967. She was near completion of the last film mentioned at the time the accident occurred. Her part in the movie was left intact. Her early death at age 25 most certainly robbed the cinema of a tried and true talent and incomparably beautiful mademoiselle who showed every sign of taking Hollywood by storm, as Catherine later did."The Dark Skin" - Actress
- Writer
- Producer
Janeane, the petite woman with the acerbic wit, was born in Newton, New Jersey, in 1964, to Joan, a secretary, and Carmine Garofalo, an Exxon executive. She is of Italian and Irish descent. Janeane had many jobs before breaking into show biz. She worked as a bike messenger, a shoe saleswoman, waitress and temp secretary. Watching David Letterman on TV inspired her to write comedy, and by 1985 she was doing stand up comedy. As such, Janeane has become a cult figure, giving a voice to a generation, venting her frustration at T.V., romance, life in general and anything that ticks her off in particular. Janeane did sketches on The Ben Stiller Show (1992) (an Emmy-winning, but canceled show). She would continue to collaborate with Ben Stiller in future projects. Janeane received 2 Emmy nominations for her work on The Larry Sanders Show (1992), developing her signature character: a smart, cynical woman with a razor wit. She was not happy with her Saturday Night Live (1975) stint in 1994, and was vocal about it (of course). Transferring her persona from TV to the big screen, she moved on to movies, basically playing the character she had defined for herself. In Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997) she portrayed a smart, cynical, successful businesswomen with a razor wit, and this time with swear words (in the movie she had developed a brand of cigarettes with fast-burning paper, for the gal on the go; in real life it is alleged she smokes Marlboros). Janeane continues to work in TV and movies, often collaborating with Ben Stiller in a number of movies like Mystery Men (1999), his easygoing style being a counterpoint to her caustic nature.The Matchmaker.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Rachel Anne McAdams was born on November 17, 1978 in London, Ontario, Canada, to Sandra Kay (Gale), a nurse, and Lance Frederick McAdams, a truck driver and furniture mover. She is of English, Welsh, Irish, and Scottish descent. Rachel became involved with acting as a teenager and by the age of 13 was performing in Shakespearean productions in summer theater camp; she went on to graduate with honors with a BFA degree in Theater from York University. After her debut in an episode of Disney's The Famous Jett Jackson (1998), she co-starred in the Canadian TV series Slings and Arrows (2003), a comedy-drama about the trials and travails of a Shakespearean theater group, and won a Gemini award for her performance in 2003.
Her breakout role as Regina George in the hit comedy Mean Girls (2004) instantly catapulted her onto the short list of Hollywood's hottest young actresses. She followed that film with a star turn opposite Ryan Gosling in the adaptation of the Nicholas Sparks bestseller The Notebook (2004), which was a surprise box office success and became the predominant romantic drama for a new, young generation of moviegoers. After filming, McAdams and Gosling became romantically involved and dated through mid-2007. McAdams next showcased her versatility onscreen with the manic comedy Wedding Crashers (2005), the thriller Red Eye (2005), and the holiday drama The Family Stone (2005).
McAdams then explored the independent film world with Married Life (2007), which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and also starred Pierce Brosnan, Chris Cooper and Patricia Clarkson. Starring roles in the military drama The Lucky Ones (2008), the newspaper thriller State of Play (2009), and the romance The Time Traveler's Wife (2009) followed before she starred opposite Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law in Guy Ritchie's international blockbuster Sherlock Holmes (2009). McAdams played the plucky producer of a failing morning TV show in Morning Glory (2010), the materialistic fiancée of Owen Wilson in Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris (2011), and returned to romantic drama territory with the hit film The Vow (2012) opposite Channing Tatum. The actress also stars with Ben Affleck in Terrence Malick's To the Wonder (2012) and alongside Noomi Rapace in Brian De Palma's thriller Passion (2012).
In 2005, McAdams received ShoWest's "Supporting Actress of the Year" Award as well as the "Breakthrough Actress of the Year" at the Hollywood Film Awards. In 2009, she was awarded with ShoWest's "Female Star of the Year." As of 2011, she has been romantically linked with her Midnight in Paris (2011) co-star Michael Sheen.Red Eye.- Actress
- Composer
- Writer
From the adorably quirky Ann in State and Main, to a sister seeking justice in The Winslow Boy, to the tightly wound risk taker in The Spanish Prisoner, Rebecca Pidgeon has portrayed a wide range of multifaceted characters in both film, television and on the stage. In addition to the aforementioned films directed by David Mamet and also including Heist, starring alongside Gene Hackman, Pidgeon appeared alongside Helen Mirren, Bruce Willis and Morgan Freeman in Red for director Robert Schwentke.
Pidgeon was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to British parents, Elaine R. (Simpson), a yoga teacher, and Carl R. Pidgeon, a professor then teaching at MIT. She spent much of her childhood in Edinburgh, Scotland. Her paternal grandmother's sister was visual artist Olga Lehmann, and Rebecca's ancestry is English, as well as Scottish, German, and French.
Pidgeon's television credits include Phil Spector for HBO, opposite Al Pacino and Jesse Stone: Sea Change for CBS, opposite Tom Selleck. She had recurring roles on the hit series The Unit for CBS and The Shield for F/X and played a regular role on In Justice for ABC. Rebecca did memorable turns in Uncle Vanya for The BBC and in Samuel Beckett's Catastrophe, opposite Sir John Gielgud and Harold Pinter for Channel 4.
Pidgeon played 'Deeny' in The Old Neighborhood on Broadway and 'Claire' in Boston Marriage at The Geffen Playhouse. She originated the role of 'Carol' in Oleanna Off-Broadway, which had it's World Premiere at The Orpheum Theatre. The character was described by one critic as "Mamet's most fully realized female character...a mousy, confused cipher". As a member of The Royal National Theatre in London, Rebecca received stellar notices for her work in Speed-the-Plow and The Changeling. She is also a member of The Atlantic Theatre Company, where she starred in Dangerous Corner. Rebecca is a graduate of London's prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
In addition to her accomplished career as an actress, Pidgeon is a singer/songwriter, whose latest album Slingshot has been nominated for a Grammy Award.
Rebecca is married to playwright/director David Mamet. Her children are Noah and Clara Mamet, an actress, and actress Zosia Mamet is her stepdaughter. Rebecca is a convert to Judaism.State and Main.- Actress
Lisa Ray was finishing high school in Canada with aspirations of majoring in Journalism at University when a celebrated fashion magazine approached her to model for them, and she ended up on the cover. This catapulted her into a state of instant celebrity. Her high-profile career got her noticed by Indian filmmakers, but she refused many offers until the offbeat _Kasoor (2000)_, which received a considerable amount of attention. Indian-Canadian director Deepa Mehta then cast her as the lead in the lighthearted romantic comedy Bollywood/Hollywood (2002), which went on to be a huge success in Canada. She subsequently moved to London to study acting and concentrate on a serious career in the performing arts. After graduating from drama school she was reunited with Deepa Mehta in the critically lauded Water (2005). She has since carved out a challenging variety of characterizations- everything from a farm girl to a femme fatale- which is a testament to her adaptability and desire for challenge.Bollywood/Hollywood.- Actress
- Producer
- Talent Agent
Catherine Fabienne Deneuve was born October 22, 1943 in Paris, France, to actor parents Renée Simonot and Maurice Dorléac. She made her movie debut in 1957, when she was barely a teenager and continued with small parts in minor films, until Roger Vadim gave her a meatier role in Vice and Virtue (1963). Her breakthrough came with the excellent musical The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964), in which she gave an unforgettable performance as a romantic middle-class girl who falls in love with a young soldier but gets imprisoned in a loveless marriage with another man; the director was the gifted Jacques Demy, who also cast Deneuve in the less successful The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967). She then played a schizophrenic killer in Roman Polanski's Repulsion (1965) and a married woman who works as a part-time prostitute every afternoon in Luis Buñuel's masterpiece Belle de Jour (1967). She also worked with Buñuel in Tristana (1970) and gave a great performance for François Truffaut in Mississippi Mermaid (1969), a kind of apotheosis of her "frigid femme fatale" persona. In the seventies she didn't find parts of that caliber, but her magnificent work in Truffaut's The Last Metro (1980) as a stage actress in Nazi-occupied Paris revived her career. She was also very good in the epic drama Indochine (1992), for which she earned her first Academy Award nomination (Best Actress). Although the elegant and always radiant Deneuve has never appeared on stage, she is universally hailed as one of the "grandes dames" of French cinema, joining a list that includes such illustrious talents as Simone Signoret, Jeanne Moreau, Isabelle Huppert, Isabelle Adjani and the younger Juliette Binoche.Belle de jour.- Actress
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Kate Beckinsale was born on 26 July 1973 in Hounslow, Middlesex, England, and has resided in London for most of her life. Her mother is Judy Loe, who has appeared in a number of British dramas and sitcoms and continues to work as an actress, predominantly in British television productions. Her father was Richard Beckinsale, born in Nottingham, England. He starred in a number of popular British television comedies during the 1970s, most notably the series Rising Damp (1974), Porridge (1974) and The Lovers (1970). He passed away tragically early in 1979 at the age of 31.
Kate attended the private school Godolphin and Latymer School in London for her grade and primary school education. In her teens she twice won the British bookseller W.H. Smith Young Writers' competition - once for three short stories and once for three poems. After a tumultuous adolescence (a bout of anorexia - cured - and a smoking habit which continues to this day), she gradually took up the profession of acting.
Her major acting debut came in a TV film about World War II called One Against the Wind (1991), filmed in Luxembourg during the summer of 1991. It first aired on American television that December. Kate began attending Oxford University's New College in the fall of 1991, majoring in French and Russian literature. She had already decided that she wanted to act, but to broaden her horizons she chose university over drama school. While in her first year at Oxford, Kate received her big break in Kenneth Branagh's film adaptation of William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing (1993). Kate worked in three other films while attending Oxford, beginning with a part in the medieval historical drama Royal Deceit (1994), cast as Ethel. The film was shot during the spring of 1993 on location in Denmark, and she filmed her supporting part during New College's Easter break. Later in the summer of that year she played the lead in the contemporary mystery drama Uncovered (1994). Before she went back to school, her third year at university was spent at Oxford's study-abroad program in Paris, France, immersing herself in the French language, Parisian culture and French cigarettes.
A year away from the academic community and living on her own in the French capital caused her to re-evaluate the direction of her life. She faced a choice: continue with school or concentrate on her flourishing acting career. After much thought, she chose the acting career. In the spring of 1994 Kate left Oxford, after finishing three years of study. Kate appeared in the BBC/Thames Television satire Cold Comfort Farm (1995), filmed in London and East Sussex during late summer 1994 and which opened to spectacular reviews in the United States, grossing over $5 million during its American run. It was re-released to U.K. theaters in the spring of 1997.
Acting on the stage consumed the first part of 1995; she toured in England with the Thelma Holts Theatre Company production of Anton Chekhov's "The Seagull". After turning down several mediocre scripts "and going nearly berserk with boredom", she waited seven months before another interesting role was offered to her. Her big movie of 1995 was the romance/horror movie Haunted (1995), starring opposite Aidan Quinn and John Gielgud, and filmed in West Sussex. In this film she wanted to play "an object of desire", unlike her past performances where her characters were much less the siren and more the worldly innocent. Kate's first film project of 1996 was the British ITV production of Jane Austen's novel Emma (1996). Her last film of 1996 was the comedy Shooting Fish (1997), filmed at Shepperton Studios in London during early fall. She played the part of Georgie, an altruistic con artist. She had a daughter, Lily, in 1999 with actor Michael Sheen.Serendipity.- Actress
- Producer
- Writer
Minneapolis native Rachael Leigh Cook began her career as a model at the tender age of 10, gracing Milk-Bone boxes and Target ads nationwide in the USA. She also appeared in a now-famous (in the USA) anti-drug TV spot in which, armed with a frying pan, she bashed her way through a kitchen to show the disastrous effects of heroin. At 14, her modeling agency sent her to read for a short film (26 Summer Street (1996)) and changed the course of her young life--from that moment on, Cook was hooked on acting. When she reached L.A. later that year, Cook bypassed the wannabe stage and nailed her first audition (for the part of a budding entrepreneur in The Baby-Sitters Club (1995)). She returned to theaters three months later in the Jonathan Taylor Thomas vehicle Tom and Huck (1995), then filled her calendar with appearances in independent and made-for-TV movies. She divided her time between Minneapolis and Tinseltown, shuttling from school events to movie shoots with her mother in tow. Cook's starlet status crystallized in 1999, when she starred opposite Freddie Prinze Jr. in the Pygmalion retelling She's All That (1999). Her on-screen transformation from ugly duckling to ravishing beauty scored several teen-oriented awards and made Cook a hot commodity in Hollywood. She signed for a handful of plum follow-up roles, including a troubled adolescent in Sylvester Stallone's Get Carter (2000), a frontier gal in Texas Rangers (2001), and the caterwauling lead in the live-action version of Josie and the Pussycats (2001). Cook now lives primarily in Los Angeles, but she returns home frequently to visit with friends and family. Her father, Tom (a former stand-up comic), is a social worker in the public school system, and her younger brother, Ben, is an aspiring filmmaker.She's All That.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Xenia Seeberg was born on 4 April 1968 in Geldern, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. She is an actress, known for Lexx (1996), Knockin' on Heaven's Door (1997) and Verbotene Liebe (1995). She was previously married to Sven Martinek.Lexx (TV series).- Joyce Hyser was born on 20 December 1957 in New York City, New York, USA. She is an actress, known for Just One of the Guys (1985), This Is Spinal Tap (1984) and The Hollywood Knights (1980). She is married to Jeff Robinson.One of the Guys.
- Actress
- Music Department
- Additional Crew
Natalie Wood was an American actress of Russian and Ukrainian descent. She started her career as a child actress and eventually transitioned into teenage roles, young adult roles, and middle-aged roles. She drowned off Catalina Island on November 29, 1981 at age 43.
Wood was born July 20, 1938 in San Francisco to Russian immigrant parents: housewife Maria Gurdin (née Zoodiloff), known by multiple aliases including Mary, Marie and Musia, and second husband Nick Gurdin (née Zacharenko), a janitor and prop builder. Nicholas was born in Primorsky Krai, son of a chocolate-factory worker. Maria was born in Barnaul, southern Siberia to a wealthy industrialist. Natalie's maternal grandfather owned soap and candle factories.
Wood's parents had to migrate due to the Russian Civil War. Her paternal grandfather joined the anti-Bolshevik civilian forces early in the war and was killed in a street fight between Red and White Russian soldiers. This convinced the Zacharenkos to migrate to Shanghai, China, where they had relatives. Wood's paternal grandmother remarried in 1927 and moved the family to Vancouver, British Columbia. In 1933 they resettled along the U.S. West Coast. Nicholas met Wood's mother, four years his senior, while she was still married to Alexander Tatuloff, an Armenian mechanic she divorced in 1936.
Mary Tatuloff, Wood's mother, had unfulfilled ambitions of becoming a ballet dancer. She grew up in the Chinese city of Harbin and had married Alexander there in 1925. The Tatuloffs had one daughter, Ovsanna, before coming to America in 1930. After marrying Nicholas Zacharenko in 1938, five months before Wood's birth, Mary (now calling herself Marie) transferred her dream of stardom onto her second child. Marie frequently took a young Wood with her to the cinema, where she could study the films of Hollywood child stars.
Wood's parents changed the family name to Gurdin upon obtaining U.S. citizenship, and her pseudonymous mother finally settled on a permanent first name: Maria. In 1942 they bought a house in Santa Rosa, where young Natalie was noticed by members of a crew during a film shoot. She got to audition for roles as an actress, and the family moved to Los Angeles to help seek out roles for her. RKO Radio Pictures' executives William Goetz and David Lewis chose the stage name Wood for her, in reference to director Sam Wood. Natalie's younger sister Svetlana Gurdin would eventually follow an acting career as well, under the stage name Lana Wood.
Wood made her film debut in Happy Land (1943). She was only five years old, and her scene as the "Little Girl Who Drops Ice Cream Cone" lasted 15 seconds. Wood somehow attracted the interest of film director Irving Pichel who remained in contact with her family. She had few job offers over the following two years, but Pichel helped her get a screen test for a more substantial role in the romance film Tomorrow Is Forever (1946). Wood passed through an audition and won the role of Margaret Ludwig, a post-World War II German orphan. At the time, Wood was unable to "cry on cue" for a key scene, so her mother tore a butterfly to pieces in front of her, giving her a reason to cry for the scene.
Wood started appearing regularly in films following this role and soon received a contract with 20th Century Fox. Her first major role was that of Susan Walker in the Christmas film Miracle on 34th Street (1947), which was a commercial and critical hit. Wood got her first taste of fame, and afterwards Macy's invited her to appear in the store's annual Thanksgiving Day parade. Following her early success, Wood receive many more film offers. She typically appeared in family films, cast as the daughter of such stars as Fred MacMurray, Margaret Sullivan, James Stewart, Joan Blondell, and Bette Davis. Wood found herself in high demand and appeared in over twenty films as a child actress.
The California laws of the era required that until reaching adulthood, child actors had to spend at least three hours per day in the classroom. Wood received her primary education on the studio lots, receiving three hours of school lessons whenever she was working on a film. She was reportedly a "straight A student." Director Joseph L. Mankiewicz was quite impressed by Wood's intellect. After school hours ended, Wood would hurry to the set to film her scenes.
While Wood acquired the services of agents, her early career was micromanaged by her mother. An older Wood gained her first major television role in the short-lived sitcom The Pride of the Family (1953). At the age of 16, she found more success with the role of Judy in Rebel Without a Cause (1955). She played the role of a teenage girl who wears makeup and dresses up in racy clothes to attract the attention of a father who typically ignores her. The film's success helped Wood make the transition from child actress to an ingenue. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Her next significant film was The Searchers (1956), a western in which she played the role of abduction victim Debbie Edwards, niece of John Wayne's character. The film was a commercial and critical hit, and has since become regarded as a masterpiece. Also in 1956, Wood graduated from Van Nuys High School. She signed a contract with Warner Brothers, where she was kept busy with several new films. To her disappointment, she was typically cast as the girlfriend of the protagonist and received roles of little depth. For a while, WB had her paired with teen heartthrob Tab Hunter. The studio was hoping that the pairing would serve as a box-office draw, but this did not work out. One of Wood's only serious roles from this period was the title character in Marjorie Morningstar (1958), as a young Jewish girl whose efforts to create her own identity and career path clash with the expectations of her family. The film was a critical success, and fit well with other films exploring the restlessness of youth in the '50s.
Wood's first major box office flop was the biographical film All the Fine Young Cannibals (1960), examining the rags to riches story of jazz musician Chet Baker without actually using his name. The film's box office earnings barely covered the production costs, and MGM recorded a loss of $1,108,000. For the first time. Wood's appeal to the audience was in doubt. With her career in decline following this failure, Wood was seen as "washed up" by many in the film community. But director Elia Kazan gave her the chance to audition for the role of the sexually-repressed Wilma Dean Loomis in his upcoming film Splendor in the Grass (1961). Kazan cast Wood as the female lead, because he found in her (in his words): a "true-blue quality with a wanton side that is held down by social pressure." Kazan is credited for producing Wood's most powerful moment as an actress. The film was a critical success, with Wood nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.
Wood's next important film was West Side Story (1961), where she played Maria, a restless Puerto Rican girl. Wood was once again called to represent the restlessness of youth, this time in a story involving youth gangs and juvenile delinquents. The film was a great commercial success with about $44 million gross, the highest-grossing film of 1961. It was also critically acclaimed, and is still regarded as one of the best films of Wood's career. Her next film was Gypsy (1962), playing the role of burlesque entertainer and stripper Gypsy Rose Lee. Film historians credit the film as an even better role for Wood than that of Maria, with witty dialogue, a greater emotional range, and complex characterization. The film was the eighth highest-grossing release of 1962, and was well-received critically.
Wood's next significant role was that of Macy's salesclerk Angie Rossini in Love with the Proper Stranger (1963). In the film, Angie has a one-night-stand with musician Rocky Papasano, played by Steve McQueen, finds herself pregnant and desperately seeks an abortion. The film under-performed at the box office but was critically well-received. Wood received her third (and last) nomination for an Academy Award. At age 25, Wood was tied with Teresa Wright as the youngest person to score three Oscar nominations. Wood held that designation until 2013, when Jennifer Lawrence achieved her third nomination at age 23.
Wood continued her successful film career until 1966, but her health status was not as successful. She was suffering emotionally and had sought professional therapy. She paid Warner Bros. $175,000 to cancel her contract and was able to retire for a while. She also fired her entire support team: agents, managers, publicist, accountant, and attorneys. She took a three-year hiatus from acting.
Wood made her comeback in the comedy Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969) with the themes of sexual liberation and wife swapping. It was a box office hit. Wood decided to gamble her $750,000 fee on a percentage of the gross, earning a million dollars in profits. She chose not to capitalize on the film's success, however, and did not take another acting job for five years.
In 1970, Wood was married to the screenwriter Richard Gregson and was expecting her first child, Natasha Gregson Wagner. She went into semi-retirement to be a stay-at-home mom, appearing in only four more theatrical films before her death. These films were the mystery comedy Peeper (1975), the science fiction film Meteor (1979), the comedy The Last Married Couple in America (1980), and the posthumously-released science fiction film Brainstorm (1983).
In the late '70s, Wood found success in television roles, appearing in several made-for-TV movies and the mini-series From Here to Eternity (1979). Her project received high ratings, and she had plans to make her theatrical debut in a 1982 production of Anastasia.
On November 28, 1981, Wood joined her last husband Robert Wagner, their married friend Christopher Walken, and captain Dennis Davern on a weekend boat trip to Catalina Island. Conspicuously absent from the group was Christopher's wife, casting director Georgianne Walken. The four of them were on board the Wagners' yacht "Splendour." Earwitness Marilyn Wayne heard cries for help around 11:05 P.M. and a "man's voice slurred, and in aggravated tone, say something to the effect of, 'Oh, hold on, we're coming to get you,' and not long after, the cries for help subsided." On the morning of November 29, Wood's corpse was recovered 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) away from the boat, near small Valiant-brand inflatable dinghy beached nearby. The toxicology report revealed her blood alcohol level was at .14, over the legal limit of .10. Wood was buried on December 2 at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles. Nine days later, the LACSD officially closed the case.Rebel Without a Cause.- Madolyn Smith Osborne was born on 1 January 1957 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. She is an actress, known for 2010 (1984), All of Me (1984) and Urban Cowboy (1980). She has been married to Mark Osborne since 16 July 1988. They have two children.The Caller.
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Known outside her native country as the "Spanish enchantress," Penélope Cruz Sánchez was born in Madrid to Eduardo Cruz, a retailer, and Encarna Sánchez, a hairdresser. As a toddler, she was already a compulsive performer, re-enacting TV commercials for her family's amusement, but she decided to focus her energies on dance. After studying classical ballet for nine years at Spain's National Conservatory, she continued her training under a series of prominent dancers. At 15, however, she heeded her true calling when she bested more than 300 other girls at a talent agency audition. The resulting contract landed her several roles in Spanish TV shows and music videos, which in turn paved the way for a career on the big screen. Cruz made her movie debut in El laberinto griego (1993) (The Greek Labyrinth), then appeared briefly in the Timothy Dalton thriller Framed (1992). Her third film was the Oscar-winning Belle Epoque (1992), in which she played one of four sisters vying for the love of a handsome army deserter. The film also garnered several Goyas, the Spanish equivalent of the Academy Awards. Her resume continued to grow by three or four films each year, and soon Cruz was a leading lady of Spanish cinema. Live Flesh (1997) (Live Flesh) offered her the chance to work with renowned Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar (who would later be her ticket to international fame), and the same year she was the lead actress in the thriller/drama/mystery/sci-fi film Open Your Eyes (1997), a huge hit in Spain that earned eight Goyas (though none for Cruz). Her luck finally changed in 1998, when the movie-industry comedy The Girl of Your Dreams (1998) won her a Best Actress Goya. Cruz made a few more forays into English-language film, but her first big international hit was Almodóvar's All About My Mother (1999), in which she played an unchaste but well-meaning nun. As the film was showered with awards and accolades, Cruz suddenly found herself in demand on both sides of the Atlantic. Her next big project was Woman on Top (2000), an American comedy about a chef with bewitching culinary skills and a severe case of motion sickness. While in the US, she also signed up to star opposite Johnny Depp in the drug-trafficking drama Blow (2001) and opposite Matt Damon in Billy Bob Thornton's All the Pretty Horses (2000). Cruz says she's wary of being typecast as a beautiful young damsel, but it's hard to imagine disguising her wide-eyed charms and generous nature. Fortunately, with Cameron Crowe's Vanilla Sky (2001) (a remake of Open Your Eyes (1997)) and a John Madden collaboration looming in her future, Damsel Penelope isn't likely to disappear just yet.Abre los ojos.- Actress
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Jenny Agutter was born on December 20, 1952, in Taunton, Somerset, England, UK. The daughter of an army officer, she spent her childhood traveling and living in different countries. Her film career began at the age of 12 in East of Sudan (1964), which was quickly followed by Ballerina: Part 1 (1966) and Ballerina: Part 2 (1966), and A Man Could Get Killed (1966). Other films and television appearances in her early career include Gates to Paradise (1968), Long After Summer (1967), Star! (1968), I Start Counting (1970), The Great Inimitable Mr. Dickens (1970), and The Wild Duck (1971).
In 1970, she appeared in what was her real big break as a child star: The Railway Children (1970), as "Bobbie". The next year, Hollywood called and she spent several years there, appearing in such works as The Cherry Orchard (1971), Walkabout (1971), and The Snow Goose (1971) with Richard Harris, for which she received an Emmy Award. She also appeared in the critically acclaimed A War of Children (1972) and Shelley (1972).
In 1976, Jenny really came to the attention of US film audiences with her starring role in the science-fiction classic Logan's Run (1976) with Michael York. Though not a critical favorite, it was a huge box-office success and spawned a television series. She also starred alongside Richard Chamberlain in a well-received made-for-TV version of the famous Dumas tale The Man in the Iron Mask (1977) and turned in a solid performance in the WW II thriller The Eagle Has Landed (1976) with Michael Caine and Donald Sutherland. The next year, she starred in Peter Shaffer's weighty Equus (1977) as "Jill Mason", alongside Richard Burton. Among her other TV and film work during the 1970s were Dominique (1979), School Play (1979), and The Riddle of the Sands (1979).
In 1981, she played "Desdemona" opposite William Marshall in The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice (1981). Other Shakespeare performances include "King Lear", Love's Labour's Lost (1985) as "Rosaline" for the BBC and Romeo & Juliet (1993) as "Lady Capulet". During this time, she was in numerous films and television series, including Sweet William (1980), Beulah Land (1980), The Survivor (1981), Amy (1981), and one of the films for which she is most fondly remembered, An American Werewolf in London (1981). She also appeared in This Office Life (1984), Secret Places (1984), Silas Marner (1985), Dark Tower (1987), Miss Right (1982), and King of the Wind (1990).
In the 1990s, she concentrated mainly on television, with roles in TECX (1990); Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (1990); Red Dwarf (1988); The All New Alexei Sayle Show (1994); The Buccaneers (1995); And the Beat Goes On (1996); September (1996) with Edward Fox, Michael York, Virginia McKenna, and Jacqueline Bisset; A Respectable Trade (1998) with Warren Clarke, Anna Massey, and Richard Briers. Her theatrical films during this period included Darkman (1990) with Liam Neeson; and Blue Juice (1995) with Sean Pertwee, Ewan McGregor, and Catherine Zeta-Jones. She also appeared as "Mrs. Bruce" in two feature-length episodes of the popular ITV series Bramwell (1995) in which she starred with Jemma Redgrave. She has also made several guest appearances in TV shows such as The Red Dwarf (1998); Boon (1986); The Equalizer (1985) with Edward Woodward; The Twilight Zone (1985); Magnum, P.I. (1980) and The Six Million Dollar Man (1974).
Jenny married to Johan Tham in August 1990. They have one son Jonathan, born in December 1990 and live in Cornwall, England, UK. Her particular love is charity work for The Diabetic Association and NCH Action for Children - a charity which provides home and other help for homeless children - with which she has been involved for many years.An American Werewolf in London.- Actress
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Monica Keena was born in Brooklyn on May 28, 1979, to Bill and Mary Keena and was little sister to Samantha, the Keenas' first daughter. Growing sup, Monica shone in all things arts. Dance, singing, acting, and drawing. At 13, Keena enrolled in the prestigious LaGuardia school for acting and made it. At age 15, she had a small role in her first film, and that was followed by a series of TV movies, such as First Daughter (1999) and the A Promise Kept: The Oksana Baiul Story (1994). Monica starred in her first movie, Ripe (1996), at 16 and considers that her favorite role, as of now. In 1998, she premiered on the WB's Dawson's Creek (1998) as truth-telling "Abby Morgan" and later left the show when she "got bored playing one character".
Today, Monica continues to make movies like Freddy vs. Jason (2003), Man of the House (2005), and Fifty Pills (2006). In her free time, she enjoys skating.All She Wants For Christmas (TV movie).- Actress
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Amy Pietz (born March 6, 1969) is an American actress, known for her roles on television. She received a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series nomination for her role as "Annie Spadaro" in the NBC sitcom, Caroline in the City (1995) (1995-1999). She later had starring roles in the short-lived sitcoms, The Weber Show (2000) (NBC, 2000-01), Rodney (2004) (ABC, 2004-06), and Aliens in America (2007) (The CW, 2007-08).Caroline in the City (TV series).- Actress
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Natalie Jane Imbruglia was born on Tuesday, February 4, 1975, in Sydney, Australia, to Maxene (Anderson) and Elliot Imbruglia. Her father is Sicilain (from Lipari) and her mother has English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish ancestry. She grew up in a small beach town on the New South Wales coast called Berkeley Vale. At the age of two, she began dancing, and then moved into a special academy to dance six days a week. She got her first job as a TV extra on Japanese bubble gun commercial as a 'Pinnacle Princess'. She didn't have much to do in Berkleyvale and was a 'surfer girl'. At the age of 17 she was offered a two week trial to play Beth Brennan in the Aussie soap opera Neighbours (1985). She and her character became so popular that Natalie stayed on the show for two more years. After she quit the show she went to the nearest hairdresser and cut her once long hair into the shorter style that we see today. She then moved to London and the party and night-club scene. During this time Natalie decided to pursue a singing career and wrote many songs. Then she secured a recording contact and released her first album, 'Left of the Middle'. Since then she has had a lot of media exposure with her album released across the world. Her TV appearances have included Saturday Night Live (1975), The David Letterman Show (1980), etc.Neighbours (TV series).- Producer
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Since melting audiences' hearts at the age of just six in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), Drew Barrymore has emerged as one of the most beloved and singularly gifted actresses of her generation. Born in Culver City, California to John Drew Barrymore and Jaid Barrymore, the clutches of fame were near inescapable for young Drew, her father being a member of the esteemed showbiz dynasty fronted by stage star Maurice Barrymore, his thespian wife Georgiana and their three children: Lionel Barrymore, Ethel Barrymore, and John Barrymore.
Tailgating a turbulent adolescence that saw her grapple with insobriety, substance abuse, and cutthroat media vitriol, a diligent Barrymore threw herself into her career throughout the early-mid nineties, first with a succession of 'bad girl' parts in cultish B-pictures like Poison Ivy (1992), Guncrazy (1992) and - fittingly - Bad Girls (1994); then warmly received turns in prestige vehicles such as Boys on the Side (1995), Woody Allen's Everyone Says I Love You (1996), and Wes Craven's game-changing Scream (1996). Equal portions of goofball - The Wedding Singer (1998), Never Been Kissed (1999), Charlie's Angels (2000) - and gravitas - Riding in Cars with Boys (2001), Donnie Darko (2001), Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002) - came next, with a Golden Globe-grabbing pièce de résistance - her divine incarnation of Edith Bouvier Beale in Grey Gardens (2009) - confirming that her skill set was every bit as forceful and far-reaching as imagined.
Having already set in motion a bunch of lucrative projects via production house Flower Films (co-est. with Nancy Juvonen in '95), Barrymore fastened an additional string to her bow when she spearheaded the sports dramedy Whip It (2009), her glowingly appraised directorial debut. Fresh off a healthy run of movie parts at the launch of the 2010s, her star turn as zombified suburban realtor Sheila Hammond - a tour de force at once dizzy and detailed - on Netflix's Santa Clarita Diet (2017) saw her step with trademark resolve into newer territory still: the flourishing world of small screen entertainment, a metamorphosis she continues to espouse with her role as compère of spirited daytime staple The Drew Barrymore Show (2020).Ever After.- Hande Ataizi was born on 2 September 1973 in Bursa, Turkey. She is an actress, known for Mum Kokulu Kadinlar (1996), Ruhsar (1998) and Melekler Evi (2000). She was previously married to Benjamin Harvey.House of Angels.
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Susanna Hoffs is a singer, songwriter, guitarist, actress, novelist and co-founder of the multi-platinum selling group, The Bangles. Her voice is instantly recognizable on such hit singles as, "Eternal Flame", "In Your Room" (both co-written by Hoffs), and "Manic Monday".
Her first novel, "This Bird Has Flown" was released in 2023 and received rave reviews in the New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, and NPR, among others. Universal Pictures purchased the rights to the novel for a screen adaptation.
She played the role of Gillian Shagwell, in the fictional band, "Ming Tea" in all three "Austin Powers" films.
In 1990, she began a solo music career and has released five studio albums; "When You're a Boy" (1991), "Susanna Hoffs" (1996), "Someday" (2014), "Bright Lights" (2021), and "The Deep End" (2023). The albums yielded hit songs such as, "My Side of the Bed", "Unconditional Love", and "All I Want". She collaborated with Matthew Sweet on "Under the Covers" volumes 1, 2, and 3. She has toured with the Bangles and as a solo artist with such artists as Don Henley, Aimee Mann, and Matthew Sweet.
Notable solo artist performances include the Lilith Fair, the Academy Awards (duet with Randy Newman), Grammy Salute to Prince (duet with Chris Martin), and Grammy Salute to Paul Simon.
Entertainment Weekly wrote about her performance with Chris Martin saying, "This was the night's tenderest moment and certainly one of the most still, particularly in a catalog full of uptempo delights. Hoffs and Martin intertwined their voices, stripping the sweet lament to a gorgeously elegiac place".
In 2019, Hoffs inducted the Zombies into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Hoffs vocals and songs have been featured in films (and on the soundtracks for), "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery", "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me", "Austin Powers in Goldmember", "Meet the Parents", "Bombshell", and numerous others. Her single, "Eternal Flame", which she performed lead vocals on with The Bangles, has been used in over 60 films and TV shows.
In addition to co-writing songs for the Bangles, Hoffs has co-written songs for the Go-Go's, Belinda Carlisle, and Bette Midler as well as contributing vocals on albums by such artists as the Talking Heads, Rufus Wainwright, Travis, and :The Lilith Fair: Celebration of Music" compilation album (featuring Sarah McLachlin, Shawn Colvin, Emmylou Harris, and others).The Allnighter.- Actress
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Jeri Ryan was born Jeri Lynn Zimmerman on February 22, 1968 in Munich, West Germany, to Gerhard Florian Zimmerman, a Master Sergeant in the United States Army, and his wife Sharon, a social worker. She and her older brother Mark grew up on several military bases, including Kansas, Maryland, Hawaii, Georgia and Texas. Finally, at age 11, her father retired from the Army and her family settled down in Paducah, Kentucky. After graduating from Lone Oak High School in 1986, she attended Northwestern University Chicago as a National Merit Scholar. While studying there, she won a number of beauty contests (a.o.- sixth annual Miss Northwestern Alpha Delta Phi Pageant in 1989).
With a B.S. degree in Theatre, she came to Los Angeles, California and since then she has been on several television series and films - including popular series like Matlock (1986), Melrose Place (1992) and Star Trek: Voyager (1995) as well as Dark Skies (1996). Her television experience also includes roles in a variety of telefilms including Nightmare in Columbia County (1991), NBC's In the Line of Duty: Ambush in Waco (1993), Co-ed Call Girl (1996), The Sentinel (1996), Men Cry Bullets (1998), Dracula 2000 (2000), The Last Man (2000) and Down with Love (2003). Jeri Ryan resides in an area of Los Angeles, California with her husband chef Christophe Eme, her son Alex and daughter Gisele.Star Trek: Voyager (TV series).- Actress
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Catherine was born in London, but she moved to California with her Iranian mother at the age of two. Her mother still acts as her personal assistant. As a girl, she acted in various TV advertisements. She went to UCLA to study biology/ pre-medicine, but she dropped out to become a model in Japan. She moved back into acting with a Mexican commercial for American Express, and then she followed that up by being Isabella Rossellini's nude body double in Death Becomes Her (1992), when she also met her future husband, Adam Beason, who was the director's Robert Zemeckis's assistant. As of 2018, the two reside near Los Angeles with their daughter Gemma Beason and son Ronan Beason.The Good Witch (TV movie).- Greta Scacchi was born in Milan, Italy, to Pamela Carsaniga, an English dancer and Luca Scacchi, an Italian art dealer and painter. She grew up in Milan and Sussex, England. In 1975, her mother and second husband moved to Australia, where, after she left school, Greta worked as an Italian interpreter on a ranch. At age 18, she returned to England and trained at the Bristol Old Vic, paying her way through college by working as a model for catalogues. Played small parts as a stage actress before she made her first appearance on British television, then the young film maker Dominik Graf directed her in Das zweite Gesicht (1982). She learned German for this movie. (She also speaks fluent Italian and French.) After Heat and Dust (1983), she played parts in French, Italian and English movies and Australian television, working with the Taviani Brothers, Margareta von Trotta and Diana Kurys. She turned down Hollywood for many years but after appearing in White Mischief (1987) agreed to co-star in Presumed Innocent (1990), Shattered (1991) and The Player (1992).White Mischief.
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Born in Shenyang, grew up in Jinan, the daughter of an economics professor. Loved music from childhood, and dreamed of a singing career. After failing to gain entrance to China's top music school in 1985, applied for and was admitted to the Central Drama Academy in Beijing, from which she graduated in 1989. While still a student, was cast as the female lead in Red Sorghum (1988)(aka "Red Sorghum"), the initial directing effort by Yimou Zhang. China's best-known actress in the West, she was named Best Actress at the 49th Venice International Film Festival for her role in The Story of Qiu Ju (1992) (aka "The Story of Qiu Ju"). Made a series of successful films with Yimou Zhang, a collaboration that apparently ended with the breakup of their personal relationship in 1995 and Gong's subsequent marriage to a tobacco company executive.Shanghai Triad.- Actress
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Audrey Hepburn was born as Audrey Kathleen Ruston on May 4, 1929 in Ixelles, Brussels, Belgium. Her mother, Baroness Ella Van Heemstra, was a Dutch noblewoman, while her father, Joseph Victor Anthony Ruston, was born in Úzice, Bohemia, to English and Austrian parents.
After her parents' divorce, Audrey went to London with her mother where she went to a private girls school. Later, when her mother moved back to the Netherlands, she attended private schools as well. While she vacationed with her mother in Arnhem, Netherlands, Hitler's army took over the town. It was here that she fell on hard times during the Nazi occupation. Audrey suffered from depression and malnutrition.
After the liberation, she went to a ballet school in London on a scholarship and later began a modeling career. As a model, she was graceful and, it seemed, she had found her niche in life--until the film producers came calling. In 1948, after being spotted modeling by a producer, she was signed to a bit part in the European film Nederlands in zeven lessen (1948). Later, she had a speaking role in the 1951 film, Young Wives' Tale (1951) as Eve Lester. The part still wasn't much, so she headed to America to try her luck there. Audrey gained immediate prominence in the US with her role in Roman Holiday (1953). This film turned out to be a smashing success, and she won an Oscar as Best Actress.
On September 25, 1954, she married actor Mel Ferrer. She also starred in Sabrina (1954), for which she received another Academy Award nomination. She starred in the films Funny Face (1957) and Love in the Afternoon (1957). She received yet another Academy Award nomination for her role in The Nun's Story (1959). On July 17, 1960, she gave birth to her first son, Sean Hepburn Ferrer.
Audrey reached the pinnacle of her career when she played Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), for which she received another Oscar nomination. She scored commercial success again playing Regina Lampert in the espionage caper Charade (1963). One of Audrey's most radiant roles was in the fine production of My Fair Lady (1964). After a couple of other movies, most notably Two for the Road (1967), she hit pay dirt and another nomination in Wait Until Dark (1967).
In 1967, Audrey decided to retire from acting while she was on top. She divorced from Mel Ferrer in 1968. On January 19, 1969, she married Dr. Andrea Dotti. On February 8, 1970, she gave birth to her second son, Luca Dotti in Lausanne, Vaud, Switzerland. From time to time, she would appear on the silver screen.
In 1988, she became a special ambassador to the United Nations UNICEF fund helping children in Latin America and Africa, a position she retained until 1993. She was named to People's magazine as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world. Her last film was Always (1989).
Audrey Hepburn died, aged 63, on January 20, 1993 in Tolochnaz, Vaud, Switzerland, from appendicular cancer. She had made a total of 31 high quality movies. Her elegance and style will always be remembered in film history as evidenced by her being named in Empire magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time".Wait Until Dark.- Actress
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Beatrice "Bebe" Neuwirth is the daughter of Sydney Anne, an artist, and Lee Paul Neuwirth, a mathematician. Born and raised in Princeton, New Jersey, she started out as a dancer. Her New York career started out in "A Chorus Line". She won a Tony Award for her part in "Sweet Charity" and two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for playing Lilith Sternin Crane of Cheers (1982).Cheers (TV series).- Actress
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Barbara Crampton was born in Levittown, New York. Growing up in Vermont, she spent the majority of her childhood summers traveling the country with a roadside carnival that her father worked for. Crampton began acting in school plays in seventh grade and subsequently studied drama in high school. She earned a BA in Theater Arts from Castleton State College and, following graduation, portrayed "Cordelia" in an American Theater of Actors production of "King Lear" in New York.
The young actress then moved to Los Angeles and, in 1983, made her TV debut with a recurring role on the popular daytime soap opera Days of Our Lives (1965). The following year she had a brief, but memorable role in Brian De Palma's Body Double (1984), which was followed by the 1985 comedy Fraternity Vacation (1985). Barbara achieved enduring cult popularity as college coed Megan Halsey in Stuart Gordon's Re-Animator (1985) and, after making a splash in the horror genre, successively starred in From Beyond (1986), Chopping Mall (1986), Puppet Master (1989), and Castle Freak (1995), among others.
Outside of horror, Barbara had recurring roles on daytime television soap operas Guiding Light (1952); The Bold and the Beautiful (1987), and The Young and the Restless (1973), for which won a Soap Opera Digest Award.
Years after retiring from acting to raise a family, Crampton returned to film in 2011 with a role in Adam Wingard's You're Next (2011). She subsequently appeared in number of new films, the majority of which were horror. Highlights of her return include The Lords of Salem (2012), We Are Still Here (2015), and Beyond the Gates (2016).
Crampton's hobbies include skiing, yoga, horseback riding, running, working out with weights, and shopping for antiques at flea markets. She lives outside of San Francisco with her husband, Robert Bleckman, and their two children.From Beyond.- Actress
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At sixteen years old, Melanie Lynskey dazzled the film world with an audacious debut in Peter Jackson's revered psychological crime picture, Heavenly Creatures (1994). Her electrifying portrait of Pauline Parker - high school misfit whose fierce rapport with her only friend (a pre-fame Kate Winslet) spirals dangerously out of control - was deemed "perfect" (Richard Corliss, TIME) and secured the humble New Zealander a Best Actress trophy in her motherland. Following a three-year interval spent studying at university and relocating to Los Angeles, Lynskey made a welcome return to the silver screen when she was cast as Drew Barrymore's sweet-natured stepsister in Andy Tennant's 'girl power' twist on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale, Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998). Parts in But I'm a Cheerleader (1999), Coyote Ugly (2000), Snakeskin (2001), Sweet Home Alabama (2002), Shattered Glass (2003), and Clint Eastwood's Oscar-nominated war epic Flags of Our Fathers (2006) came next.
In the consequent years, Lynskey emerged as one of the industry's most celebrated character actors, picking up plaudits for a host of appearances in prestige vehicles such as Sam Mendes's Away We Go (2009), Jason Reitman's Up in the Air (2009), Steven Soderbergh's The Informant! (2009), Tom McCarthy's Win Win (2011), Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012), and Adam McKay's Don't Look Up (2021). Prolific supporting roles - opposite the calibre of George Clooney, Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio - aside, spotlight turns in Hello I Must Be Going (2012), Happy Christmas (2014), The Intervention (2016) - for which she scored a Special Jury Prize at Sundance - and the genre-bending I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore (2017) have equally proved her mettle as a dynamite leading lady.
Since entering the annals of 21st century popular culture with her riotous embodiment of Rose - on the toweringly successful Two and a Half Men (2003), where she appeared for over a decade as Charlie Sheen's duplicitous admirer - Lynskey has injected her scene-stealing prowess into a multitude of small-screen gigs: among them, HBO's exalted tragicomedy Togetherness (2015), which showcased her "sublime" (Vanity Fair) depiction of a dissatisfied stay-at-home mom; macabre Stephen King spookfest Castle Rock (2018), where she headlined as pill-popping psychic Molly Strand; and all-star political period piece Mrs. America (2020), in which she joined forces with Cate Blanchett. For her spellbinding work on Showtime's Yellowjackets (2021) - where she's front-and-centre as Shauna, a suburban housewife consumed by horrific secrets - Lynskey collected the coveted Critics' Choice Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series (2022), with Rolling Stone's Alan Sepinwall describing her turn in the runaway cult smash as the "dark, messy, charismatic part she's been waiting her whole career to play".Two and a Half Men. (TV series).- Actress
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Before she became an actress Carole Laure was a teacher. She was born on August 5, 1950 in Montreal (Québec) Canada. The profession she has chosen did not give her any satisfaction. She met some young Canadian film makers, that resulted in her first appearance as an actress, age twenty, in Mon enfance à Montréal (1971), directed by Jean Chabot. Three years later, she met director Gilles Carle, who helped her career. Her exotic beauty (her mother has Indian blood), her charm and spontaneity, her dark eyes with light melancholy look, made her a star in French-Canadian cinema. She is not only acting but also sings. Carole has recorded several LPs in French and English, collaborating with Lewis Furey. She also sings in the filmmusical Fantastica (1980) directed by her old friend, Gilles.L'Ange et la Femme.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Tisha Sterling was born on 10 December 1944 in Los Angeles, California, USA. She is an actress, known for Coogan's Bluff (1968), Village of the Giants (1965) and The Whales of August (1987). She was previously married to Lal Baum.Coogan's Bluff.- Estella Warren was a synchronized swimmer from the age of 7 until 17 in her native Canada. She moved away from home at 12 to train for the Canadian National Team. She was the Canadian National Champion for three years and represented her country at the World Aquatic Championship, where she placed second. A talent scout who came to a charity high school fashion show in which she appeared was impressed enough with her to take a Polaroid of her and send it to a New York City modeling agency. She was almost immediately signed to a modeling contract, and eventually appeared in "Sports Illustrated", "Vogue", "Vanity Fair" and two TV commercials for Chanel #5 perfume, both directed by Luc Besson. She decided to move to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career, and has appeared in films with such stars as Sylvester Stallone.Planet of the Apes.
- Actress
- Soundtrack
The dark, delicate and demure beauty of an Anna Maria Alberghetti is what one envisions a princess to look like and, indeed, she did have a chance to play a couple in her lifetime. Reminding one instantly of the equally enchanting Pier Angeli, Anna Maria's Cinderella story did not take on a tragic storybook ending as it did for Ms. Angeli. On the contrary, Anna Maria continues to delight audiences today on many levels, particularly on the concert and lecture stages.
She was born in a musical home in Pesaro, Italy, in 1936, the daughter of a concertmaster father and pianist mother. They greatly influenced her obvious talent and by age six she was performing with symphony orchestras with her father as her vocal instructor. World War II had forced the Alberghettis from their homeland and after performing in a European tour, Anna Maria's pure operatic tones reached American ears via her Carnegie Hall debut at age 14. The family decided to settle permanently in the States. The teenager went on to perform with numerous symphony orchestras during this time.
In 1950 Paramount saw a bright future in the making. Within a short time she was capturing hearts on film, making a magical debut in the eerie but hypnotic Gian Carlo Menotti's chamber opera The Medium (1951). Opposite the magnificent Marie Powers in the title role as the fraudulent Madame Flora, Anna Maria was directed by Menotti himself in the independently-produced film. While the movie was appreciated in art house form, Paramount wasted no time in placing the photogenic Anna into mainstream filming. Her budding talent was strangely used, however. She had an extended operatic solo in the breezy Capraesque Bing Crosby/Jane Wyman comedy Here Comes the Groom (1951), and played a Polish émigré befriended by a singer (played by Rosemary Clooney) who discovers the girl has musical talent of her own in the so-so The Stars Are Singing (1953). Anna's songs included the touching "My Kind of Day" and "My Heart Is Home". Thereafter, for some strange reason, her vocals were not utilized. She acted instead in such rugged adventures as The Last Command (1955) and Duel at Apache Wells (1957), and in the fluffy comedy Ten Thousand Bedrooms (1957) opposite Dean Martin. And, in the end, she was lovely but utterly wasted as the Prince Charming equivalent in the gender-bending Jerry Lewis farce Cinderfella (1960). Not only does she arrive late in the film, but Jerry gave her no songs to sing -- he sang them all!
Extremely disillusioned, Anna Maria departed from films in the early 60s and instead sought out work on the Broadway stage. It was here that she found that elusive star. Following a role in the operetta "Rose Marie" in 1960, Anna Maria won the part of a lifetime as the waif-like Lili in the musical "Carnival", based on Leslie Caron's charming title film role. Anna Maria was utterly delightful and quite moving in the role and for her efforts was awarded the Tony Award -- tying in her category with Diahann Carroll for "No Strings". Anna Maria's sister Carla replaced her when she left the show. Throughout the 60s she continued to impress in musical ingénue showcases -- the title role in "Fanny" (1963), Maria in "West Side Story" (1964), Marsinah in "Kismet" (1967) (which was televised), and Luisa in "The Fantasticks" (1968), to name but a few.
As she matured, she made a mark in other facets of entertainment. On TV Ed Sullivan first introduced Anna Maria to millions of households and the public was thoroughly taken by this singing angel. She appeared with Sullivan a near-record 53 times. She also graced a number of popular TV shows with non-singing, damsel-in-distress roles on such shows as "Wagon Train" and "Checkmate". Her recording career has included associations with Capitol, Columbia, Mercury and MGM Records.
In 1964, Anna married TV director/producer Claudio Guzmán who was almost a decade older. The ten-year marriage produced two daughters, Alexandra and Pilar. She began to downplay her career after this in favor of parenting, particularly after her divorce in 1974.
Returning to the theater on occasion, Anna Maria later reintroduced herself back into TV households as the housewife/pitchwoman for "Good Seasons" salad dressing. Her one-woman stage show led to her interest as a cabaret performer. More recent film appearances have included fun roles in the comedies Friends and Family (2001) and The Whole Shebang (2001).10,000 Bedrooms.- Actress
- Director
Diane Neal was born in Alexandria, Virginia. She moved to Littleton, Colorado, when her father was promoted to the position of federal attorney in Denver. She is the youngest of three daughters. Diane was a pre-med major in University, before leaving to pursue modeling, thus allowing her to travel the world.Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (TV series).- Actress
- Producer
From the age of 13,she attended the Italia Conte stage school where she studied dance, drama, and singing for three years. At 16, she began her modeling career gracing the covers of numerous magazines including GQ, FHM, Maxim, Sky, Cosmopolitan, Hello, Tatler, The Face, and Company, becoming one of the most recognisable in Britain, It wasn't long before Madison Avenue started calling, and in 1995, she got her first advertising campaign for Lee Jeans. Since then, she's been featured in campaigns for Renault Megane Walkers and Piz Buin. In 1998, she launched the biggest bra campaign ever for Triumph's Flaunt range and was featured on billboards nation wide, Her UK television credits are extensive and include co-hosting Britain's most popular morning programme magazine Channel 4's The Big Breakfast and MTV's live two-hour show Select. She also hosted VPL, a magazine lifestyle programme for Granada Television, the final concert at Wembley Stadium for Sky Premiers Oasis Live at Wembley. Her US credits include a four-episode arc on the WB's Smallville portraying Lex Luthor's girlfriend. She made her feature film debut in the thriller Ripper, released in October 2001, and also starred in the play "Eye Contact" at the Riverside Studios in Lonon. In her first stage role, her character Anya explores the world of adult dance clubs from an honest and funny point of view,School for Seduction.- Actress
- Producer
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Sharon Lawrence grew up in North Carolina (Charlotte and Raleigh), graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill with a degree in Journalism and spent her college summers doing musicals in summer stock. She became an Actors Equity Member in 1984 and a SAG-AFTRA member in 1987. She may be best known for her multiply Emmy Award-nominated and SAG Award-winning portrayal of ADA Sylvia Costas Sipowicz in NYPD Blue. She also played, among many roles, a stay-at-home prostitute in Desperate Housewives, a charming but murderous realtor on Monk, the twisted jailbird mother of a sociopath on Criminal Minds, a serial killer on Law and Order: SVU, and a mother coming to terms with her long-lost daughter on Rizzoli & Isles -- not to mention bantering with Alfred Molina on Ladies Man or beating up Larry David on Curb Your Enthusiasm.
More recent work includes Blunt Talk (opposite Sir Patrick Stewart) and an arc on NBC's Game Of Silence. Recent film includes Solace (opposite Sir Anthony Hopkins), Of Music and Mind (with Joaquim de Almeida and Aunjanue Ellis), and the award-winning The Bridge Partner (with Beth Grant).
An accomplished stage actress, Lawrence played twenty different female characters in the Noel Coward cabaret, Love, Noel at the Wallis. Lawrence starred in Sir Noel Coward's final play, A Song at Twilight, at the Pasadena Playhouse, and as Vivien Leigh in Orson's Shadow (winner LA Drama Critics Circle Award, nominated for Ovation Award). At the Mark Taper Forum, she created the role of Maureen in the premiere of Theresa Rebeck's Poor Behavior and was featured Carl Reiner's gala, Enter Laughing. Her Broadway credits include revivals of Cabaret, Fiddler On The Roof and Chicago (as Velma Kelly).
A former Chair of Women In Film Foundation, she is affiliated with the Board of Directors of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation as well as WeForShe.org, HealTheBay.org and UNC-Chapel Hill General Alumni Association.Atomic Twister.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Scarlett Ingrid Johansson was born on November 22, 1984 in Manhattan, New York City, New York. Her mother, Melanie Sloan is from a Jewish family from the Bronx and her father, Karsten Johansson is a Danish-born architect from Copenhagen. She has a sister, Vanessa Johansson, who is also an actress, a brother, Adrian, a twin brother, Hunter Johansson, born three minutes after her, and a paternal half-brother, Christian. Her grandfather was writer Ejner Johansson.
Johansson began acting during childhood, after her mother started taking her to auditions. She made her professional acting debut at the age of eight in the off-Broadway production of "Sophistry" with Ethan Hawke, at New York's Playwrights Horizons. She would audition for commercials but took rejection so hard her mother began limiting her to film tryouts. She made her film debut at the age of nine, as John Ritter's character's daughter in the fantasy comedy North (1994). Following minor roles in Just Cause (1995), as the daughter of Sean Connery and Kate Capshaw's character, and If Lucy Fell (1996), she played the role of Amanda in Manny & Lo (1996). Her performance in Manny & Lo garnered a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Female, and positive reviews, one noting, "[the film] grows on you, largely because of the charm of ... Scarlett Johansson", while San Francisco Chronicle critic Mick LaSalle commentated on her "peaceful aura", and wrote, "If she can get through puberty with that aura undisturbed, she could become an important actress."
After appearing in minor roles in Fall (1997) and Home Alone 3 (1997), Johansson garnered widely spread attention for her performance in The Horse Whisperer (1998), directed by Robert Redford, where she played Grace MacLean, a teenager traumatized by a riding accident. She received a nomination for the Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Actress for the film. In 1999, she appeared in My Brother the Pig (1999) and in the music video for Mandy Moore's single, "Candy". Although the film was not a box office success, she received praise for her breakout role in Ghost World (2001), credited with "sensitivity and talent [that] belie her age". She was also featured in the Coen Brothers' dark drama The Man Who Wasn't There (2001), opposite Billy Bob Thornton and Frances McDormand. She appeared in the horror comedy Eight Legged Freaks (2002) with David Arquette and Kari Wuhrer.
In 2003, she was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, one for drama (Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003)) and one for comedy (Lost in Translation (2003)), her breakout role, starring opposite Bill Murray, and receiving rave reviews and a Best Actress Award at the Venice Film Festival. Her film roles include the critically acclaimed Weitz brothers' film In Good Company (2004), as well as starring opposite John Travolta in A Love Song for Bobby Long (2004), which garnered her a third Golden Globe Award nomination.
She dropped out of Mission: Impossible III (2006) due to scheduling conflicts. Her next film role was in The Island (2005) alongside Ewan McGregor which earned weak reviews from U.S. critics. After this, she appeared in Woody Allen's Match Point (2005) and was nominated again for a Golden Globe Award. In May 2008, she released her album "Anywhere I Lay My Head", a collection of Tom Waits covers featuring one original song. Also that year, she starred in Frank Miller's The Spirit (2008), the Woody Allen film Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008), and played Mary Boleyn opposite Natalie Portman in The Other Boleyn Girl (2008).
Since then, she has appeared as part of an ensemble cast in the romantic comedy He's Just Not That Into You (2009), the action superhero film Iron Man 2 (2010), the comedy-drama We Bought a Zoo (2011) and starred as the original scream queen, Janet Leigh, in Hitchcock (2012). She then played her character, Black Widow, in the blockbuster action films The Avengers (2012), Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019) and Black Widow (2021), and also headlined the sci-fi action thriller Lucy (2014), a box office success. With more than a decade of work already under her belt, Scarlett has proven to be one of Hollywood's most talented young actresses. Her other starring roles are in the sci-fi action thriller Ghost in the Shell (2017) and the dark comedy Rough Night (2017).
Scarlett and Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds were engaged in May 2008 and married in September of that year. In 2010, the couple announced their separation, and subsequently divorced a year later. In 2013, she became engaged to French journalist Romain Dauriac, the couple married a year later. In January 2017, the couple announced their separation, and subsequently divorced in March of that year. They have a daughter, Rose Dorothy Dauriac (born 2014). The couple divorced in September 2017.
She married Colin Jost in October 2020. They have one child, a son.Girl With a Pearl Earring.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Laura San Giacomo was born in West Orange, New Jersey, to MaryJo and John San Giacomo. She was raised in the nearby city of Denville. She went to Morris Knolls High School in Denville, where she got the acting bug and had the lead in several school plays. Laura got a Fine Arts degree, specializing in acting, at Carnegie Mellon School of Drama (Pittsburgh). After graduation, she moved to New York.
During the late 1980s (1987-89) before starting her film career, she appeared on Spenser: For Hire (1985), Crime Story (1986), The Equalizer (1985), All My Children (1970) and Miami Vice (1984). Her breakout film was her first credited role in Steven Soderbergh's Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989). The movie won the Cannes Film Festival's Grand Prize, the Palme d'Or. Laura received a Los Angeles Film Critics Association's New Generation Award and a Golden Globe nomination for her role. Next, she was Kit De Luca in Pretty Woman (1990) (1990) opposite Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. The film won the People's Choice Awards for Best Comedy and Best Film.
On stage, Laura has appeared in many theater productions. She was on the Los Angeles stage in the Garry Marshall-Lowell Ganz production of "Wrong Turn at Lungfish", in "North Shore Fish" (WPA Theatre), in "Three Sisters" (Princeton/McCarter Theatre, New Jersey, 1992) and in "Beirut" (Off-Broadway, Westside Arts Theatre, New York City, 1987). She also starred in "Italian American Reconciliation" (Manhattan Theatre Club, New York City, 1988) and "The Love Talker" (Off-Broadway in 1988). In regional theater, Laura was in Shakespeare's "The Tempest", "As You Like It" and "Romeo and Juliet". She also starred in "Crimes of the Heart".
During the early 1990s, she was busy making movies (Vital Signs (1990), Quigley Down Under (1990), Once Around (1991) (where she played Holly Hunter's sister), Under Suspicion (1991), Where the Day Takes You (1992) and Nina Takes a Lover (1994)). In 1994, she also appeared in Stephen King's television miniseries, The Stand (1994). During the mid 1990s, she also provided her voice to an animated series Gargoyles (1994). Offscreen, Laura got married to Cameron Dye in 1990 (and divorced in 1998). They had a son, Mason, in 1996. Having a child influenced Laura to make the transition to television. She started in the sitcom Just Shoot Me! (1997), which also starred George Segal (as her father, Jack), Wendie Malick, Enrico Colantoni and David Spade. Television gave her a more regular work schedule and less traveling. The series lasted for seven seasons and 148 episodes. She appeared in all of them together with the other four regular cast members.
After Just Shoot Me! (1997) was canceled in 2003, Laura appeared infrequently on television and in feature films. She was the narrator for Snapped (2004), a true crime series. In 2005, she appeared in two feature films (Checking Out (2005) and Havoc (2005)). In 2006, she was reunited with her Just Shoot Me! (1997) co-star Enrico Colantoni in Veronica Mars (2004), where she played Harmony Chase for three episodes. In September 2006, she secured a starring role in Saving Grace (2007) as Grace's (Holly Hunter's) best friend, Rhetta Rodriguez. Laura continued to play the role through all three seasons.Under Suspicion.- Actress
- Producer
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Maria Grazia Cucinotta (born 27 July 1968) is an Italian actress who has featured in many films and television series since 1990. She has also worked as a producer, screenwriter and model. Cucinotta was born in Messina, Province of Messina, Sicily, Italy. She is well known in Italy as a movie and television actress, but internationally she is best known for her roles in Il Postino and as the Bond girl, credited as the Cigar Girl, in the James Bond film The World Is Not Enough.Il Postino.- Actress
- Producer
- Writer
Maria Bello was born on 18 April, 1967 in Norristown, Pennsylvania, to Kathy, a nurse and teacher, and Joe Bello, a contractor. She is of Italian and Polish descent. Maria went to Villanova University, majoring in political science. She had every intention of becoming a lawyer, but she took an acting class during her senior year, just for fun. She discovered she was very good at it, and she was soon cast in small off-Broadway plays, such as "The Killer Inside Me", "Small Town Gals With Big Problems" and "Urban Planning". She later guest-starred on episodes of The Commish (1991), Nowhere Man (1995), Misery Loves Company (1995), and Due South (1994). She got her big break when producers Kenny Lenhart and John J. Sakmar cast her in the spy show Mr. & Mrs. Smith (1996) as "Mrs. Smith" (they remembered her from her performance in a failed pilot that was a remake of the classic TV series 77 Sunset Strip (1958)). The show was canceled after eight weeks on the air. Then came a spot on ER (1994) as "Dr. Anna Del Amico", in which she guest-starred on the final three episodes of the third season. The show's producers were so impressed with her that they asked her back as a regular on the series.The Cooler.- Actress
- Music Department
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Olivia d'Abo is an English actress and singer from London. She debuted as a teenager in 1984, and has remained active over the following decades. Her most famous role was playing the free-spirited Karen Arnold in the historical television series "The Wonder Years" (1988 -1993). The series lasted for 6 seasons, and a total of 115 episodes.
In 1969, d'Abo was born in London. Her father was singer and songwriter Mike d'Abo (1944-), lead vocalist for the pop band Manfred Mann (1966-1969). D'Abo's mother was the model Maggie London. Through her father, d'Abo is a first cousin, once removed of fellow actress Maryam d'Abo (1960-). Maryam is known for playing the Bond girl Kara Milovy in the spy film "The Living Daylights" (1987).
D'Abo settled in the United States in the 1980s. She attended high schools in the Los Angeles area. She made her screen debut in the sword and sorcery film "Conan the Destroyer" (1984), at the age of 14. The film was based on the "Conan the Barbarian" stories by Robert Ervin Howard (1906-1936), with the main role reserved for actor Arnold Schwarzenegger (1947-). D'Abo played Princess Jehnna of Shadizar, who Conan has to escort on a quest to retrieve the magical gemstone Heart of Ahriman and the missing Horn of Dagoth. The film earned about 31 million dollars at the domestic box office.
Months later, the romantic drama film "Bolero" (1984) was released. D'Abo had the supporting role of the Gypsy girl Catalina, who befriends the main character Ayre "Mac" MacGillvary (played by Bo Derek). The film was a box office flop, and was received negatively by most critics. It was nominated for 9 Golden Raspberry Awards, winning 6. D'Abo herself won the "Golden Raspberry Award for Worst New Star".
After a brief hiatus in her career, d'Abo had her next starring film role in the gymnastics-themed film "Flying" (1986). She played Robin Crew, an adolescent gymnast who injured her leg in a car accident. Throughout the film, Robin tries to get back into shape and to rejoin her gymnastics team. The film received only a limited release in movie theaters, but achieved some success in the home video market. The film has a minor cult following, due to featuring Keanu Reeves (1964-) in one of his earliest roles.
Also in 1986, d'Abo had the female lead role in the action film "Bullies". She played Becky Cullen, a female member of a clan consisting of bullies and thugs. Her family objects when she falls in love with a member of an enemy family. The film was loosely inspired by the play "Romeo and Juliet", but had a modern setting. The film earned about 2.9 million dollars at the box office.
In 1988, d'Abo joined the main cast of the historical series the "The Wonder Years", playing the main character's older sister. The series often contrasted the conservative views of the Arnold family's parents with the liberal views expressed by Karen Arnold (d'Abo's character). D'Abo left the series main cast in 1991, as her character was de-emphasized. However, she remained available for guest appearances until the series' finale. The role of Karen Arnold's husband in the later seasons was played by David Schwimmer. This was Schwimmer's first recurring role in a television series.
In 1990, d'Abo played the time traveler Chanel-6 in the science fiction comedy "The Spirit of '76". In the film, time travelers from a dystopian 22nd century attempt to retrieve valuable documents from the year 1776. By accident, they end up in the year 1976. While acclimating themselves to this era, they embrace the era's own revolutionary spirit. The film only had a limited release in movie theaters, but was noted for a soundtrack that included many of the era's hits.
D'Abo often appeared in guest roles in television series during the early 1990s. She eventually gained a major role as a series regular in the sitcom "The Single Guy" (1995-1997). The sitcom had a similar premise with some of the era's hit sitcoms, featuring single people who are struggling with relationships. But it failed to find an audience of its own, and only lasted for two seasons.
D'Abo gained her first major voice acting role in the short-lived animated series "Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm". It was an adaptation of the video game series "Mortal Kombat", featuring many of the same characters. D'Abo voiced military officer Sonya Blade, one of the protagonists of the series. The series only lasted for 13 episodes. The final episode featured a failed insurrection against the evil emperor Shao Kahn, and left the fates of several characters without resolutions.
From 1999 to 2000, d'Abo played female super-villain Ten/ Melanie Walker in the superhero series "Batman Beyond" (1999-2001). Her character was depicted as a member of the playing card-themed super-villain team Royal Flush Gang, and as a love interest for Batman/ Terry McGinnis.
D'Abo played Jane Porter (Tarzan's wife) in the animated series "The Legend of Tarzan" (2001-2003). She had the same role in the spin-off animated film "Tarzan & Jane" (2002). The series was a loose adaptation of the "Tarzan" stories by Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950).
D'Abo had villainous roles in the superhero series Justice League (2001-2004). She voiced both Star Sapphire/Carol Ferris and Morgaine le Fey. She had a more heroic role in the animated film "Ultimate Avengers" (2006), playing the Russian super-heroine Black Widow/Natalia Romanova. She returned to this role in the sequel, "Ultimate Avengers 2" (2006).
From 2002 to 2008, d'Abo played criminal mastermind Nicole Wallace in the police procedural "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (2001-2011). Her character was depicted as the archenemy of Robert Goren, though she only appeared in 5 episodes. During the series, she murders multiple people. She denies accusations that she has killed her own daughter, claiming that her daughter's death was accidental.
From 2008 to 2009, d'Abo played Jedi master Luminara Unduli in the animated series "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" (2008-2020). In 2009, d'Abo voiced Carol Ferris in the animated film "Green Lantern: First Flight". In 2010, d'Abo voiced the super-heroine Elasti-Girl/Rita Farr in an episode of "Batman: The Brave and the Bold". Easti-Girl is a founding member of the Doom Patrol, and often appears in adaptations of the team's adventures. In 2012, d'Abo voiced another version of Star Sapphire in the animated film "Justice League: Doom". In 2014, she voiced Star Sapphire in the video game "Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham".
In 2019, d'Abo voiced Luminara Unduli again, in a cameo role in the live-action film "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker". As of 2021, d'Abo is 52-years-old. She has never retired, and continues to work regularly in both films and television. D'Abo has had an enduring appeal, and is well-remembered for playing popular characters over the decades.Law & Order: Criminal Intent.- Antonina Jadwiga Siemaszko is an American actress. Best known for her film roles in Little Noises (1992), The Saint of Fort Washington (1993), and for her role as Eleanor Bartlet in The West Wing (2001-2006).
Siemaszko was born in Chicago. Her father, Konstanty, was a Polish-born Roman Catholic, and a survivor of Polish Underground and Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Her mother, Collette McAllister, was English. One of her brothers is actor Casey Siemaszko. Her other brother, Corky, is a writer for Daily News and a reporter at NBC News. She attended The Theatre School at DePaul University. She played an undercover cop in Reservoir Dogs featured in a scene that wound up on the cutting room floor. It was released on DVD. She played Mia Farrow in the CBS miniseries Sinatra. She played the leading role in Wild Orchid II: Two Shades of Blue.Airheads. - British-born Vanessa Angel began her career at age 14 as a model, when she was discovered by world-renowned agent, Eileen Ford. She gained much life experience by traveling the world, relocating to New York and appearing on many magazine covers, including "Vogue" and "Cosmopolitan". Her transition from modeling to acting came in 1985, when she was chosen by director John Landis to play a Russian spy in Spies Like Us (1985). She honed her craft by studying with Sondra Lee and became a member of The Actor's Studio in New York in 1987, studying with Frank Corsaro. This led to roles in films including King of New York (1990), Sleep with Me (1994) and Kingpin (1996), from The Farrelly Brothers with Woody Harrelson and Bill Murray, Kissing a Fool (1998) with David Schwimmer and Jason Lee. She has been in many films in the past few years including Paramount's The Perfect Score (2004) with Scarlett Johansson and opposite Jon Voight in Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2 (2004). In addition to her film work, Angel starred in the hit series, Weird Science (1994), on the USA Network.
The unique range of characters earned her critical recognition for her comedic timing. She has played many roles on television, including the recurring role of police officer "Peggy Elliot" on NBC's Reasonable Doubts (1991) with Mark Harmon and Marlee Matlin, and a recent recurring role on Stargate SG-1 (1997). Most recently, she played herself in HBO's popular show, Entourage (2004), where she played opposite Kevin Dillon, who she had also starred opposite in Out for Blood (2004). She also recently starred in the Lifetime movie, Criminal Intent (2005), and just finished the independent film, Blind Ambition (2008), and the comedy, Endless Bummer (2009). She reconnected with The Farrelly Bros in Hall Pass (2011) and made a memorable guest appearance in Showtime's Californication (2007). She recently completed the films, Lycan (2017) and Trouble Sleeping (2018) Vanessa and her ex-husband, Rick Otto, are co-parents of their daughter India Otto.Kingpin. - Actress
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- Soundtrack
Paulette Goddard was a child model who debuted in "The Ziegfeld Follies" at the age of 13. She gained fame with the show as the girl on the crescent moon, and was married to a wealthy man, Edgar James, by the time she was 17. After her divorce she went to Hollywood in 1931, where she appeared in small roles in pictures for a number of studios. A stunning natural beauty, Paulette could mesmerize any man she met, a fact she was well aware of. One of her bigger roles in that period was as a blond "Goldwyn Girl" in the Eddie Cantor film The Kid from Spain (1932). In 1932 she met Charles Chaplin, and they soon became an item around town. He cast her in Modern Times (1936), which was a big hit, but her movie career was not going anywhere because of her relationship with Chaplin. They were secretly married in 1936, but the marriage failed and they were separated by 1940. It was her role as Miriam Aarons in The Women (1939), however, that got her a contract with Paramount. Paulette was one of the many actresses tested for the part of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind (1939), but she lost the part to Vivien Leigh and instead appeared with Bob Hope in The Cat and the Canary (1939), a good film but hardly in the same league as GWTW. The 1940s were Paulette's busiest period. She worked with Chaplin in The Great Dictator (1940), Cecil B. DeMille in Reap the Wild Wind (1942) and Burgess Meredith in The Diary of a Chambermaid (1946). She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in So Proudly We Hail! (1943). Her star faded in the late 1940s, however, and she was dropped by Paramount in 1949. After a couple of "B" movies, she left films and went to live in Europe as a wealthy expatriate; she married German novelist Erich Maria Remarque in the late 1950s. She was coaxed back to the screen once more, although it was the small screen, for the television movie The Female Instinct (1972).Modern Times.- Actress
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Jill Hennessy can be seen starring in Showtime's "City on a Hill" with Kevin Bacon and Aldis Hodge, executive produced by Tom Fontana and Ben Affleck. Jill starred in the special event series "Shots Fired" by Gina Prince-Bythewood with Sanaa Lathan and Stephan James on FOX and was the lead in the Mike Clattenburg comedy "Crawford" with John Carroll Lynch on CBC. She was a guest star in the pilot of "Yellowstone" with Kevin Costner for the Paramount Network. Jill was a recurring character on the CBS drama "Madam Secretary" and was featured in several episodes of the CBS drama "The Good Wife". Jill was also a regular on the HBO series "Luck", which starred Dustin Hoffman, as well as the international series "Jo" shot in Paris opposite Jean Reno. She is best known for her starring roles on NBC's "Law & Order" and "Crossing Jordan" (the #1 new drama). Jill was nominated for a People's Choice Award for her work in "Crossing Jordan" and won a Golden Satellite Award for her work in TNT's "Nuremberg" with Brian Cox and Alec Baldwin. Jill's other film credits include, "Lymelife" with Alec Baldwin, "Roadie" by Michael Cuesta with Bobby Cannavale and Ron Eldard , "Small Town Murder Songs" with Peter Stormare, "Chutney Popcorn" by Nisha Ganatra, "The Paper" by Ron Howard with Robert Duval, "Wild Hogs" with John Travolta and Tim Allen, "I Shot Andy Warhol" by Mary Herron with Lili Taylor and "Exit Wounds" with Steven Segal. She also played Buddy Holly's wife, Maria-Elena, in the Broadway production of "The Buddy Holly Story".
As a singer/songwriter, Jill wrote all of the music and lyrics on her debut album, "Ghost In My Head". She performed on the Lilith Tour with Sarah McLachlan, The Indigo Girls and the Dixie Chicks and was featured on The Indigo Girls' live album "Staring Down The Brilliant Dream". Jill also wrote all the music and lyrics on her second album, "I Do", which was released in October 2015. She is currently at work writing her third album.Law & Order (TV series).- Actress
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Descendant of the conservative Spanish politician Antonio Maura, Carmen lead an art gallery and appeared in various roles in night- clubs. With Tigres de papel (1977) she had her first successful appearance on the movie screen and thereafter she worked at the theatre, the movies and in TV productions. Although she played dramatic roles, too, her most important genre has always been the comedy, e.g. Sal gorda (1984), Sé infiel y no mires con quién (1985) or Tata mía (1986). She has worked regularly with the Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar, from the film Pepi, Luci, Bom and Other Girls Like Mom (1980) (taking in Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988) for which she was awarded the European Film Award "Felix" as best actress) to, currently Volver (2006).Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown.- Actress
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Natalia Verbeke was born on 23 February 1975 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is an actress, known for The Other Side of the Bed (2002), Son of the Bride (2001) and Doctor Mateo (2009).El hijo de la novia.- Actress
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Connie Booth was born on 2 December 1940 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), Monty Python's and Now for Something Completely Different (1971) and Fawlty Towers (1975). She has been married to John Lahr since 19 August 2000. She was previously married to John Cleese.Fawlty Towers (TV series).- Fabiana Udenio was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and grew up in Italy, where at the age of thirteen, was crowned "Miss Teen Italy." That same year Fabiana made her theatre debut as "Miranda" in "The Tempest" directed by the legendary Giorgio Strehler. Miss Udenio first came to America to perform at the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics Arts Festival, in that very famous edition of "The Tempest." Her film roles include playing the daughter of a World War II Resistance fighter costarring with Gregory Peck, Christopher Plummer and John Gielgud in the CBS miniseries The Scarlet and the Black (1983), the Italian foreign-exchange student Anna-Maria Mazzarelli in Summer School (1987) directed by Carl Reiner costarring Mark Harmon and Kirstie Alley, and the sunbather in the "Sunblock 5000" commercial within RoboCop 2 (1990). She portrayed "Alotta Fagina" in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) costarring with Mike Myers directed by Jay Roach. She starred as "Don Na" in The Godson (1998) with Dom DeLuise and Rodney Dangerfield. Most recently Fabiana starred in the independent films Love and Love Not and Cloudy with a chance of Christmas. On television, Udenio had the recurring role of "Giulietta" on the ABC soap opera One Life to Live from 1985 to 1986, and was regular cast member in the syndicated drama Amazon (1999-2000) written by Peter Benchley. She has guest starred and had recurring roles on dozens of television shows, including Babylon 5, Baywatch, Full House, NYPD Blue, Quantum Leap, Cheers, Mad About You, Wings and The Magnificent Seven. She had the recurring role of Atooza Shirazi on 90210 (2008-2011) . She also had the recurring role of Elena Di Nola/Mutter in the critically acclaimed series Jane the Virgin (2015-2016). She will soon be seen as a series regular in the new spy series for Netflix starring Arnold Schwazenegger. Fabiana is fluent in four languages.Summer School.
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Maribel Verdú was born on October 2, 1970 in Madrid, Spain as María Isabel Verdú Rollán. She is an actress, known for Snow White (2012), Pan's Labyrinth (2006) and And Your Mother Too (2001). She is the older sister of twins Marina and Carlota and she has been married to Pedro Larrañaga since September 1999.Y tu mama tambien.- Actress
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Marisol Nichols currently (2023) stars opposite Jenna Ortega in Paramounts Winter Spring Summer Fall. She recently starred opposite Chris Rock and Sam Jackson as Capt. Angie Garza in the Lions Gate film Spiral, and opposite Eugenio Derbez in the Lions Gate comedy The Valet. On the small screen Nichols' currently stars as Hermione Lodge on The CW's highly rated, Riverdale which has won a collective 19 Teen Choice Awards.
Nichols' first appeared in shows including Beverly Hills 90210, Friends, and ER. She made her movie debut in the film Vegas Vacation playing Audrey Griswald opposite Chevy Chase. She's appeared in films Scream 2, Can't Hardly Wait, Bowfinger, Jane Austen's Mafia & Felon opposite Val Kilmer. Marisol also commanded the Counter Terrorist unit in 24 opposite Kiefer Sutherland, appeared as the mysterious and elusive Desert Wolf on Teen Wolf, was Special Agent Zoe Keates in NCIS and starred in Stephen Bochco's Blind justice as well as numerous other roles.
Balancing her work on screen with her humanitarian efforts fighting for the rights of young girls and women, Marisol created her non-profit, Foundation for a Slavery Free World, embracing the global eradication of the most heinous human rights violations-human trafficking. She is a deputized legal informant and has been dubbed, the "Hollywood Vigilantly" as she's taken part in numerous undercover operations leading to the successful arrest of dozens of traffickers and child predators. Sony Pictures recently bought the rights to her life story and is adapting it for a Television Series that Nichols is Executive Producing.
In 2017, Marisol was recognized by President Barack Obama with the President's Distinguished Volunteer Service Award for her work in human rights and for her service to our community.Las Vegas Vacation.- Actress
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Natasha Jane Richardson was born in Marylebone, London, England, to director and producer Tony Richardson and actress Vanessa Redgrave. She was the sister of actress Joely Richardson, the niece of actors Corin Redgrave and Lynn Redgrave, and the granddaughter of actors Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson.
Trained at London's Central School of Speech and Drama, Richardson performed extensively on stage in roles, including "Helena" in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and Ophelia in "Hamlet" at the Young Vic. In 1986, she garnered the London Drama Critics' Most Promising Newcomer Award for her performance as "Nina" in "The Seagull", with Vanessa Redgrave and Jonathan Pryce. In 1987, she played "Tracey Lord" in Richard Eyre's musical, "High Society".
Natasha made her feature film debut as Mary Shelley in Ken Russell's Gothic (1986). Her performance caught the attention of director Paul Schrader, who cast her in the title role in Patty Hearst (1988). Natasha achieved notable success in such films as Pat O'Connor's A Month in the Country (1987), Roland Joffé's Fat Man and Little Boy (1989) and The Favour, the Watch and the Very Big Fish (1991), featuring Bob Hoskins and Jeff Goldblum. For her performance in Volker Schlöndorff's The Handmaid's Tale (1990) and Schrader's The Comfort of Strangers (1990), Richardson earned The London Evening Standard Award for Best Actress of 1990; and for Widows' Peak (1994), also starring Mia Farrow and Joan Plowright, she received the Best Actress Award at the 1994 Karlovy Vary Festival.
Also in 1994, she co-starred with Jodie Foster and Liam Neeson in Nell (1994) and, in 1998, in The Parent Trap (1998) with Dennis Quaid. Her early 2000s films include Blow Dry (2001) released in 2001, and Ethan Hawke's Chelsea Walls (2001).
Natasha performed the title role of "Anna Christie", first in London, where she was voted London Drama Critics' Best Actress Award in 1992, then on Broadway at the Roundabout in 1993, where she was nominated for a Tony for Best Actress in a Play, a Theatre World Award for Outstanding Debut, the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Debut of an Actress, and a Drama Desk nomination for Best Actress. For her performance as Sally Bowles in Sam Mendes' production of "Cabaret", she won the 1998 Tony, Outer Critics Circle, Drama League and Drama Desk Awards for Best Actress in a Musical. She then appeared on Broadway in Patrick Marber's Tony-nominated play "Closer". In December 2009 she had been intended to play "Miss Julie" on Broadway with Philip Seymour Hoffman, directed by David Leveaux for Roundabout Theatre.
Richardson's television credits included Henrik Ibsen's "Ghosts" for the BBC, also starring Judi Dench, Michael Gambon and Kenneth Branagh; the HBO cable feature Hostages (1992); the BBC film Suddenly, Last Summer (1993), based on the play by Tennessee Williams, and also starring Maggie Smith and Rob Lowe. In 1993 she starred as Zelda Fitzgerald in the TNT movie Zelda (1993), co-starring Timothy Hutton and directed by Pat O'Connor (cable Ace nomination for Best Actress). She played Ruth Gruber in the 2001 CBS mini-series Haven (2001) based on Ms. Gruber's autobiography.
In March 2009, Natasha died in a New York City hospital, after falling and receiving a head injury whilst skiing in Mont Tremblant, Quebec, Canada. Natasha was married to actor Liam Neeson from 1994 until her death, and the couple have two children.The Comfort of Strangers.- Actress
- Producer
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French actress and model Eva Gaëlle Green was born on July 6, 1980, in Paris, France. Her father, Walter Green, is a dentist who appeared in the 1966 film Au hasard Balthazar (1966). Her mother, Marlène Jobert, is an actress turned children's book writer. Eva's mother was born in Algeria, of French, Spanish, and Sephardic Jewish heritage (during that time, Algeria was part of France), and Eva's father is of Swedish, French, and Breton descent. She has a fraternal twin sister, Joy. Eva left French school at 17. She switched to the American School in France for one year. She left the American School and studied acting at Saint Paul Drama School in Paris for three years, then had a 10-week polishing course at the Weber Douglas Academy of dramatic Art in London. She returned to Paris as an accomplished young actress, and played on stage in several theater productions: "La Jalousie en Trois Fax" and "Turcaret". There, she caught the eye of director Bernardo Bertolucci. Green followed a recommendation to work on her English. She studied for two months with an English coach before doing The Dreamers (2003) with Bernardo Bertolucci. During their work, Bertolucci described Green as being "so beautiful it's indecent".
Green won critical acclaim for her role in The Dreamers (2003). After "The Dreamers", Green played the love interest of cult French gentleman-thief, Arsène Lupin (2004), opposite Romain Duris. In 2005, she co-starred, opposite Orlando Bloom and Liam Neeson, in Kingdom of Heaven (2005), produced and directed by Ridley Scott. The film brought her a wider international exposure. She turned down the femme fatale role in The Black Dahlia (2006), that went to Hilary Swank, because she didn't want to end up typecast after her role in "The Dreamers". Instead, Eva accepted the prestigious role of "Vesper Lynd", one of three Bond girls, opposite Daniel Craig, in Casino Royale (2006) and became the fifth French actress to play a James Bond girl, after Claudine Auger in Thunderball (1965), Corinne Cléry in Moonraker (1979), Carole Bouquet in For Your Eyes Only (1981) and Sophie Marceau in The World Is Not Enough (1999). She achieved international recognition for the film, one of the highest-grossing Bond movies ever.
Since then, Green has starred in the films Dark Shadows (2012), 300: Rise of an Empire (2014), Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014), and Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016). She also starred as Vanessa Ives in Showtime's horror drama Penny Dreadful (2014). Her performance in the series earned her a nomination for Best Actress in a Television Series - Drama at the 73rd Golden Globe Awards.
Since her school years, Green has been a cosmopolitan multilingual and multicultural person. Yet, since her father always lived in France with them and her mother, she and her twin sister can't speak Swedish. She developed a wide scope of interests beyond her acting profession and became an aspiring art connoisseur and an avid museum visitor. Her other activities, outside of acting, include playing and composing music, cooking at home, walking her terrier, and collecting art. She shares time between her two residencies, one is in Paris, France, and one in London, England.The Dreamers.- Actress
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Dana Welles Delany was born on March 13, 1956, in New York City and raised in Stamford, Connecticut. Dana knew early in life that she wanted to be an actress. Following graduation from Wesleyan University, this tall (5'6") beauty moved to New York and developed her skills working in daytime television and theater. Dana starred in the Broadway show "A Life" and received critical acclaim in a number of off-Broadway productions as well. Her role in Nicholas Kazan's controversial "Bloodmoon" in New York led her to Hollywood. Dana acted in a number of TV series, working steadily until she could get her own starring vehicle. That happened in 1988 when Dana became identified with Army nurse Colleen McMurphy in ABC TV's critically acclaimed series China Beach (1988), the role earning her four Emmy nominations and two Emmy Awards as Best Actress.
Dana moved on to movies and eventually started getting starring roles in films such as Tombstone. With over a dozen TV and movie projects within the last few years, Dana is one of the busiest actresses in Hollywood.China Beach (TV series).- Actress
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Janina Zione Gavankar (born November 29, 1980) is an American actress and musician. Gavankar is also trained as a pianist, vocalist, and orchestral percussionist. She majored in Theatre Performance at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Gavankar's roles include Papi, a lesbian lothario in The L Word; Leigh Turner, a police officer on The Gates; Ms. Dewey, the personification of a Microsoft branded search engine who commented on the user's searches; Shiva, the namesake of the sought-after trophy on The League; shapeshifter Luna Garza on HBO's True Blood; McKenna Hall on The CW's Arrow; and Meredith Bose on NBC's The Mysteries of Laura. She also played Diana Thomas on FOX's supernatural drama Sleepy Hollow.
Gavankar was born in Joliet, Illinois, to Peter Ganesh Gavankar, an engineer from Mumbai, who first traveled to the U.S. to pursue a master's degree, and Mohra Gavankar, from Pune, Maharashtra, who also emigrated to the U.S. from India. Her mother is half-Indian and half-Dutch.
Gavankar has acted in theatre, film, television, and online. Her most notable roles include Iden Versio, canon Star Wars character, and protagonist of Star Wars: Battlefront II, shapeshifter Luna Garza in True Blood, lesbian lothario Papi in The L Word; Ms. Dewey, the personification of a Microsoft live search engine; and Shiva, the namesake of the sought after trophy on The League. She regularly appears in Funny or Die shorts.
In 2006 she joined the cast of The L Word as a series regular, and shot all of the clips used for Ms. Dewey. In 2007, she landed a lead in CW pilot Dash 4 Cash. In 2008, Gavankar appeared in TV series Stargate Atlantis, Grey's Anatomy and NCIS, My Boys, and Factory. In 2009, she appeared in the TV shows The Cleaner, Dollhouse, Three Rivers, and The League, as well as indie movies Men, Interrupted, Indian Gangster, and Quantum Quest: A Cassini Space Odyssey. Gavankar played the voice of Nikki in Quantum Quest. She landed a lead role in The Gates, since cancelled, on ABC. She appears on CW's Arrow as a vice squad police officer and brief girlfriend to Oliver Queen.
Gavankar is an admitted gamer and has appeared on, as well as co-hosted, G4 TV's Attack of the Show!, Epileptic Gaming's Up All Night, where she helped review Rock Band, Burnout Paradise, and Army of Two.
In 2011 Gavankar became a series regular in HBO's True Blood as a public school teacher and shapeshifter, Luna Garza, who gets romantically involved with one of the main characters of the series.
Her indie movie, Satellite of Love, premiered at the Dallas International Film Festival in 2012, and her 2012 indie I'm Afraid of Virginia Wolf is in post-production. On December 20, 2012, Gavankar was the last person interviewed for the now cancelled Attack of the Show! which aired on G4 TV.
On August 3, 2013, Gavankar landed a role as a witch named Qetsiyah in the fifth season of The Vampire Diaries. She guest starred in the third season of Husbands.
In 2014, she starred as Amita in the video game, Far Cry 4. She also played Detective Meredith Bose on The Mysteries of Laura from 2014 to 2016.
She starred as Iden Versio, the main character in the campaign mode of the 2017 Electronic Arts video game Star Wars Battlefront II.
In 2018, she has two films releasing. Blindspotting is premiering at the Sundance Film Festival, and The Vanishing of Sidney Hall is being distributed by A24.
Gavankar returned to music with a cover of Kanye West's "Love Lockdown". Gavankar's former all female singing group, Endera, was signed to Cash Money Records Universal Records.
She collaborated on a project for a song called "Tell Me What" in India with Pratichee Mohapatra of Viva, Deep, and Navraaz. She has had songs licensed to movies and television, and has sung and played marimba on film scores. Gavankar was featured in Russian artist Ella Leya's music video for "Wish I Could", in the music video by San Francisco-based band Recliner for their single "Float Away", as well as the music video for Manu Narayan's band Darunam.
In August 2012, she released the single for her upcoming EP, entitled Waiting for Godot, and in November, Billboard premiered the official music video. It went on to win numerous film festival awards.
While in high school, Gavankar auditioned for the front ensemble of the Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps of Rockford, Illinois. Before hearing whether she had made the corps, she was accepted for the Yale School of Drama's summer camp, and went there. "I fell in love with drum corps when I was 13 years old", Gavankar has stated, and remains a strong fan of the activity. When she heard the Martin Garrix/Usher collaboration, "Don't Look Down", she had the idea of performing it as marching music. With assistance from Drum Corps International, she contacted the Jersey Surf Drum and Bugle Corps and arranger Colin Bell. She went into the studios in New York with fifty members of Jersey Surf and recorded the music video "Don't Look Down- #JustAddDrumCorps Edition" that was released in April 2015.
On May 20, 2015, Gavankar performed a percussion duet at Carnegie Hall with Questlove for the Best Buddies charity benefit.The L Word (TV series).- Actress
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Eva Habermann was born on 16 January 1976 in Hamburg, West Germany. She is an actress and producer, known for Lexx (1996), The Ugly Truth (2021) and Under ConTroll (2019). She was previously married to Hans-Ullrich Hauenstein.Lexx (TV series).- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Valerie Bertinelli was born in Wilmington, Delaware, to Nancy (Carvin) and Andrew Francis Bertinelli, Jr., a General Motors executive, and raised with her one older and two younger brothers. In her early teens, her father was transferred to a GM assembly plant in the Detroit, Michigan area and her family resided in Clarkston, Michigan, where she attended Clarkston Middle School. A short time later, her father again was transferred to another GM automotive plant in Van Nuys, California. At this time, Bertinelli became neighborhood friends of the daughter of a TV producer and soon enrolled in the Tami Lynn School of Artists to study acting. Tami Lynn launched Valerie's career in the CBS hit TV series, One Day at a Time (1975). Tami Lynn was Valerie's Personal Manager from 1971 through 1979.
In December 1975, the situation comedy One Day at a Time (1975), produced by Norman Lear, premiered on CBS with Bertinelli as "Barbara Cooper", one of two daughters of a recently divorced woman. The show was a long-time hit and ended production in 1984, without being canceled.
Bertinelli has starred in three feature films: C.H.O.M.P.S. (1979), Ordinary Heroes (1986), and Number One with a Bullet (1987). She was also the protagonist of the miniseries, I'll Take Manhattan (1987), based on a novel by Judith Krantz. She has appeared in made-for-TV movies almost annually since 1979. She was also the star of two other situation comedies, Sydney (1990) and Cafe Americain (1993), both of which were canceled after short runs. In 1981, she married rock guitarist Edward Van Halen. They had homes in the Hollywood Hills and Malibu and have a son, Wolfgang Van Halen. They separated in 2001, when Van Halen had tongue cancer. In 2005, Bertinelli filed for divorce for irreconcilable differences and, it was finalized two years later. Ms. Bertinelli is still chiefly remembered by her television fans for her work on One Day at a Time (1975).
An adored actress, Bertinelli's long and celebrated career has expanded to include equally beloved TV personality, spokesperson and best-selling author. She stars as "Melanie Moretti" on the Emmy® Award-winning series, Hot in Cleveland (2010), which in 2011 was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award® for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series. The comedy revolves around three fabulous LA women of a certain age, and best friends (Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick) whose lives are changed forever when their plane, bound for Paris, unexpectedly lands in Cleveland. Once safely on the ground, they soon rediscover themselves in this new "promised land" -- meeting their new landlord, played by Betty White, along the way.Hot in Cleveland (TV series).- Actress
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Tara Fitzgerald was born in Sussex, England. Her mother, Sarah Fitzgerald, is Irish, and her father, Michael Callaby, was Italian. Shortly after her birth, her family moved to Freeport, in the Bahamas where her grandfather, David Fitzgerald, was a well-established lawyer. Her sister, Arabella Fitzgerald, was born there, but the family returned to London when Tara was three. Her mother and father separated when she was four-years-old and, along with her mother and sister, Tara moved in with her uncle and Aunt Caroline. Her mother married the Irish actor Norman Rodway when Tara was age 6, and the birth of her half-sister, Bianca Rodway, followed shortly thereafter. Rodway and Sarah Fitzgerald separated when Tara was seven.
Tara's formative years were spent moving around - a lifestyle that saw her attending five primary schools while living in a variety of locations which included Glasgow, Dublin, and Stratford-upon-Avon. Eventually, Sarah and her three daughters returned to South London, but she left at the age of 16 after passing her "O" level examinations, now known as the GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) exams. Her reason for taking a break from the educational process was that she was not allowed to pursue her goal of attending drama school. Tara had auditioned for RADA and the Guildhall, but she was unable to secure a placement. She now recognizes that, at age 17, she really had not been ready.
Tara spent the next two years working her way around Europe as a waitress, an experience that provided her with an improved perspective. When she returned to London and decided to audition for a place at the Drama Centre, she was accepted immediately. Her training at the Drama Centre leaned heavily toward method acting which she recalls was like one long therapy session of breaking down the ego, and then rebuilding it. (Other well-known actors who trained at the Drama Centre include Anthony Hopkins, Colin Firth, Simon Callow and Pierce Brosnan).
Life at the Drama Centre consisted of long days and hard work, but Tara recalls the time as being one of the best in her life. She was living at home with her mother, and working as a waitress at "The Ark" restaurant in Kensington to repay the bank loan which she had secured to cover her tuition fees. A theatrical agent noticed her performance in an amateur production, and arranged for Tara to audition for a co-starring role in the offbeat comedy Hear My Song (1991). Tara was the first actress to audition and, after the director had seen another 300 young hopefuls, the role was hers. Two weeks after graduating from college in July, 1990, Tara was at work on a major film that turned out to be a surprise success, and generated rave reviews of her performance. Tara never looked back.
Starring roles in several successful television productions during 1991 and 1992 followed. Tara received critical acclaim for The Black Candle (1991), Six Characters in Search of an Author (1992), The Camomile Lawn (1992) and Anglo Saxon Attitudes (1992). Her next major step was a co-starring role in the West End play, "Our Song", where she acquitted herself nightly opposite one of the legends of the London stage, Peter O'Toole. This success was followed by a role opposite Hugh Grant in the Australian hit film, Sirens (1994), for which the Australian Film Institute nominated Tara as Best Actress in a Lead Role.
An American mini-series, Fall from Grace (1994), was followed by the Irish film, A Man of No Importance (1994), which found Tara sharing honors with Albert Finney. Then came the two widely different television productions Mystery!: Cadfael (1994) (The Leper of St. Giles (#1.3)) and The Vacillations of Poppy Carew (1995).
Tara was back co-starring with Hugh Grant in The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain (1995) before she embarked upon another major change of pace by playing "Ophelia" opposite Ralph Fiennes in "Hamlet" on the London and Broadway stages. Ralph received the notoriety, but Tara received the award for Best Supporting Actress from the New York Critics Circle.
Tara's next success was co-starring with Ewan McGregor in the highly acclaimed comedy/drama Brassed Off (1996). Then, it was back to BBC television for The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1996), The Woman in White (1997) and The Prince of Hearts (1997), all of which were featured on the U.S. mainstay, "Masterpiece Theatre". Tara's next theatrical film was Conquest (1998), which was produced in Canada. Back on the British side of the Atlantic, Tara starred in the contemporary Little White Lies (1998) and the Daphne Du Maurier swashbuckler (also featured on Masterpiece Theatre) Frenchman's Creek (1998), for which she received the award for Best Actress at the 1999 Reims International Television Festival.
A major part in the film Childhood (2001) (which, regrettably, has never been released) was followed by the harrowing role of a stalked woman in the psychological drama In the Name of Love (1999). Radio dramatizations have included "A Handful of Dust", "Look Back in Anger", "The African Queen" and, most recently, "Laughter in Leningrad".
Tara has been heard as the voice of the narrator in such diverse television mini-series as Wild Thing (Animal Life), The Final Day (Celebrity Deaths), Vice - Inside Britain's Sex Business (Self-explanatory), Reputations (Biographies), Omnibus: A Long Time Ago, The Story of Star Wars (TV Special) and, most recently, The Changemakers.
You also will hear Tara's great voice doing radio and television advertisements for products ranging from Johnson's Facial Wipes to Norwich Union Insurance.
Tara's recent cinematic appearances have included co-starring with Rutger Hauer in New World Disorder (1999), and starring opposite Rhys Ifans and Joseph Fiennes in Rancid Aluminum (2000).
During this period, Tara appeared on stage in the title role of "Antigone", and as "Blanche du Bois" in "A Streetcar Named Desire".
In 2001, Tara appeared as the female lead in the World War II drama, Dark Blue World (2001) (aka "Dark Blue World"), a Czech film by Academy Award-winning director Jan Sverák (Kolya (1996)). She was also seen on the big screen in I Capture the Castle (2003), a romantic comedy based upon the 1948 novel by Dodie Smith (101 Dalmatians).
Tara's recent television work has included a starring role in a segment of the highly-regarded psychological drama series Murder in Mind (2001), Echoes (2003). She also played the leading female role in Love Again (2003), a dramatization of the life of British poet Philip Larkin, which was telecast on the BBC in July.
Tara has completed work on Secret Passage (2004) opposite John Turturro, a period drama which is set in Venice during the Spanish Inquisition, and Five Children and It (2004), a family adventure film based on E. Nesbit's classic 1902 novel, which was released in the U.K. on October 22, 2004. During the late winter and early spring of 2004, Tara completed a very successful tour of the United Kingdom playing the role of "Nora Helmer" in "A Doll's House", for which she received high critical acclaim. In the fall of 2004, she began a tour in the role of "Mara Hill" in a new comedy "Clouds", by Michael Frayn.
During her career, Tara has picked her roles cautiously, always seeking to play the role of a strong woman. She feels that playing characters who have weak and insipid parts do not provide her with the motivation that the role of a strong woman can deliver. She has been remarkably successful in a variety of genre ranging from historical costume dramas (The Woman in White (1997), The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1996) and Frenchman's Creek (1998)), to contemporary psychological suspense dramas (Little White Lies (1998) and In the Name of Love (1999)), as well as comedy dramas (Brassed Off (1996) and Conquest (1998)), and offbeat comedies (Sirens (1994) and The Vacillations of Poppy Carew (1995)). Her fine performance in the World War II drama Dark Blue World (2001) (aka "Dark Blue World") and her recent work on stage give further evidence of her acting versatility.A Man of No Importance.- Actress
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Julie Christie, the British movie legend whom Al Pacino called "the most poetic of all actresses," was born in Chabua, Assam, India, on April 14, 1940, the daughter of a tea planter and his Welsh wife Rosemary, who was a painter. The young Christie grew up on her father's plantation before being sent to England for her education. Finishing her studies in Paris, where she had moved to improve her French with an eye to possibly becoming a linguist (she is fluent in French and Italian), the teenager became enamored of the freedom of the Continent. She also was smitten by the bohemian life of artists and planned on becoming an artist before she enrolled in London's Central School of Speech Training. She made her debut as a professional in 1957 as a member of the Frinton Repertory of Essex.
Christie was not fond of the stage, even though it allowed her to travel, including a professional gig in the United States. Her true métier as an actress was film, and she made her debut in the science-fiction television series A for Andromeda (1961) in 1961. Her first film was a girlfriend part in the Ealing-like comedy Crooks Anonymous (1962), which was followed up by a larger ingénue role in another comedy, The Fast Lady (1962). The producers of the James Bond series were sufficiently intrigued by the young actress to consider her for the role that subsequently went to Ursula Andress in Dr. No (1962), but dropped the idea because she was not busty enough.
Christie first worked with the man who would kick her career into high gear, director John Schlesinger, when he choose her as a replacement for the actress originally cast in Billy Liar (1963). Christie's turn in the film as the free-wheeling Liz was a stunner, and she had her first taste of becoming a symbol if not icon of the new British cinema. Her screen presence was such that the great John Ford cast her as the young prostitute in Young Cassidy (1965). Charlton Heston wanted her for his film The War Lord (1965), but the studio refused her salary demands.
Although Amercan magazines portrayed Christie as a "newcomer" when she made her breakthrough to super-stardom in Schlesinger's seminal Swinging Sixties film Darling (1965), she actually had considerable work under her professional belt and was in the process of a artistic quickening. Schlesinger called on Christie, whom he adored, to play the role of mode Diana Scott when the casting of Shirley MacLaine fell through. (MacLaine was the sister of the man who would become Christie's long-time paramour in the late 1960s and early '70s, Warren Beatty, whom some, like actor Rod Steiger, believe she gave up her career for. Her "Dr. Zhivago" co-star, Steiger -- a keen student of acting -- regretted that Christie did not give more of herself to her craft.)
As played by Christie, Diana is an amoral social butterfly who undergoes a metamorphosis from immature sex kitten to jaded socialite. For her complex performance, Christie won raves, including the Best Actress Awards from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the British Film Academy. She had arrived, especially as she had followed up "Darling" with the role of Lara in two-time Academy Award-winning director David Lean's adaptation of Boris Pasternak's Doctor Zhivago (1965), one of the all-time box-office champs.
Christie was now a superstar who commanded a price of $400,000 per picture, a fact ruefully noted in Charlton Heston's diary (his studio had balked at paying her then-fee of $35,000). More interested in film as an art form than in consolidating her movie stardom, Christie followed up "Zhivago" with a dual role in Fahrenheit 451 (1966) for director François Truffaut, a director she admired. The film was hurt by the director's lack of English and by friction between Truffaut and Christie's male co-star Oskar Werner, who had replaced the the more-appropriate-for-the-role Terence Stamp. Stamp and Christie had been lovers before she had become famous, and he was unsure he could act with her, due to his own ego problems. On his part, Werner resented the attention the smitten Truffaut gave Christie. The film is an interesting failure.
Stamp overcame those ego problems to sign on as her co-star in John Schlesinger's adaptation of Thomas Hardy's Far from the Madding Crowd (1967), which also featured two great English actors, Peter Finch and Alan Bates. It is a film that is far better remembered now than when it was received in 1967. The film and her performance as the Hardy heroine Bathsheba Everdene was lambasted by film critics, many of whom faulted Christie for being too "mod" and thus untrue to one of Hardy's classic tales of fate. Some said that her contemporary Vanessa Redgrave would have been a better choice as Bathsheba, but while it is true that Redgrave is a very fine actress, she lacked the sex appeal and star quality of Christie, which makes the story of three men in love with one woman more plausible, as a film.
Although no one then knew it, the period 1967-68 represented the high-water mark of Christie's career. Fatefully, like the Hardy heroine she had portrayed, she had met the man who transformed her life, undermining her pretensions to a career as a movie star in their seven-year-long love affair, the American actor Warren Beatty. Living his life was always far more important than being a star for Beatty, who viewed the movie star profession as a "treadmill leading to more treadmills" and who was wealthy enough after Bonnie and Clyde (1967) to not have to ever work again. Christie and Beatty had visited a working farm during the production of "Madding Crowd" and had been appalled by the industrial exploitation of the animals. Thereafter, animal rights became a very important subject to Christie. They were kindred souls who remain friends four decades after their affair ended in 1974.
Christie's last box-office hit in which she was the top-liner was Petulia (1968) for Richard Lester, a film that featured one of co-star George C. Scott's greatest performances, perfectly counter-balanced by Christie's portrayal of an "arch-kook" who was emblematic of the '60s. It is one of the major films of the decade, an underrated masterpiece. Despite the presence of the great George C. Scott and the excellent Shirley Knight, the film would not work without Julie Christie. There is frankly no other actress who could have filled the role, bringing that unique presence and the threat of danger that crackled around Christie's electric aura. At this point of her career, she was poised for greatness as a star, greatness as an actress.
And she walked away.
After meeting Beatty, Julie Christie essentially surrendered any aspirations to screen stardom, or at maintaining herself as a top-drawer working actress (success at the box office being a guarantee of the best parts, even in art films.) She turned down the lead in They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969) and Anne of the Thousand Days (1969), two parts that garnered Oscar nominations for the second choices, Jane Fonda and Geneviève Bujold. After shooting In Search of Gregory (1969), a critical and box office flop, to fulfill her contractual obligations, she spent her time with Beatty in Calfiornia, renting a beach house at Malibu. She did return to form in Joseph Losey's The Go-Between (1971), a fine picture with a script by the great Harold Pinter, and she won another Oscar nomination as the whore-house proprietor in Robert Altman's minor classic McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) that she made with her lover Beatty. However, like Beatty himself, she did not seek steady work, which can be professional suicide for an actor who wants to maintain a standing in the first rank of movie stars.
At the same time, Julie Christie turned down the role of the Russian Empress in Nicholas and Alexandra (1971), another film that won the second-choice (Janet Suzman) a Best Actress Oscar nomination. Two years later, she appeared in the landmark mystery-horror film Don't Look Now (1973), but that likely was as a favor to the director, Nicolas Roeg, who had been her cinematographer on "Fahrenheit 451," "Far From the Madding Crowd" and "Petulia." In the mid '70s, her affair with Beatty came to an end, but the two remained close friends and worked together in Shampoo (1975) (which she regretted due to its depiction of women) and Heaven Can Wait (1978).
Christie was still enough of a star, due to sheer magnetism rather than her own pull at the box-office, to be offered $1 million to play the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis character in The Greek Tycoon (1978) (a part eventually played by Jacqueline Bisset to no great acclaim). She signed for but was forced to drop out of the lead in Agatha (1979) (which was filled by Vanessa Redgrave) after she broke a wrist roller-skating (a particularly southern Californian fate!). She then signed for the female lead in American Gigolo (1980) when Richard Gere was originally attached to the picture, but dropped out when John Travolta muscled his way into the lead after making twin box-office killings as disco king Tony Manera in Saturday Night Fever (1977) and greaser Danny Zuko in Grease (1978). Christie could never have co-starred with such a camp figure of dubious talent. When Travolta himself dropped out and Gere was subbed back in, it was too late for Christe to reconsider, as the part already had been filled by model-actress Lauren Hutton. It would take 15 years for Christie and Gere to work together.
Finally, the end of the American phase of her movie career was realized when Christie turned down the part of Louise Bryant in Reds (1981), a part written by Warren Beatty with her in mind, as she felt an American should play the role. (Beatty's latest lover, Diane Keaton, played the part and won a Best Actress Oscar nomination.) Still, she remained a part of the film, Beatty's long-gestated labor of love, as it is dedicated to "Jules."
Julie Christie moved back to the UK and become the UK's answer to Jane Fonda, campaigning for various social and political causes, including animal rights and nuclear disarmament. The parts she did take were primarily driven by her social consciousness, such as appearing in Sally Potter's first feature-length film, The Gold Diggers (1983) which was not a remake of the old Avery Hopwood's old warhorse but a feminist parable made entirely by women who all shared the same pay scale. Roles in The Return of the Soldier (1982) with Alan Bates and Glenda Jackson and Merchant-Ivory's Heat and Dust (1983) seemed to herald a return to form, but Christie -- as befits such a symbol of the freedom and lack of conformity of the '60s -- decided to do it her way. She did not go "careering," even though her unique talent and beauty was still very much in demand by filmmakers.
At this point, Christie's movie career went into eclipse. Once again, she was particularly choosy about her work, so much so that many came to see her, essentially, as retired. A career renaissance came in the mid-1990s with her turn as Gertrude in Kenneth Branagh's ambitious if not wholly successful Hamlet (1996). As Christie said at the time, she didn't feel she could turn Branagh down as he was a national treasure. But the best was yet to come: her turn as the faded movie star married to handyman Nick Nolte and romanced by a younger man in Afterglow (1997), which brought her rave notices. She received her third Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance, and showed up at the awards as radiant and uniquely beautiful as ever. Ever the iconoclast, she was visibly relieved, upon the announcement of the award, to learn that she had lost!
Christie lived with left-wing investigative journalist Duncan Campbell (a Manchester Guardian columnist) since 1979, first in Wales, then in Ojai, California, and now in London's East End, before marrying in January 2008. In addition to her film work, she has narrated many books-on-tape. In 1995, she made a triumphant return to the stage in a London revival of Harold Pinter's "Old Times", which garnered her superb reviews.
In the decade since "Afterglow," she has worked steadily on film in supporting roles. Christie -- an actress who eschewed vulgar stardom -- proved to be an inspiration to her co-star Sarah Polley, the remarkably talented Canadian actress with a leftist political bent who also abhors Hollywood. Of her co-star in No Such Thing (2001) and The Secret Life of Words (2005), Polley says that Christie is uniquely aware of her commodification by the movie industry and the mass media during the 1960s. Not wanting to be reduced to a product, she had rebelled and had assumed control of her life and career. Her attitude makes her one of Polley's heroes, who calls her one of her surrogate mothers. (Polley lost her own mother when she was 11 years old.)
Both Christie and Polley are rebels. Sarah Polley had walked off the set of the big-budget movie that was forecast as her ticket to Hollywood stardom, Almost Famous (2000), to have a different sort of life and career. She returned to her native Canada to appear in the low-budget indie The Law of Enclosures (2000), a prescient art film in that director John Greyson offset the drama with a background of a perpetual Gulf War three years before George W. Bush invaded Iraq, touching off the second-longest war in U.S. history. Taking a hiatus from acting, Polley went to Norman Jewison's Canadian Film Centre to learn to direct, and direct she has, making well-regarded shorts before launching her feature film debut, Away from Her (2006), which was shot and completed in 2006 but held for release until 2007 by its distributor.
Polley, who had longed to be a writer since she was a child actress on the set of the quaint family show Avonlea (1990) wrote the screenplay for her adaptation of Alice Munro's short story "The Bear Went Over the Mountain" with only one actress in mind: Julie Christie. Polley had first read the short story on a flight back from Iceland, where she had made "No Such Thing" with Christie, and as she read, it was Julie whom she pictured as Fiona, the wife of a one-time philandering husband, who has become afflicted with Alzheimer's disease and seeks to save her hubby the pain of looking after her by checking herself into a home.
After finishing the screenplay, it took months to get Christie to commit to making the film. Julie turned her down after reading the script and pondering it for a couple of months, saying "No" even though she liked the script. Polley then had to "twist her arm" for another couple of months. But alas, Julie has a weakness for national treasures: Just like with Branagh a decade ago, the legendary Julie Christie could not deny the Great White North's Sarah Polley, and commit she did. Polley then found out why Christie is so reticent about making movies:
"She gives all of herself to what she does. Once she said yes, she was more committed than anybody."
According to David Germain, a cinema journalist who interviewed Christie for the Associated Press, "Polley and Christie share a desire to do interesting, unusual work, which generally means staying away from Hollywood.
"'It's been a kind of greed and a kind of egotism, but it's not necessarily wanting to avoid the Hollywood thing, but in fact, it incorporates wanting to avoid the Hollywood thing, because the Hollywood thing is so inevitably not original,' Christie said. 'It's avoiding non-originality, so that means you're really down to a very small choice.'"
The collaboration between the two rebels yielded a small gem of a film. Lions Gate Films was so impressed, it purchased the American distribution rights to the film in 2006, then withheld it until the following year to build up momentum for the awards season.
Julie Christie's performance in "Away From Her" is superb, and already has garnered her the National Board of Review's Best Actress Award. She will likely receive her fourth Academy Award nomination, and quite possibly her second Oscar, for her unforgettable performance, a labor of love she did for a friend.
We, the Julie Christie fans who have waited decades for the handful of films made by the numinous star: Would we have wanted it any other way? We are the Red Sox fans of the movies, once again rewarded with a world-class masterpiece by our heroine. Perhaps, like all human beings, we want more, but we have learned over the last thirty-five years to be content with the diamonds that are Julie's leading performances that she gives just once a decade, content to feel that these are a surfeit of riches, our surfeit of riches, so great is their luminescence.Fahrenheit 451.- Actress
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Emmanuelle Béart was born August 14, 1963, in Gassin, France. She lived with her mother, brothers, and sister on a farm not far from Saint-Tropez in Provence (southern France), because her father, singer and poet Guy Béart, did not want his children to be affected by the glamour world of Paris. When Emmanuelle was thirteen, she saw Romy Schneider in the movie Mado (1976). From that time on, she wanted to be an actress. In Emmanuelle's teens, her parents sent her to Montreal, Quebec, Canada, for four years, so she could learn English. There, she was engaged for a Robert Altman movie that was never made. After returning to France, she took drama classes and got her first TV role, in Raison perdue (1984). David Hamilton, the photographer/director, was impressed by her beauty and gave her a role in First Desires (1983). She met her spouse-to-be, Daniel Auteuil, while making Love on the Quiet (1985). The film that made her famous in France was Manon of the Spring (1986), in which she played the role of a blonde shepherd dancing nude in the fields. Director Tom McLoughlin chose her out of 5,000 candidates for her first Hollywood picture, Date with an Angel (1987). Emmanuelle is a very sensitive and a perfectionist. For the part of Camille in the film A Heart in Winter (1992), she took violin lessons for a whole year. Her biggest success was as a nude model in the art film La Belle Noiseuse (1991), which starred Michel Piccoli and was directed by Jacques Rivette.Manon des sources.- Actress
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Davis, second of three children, was born in Englewood, New Jersey, the daughter of Joan, a librarian (at one time, for the elementary section of Elisabeth Morrow School), and William Davis, an engineer. Davis has described her mother as a "great storyteller" who would take Davis and her siblings to museums or to "something cultural" every Sunday after church. Davis was raised in Tenafly, New Jersey and graduated in 1982 from Tenafly High School. She was a childhood friend of Mira Sorvino, with whom she wrote and acted in backyard plays. She is married to actor Jon Patrick Walker. They have two daughters, Georgia (born August 31, 2002) and Mae (born December 30, 2004).Next Stop Wonderland.- Actress
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Janet Leigh was the only child of a couple who often moved from town to town. Living in apartments, Janet was a bright child who skipped several grades and finished high school when she was 15. A lonely child, she would spend much of her time at movie theaters. She was a student, studying music and psychology, at the University of the Pacific until she was "discovered" while visiting her parents in Northern California. Her father was working the desk at a ski resort where her mother worked as a maid. Retired MGM actress Norma Shearer saw a picture of Janet on the front desk and asked if she could borrow it. This led to a screen test at MGM and a starring role in The Romance of Rosy Ridge (1947). MGM was looking for a young naive country girl and Janet filled the bill perfectly. She would play the young ingénue in a number of films and work with such stars as Errol Flynn, Gary Cooper, James Stewart, Orson Welles and Judy Garland. She appeared in a number of successful films, including Little Women (1949), Angels in the Outfield (1951), Scaramouche (1952), Houdini (1953) and The Black Shield of Falworth (1954), among others. Janet would appear in a variety of films, from comedies to westerns to musicals to dramas. Of her more than 50 movies, she would be remembered for the 45 minutes that she was on the screen in the small-budget thriller Psycho (1960). Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, this 1960 classic would include the shower scene that would become a film landmark. Even though her character is killed off early in the picture, she would be nominated for an Academy Award and receive a Golden Globe. Her next film would be The Manchurian Candidate (1962), in which she starred with Frank Sinatra. For the rest of the decade, her appearances in films would be rare, but she worked with Paul Newman in Harper (1966). In the 1970s she appeared on the small screen in a number of made-for-TV movies. In 1980, she appeared alongside her daughter Jamie Lee Curtis in The Fog (1980), and later, in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998). Janet Leigh died at age 77 in her home in Beverly Hills, California on October 3, 2004.The Manchurian Candidate.- Actress
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Mary Tyler Moore was born in Flatbush, Brooklyn, on December 29, 1936. Moore's family relocated to California when she was eight. Her childhood was troubled, due in part to her mother's alcoholism. The eldest of three siblings, she attended a Catholic high school and married upon her graduation, in 1955. Her only child, Richard Meeker Jr., was born soon after.
A dancer at first, Moore's first break in show business was in 1955, as a dancing kitchen appliance - Happy Hotpoint, the Hotpoint Appliance elf, in commercials generally broadcast during the popular sitcom The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1952). She then shifted from dancing to acting and work soon came, at first a number of guest roles on television series, but eventually a recurring role as Sam, Richard Diamond's sultry answering service girl, on Richard Diamond, Private Detective (1956), her performance being particularly notorious because her legs (usually dangling a pump on her toe) were shown instead of her face.
Although these early roles often took advantage of her willowy charms (in particular, her famously-beautiful dancer's legs), Moore's career soon took a more substantive turn as she was cast in two of the most highly regarded comedies in television history, which would air first-run for most of the '60s and '70s. In the first of these, The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961), Moore played Laura Petrie, the charmingly loopy wife of star Dick Van Dyke. The show became famous for its very clever writing and terrific comic ensemble - Moore and her fellow performers received multiple Emmy Awards for their work. Meanwhile, she had divorced her first husband, and married advertising man (and, later, network executive) Grant Tinker.
After the end of The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961), Moore focused on movie-making, co-starring in five between the end of the sitcom and the start of The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970), including Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967), in which she plays a ditsy aspiring actress, and an inane Elvis Presley vehicle, Change of Habit (1969), in which she plays a nun-to-be and love interest for Presley. Also included in this mixed bag of films was a first-rate television movie, Run a Crooked Mile (1969), which was an early showcase for Moore's considerable talent at dramatic acting.
After trying her hand at movies for a few years, Moore decided, rather reluctantly, to return to television, but on her terms. The result was The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970), which was produced by MTM Enterprises, a company she had formed with Tinker, and which later went on to produce scores of other television series. Moore starred as Mary Richards, who moves to Minneapolis on the heels of a failed relationship. Mary finds work at the newsroom of WJM-TV, whose news program is the lowest-rated in the city, and establishes fast friendships with her colleagues and her neighbors. The sitcom was a commercial and critical success and for years was a fixture of CBS television's unbeatable Saturday night line-up. Moore and Tinker were determined from the start to make the sitcom a cut above the average, and it certainly was - instead of going for a barrage of gags, the humor took longer to develop and arose out of the interaction between the characters in more realistic situations. This was also one of the earliest television portrayals of a woman who was happy and successful on her own rather than simply being a man's wife. The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970) is generally included amongst the finest television series ever produced in America.
Moore ended the sitcom in 1977, while it was still on a high point, but found it difficult to flee the beloved Mary Richards persona - her subsequent attempts at television series, variety programs, and specials (such as the mortifying disco-era Mary's Incredible Dream (1976)) usually failed, but even her dramatic work, which is generally excellent, fell under the shadow of Mary Richards. With time, however, her body of dramatic acting came to be recognized on its own, with such memorable work as in Ordinary People (1980), as an aloof WASP mother who not-so-secretly resents her younger son's survival; in Finnegan Begin Again (1985), as a middle-aged widow who finds love with a man whose wife is slowly slipping away, in Lincoln (1988), as the troubled Mary Todd Lincoln, and in Stolen Babies (1993), as an infamous baby smuggler (for which she won her sixth Emmy Award). She also inspired a new appreciation for her famed comic talents in Flirting with Disaster (1996), in which she is hilarious as the resentful adoptive mother of a son who is seeking his birth parents. Moore also acted on Broadway, and she won a Tony Award for her performance in "Whose Life Is It Anyway?"
Widely acknowledged as being much tougher and more high-strung than her iconic image would suggest, Moore had a life with more than the normal share of ups and downs. Both of her siblings predeceased her, her sister Elizabeth of a drug overdose in 1978 and her brother John of cancer in 1991 after a failed attempt at assisted suicide, Moore having been the assistant. Moore's troubled son Richie shot and killed himself in what was officially ruled an accident in 1980. Moore was diagnosed an insulin-dependent diabetic in 1969, and had a bout with alcoholism in the early 1980s. Divorced from Tinker in 1981 after repeated separations and reconciliations, she married physician Robert Levine in 1983. The union with Levine proved to be Moore's longest run in matrimony and her only marriage not to end in divorce. Despite the opening credits of The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970), in which she throws a package of meat into her shopping cart, Moore was a vegetarian and a proponent of animal rights. She was an active spokesperson for both diabetes issues and animal rights.
On January 25, 2017, Mary Tyler Moore died at age 80 at Greenwich Hospital in Greenwich, Connecticut, from cardiopulmonary arrest complicated by pneumonia after having been placed on a respirator the previous week. She was laid to rest during a private ceremony at Oak Lawn Cemetery in Fairfield, Connecticut.The Mary Tyler Moore Show (TV series).- Actress
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Anne Marie Cancelmi known professionally as Annie Parisse, is an American actress. She portrayed Alexandra Borgia on the drama series Law & Order. Parisse has also starred as Julia Snyder on the soap opera As the World Turns, for which she was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award.Law & Order (TV series).- Actress
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If a film were made of the life of Vivien Leigh, it would open in India just before World War I, where a successful British businessman could live like a prince. In the mountains above Calcutta, a little princess is born. Because of the outbreak of World War I, she is six years old the first time her parents take her to England. Her mother thinks she should have a proper English upbringing and insists on leaving her in a convent school - even though Vivien is two years younger than any of the other girls at the school. The only comfort for the lonely child is a cat that was in the courtyard of the school that the nuns let her take up to her dormitory. Her first and best friend at the school is an eight-year-old girl, Maureen O'Sullivan who has been transplanted from Ireland. In the bleakness of a convent school, the two girls can recreate in their imaginations the places they have left and places where they would some day like to travel. After Vivien has been at the school for 18 months, her mother comes again from India and takes her to a play in London. In the next six months Vivien will insist on seeing the same play 16 times. In India the British community entertained themselves at amateur theatricals and Vivien's father was a leading man. Pupils at the English convent school are eager to perform in school plays. It's an all-girls school, so some of the girls have to play the male roles. The male roles are so much more adventurous. Vivien's favorite actor is Leslie Howard, and at 19 she marries an English barrister who looks very much like him. The year is 1932. Vivien's best friend from that convent school has gone to California, where she's making movies. Vivien has an opportunity to play a small role in an English film, Things Are Looking Up (1935). She has only one line but the camera keeps returning to her face. The London stage is more exciting than the movies being filmed in England, and the most thrilling actor on that stage is Laurence Olivier. At a party Vivien finds out about a stage role, "The Green Sash", where the only requirement is that the leading lady be beautiful. The play has a very brief run, but now she is a real actress. An English film is going to be made about Elizabeth I. Laurence gets the role of a young favorite of the queen who is sent to Spain. Vivien gets a much smaller role as a lady-in-waiting of the queen who is in love with Laurence's character. In real life, both fall in love while making this film, Fire Over England (1937). In 1938, Hollywood wants Laurence to play Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights (1939). Vivien, who has just recently read Gone with the Wind (1939), thinks that the role of Scarlett O'Hara is the first role for an actress that would be really exciting to bring to the screen. She sails to America for a brief vacation. In New York she gets on a plane for the first time to rush to California to see Laurence. They have dinner with Myron Selznick the night that his brother, David O. Selznick, is burning Atlanta on a backlot of MGM (actually they are burning old sets that go back to the early days of silent films to make room to recreate an Atlanta of the 1860s). Vivien is 26 when Gone with the Wind (1939) makes a sweep of the Oscars in 1939. So let's show 26-year-old Vivien walking up to the stage to accept her Oscar and then as the Oscar is presented the camera focuses on Vivien's face and through the magic of digitally altering images, the 26-year-old face merges into the face of Vivien at age 38 getting her second Best Actress Oscar for portraying Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951). She wouldn't have returned to America to make that film had not Laurence been going over there to do a film, Carrie (1952) based on Theodore Dreiser's novel "Sister Carrie". Laurence tells their friends that his motive for going to Hollywood to make films is to get enough money to produce his own plays for the London stage. He even has his own theater there, the St. James. Now Sir Laurence, with a seat in the British House of Lords, is accompanied by Vivien the day the Lords are debating about whether the St James should be torn down. Breaking protocol, Vivien speaks up and is escorted from the House of Lords. The publicity helps raise the funds to save the St. James. Throughout their two-decade marriage Laurence and Vivien were acting together on the stage in London and New York. Vivien was no longer Lady Olivier when she performed her last major film role, The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1961).Gone With The Wind.- Actress
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The late Adrienne Shelly was born in Queens, New York, to Elaine Langbaum and Sheldon Levine. After graduating Jericho High School in Jericho, New York, she enrolled at Boston University and majored in film production. She dropped out after her junior year and moved to Manhattan, where she made a name for herself in independent films with her work in The Unbelievable Truth (1989) and Trust (1990). She eventually moved behind the camera, writing and directing I'll Take You There (1999) and Waitress (2007) (her final film).
On November 1, 2006, Adrienne Shelly was murdered. She was survived by her husband Andy Ostroy and their daughter Sophie.Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me.- Actress
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Lisa Blount was an actress who appeared in numerous films and television shows, most notably as Lynette Pomeroy in An Officer and a Gentleman (1982), for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award. Along with her husband, actor Ray McKinnon, she received an Academy Award for the 2002 short film The Accountant (2001).
Lisa Suzanne Blount was born in Fayetteville (Washington County) to Glen Roscoe Blount and Louise Martin Blount, natives of Floral (Independence County); she had one brother, Greg. The family moved to Jacksonville (Pulaski County). Blount graduated from Jacksonville High School in 1975 and attended the University of Arkansas (UA) in Fayetteville, beginning classes there when she was sixteen; she left UA before graduating in order to pursue an acting career.
Blount's movie career began in earnest at age nineteen when she was chosen to play a lead role in September 30, 1955 (1977), which was shot in Conway (Faulkner County) and released in 1977. Written and directed by James Bridges, it starred Richard Thomas, Dennis Quaid, and Tom Hulce. Though surrounded by accomplished actors, Blount's vivid portrayal of a James Dean-obsessed girl named Billie Jean stood out among her more well-known co-stars.
Blount married cinematographer actor Christopher Tufty on March 19, 1982; they later divorced. She married Ray McKinnon in 1998. She had no children.
Blount is best remembered for her 1982 role in An Officer and a Gentleman (1982). The movie won two Academy Awards and was nominated for four others. Her screen character-the ambitious, cynical, and insecure Lynette Pomeroy-is the best friend of Paula Pokrifki (Debra Winger). As a result of her performance in An Officer and a Gentleman (1982), Blount was voted "Favourite Female Newcomer" in 1983 by a US magazine readers' poll.
Blount added television roles to her repertoire. She received critical plaudits for her appearance in the second season of Moonlighting (1985) in the episode Sleep Talkin' Guy (1986). She played a high-class call girl named Toby, whose client talked in his sleep, revealing details of planned murders. Another memorable role was that of Jim Profit's outrageous stepmother Bobbi Stakowski in the short-lived but critically acclaimed Fox series Profit (1996). She appeared in eight episodes in 1996 and 1997.
Blount was given a key role in director John Carpenter's horror film Prince of Darkness (1987), in which she appeared as the love interest to Jameson Parker. As a result of her appearance in this and a few other horror movies, she was sometimes referred to by the press as a "scream queen" star.
Blount and McKinnon received an Academy Award in 2002 for a live-action short film she produced and he directed titled The Accountant, which concerned the plight of American family farms. Many critics believe that Blount's most poignant role was in the 2004 movie Chrystal (2004), which was written, directed, and co-produced by McKinnon, who also played the character Snake in the film. The movie co-starred fellow Arkansan Billy Bob Thornton and was shot in the Eureka Springs (Carroll County) area.
Following the making of Chrystal (2004), Blount and McKinnon moved back to her home state of Arkansas after several years of living in Los Angeles, California. This was in part due to Blount's failing health. She continued to be active and was working on several projects. She shot a pilot for the FX television network series Outlaw Country (2012) with fellow Arkansan Mary Steenburgen, recorded demos for a music project on which she had been working, performed on stage with Eddie Vedder at a rally for the West Memphis Three, and continued the work of designing and remodelling her historic home in Little Rock (Pulaski County). Her last big-screen appearance was as Charlotte Pearson in Randy and the Mob (2007), her husband's crime comedy shot in Atlanta, Georgia.
Blount died at her home in Little Rock after spending seventeen years fighting a chronic illness called idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP). She is buried at Cedar Grove Cemetery in Floral. She had been inducted into the Arkansas Entertainers Hall of Fame on September 9, 2010, shortly before her death.Prince of Darkness.- Actress
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Born in Arundel, Sussex, in 1948, Judy's father moved the family to London when she was 10 years old and enrolled her and sister Sally Geeson into the Corona Academy, Chiswick. Judy initially wanted to be a ballet dancer but had to change course when she suffered from terrible headaches as a result of some of the moves. Acting had always been a great interest, however, and she chose to pursue this, making her first TV appearance in Dixon of Dock Green (1955) aged 12. Her first major film role was as wayward teenager Pamela Dare opposite Sidney Poitier in To Sir, with Love (1967) at the age of 18.
After a very successful film run during the 1960s and 1970s, Judy took a trip to the US in October 1984, choosing to stay on for a while. By May 1985 she had met and married Kristoffer Tabori and moved to California. However, the marriage had broken down by 1989. Despite this, Judy chose to stay in the US, making her home in Los Angeles.To Sir With Love.- For fourteen years, she said that family was the most important thing to her and she set most of her time aside to be a "present" mother to her son. Movies, plays and television were chosen, for the most part, when they occurred in town or on a school break. She took one year to homeschool her son for his seventh grade. But it wasn't always this way. She was raised in New York City and wanted to be an actress from the time she was a child, graduating with acting honors from the High School of Performing Arts. She chose to opt out of studying acting in college and attended a small college in Europe, majoring in art history and literature, knowing that acting would take up a great deal of her life and that her college years would be her only real time to learn about something else. Upon graduation, she returned to New York City but a chance trip to Chicago inspired her to move there and become a part of its budding theatre community. It was in a production of "Curse of The Starving Class", directed by Robert Falls and co-starring John Malkovich, that she was first seen by the Steppenwolf Theatre Company and, subsequently, asked to join their troupe. She did and learned what it really was to be an actress on her feet, performing in all kinds of roles in both comedy and drama. During this time, she won four Joseph Jefferson awards for best supporting actress.
With a return move to New York, she received a Theatre World Award for "best newcomer" for her role in "the Philanthropist" at the Manhattan Theatre Club and appeared in "Extremities" with Susan Sarandon. This was followed by her appearance in the very successful Steppenwolf production in New York of "Balm in Gilead". She then starred on Broadway opposite Kevin Kline and Raul Julia in "Arms & the Man", directed by John Malkovich, her husband at the time. She was cast in several smaller films including Nadine (1987), Making Mr. Right (1987) and Paperhouse (1988) as well as Lonesome Dove (1989) for television for which she received her first of two Emmy nominations for best supporting actress. But her breakout film performance was in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988), in which she played the cunning "victim", who gets the best of con artists Michael Caine and Steve Martin. This led to her being cast in the blockbuster comic strip parody, Dick Tracy (1990), in which she portrayed the girlfriend, "Tess Trueheart", to Warren Beatty's lead.
She went on to appear in the films Mr. Holland's Opus (1995) opposite Richard Dreyfuss, Mortal Thoughts (1991) opposite Demi Moore, 2 Days in the Valley (1996), What's the Worst That Could Happen? (2001), Breakfast of Champions (1999), Around the Bend (2004) and Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (2004).
On television, she had a recurring part on ER (1994) and Monk (2002) and was in the short-lived sit-com Encore! Encore! (1998) with Nathan Lane and Joan Plowright. She was in the live theatrical presentation of "On Golden Pond" as the troubled daughter of Christopher Plummer and Julie Andrews and also appeared in the telefilms Women vs. Men (2002), My Own Country (1998) and Pronto (1997), among others. She received her second Emmy nomination for best supporting actress for Bastard Out of Carolina (1996), directed by Anjelica Huston.
Some of her later appearances were in the films The Amateurs (2005) (aka "The Amateurs"), The Namesake (2006), Comeback Season (2006), Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008) and The Joneses (2009).Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. - Actress
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Throughout her illustrious career, Bernadette Peters has dazzled audiences and critics with her performances on stage and television, in concert, and on recordings. She is one of the most critically-acclaimed Broadway performers, having received nominations for seven Tony Awards, winning two, and eight Drama Desk Awards, winning three. Four of the Broadway cast albums on which she has starred have won Grammy Awards. Recently, she has been starring on Broadway as Dolly Gallagher Levi in the hit musical, Hello, Dolly!
Bernadette was born Bernadette Lazzara on February 28, 1948 in Queens, New York City, to Marguerite (Maltese) and Peter Lazzara, a bread delivery truck driver. She is of Sicilian descent.
Bernadette first performed on the stage as a child and then a teenage actor in the 1960s, and in film and television in the 1970s. She was praised for this early work and for appearances on The Muppet Show (1976), The Carol Burnett Show (1991) and in other television work, and for her roles in films like Silent Movie (1976), The Jerk (1979), Pennies from Heaven (1981) and Annie (1982). In the 1980s, she returned to the theatre, where she became one of the best-known Broadway stars over the next three decades. She also has recorded six solo albums and several singles, as well as many cast albums, and performs regularly in her own solo concert act. Peters is particularly noted for her starring roles in stage musicals, including "Song and Dance", "Sunday in the Park with George", "Into the Woods", "Annie Get Your Gun" and "Gypsy", becoming closely associated with composer Stephen Sondheim.
Peters continues to act in films and on television, where she has been nominated for three Emmy Awards and three Golden Globe Awards, winning once. Her career boasts an impressive list of television credits, which includes Amazon Prime's highly popular, Mozart in the Jungle, which won the 2016 Golden Globe for Best TV Comedy or Musical series. She also co-stars in the new CBS All Access series, The Good Fight, a spin-off of the network's popular series, The Good Wife. One of Broadway's most critically acclaimed performers, Peters has won numerous accolades including being the recipient of three Tony Awards, a Golden Globe, three Grammy nominations, three Emmy nominations and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Peters' albums include the Grammy nominated I'll Be Your Baby Tonight, Sondheim, Etc.: Bernadette Peters Live at Carnegie Hall, and Bernadette Peters Loves Rodgers & Hammerstein, in addition to numerous Grammy Award winning Broadway Cast recordings. Peters devotes her time and talents to numerous events that benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Her "pet project" Broadway Barks, co-founded with Mary Tyler Moore, is an annual, star-studded dog and cat adoption event that benefits shelter animals throughout the New York City area. She is a New York Times bestselling author who has penned three children's books, Broadway Barks, Stella Is a Star and Stella and Charlie: Friends Forever. All of her proceeds from the sale of these books benefit Broadway Barks.
She had a four-year romantic relationship with comedian Steve Martin and was married to investment adviser Michael Wittenberg for over nine years until he was killed in a helicopter crash on September 26, 2005. Peters is known for her charitable work, including as a founder of the Broadway Barks animal charity. Peters resides in New York with her rescue dogs, Charlie and Rosalia.The Jerk.- Toronto native Alexandra Doig was born on June 8th, to Filipina mother Gloria and Irish-Scottish father David. Her parents held season tickets to their local theater, and Lexa was inspired to begin acting after seeing a production of "Porgy and Bess" at the age of nine. She dropped out of high school in grade 13, did modeling and commercial work, and hosted YTV's Video & Arcade Top 10 (1991) with friend Gordon Michael Woolvett.
Her first professional job came at the age of 19, when she was cast opposite William Shatner and Greg Evigan in "TekWar". She went on to appear in several projects for both the big and small screens, including CI5: The New Professionals (1998), Jungleground (1995) and No Alibi (2000), before landing a lead role in Jason X (2001), the 10th installment in the Friday the 13th series. Shortly after, she captured the title role in Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda (2000) starring as the Andromeda Ascendant's sophisticated artificial intelligence system. She has also completed guest stints on several popular television shows, including Traders (1996), Earth: Final Conflict (1997), The Chris Isaak Show (2001). Theatre credits include "Arsenic and Old Lace" and "Romeo and Juliet".
In her spare time, Lexa enjoys reading, roller-blading and playing RPG video games, "Dungeons and Dragons" being her favorite. She currently resides in Vancouver, British Columbia with husband Michael Shanks, children Mia and Samuel and two cats.Andromeda (TV series). - Actress
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Elizabeth EG Daily is an American actress, singer, and one of the top talents in the world of voiceover. You might know her in the classics as Dottie from "Peewee's Big Adventure" to "Valley Girl," or the classic "Smelly Cat" episode of Friends. Maybe Candy from The Devil's Rejects.
EG is said to be the voice of your childhood as Tommy Pickles from "Rugrats" or Buttercup from the "Powerpuff Girls," Babe from Babe: Pig in the City, Young Mumble from the Academy Award winning Happy Feet.
She also provided her voice as a singer, many classic projects, such as the theme song from Two and Half Men. Singing in Grand Theft Auto, and many classic soundtracks; Scarface, The Breakfast Club, Theif of Hearts. With lots of new current music on all digital platforms.
Elizabeth EG Daily continues to work on multiple different projects, creating more iconic acting roles, singing, VO, and producing.Funny Money.- Actress
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Anne Parillaud was born in Paris, France on May 6, 1960 and even though all her travels took her to many lands, is still a Paris resident. Anne studied ballet in school, and her first appearance was in the film Un amour de sable (1977) where she played "La jeune fille avec un petit chat" ("The girl with a kitten"). However, her first real role was as "Estelle" in L'hôtel de la plage (1978) and, even though she had only appeared in this film during summer vacation, by then she had caught the show business bug. Anne was in eight other films, and then she gave her breakout performance in her signature role as "Nikita" in the wildly popular La Femme Nikita (1990), which spun off the American remake Point of No Return (1993) starring Bridget Fonda, and the USA Network television series La Femme Nikita (1997) starring Peta Wilson. Anne had taken judo lessons for three months to prepare for this part. Anne said that when acting, she can abandon herself; indeed the character Nikita is nothing like her. Anne hates guns and even said of Nikita: "For a while, she was in me like a demon".
When it comes to which films and directors to work with, Anne has her one rule: it must touch her heart. Obviously director Luc Besson touched her heart, they had a daughter together, but the couple separated shortly after La Femme Nikita (1990); (in 1997, Besson was briefly married to Milla Jovovich, but they divorced). Anne traveled to America to do several films, including Innocent Blood (1992), in which she plays a French vampire. She said of her character "Marie", that she wasn't born a vampire, didn't decide to be one; in that sense, the movie is a parable about dealing with the problem of being different in society. And difference equates to loneliness. Anne is still busy appearing in movies. Offscreen, Anne enjoys simple pleasures such as dancing, and talking with friends. And she is always led by her heart, Anne says she is someone who lives by impulse first. Her many fans would say it seems she has made a lot of right choices.Nikita.- Actress
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Mary Steenburgen is an Academy Award-winning American actress.
She was born in Newport, Arkansas, USA. Her mother, Nellie May (Wall) Steenburgen, was a school-board secretary, and her father, Maurice H. Steenburgen, was a freight-train conductor. Her surname comes from distant Dutch ancestry, and her roots also include English, Scottish, and Welsh.
Young Steenburgen was fond of arts and literature. Mary grew up tap-dancing her way through talent shows and school functions. She was active in her school drama class. After appearing in a number of high school plays, she enrolled at Hendrix College, a highly progressive Southern School located in Conway, Arkansas. Upon the recommendation of her drama professor, she left college in 1972 and moved to New York to study acting professionally. In the past several years, Mary Steenburgen has emerged as one of the most accomplished and sought-after screen actresses. Ever since Jack Nicholson discovered her and cast her as a sassy adventuress in his rollicking western, Goin' South (1978), her career has skyrocketed and she has won acclaim for exceptional performances in each of her diverse film roles. In Nicholas Meyer's Time After Time (1979), Steenburgen was afforded critical praise for her portrayal of a somewhat dippy but liberated young bank clerk in San Francisco who crosses paths, via time machine, with English author H.G. Wells (played by Malcolm McDowell, who later became her husband). In 1980 she shot to fame with her role as Lynda Dummar in Melvin and Howard (1980) for which she won Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Steenburgen again impressed audiences and critics alike with her stunning performance as the strong-willed turn-of-the-century mother in Ragtime (1981).
Steenburgen is a notable patron of arts. She is also an active supporter of humanitarian causes. She has two children from her previous marriage to actor Malcolm McDowell. Since 1995 she has been married to actor Ted Danson, and the couple is living in the Los Angeles area.Time After Time.- Actress
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Mira Katherine Sorvino was born on September 28, 1967 in Manhattan. She is the daughter of Lorraine Davis, an actress turned drama therapist, and veteran character actor Paul Sorvino. Her father's family were Italian immigrants. The young Sorvino was intelligent, an avid reader and an exceptional scholar. Her father discouraged her from becoming an actor, as he knew how the industry often chews up young stars. She attended Harvard, majoring in Chinese, graduating magna cum laude in 1989, largely on the strength of her thesis, a Hoopes Prize-winning thesis on racial conflict in China, written and researched during the year spent in Beijing, which helped her fluency in Mandarin Chinese.
However, she showed interest in a career in acting from an early age, and moved to New York City to try her hand in the City's film industry, waitressing, auditioning and working at the Tribeca production company of Robert De Niro. She succeeded in getting a little television work in the early 1990s, but got her first film job in the independent gangster movie Amongst Friends (1993), on which she worked her way up the ladder behind the camera to eventually associate-produce the film, and, more importantly, was eventually cast as the female lead. The indie production was well-received, and Sorvino's performance attracted enough buzz to get her cast in two more movies, one a more prominent indie, Barcelona (1994), the other her first Hollywood feature, Quiz Show (1994), and her skillful performances brought her yet more attention.
An exceptionally poised and articulate young woman, she may have seemed inappropriate to play a crazy hooker, but Woody Allen took the chance, and her magnificent performance as the female lead in his Mighty Aphrodite (1995) proved her range as a performer and earned her an Oscar (at the tender age of 29) for Best Supporting Actress. Since winning the Oscar, Sorvino has continued to take a wide range of roles, including another stretch as Marilyn Monroe in Norma Jean & Marilyn (1996), co-starring with another very intelligent and skilled young actress, Ashley Judd. Forays into action and horror, such as Mimic (1997) and The Replacement Killers (1998) show that Sorvino is not above being playful in the film roles she chooses.
However, what forever cemented her role in popular culture was her performance as charmingly silly California beach girl Romy White in Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997), in which she and co-star Lisa Kudrow utter one hilarious absurdity after another.
Mira Sorvino married Christopher Backus on June 11, 2004, and the couple have four children.The Replacement Killers.- Actress
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Madeleine Stowe was born in Los Angeles, California, to Mireya Maria (Mora Steinvorth) and Robert Alfred Stowe, a civil engineer. Her mother was a from a prominent political family in Costa Rica. Stowe grew up in Eagle Rock, a working-class neighborhood of Los Angeles. At age ten she started practicing for a career as a concert pianist and trained every day for hours. However, when her instructor died in 1976 she more or less quit playing.
She went to University of Southern California and studied cinema and journalism before taking up acting at Beverly Hills' Solaris Theater. She made a few appearances in TV and on film but her breakthrough came in 1987 with Stakeout (1987). Other major credits include The Last of the Mohicans (1992) and Short Cuts (1993).
When not filming, she spends her time at her ranch in Texas, which she shares with her husband Brian Benben.China Moon.- Actress
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Kari Samantha Wuhrer was born on April 28, 1967 in Brookfield, Connecticut, the daughter of Karin, a payroll officer and Andrew, a former police officer and car salesman. Kari has three siblings. She studied acting at age 13 at the Wooster School, and headed to New York City to do rounds of auditions. She was signed to the Ford's Model Talent Division and appeared in several commercials, most notably Clairol, as well as performing in theater productions. After a role in the drama film Fire with Fire (1986), Kari landed a job on MTV as a VJ and was a co-host of the game show Remote Control (1987). Wuhrer snuck out of her family home as a teenager to sing in nightclubs; she was the youngest member of the band Freudian Slip. She studied drama at New York University, Marymount Manhattan College, Columbia University, and at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, England with famed teacher Uta Hagen. Her biggest career break came when she was cast to play Maggie Beckett on the sci-fi television series Sliders (1995) from 1997 to 2000. She was signed to a record deal by American Recordings impresario Rick Rubin, which eventually appeared on the small Del-Fi label; her debut album "Shiny" produced the successful single "There's a Drug".Sand.- Actress
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Jo Ann Harris was born on 27 May 1949 in Los Angeles, California, USA. She is an actress, known for The Beguiled (1971), Act of Vengeance (1974) and Most Wanted (1976). She was previously married to Jerry Belson.The Beguiled.- Actress
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Jennifer Esposito was born in Brooklyn, New York. She launched her career with an appearance on Law & Order (1990) in 1996, and went on to play the character of "Stacey Paterno" in 36 episodes on the hit TV series Spin City (1996), starring alongside Michael J. Fox.
Her first major film was Spike Lee's Summer of Sam (1999). Other famous film credits include the Academy Award-winning film Crash (2004) and I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998).Crash.- Alessia Mancini was born on 25 June 1978 in Marino, Lazio, Italy. She is an actress, known for Tutti i sogni del mondo (2003), Don Matteo (2000) and Natale in crociera (2007). She has been married to Flavio Montrucchio since 11 October 2003. They have two children.Italian TV hostess/showgirl
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Canadian born actress/director, AJ is best known for her role as "Special Agent Jennifer 'JJ' Jareau" in the CBS long running series CRIMINAL MINDS. She can currently be seen reprising her role on CRIMINAL MINDS: EVOLUTION for Paramount+, which will be going into a second season later this year. AJ has also directed an episode of CRIMINAL MINDS: EVOLUTION this season and did so in season 14 of CRIMINAL MINDS, as well. AJ's film credits include THE VIRGIN SUICIDES, OUT COLD, BACK FORK and FINAL DESTINATION 2.
After 15 years playing Special Agent Jennifer "JJ" Jareau on CBS' Criminal Minds, AJ Cook turned her eye toward directing and successfully directed an episode of the series in Season 14. Most recently, she directed episode 1608 for CRIMINAL MINDS: EVOLUTION, now on Paramount+.Criminal Minds (TV series)- Actress
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Jane Leeves has made her mark in the entertainment world, acting in television, theater, and film over the past 20 years.
She is most famous for her role as "Daphne" in the award-winning show Frasier (1993). Leeves played one of the five main characters of the sitcom, a live-in physical therapist hired to take care of Frasier Crane's father. Leeves' character added a comical element to many scenes between Frasier and his family with her wit, down-to-earth remarks, and part-time, self-determined psychic abilities. Frasier Crane's brother becomes instantly smitten with her smile and Mancunian accent, which she had to fake for the whole duration of the show.
She became very good friends with the cast, including Peri Gilpin, David Hyde Pierce and John Mahoney, who are all godparents to her children.
Her role as Daphne Moon was awarded numerous awards nominations during the course of the TV series :- In 1994 she was nominated for the "Best Supporting Actress - Series, Miniseries or Television Film" Golden Globe Award.
- In 1995, she won the Q Award for "Best Supporting Actress in a Quality Comedy Series". She was nominated five more times in that same category (1994, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000).
- In 1998, she was nominated for the "Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series" Primetime Emmy Award.
- In 1999 and 2003, she was nominated for the "Best Supporting Actress - Television Series, Musical or Comedy" Satellite Award.
- In 2001, she was nominated for the "Supporting Actress of the Vear in a Comedy Series" TV Guide Award.
Leeves stars in the Emmy® Award-winning TV Land series, Hot in Cleveland (2010), which in 2011 was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award® for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series. Leeves plays eyebrow archer to the stars, "Joy Scroggs". The comedy revolves around three fabulous LA women of a certain age, and best friends (Leeves, Valerie Bertinelli and Wendie Malick) whose lives are changed forever when their plane, bound for Paris, unexpectedly lands in Cleveland.
She graced the world of theater by starring as "Sally Bowles" in the Roundabout production of "Cabaret" on Broadway. Leeves has also lent her voice to various animated television series, including The Penguins of Madagascar (2008), Phineas and Ferb (2007), and The Simpsons (1989), as well as the major motion picture, James and the Giant Peach (1996). Leeves also appeared in the film, Music of the Heart (1999), which co-starred Meryl Streep. On June 16, 2011, Leeves -- along with Hot in Cleveland (2010) co-stars Valerie Bertinelli, Wendie Malick and Betty White -- was presented with the key to the city of Cleveland by the mayor.
She recently started the "Tellurian Foundation", a line of all-natural skin care and baby products. A portion of the profits will be donated to those who strive to provide help to those in need, most recently "Food Share".Hot In Cleveland (TV series.)- Actress
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Bai Ling is recognized for unbridled freedom and creativity, Bai Ling has become undoubtedly one of the world's most diverse and captivating actresses! Born in the city of Cheng Du in southern China, Bai Ling began her career at age of 14. She enlisted In the Chinese People's Liberation Army, where she spent three years in a performance troupe entertaining soldiers stationed in Tibet. She first gained the attention of audiences and critics alike when she won the coveted lead role opposite Richard Gere in Jon Avnet's Red Corner (1997). She received numerous accolades including the prestigious Breakthrough Performance Award from the National Board of Review. She also garnered the Discovery Star awarded by the Hollywood Women's Press Club for their Golden Apple Awards. While developing her remarkable facility with the English language, she has worked with such prestigious filmmakers as Oliver Stone in Nixon (1995), George Lucas in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005), Barry Sonnenfeld in Wild Wild West (1999), Spike Lee in She Hate Me (2004), Andy Tennant in Anna and the King (1999), Ang Lee in The Wedding Banquet (1993), Alex Proyas in The Crow (1994) and Luc Besson' in )Taxi 3 (2003)_, in which she spoke French. She also starred in Terrence Malick's Broadway production of "Sansho the Bailiff". She dazzled audiences with her portrayal of the sexy, mysterious Achara in the hit TV series Lost (2004), and intrigued viewers with her seductive yet exhilarating role in HBO's Entourage (2004).
Bai Ling was awarded the Asian Oscar for her brilliant performance in her first Hong Kong film Three... Extremes (2004). It also earned her an additional three major awards in the Far East. She received the Spirit Diversity Award by The Hollywood Motion Picture Association. Her film Southland Tales (2006), directed by Richard Kelly was in competition at the Cannes Film Festival.
Bai starred in and executive-produced Shanghai Baby (2007). She has worked with Taylor Hackford in Love Ranch (2010), co-starring with Helen Mirren and Joe Pesci, and had a leading role in the Jason Statham action comedy Crank: High Voltage (2009) with costar with Jason Statham.Red Corner- Roberta Weiss was born on 15 November 1961 in Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada. She is an actress, known for The Dead Zone (1983), Audition (2004) and Martin's Day (1985). She was previously married to Roscoe Born.High Stakes.
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Teri Garr can claim a career in show business by birthright. She was the daughter of Eddie Garr, a Broadway stage and film actor, and Phyllis Garr, a dancer. While she was still an infant, her family moved from Hollywood to New Jersey but, after the death of her father when she was 11, the family returned to Hollywood, where her mother became a wardrobe mistress for movies and television. While Garr's dancing can be seen in five Elvis Presley movies, her first speaking role in motion pictures was in the 1968 feature Head (1968), starring The Monkees. In the 1970s she became well established in television with appearances on shows such as Star Trek (1966), It Takes a Thief (1968) and McCloud (1970), and became a semi-regular on The Sonny and Cher Show (1976) as Cher's friend, Olivia. Garr has since risen to become one of Hollywood's most versatile, energetic and well-recognized actresses. She has starred in many memorable films, including Young Frankenstein (1974), Oh, God! (1977), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Mr. Mom (1983), After Hours (1985) and her Academy Award-nominated performance for Best Supporting Actress in Tootsie (1982). Other film roles include The Black Stallion (1979), One from the Heart (1981), The Escape Artist (1982), Firstborn (1984), Let It Ride (1989), Full Moon in Blue Water (1988), Out Cold (1989), Short Time (1990), Waiting for the Light (1990), Mom and Dad Save the World (1992), Perfect Alibi (1995), Ready to Wear (1994) and A Simple Wish (1997).Young Frankenstein