Laurie Metcalf
 |
Laurie Metcalf | |
|---|---|
 Metcalf in 2008 | |
| Born | Laura Elizabeth Metcalf June 16, 1955 Carbondale, Illinois, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1974–present |
| Spouse(s) |
|
| Children | 4 |
Laura Elizabeth "Laurie" Metcalf (born June 16, 1955) is an American actress. She is known for her performance as Jackie Harris on the ABC sitcom Roseanne and has also had series television roles as Carolyn Bigsby on Desperate Housewives and Mary Cooper on The Big Bang Theory. Her motion picture roles include the voice of Mrs. Davis in the Toy Story film series and the character Debbie Loomis/Debbie Salt in Scream 2, as well as roles in such critically acclaimed[1] films as Making Mr. Right, JFK, and Mistress. Metcalf frequently works in Chicago theater, where she is known for her performance in the 1983 revival of Lanford Wilson's play Balm in Gilead. She has also appeared in commercials for Plan USA, a humanitarian organization which helps children in need around the world.[2]
She is a three-time Emmy Award winner,[3] and has won both a Theatre World Award and two Obie Awards for her work on the stage. Metcalf starred as Mary Tyrone in Eugene O'Neill's Long Day's Journey into Night, with David Suchet, Kyle Soller and Trevor White. This production was performed at London's Apollo Theatre until August 18, 2012.[4] In early 2013, she was critically acclaimed for her performance as Juliana Smithton in Sharr White's The Other Place on Broadway, a role she originated off-Broadway in 2011 and for which she won an Obie. In later 2013, she starred in the Broadway play Domesticated with Jeff Goldblum and stars in the HBO series Getting On.[5] In December 2013, she was cast as the mother character Marjorie McCarthy in the CBS comedy The McCarthys.[6]
Early life
Metcalf was born in Carbondale, Illinois, the eldest of three children, with her brother James, and sister Linda,[7] and was raised in Edwardsville, Illinois, which she has said "isn't anywhere near a theatre".[8] Her father, James, was the budget director at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville at the time of his sudden death in 1984,[9][failed verification] and her mother, Libby, was a librarian.[10][11] Her great-aunt was the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Zoë Akins.[12] Metcalf is an alumna of Illinois State University, class of 1976.[13] She worked as a "damn good" secretary while in college and thoroughly enjoyed seeing a pile of paper in the to-do box on one side of her desk move over to the completed side by the end of the day, as she often zoned in on the task at hand and worked through lunch.[8] She originally majored in German thinking she could work as an interpreter and then in Anthropology before accepting that majoring in Theatre was her true passion, and has said that theatre work also involves the interpreting and studying human behavior.[8] She has described herself as hideously shy, yet found the courage to audition for a few plays in high school and was "hooked", yet never considered acting as a career because of the unlikelihood of it actually leading to regular work.[8] She liked bike riding as a child.[14]
Career
Stage
Metcalf attended Illinois State University and obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Theater in 1977. While at ISU, she met fellow theater students, among them John Malkovich, Glenne Headly, Joan Allen, Terry Kinney, and Jeff Perry, the latter two of whom, along with Perry's high school classmate Gary Sinise, went on to establish Chicago's famed Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Metcalf began her professional career at Steppenwolf, of which she was a charter member.[1][15] In 1983, Metcalf went to New York to appear in a Steppenwolf production of Balm in Gilead, for which she received the 1984 Obie Award for Best Actress and a 1984-1985 Theatre World Award (for best debut in a Broadway or Off-Broadway performance).[1] Metcalf was showered with praise for her performance as "Darlene", and was specifically singled out for her tour de force twenty-minute Act Two monologue.[16]
There's a moment when Laurie Metcalf – who plays this poor young thing that comes to the big city and hangs out at this greasy spoon diner where the play is set – is talking about her once boyfriend who is an albino; I think it's a monologue of about five, six, seven minutes. Just to sit there and watch and hear Laurie unspool that story, it just brought tears coming down your eyes–oh, boy, it was something.
— Chicago critic Richard Christiansen on Balm in Gilead
Thereafter, Metcalf relocated to Manhattan and began to work in both film and theater, including such productions as David Mamet's November.
Through the end of June 2009, Metcalf starred with French Stewart in Justin Tanner's play, Voice Lessons, in Hollywood before beginning rehearsals to play Kate Jerome in the Broadway revival of Neil Simon's semi-autobiographical plays Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound, directed by David Cromer. The former production's run, however, lasted but one week, while the latter was canceled prior to opening. Voice Lessons, however, with its original cast intact, went on to two more runs - one Off-Broadway in May 2010,[17] and another in Hollywood in May 2011.[18]
In September 2010, Metcalf returned to Steppenwolf and starred in Lisa D'Amour's play, Detroit. In the Spring of 2011, she began work on an Off-Broadway play, The Other Place by Sharr White.[19]
In 2012, Metcalf joined British actor David Suchet in a British stage production of Eugene O'Neill's Long Day's Journey into Night.
She performed in The Other Place again in 2013, this time on Broadway and earning a Tony nomination. She starred with her real life daughter, Zoe Perry.[20] In October 2013, Metcalf performed with Jeff Goldblum in Domesticated, by playwright Bruce Norris at the Mitzi Newhouse Theater of Lincoln Center. She was then cast in the role of Annie Wilkes in the Broadway production of Stephen King's Misery, opposite Bruce Willis. The play premiered on Sunday, November 15, 2015. It received mixed reviews from critics, however Metcalf's performance was universally acclaimed with many reviewers considering her as a front runner for the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.[21]
Television and film
Metcalf has performed in roles that range from very large to very small in many films, including Desperately Seeking Susan, Making Mr. Right, Miles from Home, Internal Affairs, Stars and Bars, Beer League, Mistress, A Dangerous Woman, Uncle Buck, Blink, The Secret Life of Houses, Treasure Planet, Toy Story, Runaway Bride, Bulworth, Meet the Robinsons, Georgia Rule, Fun with Dick and Jane, Leaving Las Vegas, Scream 2, Stop Loss, and Hop.
Metcalf has often appeared against type in both film and television; in JFK, she played a dramatic role as one of Jim Garrison's chief investigators. She appeared as the murderous mother of Billy Loomis in the horror film Scream 2, and portrayed real-life Carolyn McCarthy in the television movie The Long Island Incident.
Metcalf has appeared in several television series, including being a cast member for a single episode of Saturday Night Live – the final episode of the show's tumultuous 1980-1981 season. In 1981, she appeared as a feature player on the first Dick Ebersol-produced episode of Saturday Night Live following the firing of Jean Doumanian. She appeared in a Weekend Update segment about taking a bullet for the President of the United States. Because of the sketch show's severe decline in quality at the time and the 1981 Writers Guild of America strike, the show was put on hiatus for retooling. Metcalf was never asked back to be a cast member.
Metcalf is perhaps best known for her role as "Jackie", the multiple-careered, low self-esteemed, amiable sister of the title character in the hit series Roseanne. Her performance garnered her three consecutive Emmy Awards. Roseanne ran from 1988 to 1997, and Laurie appeared as Jackie over the show's entire run.
She subsequently appeared with Norm Macdonald on The Norm Show (or Norm), which ran for three seasons, and was also a regular character on the 2003 Nathan Lane series Charlie Lawrence, which was cancelled after the airing of two episodes. Metcalf has made guest appearances on Absolutely Fabulous, Malcolm in the Middle, My Boys, Dharma & Greg, Frasier, The Big Bang Theory, Without a Trace, 3rd Rock from the Sun, and Monk; she was nominated for the Emmy Award as Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series for both of the latter two listed roles.
She took a recurring role on Desperate Housewives – for which she received an Emmy (also in the category Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series) and a Satellite Award nomination – and also appeared alongside her ex-husband Jeff Perry in an episode of Grey's Anatomy. In fall 2008, Metcalf starred in the CW dramedy Easy Money, as the matriarch of a family of loan sharks. The series was canceled after three episodes.
Metcalf starred in HBO's Getting On during its run from 2013-2015.
Personal life
In 1983, Metcalf married Jeff Perry, co-founding member of Steppenwolf Theatre Company. They had a daughter, Zoe, in 1984, and later divorced, in 1992.[22]
Metcalf later began a relationship with Matt Roth, the Roseanne co-star who played her abusive boyfriend, Fisher. By November 1993 they had a son, Will, and eventually married. They also worked together on occasion, as in the 1994 feature film thriller Blink and the 1998 drama Chicago Cab;[23] they also appeared together in an episode of Desperate Housewives. Their daughter Mae Akins was born in 2005 via surrogate. They had a second son Donovan whom they fostered at 6 years old in 2006 and permanently adopted.[24] On November 26, 2008, Metcalf and Roth separated. In September 2011, Roth filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. In May 2014 they officially divorced.[25]
Metcalf enjoys doing yoga before a performance and practices all of her lines out loud before a show.[26] She also enjoys playing Bananagrams[26] and not wearing makeup.[27] She has self-disclosed as a workaholic and that she is hard on herself during rehearsals.[5] She has often said that she prefers theatre to any acting medium as it is where she feels most comfortable.[5]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | A Wedding | Maid | Uncredited Role |
| 1985 | Desperately Seeking Susan | Leslie Glass | |
| 1987 | Making Mr. Right | Sandy | |
| 1988 | Candy Mountain | Alice | |
| 1988 | Stars and Bars | Melissa | |
| 1988 | The Appointments of Dennis Jennings | Emma | Short film |
| 1988 | Miles from Home | Exotic Dancer | |
| 1989 | Uncle Buck | Marcie Dahlgren-Frost | |
| 1990 | Internal Affairs | Amy Wallace | |
| 1990 | Pacific Heights | Stephanie MacDonald | |
| 1991 | JFK | Susie Cox | |
| 1992 | Mistress | Rachel Landisman | |
| 1993 | A Dangerous Woman | Anita Bell | |
| 1994 | The Secret Life of Houses | Ann | |
| 1994 | Blink | Candice | |
| 1995 | Leaving Las Vegas | Landlady | |
| 1995 | Toy Story | Mrs. Davis | Voice role |
| 1996 | Dear God | Rebecca Frazen | |
| 1997 | U Turn | Bus Station Clerk | |
| 1997 | Chicago Cab | Female Ad Exec | |
| 1997 | Scream 2 | Debbie Loomis/Debbie Salt | |
| 1998 | Bulworth | Mimi | |
| 1999 | Runaway Bride | Betty Trout | Uncredited Role |
| 1999 | Toy Story 2 | Mrs. Davis | Voice role |
| 2000 | Timecode | Dava Adair | Scenes Deleted |
| 2002 | Treasure Planet | Sarah Hawkins | Voice role |
| 2005 | Fun with Dick and Jane | Phyllis | Uncredited Role |
| 2006 | Steel City | Marianne Karn | |
| 2006 | Beer League | Artie's Mom | |
| 2007 | Meet the Robinsons | Lucille Krunklehorn-Robinson | Voice role |
| 2007 | Georgia Rule | Paula Richards | |
| 2008 | Stop-Loss | Mrs. Colson | |
| 2008 | Persepolis | Mother of a young teenage boy | Voice role |
| 2010 | Toy Story 3 | Mrs. Davis | Voice role |
| 2011 | Hop | Mrs. Bunny | Voice role |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Saturday Night Live | Weekend Update Reporter | Episode 119 |
| 1985 | The Execution of Raymond Graham | Carol Graham | Television film |
| 1986 | The Equalizer | Theresa | Episode: "No Conscience" |
| 1988–97 | Roseanne | Jackie Harris | 221 episodes Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Comedy Series (1992–94) Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Comedy Series (1995) Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Series, Miniseries or Television Film (1993, 1995) |
| 1995–96 | Duckman | Voice role Episodes: "Research and Destroy" and "Forbidden Fruit" | |
| 1997 | King of the Hill | Cissy Cobb | Episode: "Peggy the Boggle Champ" |
| 1997 | The Eddie Files | Special Agent Hicks | Episode: "Decimals - The Fake Money Caper" |
| 1997 | Life with Louie | Miss Kinney | Voice role Episode: "The Kiss Is the Thing" |
| 1997 | Dharma & Greg | Spyder | Episode: "Instant Dharma" |
| 1998 | Always Outnumbered | Halley Grimes | Television film |
| 1998 | The Long Island Incident | Carolyn McCarthy | Television film |
| 1998 | 3rd Rock from the Sun | Jennifer Ravelli | Episodes: "What's Love Got to Do, Got to Do With Dick?", "I Am Dick Pentameter!" and "D3 - Judgment Day" Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress - Comedy Series |
| 1999 | Balloon Farm | Casey Johnson | Television film |
| 1999–2001 | The Norm Show | Laurie Freeman | 54 episodes |
| 2000 | God, the Devil and Bob | Donna Allman | Voice role 13 episodes |
| 2002 | Two Families | Unsold pilot | |
| 2003 | Phil at the Gate | Teddy Duffy | Unsold pilot |
| 2003 | Charlie Lawrence | Sarah Dolecek | 7 episodes |
| 2004 | Malcolm in the Middle | Susan | Episode: "Lois's Sister" |
| 2004 | Frasier | Nanny G | Episode: "Caught in the Act" |
| 2004 | Absolutely Fabulous | Crystalline | Episode: "White Box" |
| 2005 | Without a Trace | Susan Hopkins | Episode: "A Day in the Life" |
| 2006 | Monk | Cora | Episode: "Mr. Monk Bumps His Head" Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress - Comedy Series |
| 2006 | Grey's Anatomy | Beatrice Carver | Episode: "The Name of the Game" |
| 2006 | Desperate Housewives | Carolyn Bigsby | 4 episodes Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress - Comedy Series Nominated — Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series |
| 2006 | My Boys | Aunt Phyllis | Episode: "When Heroes Fall from Grace" |
| 2007 | The Virgin of Akron, Ohio | Lydia | Pilot episode |
| 2007 | Raines | Alice Brody | Episode: "Reconstructing Alice" |
| 2007–present | The Big Bang Theory | Mary Cooper | Season 1-present (recurring) |
| 2008–09 | Easy Money | Bobette Buffkin | 8 episodes |
| 2009 | The Farm | Warden Margaret Elder | Unsold pilot |
| 2013 | The Goodwin Games | Dr. Richland[28] | |
| 2013–15 | Getting On | Dr. Jenna James | Series regular |
| 2014–present | Tim & Eric's Bedtime Stories | Gabrielle | Guest star |
| 2014–15 | The McCarthys | Marjorie McCarthy | Series regular |
| 2016 | Horace and Pete | Sarah | Guest star |
Awards and nominations
References
- ^ a b c Hal Erickson. "Laurie Metcalf - Biography - Movies & TV - NYTimes.com". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. AllRovi. Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
- ^ "Plan International USA – Laurie Metcalf". youtube.com. June 4, 2010. Retrieved December 24, 2012.
- ^ "Laurie Metcalf Emmy Awards & Nominations". Primetime Emmy® Award Database. Emmys.com. Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
- ^ "tims" (User) (March 8, 2012). "Long Day's Journey into Night at the Apollo Theatre, London". Apollo Theatre London. Apollotheatrelondon.co.uk. Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
{{cite web}}:|author=has generic name (help) - ^ a b c Mary Kaye Schilling. "Laurie Metcalf on Domesticated and Getting On -- Vulture". Vulture.com. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- ^ Nellie Andreeva. "Laurie Metcalf To Star In CBS Comedy Pilot 'The McCarthys'". Deadline.com. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- ^ "Lauren Elizabeth Metcalf - Genealogy". Geni.com. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- ^ a b c d http://americantheatrewing.org/downstagecenter/detail/laurie_metcalf/ Archived 2011-05-09 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Free Family Tree, Genealogy and Family History - MyHeritage". familytreelegends.com. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- ^ "Laurie Metcalf Biography (1955-)". Film Reference. Filmreference.com. Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
- ^ "STLtoday.com - St. Louis Post-Dispatch Archives". Nl.newsbank.com. September 1, 1992. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
- ^ Michael Hooper. "Laurie bio". Wchstv.com. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
- ^ "Illinois State University Alumni Magazine". Blogs.ilstu.edu. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
- ^ Christon, Lawrence (April 23, 1995). "INTERVIEW : She's No Mere Sister Act : Laurie Metcalf is known to TV fans as sibling to the turbulent star. Now she's traveling about 3,000 miles away from Roseanne. But it's not what you think. (Really.)". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ "Laurie Metcalf: Ensemble Member Bio". Steppenwolf.org. Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
- ^ Christiansen, Richard (March 1, 2002). "Steppenwolf's Balm in Gilead was the best play Christiansen ever saw". Performink. Carrie Kaufman. PerformInk Online. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
- ^ Laurie Metcalf & French Stewart Take Voice Lessons Off-Broadway Playbill article by Harry Haun
- ^ "''Voice Lessons'' at Sacred Fools Theater Company - production website". Sacredfools.org. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
- ^ Laurie Metcalf Journeys to The Other Place Off-Broadway Beginning March 11 Playbill article by Adam Hetrick
- ^ "It's a Family Affair! Laurie Metcalf's Daughter, Zoe Perry, Joins The Other Place as Her Stage Daughter". Broadway.com. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- ^ Laurie Metcalf Joins Bruce Willis in Broadway ‘Misery’ |accessdate=October 28, 2015}}
- ^ Hoffman, Barbara (April 10, 2008). "DIFFERENT FAMILY VALUES". New York Post. News Corporation. NYPost.com. Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
- ^ Laurie Metcalf, Yahoo! Movies, accessed June 29, 2011.
- ^ "Movie Reviews, Trailers, Listings & Showtimes - Time Out Chicago". Time Out Chicago. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- ^ Dyball, Rennie (September 21, 2011). "Laurie Metcalf Is Getting Divorced". people.com. Retrieved December 24, 2012.
- ^ a b Heller, Scott (June 14, 2012). "Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf on Acting in O'Neill". The New York Times.
- ^ "Althouse". althouse.blogspot.ca. Retrieved September 18, 2015. [unreliable source?]
- ^ Masters, Megan. "Exclusive: Roseanne's Laurie Metcalf Books Arc on Fox's New Comedy The Goodwin Games". TVline.com. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
- ^ "Ovation Nominees". September 16, 2013.
- ^ "A Troubie Triumph at the Ovation Awards". November 14, 2011.
External links
- Laurie Metcalf at IMDb
- Laurie Metcalf at the Internet Broadway Database
- Please use a more specific IOBDB template. See the template documentation for available templates.
- 1955 births
- Living people
- 20th-century American actresses
- 21st-century American actresses
- Actresses from Illinois
- American film actresses
- American television actresses
- American stage actresses
- American voice actresses
- American women comedians
- Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Primetime Emmy Award winners
- Illinois State University alumni
- People from Carbondale, Illinois
- People from Madison County, Illinois
- American sketch comedians