Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker | |
|---|---|
 Mary-Louise Parker at the San Diego Comic-Con International in July 2010 | |
| Born | August 2, 1964 Fort Jackson, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Alma mater | North Carolina School of the Arts |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1988–present |
| Partner(s) | Billy Crudup (1996–2003) Jeffrey Dean Morgan (2006–08) |
| Children | 2 |
Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. Best known for her lead role on Showtime's television series Weeds portraying Nancy Botwin, she received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in 2006. Parker has appeared in films and series including RED, RED 2, Fried Green Tomatoes, Boys on the Side, The West Wing, and Angels in America, for which she received a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Parker is also the recipient of the 2001 Tony Award for Best Actress for her performance in the Broadway play Proof.
Early life
Parker was born in Fort Jackson, South Carolina. The youngest of four children,[1] she is the daughter of Caroline Louise (née Morell) and John Morgan Parker, a judge who served in the U.S. Army.[2][3][4] Her ancestry includes Swedish (from her maternal grandfather), English, Scottish, Scots-Irish, German, and Dutch.[5] Because of her father's career, Parker spent parts of her childhood in Tennessee and Texas, as well as in Thailand, Germany, and France.[6][7] She described her childhood as "profoundly unhappy", further noting that, "My parents did everything they could; I had books, clothes, a home and a warm bed, but I was never happy".[1] She graduated from Marcos de Niza High School in Tempe, Arizona. Parker majored in drama at the North Carolina School of the Arts and graduated in 1986.[1]
Career
1980s
 | This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. (May 2014) |
Parker got her start in a role on the soap opera Ryan's Hope. In the late 1980s, Parker moved to New York. After a few minor roles, she made her Broadway debut in a 1990 production of Craig Lucas' Prelude to a Kiss, playing the lead role of Rita. She moved with the production when it transferred from its origin Off-Broadway. She won the Clarence Derwent Award for her performance and was nominated for a Tony Award (although she did not play the role when the film was made).
1990s
She starred with Kevin Kline in Grand Canyon (1991); with Kathy Bates, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Jessica Tandy in Fried Green Tomatoes (1991); with Susan Sarandon and Tommy Lee Jones in The Client (1994); with John Cusack in Bullets over Broadway (1994); and with Drew Barrymore and Whoopi Goldberg in Boys on the Side (1995), as a woman with AIDS. Her next role was in a movie adaptation of another Craig Lucas play, Reckless (1995), alongside Mia Farrow, followed by Jane Campion's The Portrait of a Lady (1996), which also starred Nicole Kidman, Viggo Mortensen, Christian Bale, John Malkovich and Barbara Hershey. In addition, she appeared alongside Matthew Modine in Tim Hunter's The Maker (1997).
Parker's theater career continued when she appeared in Paula Vogel's 1997 critical smash How I Learned to Drive, with David Morse.[8] In the late 1990s, she appeared in several independent films, including Let the Devil Wear Black and The Five Senses.
2001–2003
On December 7, 2003, HBO aired a six-and-a-half hour adaptation of Tony Kushner's acclaimed Broadway play Angels in America, directed by Mike Nichols. Parker played Harper Pitt, the Mormon Valium-addicted wife of a closeted lawyer. For her performance, Parker received Golden Globe and Emmy awards[9] for Best Supporting Actress in a Miniseries.
2004–2006
In 2004, Parker appeared in the comedy Saved!, and a television film called Miracle Run, based on the true story of a mother of two sons with autism, as well as appearing in Craig Lucas' Reckless on Broadway. Parker took the lead role that had been Mia Farrow's on screen. The production, directed by Mark Brokaw, earned Parker another nomination for a Tony Award for Best Actress in 2005.[10]
In November 2005, Parker was the subject of a career exhibition at Boston University, where memorabilia from her career were donated to the University's library. Parker received the 2006 Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy, given by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, for her lead role in Weeds. In that category, she defeated the four leads of Desperate Housewives. She dedicated the award to the late John Spencer, known for his work as Leo McGarry on The West Wing. After receiving the award, Parker stated: "I'm really in favor of legalizing marijuana. I don't think it's that controversial."[11]
2007 onwards
In March 2007, Parker played the lead role in the television film The Robber Bride. She then portrayed Zerelda Mimms in the Andrew Dominik film The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, which opened in cinemas in September 2007. Parker appeared alongside Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sam Rockwell and Garret Dillahunt. In August 2007, Parker continued her role in the third season of Weeds.
In August 2007, she posed nude for an ad for the third season of Weeds. In the ad, she appears as Eve in the Garden of Eden, with a snake draped around her body and a cannabis leaf behind her ear.[12]
Parker appeared in 2008's The Spiderwick Chronicles and in off-Broadway's Playwrights Horizons production in the New York premiere of Dead Man's Cell Phone, a new play by Sarah Ruhl, alongside Drama Desk Award Winner Kathleen Chalfant.[13]
She filmed the Donna Vermeer film Les Passages alongside Julie Delpy. Following this, she returned to work on the fifth season of Weeds. Parker took the lead role in the Roundabout Theatre Broadway revival of the play Hedda Gabler, running from January through March 29, 2009.[14] The play garnered a series of negative reviews.[15]
Parker starred opposite Bruce Willis in the film RED, an adaptation of the comic book mini-series of the same name. The film was released on October 15, 2010.[16] In 2011, Parker became the host for the tenth season of the PBS documentary series Independent Lens.[17] In 2013 she played roles in both RED 2 and R.I.P.D. She appeared in the Broadway Manhattan Theatre Club production of the play The Snow Geese by Sharr White at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre from October 24 through December 15, 2013. The play was directed by Daniel J. Sullivan and also starred Danny Burstein and Victoria Clark.[18]
She starred in the new play by Simon Stephens, Heisenberg, produced Off-Broadway by the Manhattan Theatre Club. The play, directed by Mark Brokaw, opened on June 2, 2015.[19] The play extended its run, closing on July 11, 2015.[20] The play will transfer to Broadway at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, with previews starting on September 20, 2016, and Parker and her co-star Denis Arndt reprising their roles.[21]
Personal life
From 1997 to November 2003, Parker dated actor Billy Crudup, with whom she had a son, William Atticus Parker, born in 2004.[22] William's godmother is actress Susan Sarandon.[1]
In December 2006, Parker began dating actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan, whom she met on the set of Weeds.[23] On February 12, 2008, Parker and Morgan announced their engagement,[24] only to break up the following April.[25]
In 2009, Parker was dating singer Charlie Mars, and appeared in a video for his "Listen to the Darkside."[26][27]
In September 2007, Parker adopted a baby girl, Caroline Aberash Parker, from Ethiopia.[28][29]
In 2013 Parker was honored for her work with Hope North, an organization that works in the educating and healing of young victims in Uganda's civil war. The actress began her involvement with the organization after meeting a former victim of Uganda's civil war.[30]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Too Young the Hero | Pearl Spencer | Television film |
| 1989 | Signs of Life | Charlotte | |
| 1989 | Longtime Companion | Lisa | |
| 1991 | Fried Green Tomatoes | Ruth Jamison | |
| 1991 | Grand Canyon | Dee | |
| 1993 | Mr. Wonderful | Rita | |
| 1993 | Naked in New York | Joanne White | |
| 1994 | Bullets over Broadway | Ellen | |
| 1994 | A Place for Annie | Linda | Television film |
| 1994 | The Client | Dianne Sway | |
| 1995 | Reckless | Pooty | |
| 1995 | Sugartime | Phyllis McGuire | Television film |
| 1995 | Boys on the Side | Robin Nickerson | |
| 1996 | The Portrait of a Lady | Henrietta Stackpole | |
| 1997 | Murder in Mind | Caroline Walker | |
| 1997 | The Maker | Officer Emily Peck | |
| 1998 | Goodbye Lover | Peggy Blane | |
| 1998 | Saint Maybe | Lucy Dean Bedloe | Television film |
| 1998 | Legalese | Rica Martin | Television film |
| 1999 | The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn | Dr. Valerie Crane | Television film |
| 1999 | Let the Devil Wear Black | Julia Hirsch | |
| 1999 | The Five Senses | Rona | |
| 2000 | Cupid & Cate | Cate DeAngelo | Television film |
| 2002 | Red Dragon | Molly Graham | |
| 2002 | Master Spy: The Robert Hanssen Story | Bonnie Hanssen | Television film |
| 2002 | The Quality of Mercy | Sarah Richardson | |
| 2002 | Pipe Dream | Toni Edelman | |
| 2004 | Saved! | Lillian Cummings | |
| 2004 | The Best Thief in the World | Sue Zaidman | |
| 2004 | Miracle Run | Corrine Morgan-Thomas | Television film |
| 2005 | Vinegar Hill | Ellen Grier | Television film |
| 2006 | Romance & Cigarettes | Constance Murder | |
| 2007 | The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford | Zee James | |
| 2007 | The Robber Bride | Zenia | Television film |
| 2008 | The Spiderwick Chronicles | Helen Grace | |
| 2009 | Solitary Man | Jordan | |
| 2010 | Howl | Gail Potter | |
| 2010 | RED | Sarah Ross | |
| 2013 | R.I.P.D. | Mildred Proctor | |
| 2013 | RED 2 | Sarah Ross | |
| 2013 | Christmas in Conway | Suzy Mayor | |
| 2014 | Behaving Badly | Lucy Stevens | |
| 2014 | Jamesy Boy | Tracy Burns | |
| 2016 | Chronically Metropolitan | Annabel | Post-production |
Television
| Year | Show | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Ryan's Hope | — | Unknown episodes |
| 2001–2006 | The West Wing | Amy Gardner | 23 episodes |
| 2003 | Angels in America | Harper Pitt | 2 episodes |
| 2005–2012 | Weeds | Nancy Botwin | 102 episodes |
| 2014 | The Blacklist | Naomi Hyland | 4 episodes |
Theatre
| Year | Play | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990–1991 | Prelude to a Kiss | Rita | |
| 1993 | Four Dogs and a Bone | Brenda | Acted alongside Polly Draper |
| 1996 | Bus Stop | Cherie | |
| 1997 | How I Learned to Drive | Li'l Bit | |
| 2000–2003 | Proof | Catherine | |
| 2004 | Reckless | Rachel | |
| 2008 | Dead Man's Cell Phone | Jean | |
| 2009 | Hedda Gabler | Hedda Tesman | |
| 2013 | The Snow Geese | Elizabeth Gaesling |
Awards and nominations
References
- ^ a b c d Gordon, Meryl. "Mary-Louise Parker Likes to Reveal Herself". MORE Magazine. Retrieved August 28, 2014.
- ^ "Parker's career makes leap with 'Canyon', 'Tomatoes'". San Antonio Express-News. nl.newsbank.com. January 16, 1992. Retrieved November 7, 2010.
- ^ "Debra Messing – 5 Women Who Make Us Want to Be a Better Man" November 1, 2000, Esquire magazine
- ^ The Washington Post, October 14, 2010, Obituaries, John Morgan Parker
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000571/bio
- ^ Today's Profile. 2006 Biography from Current Biography.
- ^ Mary-Louise Parker Biography (1964–). Film Reference.com.
- ^ Robertson, Campbell. "You're Welcome to See Her Live, Not to Ask About Her Life". New York Times. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
- ^ Mary Louise Parker Emmy Award Winner
- ^ "14 Tony Nods For 'Spamalot'". CBS News. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
- ^ Parker: 'Legalise Cannabis' . Contact Music.com. January 17, 2006.
- ^ Snarker, Dorothy. "Mary-Louise Parker "Weeds" the garden of Eden". AfterEllen.com. Archived from the original on July 17, 2012. Retrieved March 31, 2010.
- ^ Main Stage Theater. Playwrights Horizons.org.
- ^ Jones, Kenneth. "Parker's 'Hedda Gabler' Takes Her Last Shot March 29" playbill.com, March 29, 2009
- ^ Broadway Plucks Mary-Louise Parker from Weeds. TV Guide.
- ^ "Red Begins Principal Photography". /Film. January 18, 2010. Retrieved January 18, 2010.
- ^ Introducing Our Illustrious New Host, Mary-Louise Parker!.
- ^ Staff. The Verdict: Critics Review The Snow Geese on Broadway Starring Mary-Louise Parker" playbill.com, October 25, 2013
- ^ Clement, Olivia. "MTC's 'Heisenberg', Starring Mary-Louise Parker, Opens Tonight" playbill.com, June 2, 2015
- ^ Clement, Olivia. "Demand for Mary-Louise Parker Play Continues; Show Extends a Final Time" playbill.com, June 17, 2015
- ^ Clement, Olivia. "'Heisenberg', with Mary-Louise Parker, Is Transferring to Broadway" playbill.com, February 2, 2016
- ^ "Boy on the Side", EW.com, January 14, 2004
- ^ McDonnell, Jen (December 10, 2007). "Weeds Star's Relationship Hasn't Gone To Pot".
- ^ Rush, George (February 12, 2008). "Mary-Louise Parker and Jeffrey Dean Morgan Engaged". The New York Daily News.
- ^ "Mary-Louise Parker, Fiancé Break Off Engagement". People.com. April 8, 2008. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtEXBhs2Vtw&feature=kp>
- ^ http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2009/06/catching-up-with-mary-louise-parker-of-weeds.html
- ^ Jones, Oliver (September 17, 2007). "Mary-Louise Parker Adopts a Child from Ethiopia". People.
- ^ "Reading is a favorite activity for Mary-Louise Parker and her kids". Celebrity Baby Blog. February 15, 2008. Retrieved May 12, 2008.
- ^ http://inthemixxshow.com/2870/fall-season-2013-episode-3-3
External links
- 1964 births
- Actresses from South Carolina
- American expatriates in France
- American expatriates in Germany
- American expatriates in Thailand
- American film actresses
- American people of Swedish descent
- American people of English descent
- American people of Scotch-Irish descent
- American people of Scottish descent
- American people of Dutch descent
- American people of German descent
- American soap opera actresses
- American stage actresses
- American television actresses
- Best Musical or Comedy Actress Golden Globe (television) winners
- Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe (television) winners
- Drama Desk Award winners
- Living people
- Military brats
- People from Columbia, South Carolina
- Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie Primetime Emmy Award winners
- Tony Award winners
- 20th-century American actresses
- 21st-century American actresses
- University of North Carolina School of the Arts alumni