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- Actor
- Producer
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Patrick Wayne Swayze was born on August 18, 1952 in Houston, Texas, to Patsy Swayze (née Yvonne Helen Karnes), a choreographer, and Jesse Wayne Swayze, a chemical plant
engineer draftsman. His mother owned a dance school in
Houston, where Patrick was also a student. His father passed away in
1982. He graduated from Waltrip High School in Houston, and attended
San Jacinto College in Pasadena, Texas. He married actress/dancer
Lisa Niemi on June 12, 1975, whom he had
known when she was 15 and a student at his mother's dance school. His
New York City dance training included the Harkness Ballet School and
Joffrey Ballet School. He first danced professionally as "Prince
Charming" in "Disney on Parade". After a stint as "Danny Zuko" in the
original Broadway production of "Grease", he made his film debut with a
small role in
Skatetown U.S.A. (1979). He
made his television debut in 1981 on
M*A*S*H (1972), as a soldier
diagnosed with leukemia.
After many supporting roles in films and a lead role in the TV
mini-series
North & South: Book 1, North & South (1985), he
landed his breakthrough role as dance instructor "Johnny Castle" in the
hit film Dirty Dancing (1987), for
which he received a Golden Globe nomination. He received a second
nomination for his portrayal of "Sam Wheat" in the blockbuster
Ghost (1990).
Ghost (1990) was the highest-grossing film
of 1990, and at one point, the fourth highest-grossing film of all
time. Unfortunately, he did not capitalize on its success. His
subsequent films like
City of Joy (1992),
Tall Tale (1995),
Black Dog (1998), and
Waking Up in Reno (2002) did
not fare well with critics or audiences. In December 2003, he returned
to Broadway as a replacement for the lead role of "Billy Flynn" in the
acclaimed revival of John Kander &
Fred Ebb's musical, "Chicago". The production
also went on tour in several cities of the United States, including Los
Angeles. In January 2008, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He
fought the illness for well over a year and was able to continue
working, but died on September 14, 2009.- Director
- Writer
- Producer
Wesley Wales Anderson was born in Houston, Texas. His mother, Texas Ann (Burroughs), is an archaeologist turned real estate agent, and his father, Melver Leonard Anderson, worked in advertising and PR. He has two brothers,
Eric and Mel. Anderson's parents divorced when he was a young child, an
event that he described as the most crucial event of his brothers and his
growing up. During childhood, Anderson also began writing plays and
making super-8 movies. He was educated at Westchester High School and
then St. John's, a private prep school in Houston, Texas, which was
later to prove an inspiration for the film
Rushmore (1998).
Anderson attended the University of Texas in Austin, where he majored
in philosophy. It was there that he met
Owen Wilson. They became friends and
began making short films, some of which aired on a local cable-access
station. One of their shorts was
Bottle Rocket (1993), which starred
Owen and his brother Luke Wilson.
The short was screened at the Sundance Film Festival, where it was
successfully received, so much so that they received funding to make a
feature-length version.
Bottle Rocket (1996) was not a
commercial hit, but it gained a cult audience and high-profile fans,
which included Martin Scorsese.
Success followed with films such as
Rushmore (1998),
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004),
The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
and an animated feature,
Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009). The
latter two films earned Anderson Oscar nominations.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Melissa Marie Benoist is an American actress, singer and dancer. She was raised in Littleton, Colorado , the daughter of Julie and Jim Benoist, a physician. She is of French, German, English, and Scottish descent. She started dance classes at the age of three and when she was four years old her aunt put her in a church play she was directing. As a teen, Benoist performed anonymously at Disneyland for three summers with the Academy of Theatre Arts, a musical theatre school located in Littleton, Colorado run by Paul Dwyer and Alann Worley. She performed locally in productions including Cinderella and Bye Bye Birdie at Town Hall Arts Center, and Evita at the Country Dinner Playhouse.
In 2006, The Denver Post named Benoist one of Colorado's five "Can't Miss Kids". She graduated from Arapahoe High School in Centennial, Colorado, in 2007,and from Marymount Manhattan College in New York City in 2011 with a Bachelor of arts in theatre arts. Benoist has become known for her portrayal of the title character in the CBS/CW superhero drama series Supergirl (2015). She had risen to prominence for her portrayal of Marley Rose on the fourth and fifth seasons of the Fox musical comedy-drama television series Glee (2009), and has appeared in films such as Whiplash (2014) ,Danny Collins (2015), The Longest Ride (2015), Lowriders (2016) , Patriots Day (2016) and Sun Dogs (2017).- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Jennifer Garner, who catapulted into stardom with her lead role on the television series Alias (2001), has come a long way from her birthplace of Houston, Texas. Raised in Charleston, West Virginia by her mother Patricia Ann (née English), a retired English teacher, and her father, Billy Jack Garner, a former chemical engineer, she is the second of their three daughters. She spent nine years of her adolescence studying ballet, and characterizes her years in dance as consisting of determination rather than talent, being driven mostly by a love of the stage.
Jennifer took this determination with her when she enrolled at Denison University as a chemistry major; later she changed her major when she discovered that her passion for the stage was stronger than her love of science. New York attracted the young actress after college, and she worked as a hostess while pursuing a career in film and television. Her most recent move has been to Los Angeles, a decision that led to a role on the television series Felicity (1998), where she met her future husband Scott Foley. The couple divorced in 2004.
Jennifer starred in the television series Alias (2001) as Agent Sydney Bristow, who works for the Central Intelligence Agency. For her work, Garner has received four consecutive Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. She has also received four Golden Globe nominations and won once, as well as received two Screen Actors Guild Award nominations, and won once. She has appeared in numerous other television production as well as such films as Elektra (2005), 13 Going on 30 (2004), Daredevil (2003), Pearl Harbor (2001) and Dude, Where's My Car? (2000). Aside from filming Alias (2001), Jennifer enjoys cooking, gardening, hiking, and--inspired by her character on the series--kickboxing. She married actor and filmmaker Ben Affleck in 2005, now her ex-husband, with whom she has three children.- Actress
- Writer
- Producer
Missi Pyle was born Andrea Kay Pyle on November 16, 1972 in Houston, Texas, and was raised in Memphis, Tennessee. The daughter of Linda and Frank Pyle, she has four older siblings, sisters Debbie and Julie, and brothers Sam and Paul. Pyle attended the North Carolina School of the Arts and graduated in 1995. Since then, Pyle has had a significant career in many films and television series. She has also established in parallel a singing career as a member of the country-rock band Smith & Pyle with actress Shawnee Smith.
Pyle has started an acting career playing a minor role in the comedy film As Good as It Gets (1997) starring Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt. Her following notable roles were in the sci-fi parody Galaxy Quest (1999), Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House (2002) where she played her first role as a villain, Tim Burton films Big Fish (2003) and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) starring Johnny Depp and Christopher Lee, Just My Luck (2006) starring Lindsay Lohan, and Soccer Mom (2008) where she had a double role. Pyle has also played guest roles on many television series such as Mad About You (1992) also starring Helen Hunt, Frasier (1993), The One with Ross' Teeth (1999), Ally McBeal (1997), three episodes of Two and a Half Men (2003), three episodes of Boston Legal (2004), Grey's Anatomy (2005), two episodes of Heroes (2006), and two episodes of The Mentalist (2008). Pyle is also an occasional voice actress, and has voiced characters in one episode of series Family Guy (1999) and two episodes of American Dad! (2005).
Pyle began a career as a singer when she met Shawnee Smith in 2007 while filming an ABC comedy pilot. Pyle stated that her dream was to be in a rock band, and Smith gave her the opportunity by creating the country-rock band Smith & Pyle in Los Angeles, California. Their debut album "It's OK to Be Happy" (2008) was recorded in Joshua Tree, California and was released under their own record label when they became business partners. Their first live performance was in Texas on January 18, 2008 and since then, the band performed in many other states, especially in West Virginia, until May 29, 2010 in California. In 2011, the actresses officially disbanded before their second album was completed.- Viola Lynn Collins was born in Houston, Texas, to Patricia Lynn (Campbell) and Phillip Dean Collins. She attended the Juilliard School for
Drama and had a great deal of Shakespearean training before being cast
as "Portia" in "The Merchant of Venice". She also played "Ophelia" in a
production of "Hamlet" in New York, and was "Juliet" in
Peter Hall's "Romeo and Juliet" at
the Ahmanson theatre in Los Angeles. - Actress
- Director
- Producer
Melora Hardin is an American actress, singer and director from Houston, Texas who is known for playing Jan Levinson from The Office and Trudy Monk from Monk. She also acted in The Rocketeer, 24 Dresses, 17 Again, Hannah Montana: The Movie, Transparent, The Bold Type and The Hot Chick. She had two daughters with Gildart Jackson, a British actor.- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Kimberly Alexis Bledel was born in Houston, Texas, to Nanette (Dozier) and Martin Bledel. Her parents are both Spanish-speakers (her mother was born in Arizona and raised in Mexico, and her father was born in Argentina), and Alexis's ancestry includes Danish, Welsh, English, Scottish, Irish, and French.
Alexis made her television debut in Gilmore Girls (2000), after spending years in front of the camera as a model. Bledel's parents encouraged her to try community theater in Houston when she was 8 years old, hoping it would help their daughter overcome her shyness. She went on to perform in productions of Our Town, The Wizard of Oz and Aladdin, and later was scouted in a local mall to model. She began her modeling career while still in high school, traveling all over to locations like Tokyo, Milan, New York and Los Angeles. After graduating, she enrolled at NYU as a film major. In the Spring of 2000, Bledel landed a manager through her modeling agency and headed to Los Angeles for her first pilot season, where she quickly landed the coveted role of Rory on Gilmore Girls (2000).
When she's not working, Bledel enjoys writing, reading, shooting photography, going to the movies and spending time with her family. She was married to actor Vincent Kartheiser, with whom she has a son.- Actor
- Producer
- Music Department
Dennis William Quaid was born on April 9, 1954 in Houston, Texas to Juanita Bonniedale "Nita" Quaid (née Jordan), a real estate agent & William Rudy Quaid, an electrician. He grew up in the Houston suburban city of Bellaire. He was raised a Baptist, and studied drama, Mandarin Chinese, and dance while a student
at Bellaire High School. He continued study at the University of
Houston, but dropped out before completing his degree. He moved to Los
Angeles to pursue a film career where his brother,
Randy Quaid, had already began to build a
successful career. However, Dennis initially had trouble finding film
roles, but began to gain notice when he appeared in
Breaking Away (1979) and earned
strong reviews for his role in
The Right Stuff (1983). Aside
from acting, Quaid is also a musician, and plays with his band, "The
Sharks". He holds a flying license and is a five handicap golfer.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Having grown up in Houston, and its northern suburb of Spring, he made his first stage appearance in a school play at the age of 6. Parsons then went on to study theater at the University of Houston. From there he won a place on a two-year Masters course in classical theater at the University of San Diego/The Old Globe Theater, graduating in 2001.
He moved to New York, working in Off-Broadway productions, appearing in TV commercials and in one episode of Ed (2000) before landing a recurring role in Judging Amy (1999) in 2004.
He was propelled to international fame and acclaim three years later when he starred as Sheldon in the award-winning sitcom,
The Big Bang Theory (2007).- Actress
- Music Department
- Producer
Hilary Erhard Duff was born on September 28, 1987 in Houston, Texas, to Susan Duff (née Cobb) and Robert Erhard Duff, a partner in convenience store chain. When Hilary was six, she had been traveling in the Cechetti Ballet with her sister Haylie Duff but decided she wanted to fulfill her dream of acting. Her first starring role was when she played the young witch "Wendy" in Casper Meets Wendy (1998).
Duff became a teen idol when she starred in the #1 hit Disney Channel series Lizzie McGuire (2001).
She has also starred in the movies The Lizzie McGuire Movie (2003), Agent Cody Banks (2003), Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), A Cinderella Story (2004), Raise Your Voice (2004), The Perfect Man (2005) and Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005).
Additionally, Duff stormed the music charts, with singles "So Yesterday" and "Come Clean" settling nicely into the top 40. Hilary's first album, "Metamorphosis", debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200, and eventually ascended to #1 in the following weeks.
She starred in Material Girls (2006) with her sister Haylie Duff and released her fourth studio album, Dignity (2007), with Hollywood Records.
In 2015, she released her fifth studio album, Breathe In. Breathe Out. She stars as Kelsey Peters in Younger (2015).- Actress
- Director
- Writer
Leven Alice Rambin is an American actress. She is known for playing look-alike half-sisters Lily Montgomery and Ava Benton on All My Children and her recurring roles in Grey's Anatomy and Gone, as well Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, One Tree Hill, Wizards of Waverly Place, and CSI: Miami. She appeared in the sci-fi film The Hunger Games (2012) as the District 1 tribute Glimmer, and appeared as Clarisse La Rue in the fantasy film Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013).
Rambin was born in Houston, Texas, to Joseph Howard Rambin III and the former Karen Stacy Guthrie, founders of a real estate company. She has three siblings, her brother, Joseph Rambin, an older half-sister, Mary Rambin, and an older half-brother, Jay Rambin. Rambin began performing in school plays, and studied at the Houston School of Film and Theatre. She also went to St. Francis Episcopal Day School, where she starred in her first school play. She then moved to New York when she got her first major role on All My Children. While acting, she has also pursued her high school diploma through the Texas Tech University Independent School District.
Rambin started her career at age of 13, as a series regular on ABC's All My Children from 2004 to 2008, playing the role of Lily Montgomery, the autistic daughter of Jackson Montgomery, played by Walt Willey. It was announced that Rambin had been cast in another role on All My Children, playing the street-smart but lovable older half sister of Lily Montgomery, Ava Benton, where the role only lasted for two consecutive years. Rambin was the only actress from All My Children to be nominated for the 33rd Annual Daytime Awards and 34th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards. She was nominated for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series for her roles of Lily Montgomery and Ava Benton. She later appeared on an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
In 2010, Rambin appeared as the daughter of Virginia Madsen's and David James Elliott's characters on the ABC television series, Scoundrels. However, the series ended its eight-episode run on August 15, 2010, due to low ratings. Rambin appeared on the Disney Channel show, Wizards of Waverly Place, in the recurring role of Rosie, who is a Guardian Angel turned Angel of Darkness who was in love with Justin to steal the Moral Compass; Rambin made her debut on the episode "Everything Rosie for Justin" and left the show after the episode "Wizards vs. Angels". Later, Rambin was cast in the recurring role of Chloe Hall, on the long-running CW series, One Tree Hill. Then later, Rambin was cast as Molly Sloan on the CBS crime-drama CSI: Miami.
Rambin was cast as Daisy in the romantic comedy Two Night Stand (2014). Rambin appeared in the comedy drama, Walter (2014) as Kendall, the main love interest of the title character. Rambin also appeared in Seven Minutes (2014) as Kate. She was cast as Natalie in The Tomorrow People, appearing in the final three episodes of the television series in 2014. Rambin later appeared in True Detective as Athena Bezzerides and appeared in the film I Am Michael in 2015 as Catherine. In 2014, she landed the lead role of Kayla Canyon in the independently produced pilot, Dr. Del, opposite John Hawkes. Later that year, she was cast in the lead role of Fern Sreaves in Tatterdemalion, an independent film co-written and directed by Ramaa Moseley. In 2016, she was cast in a series regular role on the Hulu cult drama, The Path, opposite Aaron Paul and Michelle Monaghan. In 2017, Rambin was cast in the starring role of Kick Lanigan in the NBC Universal series, Gone, based on the novel One Kick by Chelsea Cain.- Actress
- Writer
- Music Department
Annette O'Toole grew up in the Houston dance studio run by her mother. She made her television debut at the age of two, as a kid on The Don Mahoney Kiddie Trooper Show. When she was 13, with ten years of singing and dancing lessons behind her, she and her mother went to L.A. for a year to see if she could have a career in show business. Within two months, she got her first professional job: dancing with Danny Kaye on The Danny Kaye Show. "I've used my singing and dancing training in so many ways," she says. "The discipline you get from that is wonderful for an actor."
O'Toole's first acting role was in My Three Sons, followed by appearances in Gunsmoke, The Partridge Family, The Mod Squad, and Hawaii Five-O. Over the decades she has appeared in more than 40 series (among them Law & Order, Nash Bridges, and The Outer Limits), mini-series (Lonesome Dove, Dead by Sunset, Jewels) and TV movies, most notably playing (and singing as) Tammy Wynette in Stand By Your Man and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy in The Kennedys of Massachusetts, for which she received an Emmy nomination.
Playing Beverly Marsh in Stephen King's It is one of her fondest memories. (O'Toole judges her favorites based on the filming experience.) In this century, she played a bounty hunter on The Huntress, Clark Kent's adoptive mom on Smallville (where she and John Glover became lifelong friends) and Jim Carrey's mom on Kidding. She is currently a regular on the Netflix series Virgin River, renewed for a fifth season.
Her film career began in 1975, playing a Young American Miss contestant in Michael Ritchie's Smile. She has since appeared in such iconic films as 48 Hrs., Cat People, and Superman III as Lana Lang. (She has played Superman's adoptive mother and, here, his girlfriend.) Her favorite - out of all the TV and films - is the 1987 movie Cross My Heart, in which she co-starred with Martin Short as a couple on their third date, both of whom are trying to figure out how to share their biggest secrets.
For all her success in film and television, O'Toole's deepest love is the theater. When her six-year run on Smallville ended, she decided to focus on theater, which she has been doing for the past decade. She went to New York and her first audition led to her being cast in The Sea Gull. She has appeared in several off-Broadway productions, among them Adam Rapp's Kindness, Tracy Letts' Man from Nebraska, and Tennessee Williams' A Lovely Sunday For Creve Couer. (Performing on Broadway is still her goal.) She has also appeared in many regional productions, including Wendy Wasserstein's Third, Regina Taylor's Magnolia, and Jane Anderson's The Quality of Life.
Her most rewarding theatrical role was in Southern Comfort at the Public Theater in 2016. She played transgender male Robert Eads, for which she received the Lucille Lortel Award. ("Today they'd hire a transgender male," she says. "As they should.")
O'Toole's most fortuitous casting was co-starring with Michael McKean in the Lifetime movie Final Justice. Having known each other casually, they became good friends as they filmed in Portland. Back in L.A., their first date was the 1997 UCLA concert with Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, and Van Morrison. Soon after that they were married, each bringing along two children from previous marriages. Prolific songwriters - they co-wrote the Academy Award-nominated song "A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow" for the Christopher Guest film A Mighty Wind, which McKean starred in - they took their repertoire on the road in 2005, performing all around Los Angeles and at Feinstein's at the Regency in New York. They are currently working on a new musical called Harold and Lillian, based on a documentary of the same name.
"I'm really lucky because I found something that I love early on," O'Toole says, "and I love it even more now than I did then."- Mireille Enos was born in Houston, Texas, to Monique, a teacher,
and Jon Goree Enos. Her Texas-born American father, and French mother,
met while her father was serving on a Mission for the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter Day Saints. She is the fourth of five children and
grew up in Houston, Texas, where, following in her older siblings
footsteps, she attended The High School for the Performing and Visual
Arts. She then went to Brigham Young University. She spent ten years
living in New York City during which time she was nominated for a Tony
Award for her portrayal of "Honey" in
Edward Albee's "Who's Afraid of Virginia
Woolf?". She is now married to actor
Alan Ruck. - Actress
- Producer
- Writer
Shelley Alexis Duvall was born in Fort Worth, Texas, the first child to Bobbie Ruth
(Massengale, 1929-2020), a real estate broker, and Robert Richardson Duvall (1919-1994), a lawyer. At the time of her birth, her mother was visiting her grandmother in Fort Worth, though Duvall was raised in Houston. During her
childhood, Shelley's mother humorously gave Shelley the nickname "Manic
Mouse", because she would often run around her house and tip over
furniture. Shelley however was more than a mouse, but rather quite the
little artist. Her favorite thing to do when she was very young was
draw. She also has three brothers: Scott, Shane, and Stewart.
Shelley graduated from Waltrip High School in Texas and at first became
a cosmetics salesperson. It was in 1970 when Shelley was discovered by
talent scouts at a local party. Director Robert Altman wanted to cast
Shelley in a film that he was making during the time. Shelley had
experience in acting in high school plays at the time and took Altman's
offer and she appeared in her first film Brewster McCloud. Altman was
so fascinated by her performance that she appeared in his next films
including: McCabe and Mrs. Miller in 1971, Thieves Like Us in 1974, and
Nashville in 1975. Aside from these three successful films, Duvall's
acting blossomed in her leading role as Mille Lammoroux in 3 Women in
1977. Duvall's acting was so superb that she won Best Actress at the
1977 Cannes Film Festival. Shelley also starred as Bernice in Joan
Micklin Silver's Bernice Bobs Her Hair in 1976, and had a cameo in
Woody Allen's Annie Hall in 1977. In the same year, Shelley also hosted
an episode of Saturday Night Live.
When the 1980s hit, Duvall's career was just beginning. She is famously
known for playing the role of "Wendy Torrance" in Stanley Kubrick's The
Shining with Jack Nicholson. During the making of this film, Kubrick
psychologically tormented Duvall, causing her immense stress and affecting her mental state. He would often ignore her entirely during filming or would put in her situations which caused her immense fear and distress. The most
obvious example is when Kubrick shot the famous "baseball bat scene"
with Duvall and Nicholson 127 times, which is the world record for most
number of takes in any film set.
In January of 1979, Robert Altman would offer Duvall yet another role
in one of his films. Only the role was a certain role that Altman
believed she was born to play. That certain role was "Olive Oyl" in the
real life version of Popeye. Shelley was skeptical at first on
accepting the role, due to bad memories as a child of negatively being
called "Olive Oyl" in grade school. She fortunately decided to take the
role and performed admirably. Shelley also sings several songs in this
film. The most famous ones would be "He's Large" and "He Needs Me"
which also appeared in the film Punch Drunk Love.
As the 1980s rolled on, Shelley's career never slowed down. She
appeared as a supporting actress in Terry Gilliam's Time Bandits in
1981; she played "Susan Frankenstein" in Tim Burton's
Frankenweenie (1984) , and
co-starred in the hit comedy film Roxanne in 1987 starring Steve
Martin. From 1982 to 1986, Shelley continued her filming career but
from a different aspect. Since Shelley was 17, she had a collection of
a variety of illustrated classic fairy tale books. During the making of
Popeye, she showed her collection to Robin Williams. One particular
fairy tale she showed Robin was "The Frog Prince". Picturing Robin as
the real life Frog Prince, Shelley created Platypus Productions, her
own production company. Shelley went to Showtime with the idea for
airing a television program that was based on fairy tales. She produced
Fairy Tale Theater which Showtime aired that was a hit television
series that was based on several classic fairy tales. Fairy Tale
Theatre was on television from 1982-1987. Each episode was a one-hour
series and there were a total of twenty six episodes, all hosted by
Shelley Duvall. Shelley also starred in four out of the twenty six
episodes. In 1985, Ms. Duvall created Tall Tales and Legends that was
aired for three years until it ended in 1988. Similar to Fairy Tale
Theatre, Tall Tales and Legends was also a one-hour series hosted,
produced, and guest starred by Duvall. Although it only consisted of
nine episodes, Shelley was nominated for an Emmy from the series. In
the late 1980s and early 1990s, Shelley discovered Think Entertainment;
another production company which helped Shelley create more programs
and movies that were made for television that aired on common cable
channels. Shelley produced three more programs from these production
companies that aired on Showtime: Nightmare Classics, Shelley Duvall's
Bedtime Stories, and Mrs. Piggle Wiggle. Her Bedtime Stories program
earned her a 2nd Emmy Nomination. Shelley sold Think Entertainment in
1993 and retired as a producer.
In 1989, Shelley met Dan Gilroy while filming the Disney Channel movie Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme (1990), the two fell in love and they have been together ever since.
Shelley Duvall's later career found her a number of different roles.
She appeared in the family comedy Home Fries in 1998 playing "Mrs.
Jackson", Drew Barrymore's character's mother. Other comedic films
Shelley appeared in were Suburban Commando in 1991, and Changing Habits
in 1997. She also had cameos in several TV series' such as: Frasier,
L.A. Law, The Ray Bradbury Theater, Wishbone, and several others.
Shelley returned to the horror genre when she played "Martha Stewart"
in The 4th Floor in 1999 and played the role of "Mrs. Stein" in Big
Monster On Campus in 2000; which consisted of both the comedy and
horror genre.
Since 2002, Shelley Duvall has not acted in any films, but lives a
quiet and peaceful life in Blanco, Texas. She has lived in Blanco since
1994, after her home in Los Angeles got damaged by an earthquake. For
the last couple years, there have been several rumors about Duvall
being a "recluse" and not being in touch with reality. However, a
recent interview in 2010 was conducted by MondoFilm VideoGuide that had
heavy proof that Shelley is as normal and aware of reality as ever. She
has also noted in this interview that she takes care of several animals
at her home in Texas and writes a lot of poetry, and that returning to
acting is always a possibility.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Shannon Elizabeth was born in Houston, Texas, the daughter of a Syrian/Lebanese father. When Shannon was in 3rd grade, her family moved to Waco, Texas, to be close to relatives. As a girl, Shannon took dance lessons, including tap, ballet, and jazz. While attending high school, however, she was very interested in tennis. She even considered going pro and making tennis her life. During high school, she was active in cheerleading, dance team, and the student council. As a senior, Shannon was in a music video shot in Waco. The local music artists were called "Hi-5", and the director of that video just happened to be Antoine Fuqua. After graduating, Shannon moved to New York City to model. She then traveled all over the world with her newfound career to places that included Japan, Italy, France, and Australia. After moving to Los Angeles years later, she signed on with Ford Models and, eventually, Elite. Shannon had always wanted to start her acting career and had just modeled in hopes that it could help lead her into acting, which it did. About a year after moving to Los Angeles, she started taking acting classes with several different coaches. She got an agent, started working, and in 1999, she landed the iconic role of "Nadia" in the movie American Pie.
Shannon enjoys wearing even more hats these days. Since cutting her directing chops on music videos, she is now directing documentaries and film projects via her production company, Ganesha Productions. She also co-hosts the podcast The Art of Conservation.
Shannon also splits her time between the US and South Africa, running programs within her nonprofit, the Shannon Elizabeth Foundation. The mission is to improve this planet for the animals, environment, and indigenous people.- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Self-taught writer-director Richard Stuart Linklater was born in Houston, Texas, to Diane Margaret (Krieger), who taught at a university, and Charles W. Linklater III. Richard was among the first and most
successful talents to emerge during the American independent film
renaissance of the 1990s. Typically setting each of his movies during
one 24-hour period, Linklater's work explored what he dubbed "the youth
rebellion continuum," focusing in fine detail on generational rites and
mores with rare compassion and understanding while definitively
capturing the 20-something culture of his era through a series of
nuanced, illuminating ensemble pieces which introduced any number of
talented young actors into the Hollywood firmament. Born in Houston,
Texas, Linklater suspended his educational career at Sam Houston State
University in 1982, to work on an offshore oil rig in the Gulf of
Mexico. He subsequently relocated to the state's capital of Austin,
where he founded a film society and began work on his debut film,
1987's It's Impossible to Learn to Plow by Reading Books (1988). Three years later he released the sprawling Slacker (1990), an
insightful, virtually plotless look at 1990s youth culture that became
a favorite on the festival circuit prior to earning vast acclaim at
Sundance in 1991. Upon its commercial release, the movie, made for less
than $23,000, became the subject of considerable mainstream media
attention, with the term "slacker" becoming a much-overused catch-all
tag employed to affix a name and identity to America's disaffected
youth culture.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Brent Spiner, whose primary claim to fame is his portrayal of the
beloved android Data on the television series
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987),
was born and raised in Houston, Texas. His parents, Sylvia (Schwartz) and Jack Spiner, owned and operated a furniture store, and were both from Jewish immigrant families (from Austria, Hungary, and Russia). Jack died of kidney
failure at age 29, when Brent was 10 months old. When he was 6 years
old, his mother married Sol Mintz, who adopted Brent and his older
brother Ron. Although his mother divorced Mintz after 7 years of
marriage, Brent retained his adopted father's last name until 1975, when
he took back his birth name.
Spiner first began pursuing his interest in acting while in high
school. There his inspirational drama teacher, Cecil Pickett, gave a
great start to the careers of a remarkable group of aspiring young
actors (and directors), including Spiner,
Cindy Pickett (Cecil's daughter),
Randy Quaid,
Dennis Quaid,
Trey Wilson,
Robert Wuhl and
Thomas Schlamme, all of whom
later attained success in Hollywood. After graduation, Spiner followed
his mentor to the University of Houston and other local colleges, while
also launching his professional acting career in theater (The Houston
Music Theater and other regional theater) and in film
(My Sweet Charlie (1970),
which was shot on location in Texas). After a couple of false starts in
New York and Hollywood, Spiner eventually established himself as a
stage actor in New York, appearing in a number of off-Broadway and
Broadway plays, such as "A History of the American Film" (1978), "Leave
It to Beaver is Dead" (1979), "Sunday in the Park with George" (1984),
and "Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" (1985). While in
New York, he had a bit part in Woody Allen's
Stardust Memories (1980) and
starred in an independent film called
Rent Control (1981). The play
"Little Shop of Horrors "brought Spiner to Los Angeles in 1984, where
he eventually took up permanent residence.
In 1986, after a number of character parts in television series and
movies, such as
Robert Kennedy and His Times (1985),
Crime of Innocence (1985),
Manhunt for Claude Dallas (1986),
and Family Sins (1987),
Spiner snagged the role that would bring him international fame: Data,
the endearing android, whom Spiner played "by tapping into his inner
child."
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987),
the sequel to the original television series
Star Trek (1966), became hugely
popular, moving to the big screen for four films (so far) after its
7-year run on television. Aside from these films, Spiner has made cameo
appearances in a number of films directed by his friend and old
schoolmate Thomas Schlamme, such
as Miss Firecracker (1989),
Crazy from the Heart (1991),
and
Kingfish: A Story of Huey P. Long (1995),
and has appeared in small roles in more recent films, such as
Dude, Where's My Car? (2000)
and
The Master of Disguise (2002).
Arguably his most popular film portrayal was Dr. Brakish Okun in
Independence Day (1996), a role
that elicited his unique eccentricity and sense of humor. He reprised the character in the sequel, Independence Day: Resurgence (2016).- Actress
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
Born in Sugar Land, Texas, Allison Tolman earned a BFA in theatrical
performance from Baylor University. After graduation, she moved to
Dallas where she helped found and foster the independent ensemble based
non-profit Second Thought Theatre while also learning that the whole
being an adult thing is like, super hard. In 2009, she was accepted
into Second City's Conservatory Training Program and later went on to
write and perform sketch and satire with several groups throughout
Chicago, most notably the monthly comedy podcast The City Life
Supplement.
Throughout her career, Tolman has played a veterinary receptionist,
personal assistant, children's theatre teacher, vocal coach, phone
sales associate, client services representative, and dog walker - never
on film, but in her actual life in order to pay her rent and be able to
afford more tank tops from Target than any human actually needs.
(2014) Tolman lives in Chicago with a portly cat named Annie who enjoys
staring at her blankly whenever there is a house centipede in the
kitchen.- Actress
- Director
- Additional Crew
Lisa Niemi was born on 26 May 1956 in Houston, Texas, USA. She is an actress and director, known for One Last Dance (2003), She's Having a Baby (1988) and Super Force (1990). She has been married to Albert DePrisco since 25 May 2014. She was previously married to Patrick Swayze.- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Candice Rene King (née Accola) (born May 13, 1987) is an American actress, singer and songwriter, known for portraying the role of Caroline Forbes on The CW's The Vampire Diaries.
Candice King was born in Houston, Texas, the daughter of Carolyn (Clark), who was an environmental engineer before becoming a homemaker, and Kevin Accola, a cardio-thoracic surgeon. She has English, Romansh-Swiss, French, and Norwegian ancestry. She grew up in Edgewood, Florida and attended Lake Highland Preparatory School. Both her parents are active members of the local Republican political party. She has one younger brother, Kree Thomas Accola.
In December 2006, King released her debut album, It's Always the Innocent Ones, independently in the United States. She co-wrote thirteen of the fourteen tracks on the record. The remaining track was a cover of 'Til Tuesday's hit "Voices Carry (song)." In 2008 the album was re-released in Japan and achieved greater success. King toured as a backing singer for Miley Cyrus's Best of Both Worlds Tour. She appeared as herself in the 2008 3D concert film Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert. In February 2011, King performed a cover of "Eternal Flame" by The Bangles on The Vampire Diaries.
King had guest appearances in a number of television series such as How I Met Your Mother, Supernatural and Drop Dead Diva. In July 2009 she starred in the independent horror film Deadgirl which centers on two high school boys who discover an immortal woman in an abandoned asylum. That same year again King had a bit-role in The Hannah Montana Movie. In 2009 she was cast in The CW television series The Vampire Diaries as Caroline Forbes, a teenage vampire. The series was an immediate success with the series premiere reaching 4.91 million viewers. Critical reception for the show was mixed, but as the show commenced, critics were positive. For King's performance, reception from critics and fans alike was very positive and has remained that way, receiving many awards for her performance. In June 2012 she joined the YouTube series Dating Rules From My Future Self as Chloe Cunningham a 26-year-old girl who believes love does not exist. The series centers on a girl receiving romance advice from herself ten years in the future via text message. The first season of the series went on to receive over 14 million views.
Candice began dating musician Joe King of The Fray after they met at a Super Bowl event in February 2011. They became engaged in May 2013, and married on October 18, 2014 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Upon her marriage, she became a stepmother to Joe King's two daughters from his first marriage. In August 2015, it was announced that Candice and Joe were expecting their first child together. On January 15, 2016, King gave birth to a daughter which they named Florence May.
Along with her The Vampire Diaries co-stars Michael Trevino and Ian Somerhalder, King is a supporter of the It Gets Better Project, which aims to prevent suicide among LGBT youth. Though her parents are Republicans, Candice herself has shown support for President Barack Obama, and supports gay rights.- Actor
- Director
- Soundtrack
A native of Houston raised on Lookout Mountain outside of Golden,
Colorado, Greg Germann was exposed to the performing arts at an early
age, particularly through his father, an award-winning children's
playwright and theater professor. As a Theater major at the University
of Northern Colorado, a constant stream of plays led him to the gradual
realization that acting would be his professional future. Buckling down
at UNC, he graduated in two years and moved to New York. He became a
member of Circle Repertory Company and Ensemble Studio Theatre,
accumulating credits in such off-Broadway and Broadway plays as Steven
Sondheim musical "Assassins", "The Person I Once Was" opposite Holly Hunter,
and David Mamet's "War Games", among others. He has distinguished himself
on the big screen portraying roles in various films. In addition to
acting he also devotes himself to writing. His short film, Pete's Garden (1998), for
which he also served as director and star, premiered in competition at
the 1998 Sundance Film Festival and went on to air on The Sundance
Channel in January 1999. He also wrote "The Observatory" a play
performed at New York's Ensemble Studio Theatre.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Skye McCole Bartusiak was an American child actress and child model. She appeared in The Patriot (2000), Don't Say a Word (2001), as Rose Wilder in Beyond the Prairie: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder (2002), 24 (2002-03), Boogeyman (2005), and Kill Your Darlings (2006). Bartusiak died at the age of 21 in her apartment behind her parents' home. While her mother, shortly after Bartusiak's death, stated she believed that her daughter's history of epileptic seizures may have had a role in her death, the coroner ruled the death resulted from an accidental drug overdose.- Actress
- Producer
- Writer
Liza Koshy is a multi-faceted talent - actor, producer, entertainer - who has trailblazed a path from digital creator to one of the Hollywood's brightest young stars. Koshy will next be seen in Susanna Fogel's upcoming psychological thriller, Cat Person, in which she appears alongside Nicholas Braun and Emilia Jones. She also wrapped production on the Netflix original film Players, opposite Gina Rodriguez, and Damon Wayans Jr. Most recently, Liza has joined Kathy Bates, Nicole Kidman, Joey King and Zac Efron in the upcoming romantic comedy film, Family Affair, directed by Richard LaGravenese, and is set to premiere on Netflix on November 17, 2023. Koshy was most recently announced as the voice of female autobot, Arcee, in the international release of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts premiering in theatres on June 9, 2023.
In 2022, taking the social media dance craze to a new level, NBC joined forces with Liza Koshy, Shakira and Nick Jonas on the exciting dance-challenge series "Dancing with Myself."
Koshy was most recently seen in the Netflix film My Little Pony: A New Generation as the voice of "Pip," also starring James Marsden, Vanessa Hudgens, and Sofia Carson. Koshy also starred opposite Sabrina Carpenter in the Netflix Original film Work It from executive producer Alicia Keys and Leslie Morgenstein (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants). She is the co-creator, executive producer, and star of "Liza on Demand." In its second season, the premiere episode was the most-watched YouTube Originals debut episode in its first week on the streaming network to date. She directed an episode in the series' second season, which was nominated for two Streamy Awards: Show of the Year and Scripted Series. Koshy again directed an episode in the third and final season, which premiered in October 2021.
In December of 2021 and December of 2022, Koshy co-hosted "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest," which was the highest rated network New Year's Eve special. It exceeded its 2021 ratings and numbers in its 2022 broadcast. In a new version of the Food Network's long-running series "Chopped," Koshy served as a host of the competition series, "Chopped Next Gen." The series, which is currently streaming on Discovery+, challenges a new guard of rising, Generation Z chefs. She has also hosted two seasons of the Nickelodeon "Double Dare" revival alongside Marc Sommers. In its second season the show was nominated for Outstanding Game Show at the 47th Daytime Emmy Awards. In 2018 and 2019, Koshy served as Vogue official Met Gala red carpet correspondent.
In March 2020, Koshy appeared in the YouTube Original special, "Creators for Change with Michelle Obama: Girl's Education." For the special, which won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Daytime Non-Fiction Special, she joined Mrs. Obama, Julia Roberts, Lana Condor, Veronica Ngo, and Jenna Bush Hager, on a trip to Vietnam. During their visit, the group met with girls benefiting from an education program of Room to Read, a nonprofit working with the Girls Opportunity Alliance to support adolescent girls' education in Vietnam. Koshy also served as a co-chair of the Michelle Obama founded non-profit "When We All Vote," alongside Kerry Washington, Selena Gomez, and Tracee Ellis Ross.
Liza has also been featured on Forbes' 30 Under 30 Hollywood & Entertainment List, TIME Magazine's Inaugural TIME 100 Next List, TIME's 25 Most Influential People on the Internet and Teen Vogue's Young Hollywood Class of 2020. Liza was most recently featured on the March 2022 Women's Health Magazine cover.- A native of Houston, Texas, Roberts, who attended Juilliard, has lived
in New York City for 14 years. He was nominated for a Drama Desk Award
for his role in the Off-Broadway play, "Nocturne," by
Adam Rapp. He is married to Christine Jones,
who is the Set Designer for Spring Awakening and a professor at NYU.
They have two sons, one of whom is named Ever Reverend Jones. - Actor
- Producer
Sean Hardy Faris was born in Houston, Texas, to Katherine (Miller) and Warren Stephen Faris. He is of English, German, Scottish, and Irish descent. Sean moved to Ohio at age twelve, and has been honing his craft in Los Angeles since moving four years upon his high school graduation. He received an MTV Movie Award for his lead role in Summit Entertainment's hit Never Back Down, and starred as Betty White's grandson and Jennifer Love Hewitt's love interest in the CBS Hallmark Hall of Fame telefilm The Lost Valentine. In addition to his central role in the rugby-inspired feature Forever Strong, he appeared as Dennis Quaid's eldest son in Paramount's hit remake of the classic Yours, Mine & Ours and previously starred as the hunky object of affection in MGM's comedy romp Sleepover. Next on the horizon is the crime thriller Pawn in which he stars opposite Academy Award-winner Forest Whitaker, and the coveted title role in The Story of Bonnie & Clyde. In direct contrast, Faris starred as the lead in FOX's acclaimed drama series Reunion which followed six close friends from their high school graduation to their 20th reunion. He previously led the cast of ABC's dramatic series Life As We Know It. Based upon British author Melvin Burgess' controversial novel Doing It, the acclaimed show chronicled the sexual antics of a group of high school friends in Seattle. For his role as sensitive jock Dino Whitman, he was heralded as a breakout talent by the likes of Daily Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and USA Today. A more recent foray into television included a multi-episode arc on The CW's top-rated Vampire Diaries. No stranger to television, Faris has also guest-starred on such shows as Smallville, One Tree Hill, and Boston Public. His big screen debut featured him alongside the likes of Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett in Michael Bay's epic Pearl Harbor.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Best known for his portrayal of adman Paul Kinsey on Mad Men, Michael began his career in the New York theater and has also played a wide range of characters in film and television.
As a musician he enjoys playing acoustic guitar, clawhammer banjo, and ukulele.
He also loves to work with horses, both in the saddle and on the ground. He recently adopted a Percheron draft horse named Rosie, and volunteers for a program that provides equine therapy for veterans and children with disabilities.
An avid chess player since childhood, he also enjoys camping, off-roading, and fishing. He can also often be found tinkering and making stuff in his garage workshop.
These days he most enjoys getting to know his newborn daughter, Emma George Gladis.
Also a writer and producer, Michael has multiple projects in development.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Randy Quaid is an Academy Award-nominated actor, for his performance in The Last Detail (1973). Hal Ashby directed Quaid in the role of Meadows opposite Jack Nicholson and Otis Young. Quaid is a great and much-admired actor that has been recognized by Hollywood and the world's finest directors, Midnight Express, The Last Picture Show, Ice Harvest (2005), Real Time (2008), King Carlos in Goya's Ghosts (2006) for director Milos Forman. Forman cast Quaid as "King Carlos IV of Spain" after seeing his Golden Globe-nominated performance as The Colonel in Elvis. Quaid also starred in such mainstream favorites as Kingpin (1996), Vacation (1983), Christmas Vacation (1989) and Independence day (1996).
Quaid earned a Golden Globe for portraying Lyndon Johnson, and received a Golden Globe Nomination for incarnating "Colonel" Tom Parker in Elvis (2005). The portrait of Colonel Parker, a former carnival barker with a murky past, is dark. The New York Times said "Mr. Quaid is riveting as the bully of Graceland" when he has Elvis firmly under his thumb, he is the L.B.J. of rock 'n' roll - a towering, wheedling, tirelessly self-promoting Southern fox in the rare instances when Elvis defies him, Colonel Parker shrinks into a hand-wringing phony, cajoling his only client in the overly ornate language of Professor Marvel in "The Wizard of Oz".
Quaid stars in and was nominated for The Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a cast for his work in Brokeback Mountain (2005), directed by Ang Lee from a script written by Larry McMurtry, who also wrote The Last Picture Show (1971) in which Quaid had his first feature film role. Working with McMurtry and supporting his material has become a Randy Quaid career tradition. Quaid's performance in Brokeback Mountain (2005) was listed as one of the New York Observer's 2005 Noteworthy male performances. In 2009 Randy Quaid Won the Vancouver Critics Award for Best Male Performance in the Feature Film Real-Time for the Role of Rubin an Australian Hit Man.
Randy Quaid was born in Houston, Texas, to Juanita Bonnie Dale (Jordan), a real estate agent, and William Rudy Quaid, an electrician. He grew up in the Houston suburban city of Bellaire, along with his brother, actor Dennis Quaid.
Quaid is married to American Film Director Evi Quaid.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Josh Brener was born in Houston, Texas, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Silicon Valley (2014), The Last of Us (2023) and Mythic Quest (2020). He is married to Meghan Falcone.- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Producer
Peter Brett Cullen is an American actor from Houston, Texas. He is known for playing Thomas Wayne from Joker, Barton Blaze from Ghost Rider, Eddie Martel in The Replacements, Walt Riggins in Friday Night Lights and a Congressman in The Dark Knight Rises. He also acted in Apollo 13, Monk, The Guilt Trip and 42.- Meredith Leigh Monroe was born in Houston, Texas, and was raised in Hinsdale, Illinois. Before acting, Meredith appeared on packaging for such products like a Conair hair crimper and was on five book covers in the Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys series. She made her TV debut in 1996 with a commercial for Tylenol Sinus. Her appearance as Tracey Daiken on ABC's Dangerous Minds (1996) secured her first role in a television series. Her exposure resulted in her landing the part of Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder in Beyond the Prairie, Part 2: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder (2002). Although the completed project was not released until 2002, Meredith was not absent from television screens for long, playing the part of troubled teenager Andie McPhee in 1998 on the WB's Dawson's Creek (1998) for three seasons (Episodes 201 to 407). Although Meredith left the show in 2000, when her character left to spend a year in Italy before attending Harvard University on early acceptance; her character was so well-received that she returned later in the season to film the graduation episode (Episode 422). Since her departure, Meredith has enjoyed success in film (ABC'S The One (2003) and a small appearance in Minority Report (2002)), and has now landed a major part in ABC's TV series, Married to the Kellys (2003), where she co-stars with Road Trip (2000) star, Breckin Meyer.
- Actress
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
Sasha Bianca Lane is an American actress. She made her film debut in American Honey (2016) directed by Andrea Arnold.
Lane was born in Houston, Texas and grew up in Dallas, Texas. Her father is African-American, and her mother, who is from New Zealand, is of European and Maori descent. After her parents divorced when she was young, Lane went to live with her mother, moving several times near Dallas before settling in Frisco, Texas. Prior to becoming an actress, Lane worked as a waitress at a restaurant in Frisco, Texas and was also a stand-out athlete on basketball, track, and field teams. She attended Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas, but left.
Lane made her film debut in the critically acclaimed and award-winning American Honey (2016), a film about magazine crews, written and directed by Andrea Arnold, starring opposite Shia LaBeouf and Riley Keough. Arnold spotted Lane sunbathing on a beach while on spring break. Lane said in an interview that she "felt Arnold's vibe and decided to trust Arnold for an audition."
The film had its world premiere on May 15, 2016 at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Prix du Jury. The film was released in a limited release on September 30, 2016, by A24. In 2017, Lane starred in Born in the Maelstrom, a short film directed by Meryam Joobeur, In 2018, Lane starred in Hearts Beat Loud, opposite Nick Offerman and Kiersey Clemons, directed by Brett Haley, and The Miseducation of Cameron Post directed by Desiree Akhavan.
In 2019, Lane will appear in Hellboy, directed by Neil Marshall, and Daniel Isn't Real directed by Adam Eygpt Mortimer.
While promoting her 2018 film The Miseducation of Cameron Post during the Sundance Film Festival press junket, Lane stated she is gay. She had previously called herself bisexual. She lives in Los Angeles.- Actor
- Composer
- Director
Colson Baker was born on 22 April 1990 in Houston, Texas, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for The Dirt (2019), Good Mourning (2022) and Project Power (2020).- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Jaclyn Smith was born Jacquelyn Ellen Smith on October 26, 1945 in Houston, Texas. She graduated from high school and originally aspired to be a famous ballerina. In 1973, she landed a job as a Breck shampoo model. In 1976, she was offered a chance to star in a new pilot for a planned television series, entitled Charlie's Angels (1976). The pilot was slick and the show was an instant hit when it debuted on September 22, 1976 on ABC.
Smith is the only original "Angel" to stay with the show through its entire five-season run (1976-81). She is also the only "Angel" from the television series to make an appearance in either of the movie adaptations. (She had an uncredited cameo in Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003) as "Kelly Garrett", offering advice to the new generation of angels.)
After Charlie's Angels (1976), she went the TV-movie route and starred in such TV films as Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy (1981) for which she received a Golden Globe nomination, and such miniseries as The Bourne Identity (1988), Rage of Angels (1983) and Windmills of the Gods (1988). She has had her own extremely successful clothing line at Kmart since 1985, and is often a spokesperson.
Her first two marriages to actors Roger Davis and Dennis Cole ended in divorce. She has two children from her third marriage to cinematographer Anthony B. Richmond (they divorced in 1989). Her fourth marriage is to physician Dr. Brad Allen. She married him in 1997; the two created the skincare line which Smith promotes.- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Phylicia Rashad was born in Houston, Texas to African-American parents Vivian Elizabeth (Ayers), a poet and art director, and Andrew Arthur Allen, an orthodontist. As a child, Phylicia, her older brother Andrew (called Tex), and younger sister, dancer and actress Debbie Allen, lived in Mexico. She has another brother, Hugh Allen (a real-estate banker in North Carolina). Their mother decided to live in Mexico to give the Allen children a brief experience of not having to endure the chronic racism and segregation that was typical of Texas during the 1950s. Phylicia and Debbie are fluent in Spanish. Phylicia graduated from Howard University and later taught drama there.
With younger sister Debbie Allen, she has a production company, D.A.D., which stood for Doctor Allen's Daughters. Her Pulitzer-nominated mother is the artistic and free spirit that has influenced and encouraged the remarkable creativity that so marks Rashad as a performer.- Actress
- Director
- Producer
Houston, Texas native Chandra Wilson began performing in musicals at
the age of five with Theatre Under the Stars. She attended Houston's
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, and later went on to
acquire her BFA in Drama from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts through
which she spent four years at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute.
Chandra's first series regular job was on ABC's Bob Patterson (2001) in the role of
Claudia Hopper. She has made numerous other television appearances
including guest-starring and recurring roles. She has also appeared in
national television commercials for Blockbuster Video, Burger King,
Scope, and the United Negro College Fund as well as numerous radio
commercials.
Aside from film and television, she has several New York stage credits.
Her portrayal of Bonna Willis in the production of "The Good Times are
Killing Me" by Lynda Barry (both at the Second Stage and Minetta Lane
Theatres) won her a Theatre World Award for Outstanding Debut
Performance.
Some of her other stage credits include "Paper Moon: The Musical" at
the Papermill Playhouse, "The Family of Mann" by Theresa Rebeck, "Believing"
for the Young Playwright's Festival and the Broadway production of "On
the Town" directed by George C. Wolfe.- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Equally at home on stage and on screen, award-winning actress Loretta Devine has created some of the most memorable roles in theatre, film and television.
Devine first captured national attention in the role of Lorrell, one of the three original "Dreamgirls" in Michael Bennett's classic award-winning Broadway musical of the same name. She followed that performance with a fiery portrayal of Lillian in Bob Fosse's critically acclaimed stage production "Big Deal." Subsequent work in George C. Wolfe's "Colored Museum" and "Lady Day at Emerson Bar and Grill," cemented Devine's status as one of the most talented and versatile stage actresses.
Film roles soon followed including a poignant turn as a single mother opposite Whitney Houston, Angela Bassett and Gregory Hines in Waiting to Exhale (1995) which earned Devine her first NAACP Image Award for 'Best Supporting Actress.' Devine also won an NAACP Image Award for Best Supporting Actress for her work in Penny Marshall's The Preacher's Wife (1996). Devine received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Actress for her work in "Women Thou Art Loosed." Devine was featured in the Academy Award-winning film "Crash" and the hit movie of "Dreamgirls." Some of her additional film credits include appearances in the successful "Urban Legend" franchise, "I Am Sam" opposite Michelle Pfeiffer and Sean Penn, "Kingdom Come," "What Women Want," "Punks," "Hoodlums," "Down in the Delta" and "Stanley and Iris."
Devine's more recent film credits include co-starring roles in "This Christmas" and "First Sunday" both of which opened Number 1 at the box office. Devine voiced the character of "Delta" in Disney's "Beverly Hills Chihuahua." She appeared with Chris Rock in Sony Screen Gems remake of "Death at a Funeral" and "Lottery Ticket" for Alcon/Warner Brothers. Devine portrayed "The Woman in Green" in Tyler Perry's adaptation of Ntozake Shange's "For Colored Girls." In 2011, Devine starred in two leading roles in the film "Jumping the Broom" with Paula Patton, Laz Alonso and Angela Bassett and in the Tyler Perry directed film "Madea's Big Happy Family," both films earned top spots at the box office, respectively. Devine followed up her box office hits with a strong lineup of independent films including Robert Townsend's "In The Hive" which earned Devine a NAACP Image Award nomination for "Best Actress in a Motion Picture", "You're Not You" alongside Hilary Swank, James Franco's "The Sound and the Fury" and the Kristen Wiig dramedy, "Welcome to Me."
On television, Devine became a critical darling in her Emmy award-winning role as "Adele" on ABC's hit medical drama "Grey's Anatomy." Devine's credits include numerous series roles on shows such as "The Cosby Show" spin-off "A Different World," Eddie Murphy's stop-motion animated series "The PJs," David E Kelly's "Boston Public," ABC's "Eli Stone" and alongside Jennifer Love-Hewitt on Lifetime's "The Client List." She most recently starred on NBC's critically acclaimed sitcom "The Carmichael Show" and co-starred in the 3rd season of BET's "Being Mary Jane" as the titular character's main antagonist, "Cece." Devine continues to voice "Hallie the Hippo" on Disney Channel's Peabody Award-Winning animated series, "Doc McStuffins," and will next star in the Netflix family series, "FAMILY REUNION" which will feature an all-black cast and crew.
With a career spanning three decades, Devine has earned much praise and accolades for her work on both the big and small screen. For her work as "Adele" on "Grey's Anatomy," Devine earned both a Primetime Emmy Award and a Primetime Emmy Award nomination, a Gracie Allen Award for "Outstanding Female Actor in a Featured Role," a nomination for "Best Guest Performer in a Drama Series" from the Critics' Choice Television Awards and a NAACP Image Award and a NAACP Image Award nomination. In total, Devine has won nine NAACP Image Awards and has received a record twenty-four nominations. Devine has received Lifetime Achievement Awards from both the Pan African Film Festival and the NAACP Theatre Awards and the Thespian Award from the LA Femme International Film Festival.
Devine graduated from the University of Houston and later received a Master of Fine Arts from Brandeis University. She also received a Doctorate of Humane Letters as well as a Distinguished Alumni Award from The University of Houston.
She currently resides in Los Angeles.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Isaiah Washington was born on 3 August 1963 in Houston, Texas, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Grey's Anatomy (2005), Ghost Ship (2002) and Romeo Must Die (2000). He has been married to Jenisa Marie Garland since 14 February 1996. They have three children.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
The product of a musical family, (Margaret) JoBeth Williams was born on December 6, 1948, in Houston,
Texas, to Frances Faye (Adams), a dietitian, and Fredric Roger
Williams, a wire/cable company manager and opera singer. Her father
encouraged her early interest in theater during high school.
She made her professional debut at age 18 in a Houston-based musical production,
then studied at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, with the
intentions of becoming a child psychologist. The acting bug hit her
again, however, and she decided to pursue theater after receiving her
B.A. in English in 1970. Working intensely to lose her Texas twang, her
early training came as a member of the Trinity Repertory Company, where
she stayed for two-and-a-half years.
In New York the lovely Jobeth became a daytime regular in the mid-1970s
on both Somerset (1970) and in a
vixenish role on
Guiding Light (1952)
before making a brief but memorable impact in a highly popular film at
the end of the decade. In the
Dustin Hoffman starring film
Kramer vs. Kramer (1979),
Jobeth plays Hoffman's gorgeous sleepover who gets caught stark naked
by his young, precocious son
(Justin Henry) the following
morning. She also impressed on the stage with major roles in
"Moonchildren" and "A Coupla White Chicks Sitting Around Talking."
Her star maker would could in the form of the strong-willed mother of
three who fights to save her brood from home-invading demons in
Steven Spielberg's humongous critical
and box-office hit
Poltergeist (1982), which also made a
major star out of movie husband
Craig T. Nelson. Officially in the big
leagues now, she joined the star ensemble cast of
The Big Chill (1983), and appeared
opposite Nick Nolte in
Teachers (1984). Disappointing outcomes
in the lackluster sequel
Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986)
and the intriguing but overlooked
American Dreamer (1984) prodded
her to search for more challenging work on TV.
It is the small screen, in fact, that has particularly shown off the
range of Jobeth's talent over the years, particularly in domestic
drama. Cast in some of the finest TV-movies served up, Jobeth won
deserved Emmy nominations for her real-life mother of an ill-fated
missing child in Adam (1983) and
real-life surrogate mother in
Baby M (1988). Other monumental
mini-movie efforts include her nurse in the apocalyptic drama
The Day After (1983); her
magnetic performance opposite Terry Kinney
as an adulterous worshiper and minister who carry out plans to kill
their respective spouses in the gripping suspense show
Murder Ordained (1987);
alcoholic James Woods'
long-suffering wife in
My Name Is Bill W. (1989);
a social worker trying to reach a deaf girl in
Breaking Through (1996);
and the overbearing mother whose son turns to drugs in
Trapped in a Purple Haze (2000).
She continues to balance both film and TV projects into the millennium.
Behind the scenes she was nominated for an Academy Award for her
directorial debut of Showtime's
On Hope (1994)and continues to seek out
other directing projects. It doesn't hurt being married to a director
for encouragement. She and John Pasquin,
who directed her in the film
Jungle 2 Jungle (1997) and on the
short-lived TV series Payne (1999),
have two children.
Into the millennium, Jobeth starred as a psychiatrist in the offbeat crime drama The Rose Technique (2002); then played a series of mom support roles -- Drew Barrymore's in Fever Pitch (2005), Reiko Aylesworth's in Crazylove (2005) and Adam Brody's in In the Land of Women (2007); plus roles in The Big Year (2011), Songs of Alchemy (2012), Barracuda (2017), Alex & The List (2017), SGT. Will Gardner (2019) and What the Night Can Do (2020). In addition to guest appearances on such popular program as "The Guardian," "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," "Judging Amy," "Miss Match," "Numb3rs," "Criminal Minds," "The Nine," "Dexter," "NCIS," "The Good Doctor," and recurring roles on Private Practice (2007), Hart of Dixie (2011), Marry Me (2014) and Your Family or Mine (2015), she earned kudos as Sybil's mentally disturbed mother in a revived TV movie version of Sybil (2007).- Actress
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Joan Severance was born and raised in Houston, Texas. At the age of 18 and at the sole urging of John Casablancas of Elite models, she went to Paris, France to begin a modeling career that would turn out to be well worth the price of the ticket Casablancas sent her. Within months she graced the covers of all the international magazines and was doing shows for all the top designers. She landed campaigns for Chanel and Versace. After eight months she moved to NYC to pursue the US market and was quick to land several national commercials for Windsong perfume, Breck shampoo, Clairol, English Leather, L'oreal, Revlon and Maybeline.
After several dozen commercials and a very high profile editorial career, she quit the modeling industry to head to Hollywood. Within weeks, she had a manager, an agent and was studying with several different acting coaches. It was six months later that she landed her first role on a major television series for CBS called Wiseguy (1987), starring Ken Wahl and Kevin Spacey. It was only a matter of time that director Arthur Hiller cast her in See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989) with Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor and her costar from Wiseguy, Kevin Spacey. That same year, she did Bird on a Wire (1990) with Mel Gibson and Goldie Hawn, and No Holds Barred (1989) with Hulk Hogan. Later starring in several films, including Zalman King's Lake Consequence (1993) with Billy Zane.
She has appeared in over fifteen films. She has worked with Robert Urich on Aaron Spelling's Love Boat: The Next Wave (1998) and with Ann-Margret on Life of the Party: The Pamela Harriman Story (1998) for Lifetime. Ms. Severance has been in many popular TV shows, like Masters of Sex (2013), One Tree Hill (2003), and CSI: Miami (2002).
Her hobbies include interior, landscape and fashion design, cooking, reading, entertaining, writing and anything to do with horses. Severance has finished her first book, "Manifest Your Mate: a Journal for Attraction". Science, health and the unknown spark her interests. She has a gourmet cooking degree from Roger Verge from The Moulin du Mougin in the South of France, owned and was the chef of a restaurant in upstate New York, owned a catering company in New York, and has taught commercial acting classes.
Ms. Severance has a Bachelors Degree in Natural Health. She desires to develop a television talk show aimed at a younger audience about alternative and holistic lifestyles choices. Ms. Severance created, txTylz®, a communication game, and is developing it for a mobile app.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Haylie Katherine Duff (born February 19, 1985) is an American actress, singer, songwriter, television host, writer, and fashion designer. She is also the older sister of American singer and actress Hilary Duff.Haylie Duff was born in Houston, Texas. Duff's mother, Susan Duff is a film producer who was a co-executive producer of A Cinderella Story (2004), a producer of The Perfect Man (2005) and Material Girls (2006), and the manager of Hilary; she was previously a homemaker. Her father, Robert Erhard "Bob" Duff, a partner and owner in a chain of convenience stores with his father, John B. Duff, resides at the family home in Houston to maintain the family's business. She began her acting career as an offshoot of her early dance training. Growing up in Texas, Duff began ballet at an early age. By the age of eight, Duff landed a role in the Houston Metropolitan Dance Company's production of The Nutcracker Suite.
Duff's early career started by making guest appearances on made-for-television films such as True Women (1997) and on TV series such as The Amanda Show (1999). In addition to guest-starring roles on Chicago Hope (1994), Boston Public (2000), and Third Watch (1999), Duff became a familiar face starting in late 2002 as Amy Sanders on Lizzie McGuire (2001). In 2004, Duff made a guest appearances on That's So Raven (2003) as Katina Jones. After making guest appearances on television, Duff received her first role in a feature film when she was cast as Summer Wheatley in Napoleon Dynamite (2004). The film earned her first Teen Choice Award win. She continued making guest appearances, which include Joan of Arcadia (2003) and American Dreams (2002). She also lent her voice talent to the Christmas animation film In Search of Santa (2004) which again, featured Sister Hilary Duff. In 2005, Duff joined the cast of the television series 7th Heaven (1996), playing Sandy Jameson, best friend to Simon's girlfriend Rose.
In June 2006, Duff joined the Broadway cast of Hairspray, portraying mean girl Amber Von Tussle, and left the role in early October 2006.
Duff has also starred in Material Girls (2006) with Sister Hilary Duff, where she is credited as co-producer, with her mother and sister credited as producers. Following Material Girls (2006), Duff appeared in various made-for-television or straight-to-DVD films including Nightmare (2007), My Sexiest Year (2007), Legacy (2008), Backwoods (2008), Love Takes Wing (2009), Love Finds a Home (2009) and My Nanny's Secret (2009).
Between 2008 and 2015, Duff appeared in various films and TV roles, including; Fear Island (2009), Tug (2010) and Slightly Single in L.A. (2013). She lent her voice to the animated film Foodfight! (2012), but due to distribution issues, the film was delayed for years until it finally saw a release in 2012. Duff hosted the reality show Legally Blonde the Musical: The Search for Elle Woods (2008), which searched for an actress to take over the lead role in Legally Blonde: The Musical (2007) where she had been in the chorus. She was also listed as an executive producer of the series.- Actor
- Stunts
Don Swayze was born on August 10, 1958 in Houston, Texas as Donald Carl Swayze. He is the son of Patsy Swayze (née Yvonne Helen Karnes; 1927-2013), a choreographer, dance instructor, and dancer, and Jesse Wayne Swayze (1925-1982), an engineering draftsman. He had two brothers, Patrick Swayze (1952-2009) and Sean Swayze (b. 1962), and two sisters, Vickie Lynn (1949-1994) and Bambi Swayze.
He began his acting career in the 1980s in TV shows and TV movies. Unlike his older brother, Don often played violent and unsavory characters. Early roles in Street Hawk (1985), The Fall Guy (1981), L.A. Law (1986), and in Matlock (1986) (as a mentally handicapped murder suspect) led to his first film role in Andrey Konchalovskiy's Shy People (1987) as Mark. During the 1990s, he guest-starred for example in Columbo (1971), Renegade (1992), Murder, She Wrote (1984), NYPD Blue (1993), Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993) as Jesse James, Walker, Texas Ranger (1993), and Profiler (1996). He also worked as a stunt man. In Letters from a Killer (1998), he was a stunt player. In Movie Stars (1999), he played a fictional version of himself. During the 2000s, he guest-starred in The X-Files (1993), The Division (2001), NCIS (2003), CSI: Miami (2002), and Without a Trace (2002). He also had recurring roles in HBO's Carnivàle (2003) as Tattooed Man, in True Blood (2008) as Gus, a werewolf, and in The Bridge (2013) as Tampa Tim. He also played a serial killer, Charles Hankel in two episodes of Criminal Minds (2005).
In 2012, he starred in two westerns, Heathens and Thieves (2012) and Ambush at Dark Canyon (2012). He also appeared in horror movies, in Lizzie (2012) as Daniel Allen and in The Appearing (2014) as Sheriff Hendricks. He appeared on stage in 2001 as Pedro in "Man of La Mancha", and in 2005 as Roy in the comedy "Lone Star".
He was married to Marcia Swayze (1985-1993), with whom he has a daughter, Danielle. Since 2014, he has been married to Charlene Swayze.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Michael Bowen Jr. is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Nicolas Cage's romantic rival, Tommy, in the cult classic Valley Girl (1983), Danny Pickett on the ABC series Lost, and Jack Welker on the AMC series Breaking Bad. Bowen is the only son of Beat painter Michael Bowen Sr. and actress Sonia Sorel (née Henius; 1921-2004) who was Bowen's first wife. His maternal great-grandfather was biochemist Max Henius, a Danish immigrant to America who himself was of Polish-Jewish descent, and his maternal great-grandmother was the sister of historian Johan Ludvig Heiberg. He grew up in San Francisco knowing "interesting characters - revolutionary-type people," which inspired his portrayal of Uncle Jack. Through his mother's other marriage he is the half-brother of actors Robert and Keith Carradine of the Carradine family. He is the half-uncle of actresses Martha Plimpton and Ever Carradine.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Lois Chiles is a former supermodel-turned-actress who gave elegant performances in a variety of films throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Her motion picture debut role was as Robert Redford's sexual endeavor in the old-fashioned Hollywood melodrama, The Way We Were (1973). Shortly after, she starred opposite Clifton Davis in the indie blaxploitation film, Together for Days (1972); they portrayed a mixed-race couple enduring societal disapproval and political pandemonium. She also appeared as the irreverent socialite Jordan Baker in The Great Gatsby (1974), in which she starred alongside Mia Farrow and, again, Robert Redford.
Chiles delivered a series of pivotal characters particularly as a woman who mysteriously falls into a state of unconsciousness after entering the hospital for an early term abortion in Coma (1978), and as an impudent heiress and murder victim in the center of Death on the Nile (1978).
Chiles' most recognized role is the sophisticated NASA astronaut, scientist, and "Bond girl", Dr. Holly Goodhead opposite Roger Moore's James Bond in Moonraker (1979). It is worth noting that Goodhead was different than any previous "Bond girl", in that she was dignified and not so much sexualized. Sadly, that same year, just as Chiles' career was at its height, she lost her youngest brother to non-Hodgkin's lymphoma which resulted in her three-year hiatus from acting. Her career never fully recovered and she struggled to find roles that necessitated her individuality but she persevered and received positive reviews for her continued performances in film and television, particularly in Sweet Liberty (1986), Broadcast News (1987), Creepshow 2 (1987), Diary of a Hitman (1991) and Curdled (1996).
In recent years, she's appeared in a few television sitcoms, participated in interviews recalling her experience as a "Bond girl", and taught an acting class at the University of Houston.- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Gina Hecht was born on 6 December 1952 in Houston, Texas, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Dave (2020), Seinfeld (1989) and Mork & Mindy (1978). She has been married to Brian Herskowitz since 4 July 1988. They have two children.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Stephanie Styles is an American actress, singer, and dancer who recently made her Broadway debut in Roundabout Theatre's revival of Kiss Me, Kate. She starred as Lois Lane/Bianca opposite Kelli O'Hara, Will Chase, and Corbin Bleu. For this performance, Styles earned the Outstanding Debut Performance from the Theatre World Awards and the Broadway.com Audience Choice Award. Stephanie Styles stars as Autumn, a lonely barista, in the new NBC series "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist". Other New York Theatre credits include Suz in the World Premiere of the play Kingdom Come (Roundabout), The Rose in The Little Prince (New York City Opera) and Sandra Dee in The Bobby Darin Story opposite Jonathan Groff in the title role (92Y). Stephanie portrayed the role of Katherine Plumber in the National Tour of Disney's Newsies and starred as Princess Ann in the pre-Broadway engagement of Roman Holiday. Other film/TV credits include Kate in the Netflix series "BONDiNG" and the film Bombshell directed by Jay Roach and starring Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie, John Lithgow, and Nicole Kidman. Stephanie has a BFA in Musical Theatre from the University of Michigan and is a charter member of D23.- Megan West was born on 9 January 1991 in Houston, Texas, USA. She is an actress, known for This Is Us (2016), How to Get Away with Murder (2014) and Person of Interest (2011).
- Producer
- Actress
- Director
Deborah Kaye Allen was born in Houston, Texas, to African-American parents, Vivian Elizabeth (Ayers), a poet and art director, and Andrew Arthur Allen, an orthodontist. As a child, Debbie, her older brother, Andrew (called Tex), and her older sister, actress Phylicia Rashad, lived in Mexico to escape US racism. Their mother decided to live there to give the Allen children a brief
experience of not having to endure the chronic racism and segregation
that was typical of Texas during the 1950s. Debbie and
Phylicia are fluent in Spanish.
Debbie graduated from Jack Yates Senior High School in Houston, TX in
1967. She graduated cum laude from Howard University in 1971 with a BFA
in Classical Greek Literature, Speech, and Theater from Howard
University. She used her experiences from attending Historically Black
College Howard to inform her production and direction of the TV show
A Different World (1987).
Although her parents divorced, Debbie remained extremely close to her
father until his death. With Phylicia she has production
company "D.A.D." which stood for "Doctor Allen's Daughters". Her
Pulitzer-nominated poet mother Vivian is, the artistic and free spirit
that has influenced and encouraged the remarkable creativity that so
marks Allen as a performer.- Music Artist
- Actress
- Music Department
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles was born on September 4, 1981 in Houston, Texas. Her mom, Tina Knowles designs their glittering costumes & her dad, Mathew Knowles manages Destiny's Child. Solange, her sister (they're 4 years apart) has released her debut album. She dances with her
big sister during DC-3 concerts. Beyoncé's of Louisiana Creole & African descent.
She and her group were discovered by
Whitney Houston. One of her
favorite songs is "Lovefool" by
The Cardigans. Her favorite item of
clothing is a pair of path work metallic boots. She writes & produces
many of the group's songs, including smash hits "Jumpin Jumpin",
"Bootylicious", "Nasty Girl", "Independent Women", "Happy Face" and
"Apple Pie a la mode".- Actress
- Additional Crew
- Producer
Anna Nicole Smith was born on 28 November 1967 in Houston, Texas, USA. She was an actress and producer, known for Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994), Be Cool (2005) and Illegal Aliens (2007). She was married to J. Howard Marshall II and Billy Smith. She died on 8 February 2007 in Hollywood, Florida, USA.