Jean Louisa Kelly

Jean Louisa Kelly (born March 9, 1972) is an American actress and singer. She was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S..

Her father was a high school English teacher and her mother taught piano.^[1] Kelly graduated in 1994 from Columbia University's Columbia College with a B.A. in English.

Career

Before attending college she already had roles in the original Broadway cast of Sondheim's Into the Woods^[1] and in the film Uncle Buck with John Candy. She also took roles in college productions, including with the Barnard Gilbert and Sullivan Society.

After graduation from college, Kelly became well known in the mid-1990s for a series of television commercials she did for MCI long distance,^[1] in which she played a telephone operator who challenged AT&T. In 1995, she starred as Louisa in the musical film The Fantasticks with Joey McIntyre and Joel Grey, although the film was shelved until 2000. The same year, she appeared in perhaps her most prominent role as Rowena Morgan, the muse for the title character of Mr. Holland's Opus. Other films followed in the 1990s. Later starring roles in films have included Landfall (2001), Little Red Light (2003) and Aspects of Love (2005). Kelly appeared Off-Broadway at the York Theatre as the title role in Paul McKibbins and B.T. McNicholl's The It Girl, based on the 1927 movie It. She also appeared in the York's "Mufti" series as Lois Lane in It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman.

In 1996, Kelly voiced the title role in 10 episodes of the animated Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders. After several made-for-TV movies, Kelly's broadest exposure came from her roles in situation comedies, first guest starring in such shows as Mad About You, and then as a cast member of the short-lived NBC version of Cold Feet. From 2000 to 2006, she starred as Kim Warner on the long-running sitcom Yes, Dear. On April 30, 2006, she guest starred in the ABC drama Grey's Anatomy and has continued to guest star in television dramas.

As of 2008, Kelly resides in Los Angeles . She is close friends with Jennifer Garner and was the host of her baby shower for daughter Violet Anne Affleck. She also interviewed Garner for Self magazine in 2005.

Notes

External links

• Official website
• Self magazine interview transcript (June 2005)
• March 1996 article in the Columbia University Record
• Jean Louisa Kelly at the Internet Movie Database
• Jean Louisa Kelly at TV.com
• Jean Kelly at the Internet Broadway Database