Results for Mercedes Ruehl
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Actor:

Mercedes Ruehl

  • Born: Feb 28, 1948 in Queens, New York City, New York
  • Occupation: Actor
  • Active: '80s-2000s
  • Major Genres: Comedy, Drama
  • Career Highlights: The Fisher King, Gia, Married to the Mob
  • First Major Screen Credit: The Warriors (1979)

Biography

American actress Mercedes Ruehl was the daughter of a much-travelled FBI agent, who finally settled in Silver Spring, Maryland. After attending Catholic College in New Rochelle, Ruehl began her career in regional theatre, taking odd jobs during the many dry spells between engagements. For several years, it looked as though she'd be a permanent employee of the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company. In the late 1970s, Ruehl began chalking up New York stage successes, notably I'm Not Rappaport. She won an Obie for the off-Broadway The Wedding of Betty and Boo and a Tony for Lost in Yonkers. In films since 1979's The Warriors, Ruehl worked steadily but in relative anonymity until winning the Best Supporting Actress award for The Fisher King (1992). Ruehl wasn't able to fill houses as star of the lukewarm film version of Lost in Yonkers (1993), though she still is a most welcome supporting presence in such films as The Last Action Hero (1993). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

 
 
Wikipedia: Mercedes Ruehl
Mercedes Ruehl
Birth name Mercedes J. Ruehl
Born February 28 1948 (1948--) (age 59)
Queens, New York, U.S.
Flag of New York Flag of the United States
Occupation Actress
Spouse(s) David Geiser (?-Present) 1 Child

Mercedes Ruehl (February 28, 1948 is an Academy Award-winning American theater and film actress.

Biography

Personal life

Ruehl was born in Queens, New York. Her father was an FBI agent and her mother, also named Mercedes, was a schoolteacher.[1] She was raised in the Catholic religion[2] and has German, Irish, and Cuban ancestry.[3] Ruehl attended College of New Rochelle[4] and graduated in 1969. She is married to painter David Geiser,[5] with whom she adopted a son, Jake (born 1997). She had another son, Christopher, whom she placed in adoption in 1976; Christopher later became Jake's godfather.[6]

Career

Ruehl began her career in regional theatre, taking odd jobs between engagements. In the late 1970s, Ruehl began chalking up New York stage successes, notably in I'm Not Rappaport (1985). On the stage, she won the 1985 Obie Award for her performance in The Marriage of Bette and Boo and twenty years later, an Obie for Woman Before a Glass. She also received a 1991 Tony Award as Best Actress (Play) for Lost in Yonkers. Her performances in two other plays earned her two other Tony nominations:

Her most acclaimed film role was in The Fisher King; her performance in the film earned her the 1991 Oscar for Best Supporting Actress as well as an American Comedy Award, a Boston Society of Film Critics Award, a Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award, and a Golden Globe. Earlier she had won the 1989 National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Married to the Mob. She played KACL station manager Kate Costas in five episodes of Frasier, and had a major role in the made-for-TV film All-American Girl: The Mary Kay Letourneau Story.She is the first Cuban American female Academy Award winner.

She has also played the mother of Vincent Chase in HBO's Entourage.

Controversy

Ruehl has been the subject of a heated Internet debate [7] concerning her general demeanor and involvement in an international incident in which she reportedly acted dismissively to the country of Canada. Fans and detractors alike have chimed in with stories both personal and professional.

Filmography


Preceded by
Whoopi Goldberg
for Ghost
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
1991
for The Fisher King
Succeeded by
Marisa Tomei
for My Cousin Vinny

References

External links


 
 

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Copyrights:

Actor. Copyright © 2006 All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Mercedes Ruehl" Read more

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