USA gives series order to The Starter Wife
Good news for Debra Messing and all of the others involved in the miniseries The Starter Wife. After garnering some pretty decent ratings and several Emmy nominations, USA Networks has given a full series order to the comedy-drama based on the successful novel by Gigi Levangie Grazer.
Former Will & Grace star Messing will return as Molly Kagan, the former Hollywood wife who is now experiencing a second chance at life after her recent divorce. Also returning will be the executive production team of Grazer, Josann McGibbon and Sara Parriott. There is no information as to when filming will begin for the premiere season of The Starter Wife or when the first episode will air.
Wife was nominated for ten Emmy awards this year, including Outstanding Lead Actress in a Movie or Miniseries for Messing’s performance and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Movie or Miniseries for Judy Davis. Davis won for her performance.
Judy Davis Biography
If a woman with an opinion in Hollywood is considered hazardous then Australian Judy Davis could easily qualify as one dangerous female. The petite, pale redhead, whose slash of red or brown lipstick has almost become her trademark, is considered one of the finest actresses of contemporary cinema and has garnered a reputation for her passion, high artistic standards and frank speech. Not unlike Bette Davis in the 1930s and 40s, Judy Davis was not one to suffer fools and had no trouble expressing her feelings. To her, the work was paramount and she consistently has delivered superb performances whether acting on stage, screen or TV.
The youngest of three, Davis has admitted to suffering a repressed childhood, in part due to her family’s staunch Catholicism but also tempered by the remoteness of Perth, Australia, where she was raised. After dropping out of convent school, she joined a rock and blues band and toured Asia. Returning home, Davis eventually enrolled at Sydney’s National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA), where she appeared as Juliet to Mel Gibson’s Romeo. With stage experience and a one-line role in 1977’s “High Rolling”, she auditioned for and won the star-making role of Sybylla Melvyn, the headstrong anti-heroine, of “My Brilliant Career” (1978). Davis later admitted she had difficulties with the neurotic character and occasionally clashed with director Gillian Armstrong, but her performance was undeniably forceful and earned her numerous accolades including Best Actress citations from the British Film Academy and the Australian Film Institute.
Sybylla Melvyn may not have been an appealing personage to portray but she represented what became a typical Judy Davis role–a strong, plain-speaking woman who shatters social mores. The actress was nothing short of astonishing as a desperate prostitute seeking a way out of her life in “The Winter of Our Dreams” and as an anarchist in “Heatwave” (both 1981) and proved stunning as the young incarnation of Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir in an Emmy-nominated turn in the syndicated 1982 miniseries “A Woman Called Golda”. Davis resisted Hollywood but did accept the leading role of the genteel cultural adventuress Adela Quested in “A Passage to India” (1984). Again, there were reports of conflict with aged director David Lean, but the ultimate onscreen result was a rich performance of grace and skill that earned her a Best Actress Academy Award nomination.
Although her career was on the ascent and she undoubtedly could have taken on American parts, Davis returned to Australia to co-star with her husband, actor Colin Friels, in “Kangaroo” (1987), based on the semi-autobiographical novel by D H Lawrence. She then delivered what is arguably her best leading performance as a footloose singer who reconnects with the daughter she abandoned years earlier in “High Tide” (1987), directed by Gillian Armstrong.
Beginning in the 90s, Davis did begin to work more in projects outside of her homeland. At the start of the decade, she inaugurated a relationship with Woody Allen with a small role in “Alice” (1990). Since that less than auspicious collaboration, Allen has provided her with rich characters to play. Davis received a well-deserved Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination playing a cynical, neurotic woman who sabotages her relationships in “Husbands and Wives” (1992) until she discovers true love. “Deconstructing Harry” (1997) posited her as the high-strung sister-in-law of Allen’s title character while “Celebrity” (1998) cast her as the schoolteacher wife of a journalist who blossoms into a TV star after their divorce.
In 1991 alone, Davis lent her careworn but attractive presence and edgy performance style to a series of intriguingly uptight but sympathetic characters. The Coen brothers tapped her to play the lover of a William Faulkner-like author in their study of Hollywood “Barton Fink” while David Cronenberg cast her as the bug-spray addicted wife of William Burroughs in the film adaptation of “Naked Lunch”. On the small screen, Davis reunited with “Brilliant Career” co-star Sam Neill for “One Against the Wind” (CBS), a based-on-fact drama about a British woman active in the French Resistance movement during WWII.
Davis demonstrated her formidable comic capabilities with a deft turn as Kevin Spacey’s embittered, shrewish wife perpetually engaging in battles with her spouse in the black comedy “The Ref” (1994). That same year, she essayed a similar role, paired with Peter Weller as a feuding, jobless L.A. couple who open an upscale boutique to finance their divorce in “The New Age”. Shifting gears, Davis won an Emmy as the patient, loyal and supportive lesbian lover of a US Army colonel who discloses her sexual orientation in the fact-based “Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story” (NBC, 1995).
The actress returned to Australia to star as a Stalinist with more than a passing acquaintance with the Russian leader in the farcical comedy “Children of the Revolution” (1996). Davis played a presidential chief of staff in the Clint Eastwood vehicle “Absolute Power” and portrayed Jack Nicholson’s ex-wife in the uneven “Blood & Wine” (both 1997). She then offered a trio of Emmy nominated performances that continued to showcase her extraordinary range. In “The Echo of Thunder” (CBS, 1998), she was cast as a stoic palm tree farmer in the Australian Outback who objects to raising her husband’s child by his first wife. 1999’s “Dash & Lilly” (A&E) paired her with Sam Shepard in a portrait of the dysfunctional, co-dependant relationship between authors Dashiell Hammett and Lillian Hellman. Davis also excelled as a self-centered wealthy woman whose marriage falls apart forcing her to interact more with her new housekeeper (Sally Field) in “A Cooler Climate” (Showtime, 1999). She then bravely tackled a portrayal of a cultural icon — singer-actress Judy Garland — in the 2001 ABC miniseries adapted from Lorna Luft’s memoir “Me and My Shadows”. Her portrayal was so dead-on and letter-perfect, Davis garnered critical praise and a much deserved Emmy Award. She was back on the big screen in the Australian feature “The Man Who Sued God” (2001). Two years later, she co-starred, along with Marcia Gay Harden and Lili Taylor, in the comedy feature “Gaudi Afternoon” (2003).
- Born:
on 04/23/55 in Perth, Australia - Job Titles:
Actor, Band singer, Orange juice truck driver
Family
- Daughter: Charlotte Friels. born in 1997
- Son: Jack Friels. born c. 1987
Significant Others
- Husband: Colin Friels. married in 1984; co-starred in “Kangaroo” (1986) and “High Tide” (1987); on October 30, 2002, Davis obtained a six-month court order against Friels which said that the Friels may not assault or threaten Davis. This came after Friels allegedly threw Davis to the ground and broke a glass table during an argument at their home. Davis will continue to live with her husband.
Education
- National Institute of Dramatic Art, Sydney, Australia, 1977
Milestones
- 1977 Screen acting debut, “High Rolling”; had one line
- 1979 Breakthrough screen role as Sybylla international and acclaim acclaim as star of “My Brilliant Career”, directed by Gillian Armstrong; co-starred Sam Neill
- 1982 First non-Australian screen credit, the British thriller, “Who Dares Wins/The Final Conflict”
- 1982 Portrayed the young Golda Meir in the syndicated miniseries “A Woman Called Golda”; received first Emmy nomination
- 1984 Received an Oscar nomination as Best Actress for her most widely seen performance to that date, as Adela Quested in David Lean’s “A Passage to India”
- 1986 First feature pairing with husband Colin Friels, “Kangaroo”
- 1987 Reteamed with Gillian Armstrong for “High Tide”; film co-starred Friels
- 1989 US stage debut in Los Angeles production of Tom Stoppard’s play “Hapgood”
- 1990 First US-produced film, “Alice”, directed by Woody Allen
- 1991 Earned first Emmy nomination as a British woman involved with the French Underground during WWII in “One Against the Wind” (CBS); again paired with Sam Neill; earned Emmy nomination
- 1991 Played George Sand in the period drama “Impromptu”
- 1992 Received Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her memorable performance as a woman undergoing a divorce who finds a new love in Woody Allen’s “Husbands and Wives”
- 1993 Was set to co-star with Jonathan Pryce and River Phoenix in “Dark Blood”; project terminated after Phoenix’s death
- 1994 Teamed with Denis Leary and Kevin Spacey for the quirky comedy “The Ref”
- 1995 Played the lesbian lover of a US Army nurse in “Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story” (NBC); received Emmy Award as Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
- 1996 Returned to Australian films as star of “Children of the Revolution”; reteamed onscreen with Sam Neill
- 1997 Had featured role as the ex-wife of Jack Nicholson in “Blood & Wine”
- 1997 Third teaming with Woody Allen. “Deconstructing Harry”
- 1998 Had featured role as a teacher whose marriage crumbles in Allen’s “Celebrity”
- 1998 Received Emmy nomination playing a struggling farmer in Australia’s Outback faced with raising her husband’s daughter from his first marriage in “Echo of Thunder” (CBS)
- 1999 Cast as Lillian Hellman opposite Sam Shepard as Dashiell Hammett in the A&E biopic “Dash & Lilly”, directed by Kathy Bates; picked up another Emmy nomination as Best Actress
- 1999 Stage directorial debut with the Australian premiere of the one-man show “Barrymore”
- 1999 Starred opposite Sally Field in “A Cooler Climate” (Showtime); received sixth Emmy nomination
- 2001 Portrayed Judy Garland in the ABC miniseries “Life With Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows”, adapted from Lorna Luft’s memoir; won second Emmy
- 2001 Starred in the Australian box office hit “The Man Who Sued God”
- 2003 Cast as an American translator who agress to help a friend locate her missing husband in “Gaudi Afternoon”
- 2003 Portrayed Nancy Reagan in the controversal television movie “The Reagans”; earned a Golden Globe and an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Miniseries or Movie (2004)
- 2005 Portrayed Dora Fingleton, the long-suffering mother of champion swimmer Tony Fingleton in the true story “Swimming Upstream”
- Appeared on stage with theater companies in Adelaide and Sydney, Australia and with the Royal Court Theatre in London
- Dropped out of convent school to sing in a rock band
Kate Beckinsale Biography
Petite and pretty, with dark hair, pale skin and flashing eyes, Kate Beckinsale made a strong film debut as the virginal Hero in Kenneth Branagh’s sun-dappled adaptation of “Much Ado About Nothing” (1993). Although she was a screen novice, the actress projected the requisite intelligence and star quality that deemed her one to watch. As the daughter of comic Richard Beckinsale (who died when she was five years old) and actress Judy Loe, it was perhaps inevitable that she would eventually find her way to the limelight. Beckinsale, however, spent a good portion of her teen years struggling with an eating disorder (of which she has spoken frankly in interviews) before she decided to try her hand at acting. After a bit part in the BBC mystery “Devices and Desires” (1991), she landed the pivotal role of the rebellious daughter of a British woman (Judy Davis) involved with the French Resistance during WWII in “One Against the Wind” (CBS, 1991). Once she had become established as an ingenue with “Much Ado About Nothing”, Beckinsale carefully crafted a career path that would not find her typecast.
Simultaneous to pursuing her education at Oxford, Beckinsale continued to find challenging roles. In “Royal Deceit/The Prince of Jutland” (1994), which was based on the Danish prince whose life inspired Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”, she starred opposite Christian Bale. A lighter, more charming side to the actress was displayed in “Marie-Louise, or The Leave” (1995), in which she played a young woman searching for her lover in a crowded train station. Beckinsale delivered a strong turn as the meddlesome orphan taken in by eccentric relatives in the brittle comedy “Cold Comfort Farm” (also 1995). As Flora Poste, she anchored the film and managed to make a busybody character seem charming, and in some ways it was a warm-up for her tackling “Jane Austen’s Emma” (BBC/AE, 1996). Although Douglas McGrath’s feature version starring Gwyneth Paltrow had opened on American screens first, this version found its partisans who felt it was more faithful to the spirit of Austen.
Capitalizing on the sass and intelligence she had projected in both “Cold Comfort Farm” and “Jane Austen’s Emma”, Beckinsale shone as an aristocratic med student who falls in with two charming con men (Dan Futterman and Stuart Townsend) in the underrated caper flick “Shooting Fish” (1997). Adopting a flawless American accent, the actress next registered as the bitchy junior publishing executive seeking fun and perhaps Mr. Right in Whit Stillman’s “The Last Days of Disco” (1998). The following year, Beckinsale retained the Americanisms to portray a mousy tourist in Thailand who falls for a slick Australian, dragging herself and her traveling companion (Claire Danes) into accusations of drug smuggling in “Brokedown Palace”. After time out for motherhood, she returned to the big screen as Nick Nolte’s daughter in the Merchant Ivory adaptation of Henry James’ “The Golden Bowl” (2000).
The attractive actress finally had a shot at more mainstream success with two high profile leading roles in 2001. In the big-budget epic “Pearl Harbor”, she was cast as a US Navy nurse who falls in love with a dashing pilot (Ben Affleck) but when news of his death arrives turns to his best friend (Josh Hartnett) for comfort. And Beckinsale was cast opposite John Cusack in the mildly engaging romantic comedy “Serendipity”, playing a woman who believes more in fate than love at first sight and faces a long but seemingly inevitable road to romance. The actress surfaced again in 2003 in the arty indie “Laurel Canyon” as the icy fiancee of an L.A. native (Christian Bale) who returns to his eclectic mother’s home in Laurel Canyon, where Beckinsale’s character slowly becomes seduced by the sultry Los Angeles lifestyle.
Her highest profile role to date came in “Underworld” (2003), a glossy supernatural thriller with Romeo-and-Juliet overtones, in which Beckinsale played Selene, a vampire emobroiled in her kind’s long feud with a werewolf clan who falls in love with one of her blood enemies (Scott Speedman). Beckinsale followed up with another action-packed supernatural thriller, teaming with Hugh Jackman for “Van Helsing” (2004), in which she played Anna Valerious, a vampire slayer from a long line committed to ending the reign of Count Dracula who teams with the count’s longtime human foe. The actress was better served by her next project, director Martin Scorses’s Howard Hughes glamorous and visually arresting biopic “The Aviator” (2004), in which the actress provided a sultry spark as the firey film icon Ava Gardner, Hughes’ (Leonardo DiCaprio) most challenging, yet sympathetic, paramour.
- Born:on 07/26/73 in London, England
- Job Titles:Actor, Waitress
Family
- Daughter: Lily Sheen. born on January 31, 1999; father, Michael Sheen
- Father: Richard Beckinsale. born in 1947; died of a heart attack in 1979
- Half-sister: Samantha Beckinsale. older
- Mother: Judy Loe. born c. 1948
- Step-siblings: has five
Significant Others
- Companion: Edmund Moriarty. dated while at Cambridge
- Companion: Michael Sheen. born on February 5, 1969; acted together on stage in “The Seagull” (1995); no longer together as of January 2003
Education
- New College, Oxford University, Oxford, England, French and Russian, 1991-94
Milestones
- 1991 Co-starred in CBS TV-movie “One Against the Wind”, playing the rebellious daughter of Judy Davis
- 1991 Played small role in British TV-miniseries “Devices and Desires” (shown on PBS’ “Mystery!” in USA)
- 1993 Acted opposite Christian Bale in “The Prince of Jutland/Royal Deceit”, purportedly the real-life story of the Danish prince upon which “Hamlet” is based; played character of Ethel who is the Ophelia figure
- 1993 Made feature film debut as Hero in Kenneth Branagh’s film version of “Much Ado About Nothing”
- 1994 Played female lead in “Marie-Louise or The Leave”
- 1995 Made stage acting debut in “The Seagull” in Chester, England
- 1995 Portrayed the orphan Flora Poste who goes to live with her relatives at “Cold Comfort Farm” (shot in 1994 for BBC; released theatrically in USA in 1996)
- 1996 Appeared in London stage productions “Sweethearts” and “Clocks”
- 1997 Co-starred with Stuart Townsend and Dan Futterman in “Shooting Fish”
- 1997 Had lead in British TV version of Jane Austen’s “Emma” (aired in Great Britain on ITV; shown in USA on A&E)
- 1998 Appeared in Whit Stillman’s ensemble drama “The Last Days of Disco”
- 1998 Played Alice in British TV production of “Alice Through the Looking Glass”
- 1999 Co-starred with Clare Danes in the prison drama “Brokedown Palace”
- 2000 Portrayed Nick Nolte’s daughter in the Merchant-Ivory adaptation of Henry James’ “The Golden Bowl”
- 2001 Acted with John Cusack in the romantic comedy “Serendipity”
- 2001 Portrayed a 1940s army nurse who becomes involved in a love triangle with two pilots in “Pearl Harbor”
- 2003 Cast as Christian Bale’s love interest in “Laurel Canyon”
- 2004 Cast as Anna opposite Hugh Jackman in horror thriller “Van Helsing”
- 2004 Cast as Ava Gardner opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in Martin Scorsese’s “Aviator”
- Became anorexic as a teenager; underwent four years of five-day-per-week analysis
- Will play the romantic lead opposite Adam Sandler in the comedy “Click” (lensed 2005)