Felicity Huffman

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Felicity Huffman

Huffman at the 2006 Malibu Triathlon
Born Felicity Kendall Huffman
December 9, 1962 (1962-12-09) (age 45)
Bedford, New York, USA
Years active 1978-present
Spouse(s) William H. Macy (1997-present)

Felicity Huffman (born December 9, 1962) is an Academy Award-nominated American actress. She is well known for her role as Lynette Scavo, the hectic busy Super-Mom on the ABC hit show Desperate Housewives, which earned her an Emmy Award. A year later, her role as a transwoman in the independent film Transamerica earned her a Golden Globe Award, and was praised by many critics. Huffman won eight significant awards, and was nominated ten times.

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early life

Felicity Kendall Huffman was born in Bedford, New York, the daughter of Grace Valle (née Ewing), an actress, and Moore Peters Huffman, a banker.[1] Her parents divorced a year after her birth, and she was raised mostly by her mother. She has six sisters and a brother, Moore. She graduated from Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan. After high school she went on to New York University where she graduated in 1988 from the Tisch School of the Arts, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama.

[edit] Career

Huffman is known for her roles in Desperate Housewives and Transamerica. On television, she has also appeared in the dramedy Sports Night, and has had guest starring roles on Frasier, The West Wing and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. In 2001 she appeared in the made for TV movie Snap Decision with Mare Winningham. Huffman has appeared in films such as Raising Helen and Christmas with the Kranks. In 2003 she starred in Showtime's dramedy Out of Order.

Huffman won an Emmy for her work on Desperate Housewives (Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series), as well as two 2005 Screen Actors Guild Awards (Best Actress - Comedy Series and part of Best Ensemble - Comedy Series). Huffman's performance in the film Transamerica was praised by many critics and garnered her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress as well as nominations for the Best Actress (Screen Actors Guild) and Best Actress (Academy Awards). Huffman is now a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[2]

Huffman is also the co-author of the self-help book, A Practical Handbook for the Boyfriend. She is the only actress to have appeared in all three television shows created by Aaron Sorkin (Sports Night, The West Wing, and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip).

She is set to star in the title role of the upcoming motion picture, The Politician's Wife, due for release in 2010.

[edit] Personal life

Huffman is married to actor William H. Macy, with whom she has two daughters Sofia Grace (born August 1, 2000) and Georgia Grace (born March 14, 2002. They married on September 6, 1997. She has appeared on television, in movies, and on stage many times with her husband, such as on the TV show Sports Night and in the movie Magnolia. The couple have become the subject of a running gag on the satirical news show The Colbert Report, in which the couple (who live a quiet life outside the media spotlight) are regularly referenced as representing the greatest of today's celebrity couples in a culture obsessed with celebs. Colbert refers to the couple as "Filliam H. Muffman", a play on the current trend by media types to combine the names of major celebrity couples, in the mold of "Bennifer", "Brangelina" and "TomKat."

In 2005, Huffman revealed that she had suffered from both anorexia and bulimia in her late teens and twenties.[3] At the height of her bulimia she would purge up to six times a day. Her weight dropped to 98 lbs, her periods stopped, and she was too weak to go jogging. However, with therapy and upon meeting Macy she managed to overcome those conditions. She is still known for her self-deprecating humor and her belief that she is "not pretty."

She is a huge fan of Tina Turner and her dream was to be a back-up singer, so when Huffman was on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Winfrey surprised her with a visit from Tina Turner where the two got to sing together.

[edit] Filmography

[edit] Awards & nominations

Academy Awards

Golden Globe Awards

Emmy Awards

Independent Spirit Awards

  • 2006: won for Best Female Lead -- Transamerica

National Board of Review

  • 2005: won for Best Actress -- Transamerica

OBIE Award

  • 1994-95: won for her performance as Donny in David Mamet's "Cryptogram"

Screen Actors Guild Awards

  • 2000: nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series -- Sports Night
  • 2005: won for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series -- Desperate Housewives
  • 2006: nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role -- Transamerica
  • 2006: won for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series -- Desperate Housewives
  • 2006: won for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series -- Desperate Housewives
  • 2007: nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series -- Desperate Housewives
  • 2007: nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series -- Desperate Housewives

[edit] References

  1. ^ Felicity Huffman Biography (1962-)
  2. ^ Academy Invites 120 to Membership
  3. ^ USATODAY.com - Felicity Huffman is sitting pretty

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:


Awards
Preceded by
Teri Hatcher
for Desperate Housewives		 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
for Desperate Housewives
2005		 Succeeded by
America Ferrera
for Ugly Betty
Preceded by
Annette Bening
for Being Julia		 National Board of Review Award for Best Actress

for Transamerica
2006		 Succeeded by
Helen Mirren
for The Queen
Preceded by
Hilary Swank
for Million Dollar Baby		 Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
for Transamerica
2006		 Succeeded by
Helen Mirren
for The Queen
v • d • e
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series

Patricia Heaton (2000) · Patricia Heaton (2001) · Jennifer Aniston (2002) · Debra Messing (2003) · Sarah Jessica Parker (2004) · Felicity Huffman (2005) · Julia Louis-Dreyfus (2006) · America Ferrera (2007)
Persondata
NAME Huffman, Felicity
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Huffman, Felicity Kendall
SHORT DESCRIPTION actress
DATE OF BIRTH December 9, 1962
PLACE OF BIRTH Bedford, New York
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH