Jennifer Aniston

Jennifer Aniston
JenniferAniston08TIFF.jpg
Aniston at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival
Born Jennifer Joanna Aniston[1][2]
February 11, 1969 (1969-02-11) (age 40)
Sherman Oaks, California, United States
Occupation Actor, director
Years active 1989-present
Spouse(s) Brad Pitt (2000-2005)

Jennifer Joanna Aniston (born February 11, 1969) is an American film and television actor. She became famous from the mid 1990s to the early 2000s for playing the role of Rachel Green in the popular US sitcom Friends, a role for which she won an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

She has starred in several Hollywood films. While most of her film roles have been in comedies such as Bruce Almighty, Office Space, Rumor Has It, and the romantic comedies Along Came Polly and The Break-Up, she has also appeared in films from other genres, such as the crime thriller Derailed.

Contents

Early life

Jennifer Aniston was born in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, California, and grew up in New York City.[3] She is the daughter of the actor John Aniston and actress Nancy Dow.[4] Aniston's father is a Greek American, born Yannis Anastassakis, on the island of Crete, Greece, while her mother was born in New York City of English and Scottish descent.[3] Aniston has two half-brothers, John Melick (older) and Alex Aniston (younger).[4][3] Aniston's godfather was the actor Telly Savalas, her father's best friend.[4][3] She lived in Greece for one year as a child with her family, and they later relocated to New York City.[4] Her father has appeared in the soap operas Days of our Lives, Love of Life and Search for Tomorrow.[4] Aniston attended the New York Rudolf Steiner School[5] and graduated from Manhattan's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts.[3] She worked in Off Broadway productions such as For Dear Life and Dancing on Checker's Grave.[4] She supported herself with several part-time jobs, including working as a telemarketer and bike messenger.[4] In 1989, she moved to Los Angeles, California.[6]

Career

Aniston moved to Hollywood and was cast in her first television role in 1990, starring as a regular on the short-lived series Molloy and in the TV movie Camp Cucamonga.[7] She also co-starred in Ferris Bueller, a television adaptation of the 1986 hit movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off.[7] The series, however, was quickly canceled.[4] Aniston then appeared in two more failed television comedy shows, The Edge and Muddling Through, and guest-starred on Quantum Leap, Herman's Head, and Burke's Law.[7] After the string of canceled shows, along with her appearance in the critically derided 1992 horror film, Leprechaun,[8] Aniston considered giving up acting.[4] Aniston's plans changed, however, after auditioning for Friends, a sitcom that was set to debut on NBC's 1994–1995 fall line-up.[3][9] The producers of the show originally wanted Aniston to audition for the role of Monica Geller,[9] but she persuaded them that she was better suited for the role of Rachel Green.[9] She was cast in the role and played the character from 1994 until the show ended in 2004.[10][11]

The program was successful and Aniston, along with her co-stars, gained wide renown among television viewers.[3] Her hairstyle at the time, which became known as the "Rachel", was widely copied.[3][4] Aniston received a salary of one million dollars per episode for the last two seasons of Friends, as well as five Emmy nominations (two for Supporting Actress, three for Lead Actress),[12][13][14][15] including a win for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.[16] According to the Guinness World Book of Records (2005), Aniston (along with her female costars) became the highest paid TV actress of all time with her $1 million-per-episode paycheck for the tenth season of Friends.[17]

Jennifer Aniston was cast in a Heineken commercial which was later banned due to branding issues. Later, in 1994, Microsoft invited Aniston, along with Friends co-star Matthew Perry, to shoot a 30-minute promotional advertisement for their new operating system, Windows 95.[18] She gained critical acclaim for her performances in The Object of My Affection (1998), a comedy drama about a girl who falls for a gay man,[19] and in the low-budget 2002 film, The Good Girl, directed by Miguel Arteta, playing an unglamorous cashier in a small town. The latter film opened in relatively few theaters—under 700 in total—taking $14M in the U.S. box office.[20] In late 2005, Aniston appeared in two major studio films, Derailed and Rumor Has It.[21][22]

In addition to her career as a TV actress, Aniston has enjoyed a successful film career. Her biggest box office success to date was her appearance in 2003's Bruce Almighty, in which she played the girlfriend of title character Jim Carrey.[23] Aniston then starred in the 2004 film, Along Came Polly opposite Ben Stiller.[24] In 2006, Aniston appeared in the low-budget drama, Friends with Money, which was first shown at the Sundance Film Festival, received a limited release.[25] Aniston's next film, The Break-Up, which was released on June 2, grossed approximately $39.17 million during its opening weekend, despite lukewarm reviews.[26]

In 2007, Aniston guest starred in an episode of Courteney Cox Arquette's series Dirt. Aniston played Arquette's snobby rival Tina Harrod.[27] In addition to acting, Aniston has also directed a hospital emergency room-set short film named Room 10, starring Robin Wright Penn and Kris Kristofferson;[28] Aniston has noted that she was inspired to direct by actress Gwyneth Paltrow, who directed a short film in 2006.[29]

Forbes listed Aniston as the 10th richest woman in the entertainment industry for the year 2007. She is behind such powerhouses as Oprah Winfrey, J. K. Rowling, Madonna, Celine Dion and Jennifer Lopez and is ahead of Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and the Olsen twins. Aniston's net worth is approximately $110 million.[30] Aniston was also included in the annual Star Salary Top 10 of trade magazine The Hollywood Reporter for 2006.[31] According to Forbes in October 2007, Aniston was the top-selling celebrity face of the entertainment industry.[32] In 2008, Aniston landed the seventeenth spot on Forbes Celebrity 100 list based on "earnings and fame."[33] Forbes listed Aniston's earnings as $27 million.[34] In August 2008 she had dinner in a Beverly Hills' restaurant with Woody Allen and his wife: he's in fact interested in her for a romantic film that'll be released in autumn 2009.

Jennifer Aniston appeared in the third episode of season 3 of NBC's 30 Rock playing Liz Lemon's old college roomate who stalks Jack Donaghy.[35]

Personal life

Aniston has previously dated musician Adam Duritz,[4] and was engaged to actor Tate Donovan.[36] Her high-profile relationship with actor Brad Pitt was frequently publicized in the press.[4][37] She married Pitt on July 29, 2000, in a lavish Malibu wedding.[38] For years their marriage was considered the rare Hollywood success.[4] However, when Pitt showed up to the Ocean's Twelve premiere without Aniston, rumors that their relationship was on the rocks began.[39] In early January 2005, the couple was seen vacationing in the Caribbean with her Friends co-star Courteney Cox and her husband, actor David Arquette,[40] and photos on the beach showed them kissing and affectionate. On January 7, 2005 they announced their separation.[41]

Rumors that Pitt had fallen for actress Angelina Jolie began when they were shooting the film Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Jolie and Pitt both denied any claims of adultery, with Jolie declaring in an interview in 2005, "To be intimate with a married man, when my own father cheated on my mother, is not something I could forgive. I could not look at myself in the morning if I did that. I wouldn't be attracted to a man who would cheat on his wife."[42] Pitt and Aniston were seen together publicly after announcing their separation, even at a dinner party for Aniston's thirty-sixth birthday in February, and friends of the couple had declared they were reconciling.[43] Aniston, however, filed for divorce on March 25, 2005.[2] A divorce was finalized on October 2, 2005.[44]

Media reports speculated that the split was due to Aniston's refusal to have children; t-shirts were sold after their separation with the phrase "I'll Have Your Baby, Brad!". Aniston denied that this was the cause of their split in an August 2005 Vanity Fair interview, stating, "I've never in my life said I didn't want to have children... I've always wanted to have children, and I would never give up that experience for a career." Aniston also revealed that her divorce prompted her to reach out to her mother, from whom she was estranged for nearly a decade. They initially became estranged when Nancy talked about her daughter on a television show and later wrote a book titled From Mother and Daughter to Friends: A Memoir (1999).[45][46]

She has also stated that she was devastated by the death of her longtime therapist, whose work helped to make the separation from Pitt easier.[47] Aniston has said that her relationship with Pitt, which she does not regret, was "seven very intense years together" and that "it was a beautiful, complicated relationship."[48] Since the couple's divorce, Aniston has been romantically linked to actor Vince Vaughn,[49] British model Paul Sculfor and singer John Mayer.[50][51]

In August 2006, Aniston denied rumors that she was engaged to Vaughn or that the actor had proposed.[52] In October 2006, gossip magazine Us Weekly quoted sources from Vaughn that the couple had broken up.[53] In December 2006, representatives for both Aniston and Vaughn confirmed that they had indeed split up a few weeks before when Aniston visited Vaughn in London.[54]

The intense media scrutiny of Aniston's private life continued. It was reported in April 2008 that singer John Mayer and Aniston were an item. A few weeks later, Mayer hinted the rumours were true when he told reporters "listen, this is not a scandal, this is not an issue, this is not a problem, this needs no spin control."

On August 13, 2008, the U.K.'s Daily Mirror reported that Aniston was "dumped" by Mayer after the pair initially decided to spend some time apart before making the break official earlier this week. However, according to USmagazine.com, reports that Mayer had dumped Aniston were not true and that it was she who dumped him. A relationship expert tells USmagazine.com that Mayer's pride and ego was the reason he has been telling people he dumped Aniston. [55] Rumors were put to rest when Mayer explained on his Myspace that he had ended the relationship because "[he doesn't] want to waste somebody's time if something's not right". [56]On October 11, 2008, Mayer and Aniston reunited for a dinner at romantic restaurant, Il Mulino. Since then, Aniston and Mayer have been reported to reunite quite a few times, once to celebrate Mayer's 31st birthday. She has since confirmed on Oprah, she is again dating John Mayer. [57]

Tabloids have also fabricated rumors about Aniston being pregnant with twins, which Aniston has denied but stated that she feels motherhood is “in my future and I'm on the verge of it in some way."[58]

Aniston has had two septoplasties to correct her deviated septum—one which was incorrectly done in 1994 and the second in January 2007. Septoplasty is a surgical operation that helps alleviate a common condition that can lead to breathing difficulty and trouble sleeping.[59]

She is the godmother of good friends and actors Courteney Cox Arquette's and David Arquette's daughter Coco Riley Arquette.

Philanthropy

Aniston is a supporter of many charity foundations. She is a supporter of Friends of El Faro, a grassroots non-profit that helps raise money for Casa Hogar Sion—an orphanage in Tijuana, Mexico and has appeared in a few advertisements on TV for St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. She made a guest appearance on Oprah's Big Give show to support the cause and donated money to help. Aniston hosted September 2008's Stand Up to Cancer show. In the "It Can't Wait" campaign to free Burma, Aniston directed and starred in a video. On April 14, 2007, Aniston received GLAAD's Vanguard Award for her contributions to increased visibility and understanding of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender.

Filmography

Aniston at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival
Year Title Role Notes
1990 Camp Cucamonga Ava Schector TV movie
1993 Leprechaun Tory Reding First feature film
1996 She's the One Renee Fitzpatrick
Dream for an Insomniac Allison
1997 Picture Perfect Kate Mosely
'Til There was You Debbie
1998 The Object of My Affection Nina Borowski
1999 The Iron Giant Annie Hughes Voice Only
Office Space Joanna
2001 Rock Star Emily Poule
2002 The Good Girl Justine Last
2003 Bruce Almighty Grace Connelly
2004 Along Came Polly Polly Prince
2005 Rumor Has It Sarah Huttinger
Derailed Lucinda Harris
2006 The Break-Up Brooke Meyers
Friends with Money Olivia
Room 10 n/a Short film, Co-Director only
2008 Management Sue Claussen premiered at TIFF
Marley & Me Jenny Grogan 12-25-2008
2009 He's Just Not That into You Beth 02-06-2009
Traveling Lead role no release date yet

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1990—1991 Ferris Bueller Jeannie Bueller Main Role
1992—1993 The Edge Various Characters Main Role
1994—2004 Friends Rachel Green Main Role

Guest appearances

Year Title Role Notes
1990 Molloy Courtney 2 episodes
1992 Quantum Leap Kiki Wilson "Nowhere to Run" (Season 5, Episode 4)
1992—1993 Herman's Head Suzie Brooks
  • "Twisted Sister" (Season 1, Episode 25)
  • "Jay Is for Jealousy" (Season 3, Episode 8)
1994 Burke's Law Linda Campbell "Who Killed the Beauty Queen?" (Season 1, Episode 4)
Muddling Through Madeline Drego Cooper —
1996 Partners CPA Suzanne "Follow the Clams?" (Season 1, Episode 17)
1998 Disney's Hercules Charmaine (Voice) "Dream Date" (Season 1, Episode 27)
1999 South Park Mrs. Stevens - Choir Teacher (Voice) "Rainforest Schmainforest" (Season 3, Episode 1)
2003 Freedom: A History of Us Jessie Benton "Wake Up America " (Season 1, Episode 4)
King of the Hill Pepperoni Sue/Stephanie (Voice) "Queasy Rider" (Season 7, Episode 13)
2007 Dirt Tina Harrod "Ita Missa Est " (Season 1, Episode 13)
2008 30 Rock[60] Claire Harper The One With the Cast of Night Court (Season 3, Episode 3)

Awards

References

  1. ↑ CNN.com - Transcripts
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Silverman, Stephen M. Jennifer Files for Divorce from Brad, People, March 25, 2005. Accessed July 15, 2008.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 "Hello Magazine Profile - Jennifer Aniston". Hello Magazine. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  4. ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 "Jennifer Aniston Biography". People. Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  5. ↑ Fussman, Cal (2002-10-01). "A Woman We Love: Jennifer Aniston". Esquire. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  6. ↑ "Biography of Jennifer Aniston". Tiscali. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "Hello Magazine Filmography - Jennifer Aniston". Hello Magazine. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  8. ↑ Canby, Vincent (1993-01-09). "Leprechaun Review". New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "E! True Hollywood Story: Friends". E! True Hollywood Story. E!. 2006-11-19. No. 15, season 10.
  10. ↑ "The Pilot". Marta Kauffman, David Crane, and Kevin S. Bright. Friends. NBC. 1994-09-22. No. 1, season 1. 30 minutes in.
  11. ↑ "The Last One". Friends. NBC. 2004-05-06. No. 17 and 18, season 10.
  12. ↑ "IMDB: Emmy Awards 2000". IMDB.com. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  13. ↑ "IMDB: Emmy Awards 2001". IMDB.com. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  14. ↑ "2003 Emmy Award Comedy Nominations". Emmy Awards Online. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  15. ↑ "2004 Emmy Award Comedy Nominations". Emmy Awards Online. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  16. ↑ Silverman, Stephen M. (2002-09-22). "Emmy Awards Make New Best 'Friends'". People. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  17. ↑ Guinness World Records 2005: Special 50th Anniversary Edition. Guinness. 2004-08-23. pp. 288. ISBN 1892051222. 
  18. ↑ Elliott, Stuart (1995-07-31). "The Media Business: Advertising; Haven't heard of Windows 95? Where have you been hiding?". New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  19. ↑ Maslin, Janet (1998-04-17). "The Object of My Affection Review". New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  20. ↑ Schwarzbaum, Lisa (2002-08-07). "The Good Girl Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  21. ↑ Chang, Justin (2005-11-05). "Derailed Review". Variety. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  22. ↑ Ebert, Roger (2005-12-23). "Rumor Has It Review". Chicago Sun-Times. Roger Ebert.com. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  23. ↑ Koehler, Robert (2003-05-23). "Bruce Almighty Review". Variety. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  24. ↑ Papamichael, Stella. "BBC Films - Along Came Polly Review". BBC. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  25. ↑ Travers, Peter (2006-04-04). "Friends With Money Review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  26. ↑ "Box Office Mojo". The Break-Up's opening weekend gross. Retrieved on June 16, 2006.
  27. ↑ "TVSquad.com". Jennifer Aniston to guest star on Dirt. Retrieved on March 2, 2007.
  28. ↑ "And She Directs Too, Jennifer Aniton Marks Directing Debut With Short Film For Glamour Reel Moments". CBS News (2006-10-17). Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  29. ↑ Van Meter, Jonathan (March 2006). "Jennifer Aniston: A Profile in Courage". Style.com. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  30. ↑ "Forbes.com". In Pictures: The Richest 20 Women In Entertainment. Retrieved on March 2, 2007.
  31. ↑ "Hollywood.com". Nicole Kidman Tops Hollywood Earners List at Hollywood.com. Retrieved on March 2, 2007.
  32. ↑ "Fab Tab Cover Stars". Forbes (2007-10-02). Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  33. ↑ "Forbes Celebrity 100 Has a Big 'O'", Celebuzz.com (2008-06-12). 
  34. ↑ "The Celebrity 100", Forbes (2008-06-12). 
  35. ↑ Moore, Frazier (2008-08-29). "Jennifer Aniston will make a return visit to NBC", The Associated Press. Retrieved on 2008-09-07. 
  36. ↑ "Tate Donovan Biography". Yahoo!. Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  37. ↑ "Jennifer Aniston Biography". Yahoo!. Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  38. ↑ "Brad Pitt Biography". People. Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  39. ↑ Freydkin, Donna (2005-01-09). "Start the presses! Aniston and Pitt split". USA Today. Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  40. ↑ "'People' reveals details behind Pitt, Aniston breakup". ABC News (2005-01-10). Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  41. ↑ "Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt Separate". People (2005-01-07). Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  42. ↑ "Angelina, saint vs. sinner". New York Daily (2006-02-07). Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  43. ↑ "Brad & Jen Reunite for Her Birthday". People (2005-02-17). Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  44. ↑ Kappes, Serena (2005-09-30). "Brad & Jen Finalize Divorce". People. Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  45. ↑ "The Unsinkable Jennifer Aniston". Vanity Fair (September 2005). Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  46. ↑ Laurence, Charles (2006-12-15). "Not even friends...", Los Angeles National Post. 
  47. ↑ "Vogue". Vogue interview. Retrieved on June 14, 2006.
  48. ↑ "Daily Times". Aniston just wants to make Friends with Pitt. Retrieved on June 18, 2006.
  49. ↑ "Jennifer & Vince: More than Good Friends?". People (2005-09-01). Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  50. ↑ "Jen's New Man". People (2007-06-07). Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  51. ↑ Marx, Linda (2008-04-26). "Jennifer Aniston on the Town with John Mayer". People. Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
  52. ↑ "TMZ.com". Aniston Calls "Bull" on Engagement Stories. Retrieved on August 24, 2006.
  53. ↑ Jordan, Julie (2006-12-05). "Jennifer Aniston & Vince Vaughn Split". People. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
  54. ↑ "Report: Publicists for Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn Confirm Break-Up". Fox News (2006-12-06). Retrieved on 2008-07-15.
  55. ↑ "Expert: John Mayer and Jennifer Aniston Kiss and Tell "an Ego Thing"".
  56. ↑ http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20219799,00.html
  57. ↑ [1]
  58. ↑ Jennifer Aniston: "I'm On the Verge" of Motherhood" TV Guide. December 4, 2008. Retrieved on December 5 2008.
  59. ↑ "Jen Gets a Nose Job". Us Magazine (2007-01-24). Retrieved on 2008-07-15.
  60. ↑ [2]

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Sarah Jessica Parker
for Sex and the City		 Golden Globe Award - Best Actress in a Television Comedy or Musical
for Friends
2003		 Succeeded by
Sarah Jessica Parker
for Sex and the City
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) · Tina Fey (2008)

(1950–1975) · (1976–2000) · (2001–present)
Friends
Characters
Rachel Green · Monica Geller · Phoebe Buffay · Joey Tribbiani · Chandler Bing · Ross Geller
Cast
Jennifer Aniston · Courteney Cox Arquette · Lisa Kudrow · Matt LeBlanc · Matthew Perry · David Schwimmer
Significant episodes
The Pilot · The One with the Lesbian Wedding · The One After the Superbowl · The One with the Prom Video · The One Where No One's Ready
The One with the Embryos · The One with Ross's Wedding · The One with All the Thanksgivings · The One After Vegas · The One with the Apothecary Table
The One with the Proposal  · The One with the Rumor · The Last One
Joey · Guest stars · Central Perk · "I'll Be There for You" · Quotes · Media · Recurring characters
Persondata
NAME Aniston, Jennifer
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION American actress
DATE OF BIRTH February 11, 1969
PLACE OF BIRTH Sherman Oaks, California, United States
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH