Diane Venora
Diane Venora | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 10, 1952 |
| Education | Boston Conservatory Juilliard School (BFA) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1981–present |
| Spouse(s) | Andrzej Bartkowiak (m. 1980–1989) |
Diane Venora (born August 10, 1952) is an American stage, television and film actress.
Venora graduated from the Juilliard School in 1977 and made her film debut in 1981 opposite Albert Finney in Wolfen. She won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the 1988 film Bird directed by Clint Eastwood. Her other films include The Cotton Club (1984), Heat (1995), Romeo + Juliet (1996), The Jackal (1997), The Insider (1999) and Hamlet (2000).
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Early life[edit]
Venora was born in East Hartford, Connecticut, one of six children of Marie (née Brooks) and Robert P. Venora, who owned a dry cleaning establishment.[1][2] Diane graduated from East Hartford High School (class of 1970), during which she was active in musicals and plays. She studied at Boston Conservatory of Music and two years later won a scholarship to Juilliard School in New York City, where she graduated in 1977.[3] At Juilliard she was a member of the Drama Department's Group 6 (1973–1977),[4] which also included Kelsey Grammer, Harriet Sansom Harris, and Robin Williams.[5]
Career[edit]
After graduation, Venora performed extensively on the stage, particularly in Shakespearean plays.[6] She made her film debut alongside Albert Finney and Gregory Hines in Wolfen (1981). In 1983, she starred in Joseph Papp's production of Hamlet at the New York Shakespeare Festival in the lead role, the first woman to play the role at the prestigious showcase. She has a long history with Hamlet, having played the title role, having played Ophelia opposite Kevin Kline, and having played Gertrude onscreen opposite Ethan Hawke.
In 1988, her critically acclaimed performance in Clint Eastwood's biographical feature of jazz great Charlie Parker, Bird, as Chan Parker, his wife, earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination and the New York Film Critics Circle Award.
In 1994, after taking five years off to care for her daughter, Venora landed a starring role in the ABC TV series Thunder Alley (playing Ed Asner's character's daughter), followed by a recurring role as plastic surgeon Geri Infante in the Emmy-winning TV series Chicago Hope.
In 1995, she starred opposite Al Pacino and Robert De Niro in Heat, earning high regard from both critics and audiences for her portrayal of Justine Hanna, the Pacino character's troubled wife.[6] That performance and her follow-up as Juliet's mother, Gloria Capulet, in Romeo + Juliet (1996) earned her supporting roles in The Jackal (1997), The 13th Warrior (1999), and The Insider (1999). She was most recently seen in the 2010 film All Good Things.
Personal life[edit]
Venora was married to cinematographer Andrzej Bartkowiak in 1980; the couple divorced in 1989. That same year, she took some time out from show business to spend more time with her daughter Madzia, then eight years old. During her hiatus, Venora lived in New York, teaching disadvantaged children and acting in an occasional play. In 1994, Venora and her daughter moved to Los Angeles.[3]
Filmography[edit]
Film[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Wolfen | Rebecca Neff | |
| 1984 | The Cotton Club | Gloria Swanson | |
| 1985 | Terminal Choice | Anna Lang | |
| 1986 | F/X | Ellen Keith | |
| 1987 | Ironweed | Margaret 'Peg' Phelan | |
| 1988 | Bird | Chan Parker | New York Film Critics Circle, Best Actress Sant Jordi Awards, Best Foreign Actress |
| 1995 | Three Wishes | Joyce | |
| 1995 | Heat | Justine Hanna | |
| 1996 | The Substitute | Jane Hetzko | |
| 1996 | Surviving Picasso | Jacqueline | |
| 1996 | Romeo + Juliet | Gloria Capulet | |
| 1997 | Seed: A Love Story | Julia | Short |
| 1997 | The Jackal | Major Valentina Koslova | |
| 1999 | True Crime | Barbara Everett | |
| 1999 | The 13th Warrior | Queen Weilow | |
| 1999 | The Joyriders | Celeste | |
| 1999 | The Young Girl and the Monsoon | Giovanna | |
| 1999 | The Insider | Liane Wigand | |
| 2000 | Hamlet | Gertrude | |
| 2000 | Looking for an Echo | Joanne Delgado | |
| 2001 | Megiddo: The Omega Code 2 | Gabriella Francini | |
| 2002 | Heartbreak Hospital | Sunday Tyler / Andrea Harmon | |
| 2004 | Stateside | Mrs. Hengen | |
| 2005 | Self Medicated | Louise Eriksen | Phoenix Film Festival, Best Ensemble |
| 2005 | Touched | Carole Davis | |
| 2008 | Stiletto | Sylvia Vadalos | |
| 2008 | Childless | Mary | |
| 2009 | Follow the Prophet | Red | |
| 2009 | Little Hercules in 3-D | Hera | |
| 2009 | The Ministers | Gina Santana | |
| 2010 | All Good Things | Janice Rizzo |
Television[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Getting There | Melanie | TV short |
| 1981 | Nurse | Ellen Brill | "Rivals" |
| 1982 | A Midsummer Night's Dream | Hippolyta | TV film |
| 1983 | Cook & Peary: The Race to the Pole | Marie Fidele Hunt | TV film |
| 1985 | A.D. | Corinna | TV miniseries |
| 1990 | Great Performances | Ophelia | "Hamlet" |
| 1993 | Law & Order | Mara Feder | "Night & Fog" |
| 1994 | Thunder Alley | Bobbi Turner | Recurring role |
| 1994–95 | Chicago Hope | Dr. Geri Infante | Recurring role |
| 1996 | Special Report: Journey to Mars | Lt. Tanya Sadavoy | TV film |
| 2000 | Race Against Time | Dr. Helen Steele | TV film |
| 2000 | The Practice | Margaret Wakefield | "Appeal and Denial" |
| 2004 | Class Actions | Justine Harrison | TV film |
| 2004 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Marilyn Nesbit | "Home" |
| 2005 | Threshold | Andrea Hatten / Angela Hatten | "Trees Made of Glass: Parts 1 & 2", "Shock", "The Order" |
| 2005 | C.S. Lewis: Beyond Narnia | Joy Gresham | TV film documentary |
| 2006 | Criminal Minds | Doris | "The Fisher King: Part 1" |
| 2007 | Medium | Sarah Jane Levitt | "Very Merry Maggie" |
| 2008 | Eleventh Hour | Lea Muller | "Resurrection" |
| 2009 | Private Practice | Sharon | "Second Chances" |
| 2009 | NCIS | Shada Shakarji | "Outlaws and In-Laws" |
| 2010 | Grey's Anatomy | Audrey Taylor | "Push" |
| 2010 | The Wish List | Brenda | TV film |
| 2016 | The Victorians | Mary Rutherford | TV film |
References[edit]
- ^ "Diane Venora Biography (1952-)". FilmReference.com.
- ^ "Venora. Robert P. Venora, Sr". Hartford Courant. February 23, 1997.
- ^ a b Lang, Steven (December 8, 1997). "Second Act: Having Once Left Acting to Care for Her Daughter, Diane Venora Takes a Run at Stardom in The Jackal". People.
- ^ "Alumni News". The Juilliard School. November 2007. Archived from the original on November 11, 2011.
- ^ "Alumni News". The Juilliard School. September 2007. Archived from the original on November 11, 2011.
- ^ a b Diane Venora- Biography
External links[edit]
- Diane Venora on IMDb
- Diane Venora at AllMovie
