Lorraine Bracco
From Sopranopedia - The Sopranos Encyclopedia
| Lorraine Bracco | |
| File:Replace this image1.svg | |
| Born | October 2 1954 (age 55) Brooklyn, New York, USA |
| Notable roles | Karen Hill in GoodFellas Dr. Jennifer Melfi in The Sopranos |
| Academy Awards | |
|---|---|
| Nominated - Best Supporting Actress for Goodfellas | |
| Emmy Awards | |
| 3 nominations - Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series - 1999, 2000, 2001 | |
Lorraine Bracco (born October 2, 1954[1]) is an Academy Award and Emmy Award nominated American actress best known for her roles as Karen Hill in Goodfellas and Dr. Jennifer Melfi on the HBO TV series, The Sopranos.
Table of contents |
Biography
Early Life
Bracco was born in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Bay Ridge and grew up in Hicksville on Long Island. She was voted the "ugliest girl in the 6th grade" at her Long Island grade school.[1] She moved to France in 1974 where she became a fashion model for Jean-Paul Gaultier.
She is of Italian and English ancestry. She is also fluent in French.
Career
She appeared as Paul Guilfoyle's hostage in the first season Crime Story episode "Hide and Go Thief." Her sister Elizabeth played a hostage in the series' pilot.
She has appeared in a number of films, including Riding in Cars with Boys, The Basketball Diaries, Medicine Man, Radio Flyer and Hackers.
She received her big break in acting when offered the role as the mobster-wife Karen Hill in Goodfellas, which earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. During the audition process for The Sopranos, Bracco had originally auditioned for the leading female role of Carmela Soprano, but she turned it down, fearing the part was too similar to her role as the mob-wife in Goodfellas and that the role of mob-psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Melfi would be a new and bigger challenge for her. The role has netted her several award nominations, including 3 consecutive nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series at the Emmy Awards in 1999, 2000 and 2001. She lost out in 1999 and 2001 to her co-star, Edie Falco.
Personal life
Bracco has been married and divorced twice. Her first marriage was to Daniel Guerard from the late '70s to the early '80s. She was then in a long-term relationship with Harvey Keitel[1]. She then married Edward James Olmos. She has two children, Stella Keitel and Margaux Guerard. Bracco engaged in a five-year legal battle that ended in 1999 for custody of her daughter Stella from the relationship with Keitel. The legal fees and taxes of which forced her to file for bankruptcy; later she and Olmos filed for divorce in March 2002. Bracco is currently dating former Syracuse Orange basketball star Jason Cipolla and has long since recovered financially as well through the success of The Sopranos. She has been dealing with clinical depression and has been doing ads for Pfizer.[citation needed]
She is the owner of Bracco Wines, and a personal friend of New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg.[citation needed] She and her line of wines were featured on the Season 1 finale of Bravo's show Top Chef in 2006. She appeared as a guest judge for the 2 episode finale.[1]
On Thursday, May 24, 2007, Bracco appeared on Oprah to discuss how she conquered clinical depression and to promote her book on the subject, On The Couch.
Notes
Bibliography
- On the Couch (Putnam Adult, 2006) ISBN 0-399-15356-X
External links
- Lorraine Bracco at the Internet Movie Database
- Cast profile at the-sopranos.com
- New York Times interview
- Bracco Winesde:Lorraine Bracco
fr:Lorraine Bracco pl:Lorraine Bracco
