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===Career===
===Career===
After graduating, Davis signed with New York's Zoli modelling agency and served as a window [[mannequin]] for [[Ann Taylor (retail chain)|Ann Taylor]]. With a height of six feet and a shoe size of 11 (US), Davis was a striking [[model (person)|model]] cast from a different mold. She was working as a model when [[film director|director]] [[Sydney Pollack]] spotted her and cast her in ''[[Tootsie]]'' ([[1982 in film|1982]]) as a soap opera actress. She followed this up with roles in the short-lived television series ''[[Buffalo Bill (TV series)|Buffalo Bill]]'' ([[1983]]–[[1984]]), for which she also wrote an episode, and ''[[Sara (TV)|Sara]]'' ([[1985]]). Davis made a breakthrough with ''[[The Fly (1986 film)|The Fly]]'' and ''[[Beetlejuice]]''. She received an [[Academy Awards|Oscar]] as [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]] for her role in ''[[The Accidental Tourist (film)|The Accidental Tourist]]'' ([[1988 in film|1988]]) and a [[Academy Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]] nomination for her role in ''[[Thelma and Louise]]'' ([[1991 in film|1991]]). Davis replaced [[Debra Winger]] for the lead in ''[[A League of Their Own]]''. She then co-starred in ''[[Hero (1992 film)|Hero]]'' alongside Dustin Hoffman and Andy Garcia. Following this, Davis teamed up with then husband [[Renny Harlin]] for the films ''[[Cutthroat Island]]'' and ''[[The Long Kiss Goodnight]]''. She and Harlin produced the films.
After graduating, Davis signed with New York's Zoli modelling agency and served as a window [[mannequin]] for [[Ann Taylor (retail chain)|Ann Taylor]]. With a height of six feet and a shoe size of 11 (US), Davis was a striking [[model (person)|model]] cast from a different mold. She was working as a model when [[film director|director]] [[Sydney Pollack]] spotted her and cast her in ''[[Tootsie]]'' ([[1982 in film|1982]]) as a soap opera actress. She followed this up with roles in the short-lived television series ''[[Buffalo Bill (TV series)|Buffalo Bill]]'' ([[1983]]–[[1984]]), for which she also wrote an episode, and ''[[Sara (TV)|Sara]]'' ([[1985]]). Davis made a breakthrough with ''[[The Fly (1986 film)|The Fly]]'' and ''[[Beetlejuice]]''. She received an [[Academy Awards|Oscar]] as [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]] for her role in ''[[The Accidental Tourist (film)|The Accidental Tourist]]'' ([[1988 in film|1988]]) and a [[Academy Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]] nomination for her role in ''[[Thelma and Louise]]'' ([[1991 in film|1991]]). Davis replaced [[Debra Winger]] for the lead in ''[[A League of Their Own]]'' and recieved a Best Actress Golden Globe Award nomination for her performance. She then co-starred in ''[[Hero (1992 film)|Hero]]'' alongside Dustin Hoffman and Andy Garcia. Following this, Davis teamed up with then husband [[Renny Harlin]] for the films ''[[Cutthroat Island]]'' and ''[[The Long Kiss Goodnight]]''. She and Harlin produced the films.


Davis starred in the short-lived sitcom ''[[The Geena Davis Show]]'' ([[2000 in television|2000]]–[[2001 in television|2001]]). In early [[2004 in television|2004]], she guest-starred as [[Grace Adler]]'s sister Janet on the [[NBC]] [[sitcom]] ''[[Will & Grace]]''. She most recently starred in the [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] [[television]] series ''[[Commander in Chief (TV series)|Commander in Chief]]'' as the first female [[President of the United States]]. This role garnered her a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama Series in [[2006 in film|2006]], and she also was nominated for a [[Screen Actors Guild|SAG]] Award for Outstanding Female Actor in a Drama Series and an [[Emmy Award]].
Davis starred in the short-lived sitcom ''[[The Geena Davis Show]]'' ([[2000 in television|2000]]–[[2001 in television|2001]]). In early [[2004 in television|2004]], she guest-starred as [[Grace Adler]]'s sister Janet on the [[NBC]] [[sitcom]] ''[[Will & Grace]]''. She most recently starred in the [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] [[television]] series ''[[Commander in Chief (TV series)|Commander in Chief]]'' as the first female [[President of the United States]]. This role garnered her a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama Series in [[2006 in film|2006]], and she also was nominated for a [[Screen Actors Guild|SAG]] Award for Outstanding Female Actor in a Drama Series and an [[Emmy Award]].

Revision as of 15:29, 26 December 2007

Geena Davis
Davis at the 1989 Academy Awards
Born
Virginia Elizabeth Davis
Years active1982 - present
Spouse(s)Richard Emmolo (1982-1983)
Jeff Goldblum (1987-1990)
Renny Harlin (1993-1998)
Reza Jarrahy (2001-)
AwardsNBR Award for Best Actress
1991 Thelma & Louise

Virginia Elizabeth "Geena" Davis (born January 21 1956) is an Academy Award- and Golden Globe-winning and Emmy-nominated American actress and former fashion model.


Biography

Early life

Davis was born in Wareham, Massachusetts, the daughter of Lucille, a teacher's assistant, and William Davis, a civil engineer. One of the first signs of her interest and skill in the performing arts was her budding talent in music. She learned piano, flute and drums. She played organ well enough as a teenager to serve as an organist at her church in Wareham. Enrolling at New England College, Davis eventually graduated with a bachelor's degree in drama from Boston University in 1979. While an exchange student in Sandviken, Sweden, Davis became fluent in Swedish.

Career

After graduating, Davis signed with New York's Zoli modelling agency and served as a window mannequin for Ann Taylor. With a height of six feet and a shoe size of 11 (US), Davis was a striking model cast from a different mold. She was working as a model when director Sydney Pollack spotted her and cast her in Tootsie (1982) as a soap opera actress. She followed this up with roles in the short-lived television series Buffalo Bill (1983–1984), for which she also wrote an episode, and Sara (1985). Davis made a breakthrough with The Fly and Beetlejuice. She received an Oscar as Best Supporting Actress for her role in The Accidental Tourist (1988) and a Best Actress nomination for her role in Thelma and Louise (1991). Davis replaced Debra Winger for the lead in A League of Their Own and recieved a Best Actress Golden Globe Award nomination for her performance. She then co-starred in Hero alongside Dustin Hoffman and Andy Garcia. Following this, Davis teamed up with then husband Renny Harlin for the films Cutthroat Island and The Long Kiss Goodnight. She and Harlin produced the films.

Davis starred in the short-lived sitcom The Geena Davis Show (2000–2001). In early 2004, she guest-starred as Grace Adler's sister Janet on the NBC sitcom Will & Grace. She most recently starred in the ABC television series Commander in Chief as the first female President of the United States. This role garnered her a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama Series in 2006, and she also was nominated for a SAG Award for Outstanding Female Actor in a Drama Series and an Emmy Award.

Personal life

On September 1, 2001, Davis married Iranian-American Dr. Reza Jarrahy. They have three children: daughter Alizeh Keshvar (born April 10, 2002) and fraternal twins Kian William Jarrahy and Kaiis Steven Jarrahy on May 6, 2004. The marriage is Davis' fourth; she was previously married to Richard Emmolo (25 March 1982 - 26 February 1983); actor Jeff Goldblum, with whom she co-starred in three films, Transylvania 6-5000, The Fly and Earth Girls Are Easy (1987 to 1990); and Renny Harlin, who directed her in Cutthroat Island and The Long Kiss Goodnight (1993 to 1998).

In 1999, Davis was a semi-finalist in trials for the United States' Olympic Archery team. She placed twenty-fourth out of twenty-eight.

Davis is 6 feet tall (1.83 m), and a member of American Mensa, the High IQ Society, [1] with an IQ of 140.

Activism

Davis is fronting the Women's Sports Foundation campaign Geena Takes Aim in support of Title IX — an Act of Congress focusing on equality in sports opportunities, now expanded to prohibit gender discrimination in United States' educational institutions.

In 2004, while watching children’s television programs and videos with her daughter, Davis noticed what she thought was an imbalance in the ratio of male to female characters. From that starting point, Davis went on to sponsor the largest research project ever undertaken on gender in children’s entertainment (resulting in 4 discreet studies, including one on children’s television). The research showed that in the top-grossing G-rated films from 1990-2005, there were three male characters for every one female. That research sparked Davis to launch The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media (www.TheGeenaDavisInstitute.org) in 2007. The Institute’s first focus is an on-the ground program that works collaboratively with the entertainment industry to dramatically increase the presence of female characters in media aimed at children and to reduce stereotyping of both males and females.

Filmography

Template:S-awards
Preceded by Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
1988
for The Accidental Tourist 		Succeeded by

Television work

References

  1. ^ "They're Accomplished, They're Famous, and They're MENSANS". Mensa Bulletin (476). American Mensa: p. 21. 2004. ISSN 0025-9543. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
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