![Marcia Gay Harden Marcia Gay Harden](https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QJEwjz1xJYw/WUhfKl2UrvI/AAAAAAAAIe8/DNoVriFtTfUmN7nhzFAWwZWPgiywAdoHQCLcBGAs/s1600/3a9d73c30b99464901a04dbac25dbc77.jpg)
Marcia Gay Harden
Birthday:
14 August 1959, La Jolla, California, USA
Height:
164 cm
Marcia Gay Harden was born on August 14, 1959, in La Jolla, California, the third of five children. Her mother, Beverly (Bushfield), was a homemaker, and her father, Thad Harold Harden, was in the military. The family relocated often -- she first became interested in the theater when the family was living in Greece, and she had attended plays in At...
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Marcia Gay Harden was born on August 14, 1959, in La Jolla, California, the third of five children. Her mother, Beverly (Bushfield), was a homemaker, and her father, Thad Harold Harden, was in the military. The family relocated often -- she first became interested in the theater when the family was living in Greece, and she had attended plays in Athens. Harden began her college education at American universities in Europe and returned to the US to complete her studies at the University of Texas in 1983; went on to earn an MFA at NYU, and, thereafter, embarked on her acting career.Although she had acted in a movie as early as 1986, in the little-known The Imagemaker (1986), her first mainstream role, coming alongside some TV movie work, was as a sultry femme fatale in the Coen Brothers' cleverly offbeat homage to the gangster movie, Miller's Crossing (1990). Harden received good reviews for her sultry performance as Verna, a seductive, trouble-making moll. Harden thereafter worked steadily in supporting roles, including the portrayal of Ava Gardner in Sinatra (1992), a television biopic about Frank Sinatra. Harden also worked in the theater and, in 1993, was part of the Broadway cast of Tony Kushner's "Angels in America", playing Harper, the alienated wife of a closeted gay man. It was a demanding dramatic role, and Harden won acclaim for her work, including a Tony award nomination. She returned to movie making in the mid-1990s, continuing to turn in superb supporting performances in films and television.Harden's road to success was a long one, her work generally being overlooked because the productions were either critically panned or ignored by audiences. However, it was just a matter of time before Harden got a chance to truly show her quality on-screen, and that time came in 2000, with Ed Harris's Pollock (2000), in which she played Lee Krasner, artist and long-suffering wife of Jackson Pollock. Harden's performance was deeply moving and unforgettable and earned her the Oscar and New York Film Critic's Circle awards for best supporting actress. Continuing to work prolifically in features and television, she earned another Oscar nomination in 2003 for her supporting role in Clint Eastwood's Mystic River (2003), Harden having earlier worked with Eastwood in 2000's Space Cowboys (2000).Harden's work often makes otherwise mediocre productions worth watching, fully inhabiting any character she portrays. She married Thaddaeus Scheel, with whom she worked on The Spitfire Grill (1996), in 1996 and the couple have three children, a daughter Eulala Scheel and twins Julitta and Hudson. Show less «
[on winning the Oscar despite low pre-award expectations] "Vegas had me at 12-to-1 odds. I sure do wish I had bet on myself and made a littl...Show more »
[on winning the Oscar despite low pre-award expectations] "Vegas had me at 12-to-1 odds. I sure do wish I had bet on myself and made a little money." Show less «
[Talking about Lee Krasner, her character in Pollock (2000)]: "When she was first married, Lee's main concern was pleasing Jackson, she was ...Show more »
[Talking about Lee Krasner, her character in Pollock (2000)]: "When she was first married, Lee's main concern was pleasing Jackson, she was the kind of woman who hung her hat on another man's peg to find herself, in spite of how brilliant she was in her own right. Their marriage was wonderful, fabulous, and hideous. They fed off each other in ways that weren't always healthy, but, if they hadn't been together, Pollock never would have become world famous and Lee wouldn't have pushed herself to the artistic limits she did. As soon as they split, one of them was bound to destruct". Show less «
Until people get to know me they think I'm a dark, sensuous bitch.
Until people get to know me they think I'm a dark, sensuous bitch.
The only thing that seemed to me I could do in such a way that no one else could was acting. I thought, I can be a doctor, but there's going...Show more »
The only thing that seemed to me I could do in such a way that no one else could was acting. I thought, I can be a doctor, but there's going to be someone else who is just as good or better. I can be a lawyer, which I still sometimes think I would love to be, but I think there's someone who can do it just as good or better. So, being an actor, there will be people who can do it just as good or better, but I'll have my voice, and no one will have my voice. Show less «
"My husband is great, and my mother flies in and helps when I'm on location." (when asked how she juggles career and family.)
"My husband is great, and my mother flies in and helps when I'm on location." (when asked how she juggles career and family.)
I was the girl who got off the bus wondering where Marty Scorsese was and why he wouldn't cast me in his next film.
I was the girl who got off the bus wondering where Marty Scorsese was and why he wouldn't cast me in his next film.
People have such false perceptions of how stardom really works. After I won the Oscar for Pollock (2000), some newspaper printed, 'She shoul...Show more »
People have such false perceptions of how stardom really works. After I won the Oscar for Pollock (2000), some newspaper printed, 'She should get a million-dollar bump.' My sisters would write me, 'You're gonna get this million-dollar bump!' I thought, I'll open the shutters to my hotel, and Scorsese will be on the lawn, and the lawn will be made out of emeralds. I never made less money than right after the Oscar. Show less «
[on her new role on The Newsroom (2012)] When I first got the role, Jeff Daniels said: 'I'll give you a little Aaron Sorkin tip: Come to set...Show more »
[on her new role on The Newsroom (2012)] When I first got the role, Jeff Daniels said: 'I'll give you a little Aaron Sorkin tip: Come to set with your lines down for the rehearsal.' I said, 'What?' Usually the actor learns them during the day. But as an actress, I have never had a sigh of consternation when I get something complicated. You know how it is when you feel used in a good way. It's like that old song, 'keep on using me, 'til you use me up.' I just feel grateful. Show less «
Well, we're actors. So I would absolutely agree that we all have a kind of a personality disorder.
Well, we're actors. So I would absolutely agree that we all have a kind of a personality disorder.
Television is a wide world of opportunity for women in their 30s, 40s, 50s, thank God. In any film, there are 10 male roles for 1 female rol...Show more »
Television is a wide world of opportunity for women in their 30s, 40s, 50s, thank God. In any film, there are 10 male roles for 1 female role, especially in the action films. They're heavy with the guys. Show less «
[2012, on filming Flubber (1997)] A hundred years ago, I had the good blessing to meet Robin Williams, and all memories of that movie are ab...Show more »
[2012, on filming Flubber (1997)] A hundred years ago, I had the good blessing to meet Robin Williams, and all memories of that movie are about flying up and down on wires with Robin while getting into a flying car. And all he did was make the crew laugh. It was the loudest set I've ever been on. He was the kindest person. His then-wife, Marcia, also just incredibly kind. It was fantastic. It was a bit of a... It was an understood star vehicle. I think it was the first star vehicle I'd been in, and Robin was doing his best to just let everybody be funny and share the humor, but I think they really just let him go. We got to be the straight-people. But I fell in love with him. He's fantastic, and he's still a friend. Show less «
[2012, on Spy Hard (1996)] Ugh. I hated doing that movie. It was, I thought, going to be an opportunity to have a lot of fun, but it was jus...Show more »
[2012, on Spy Hard (1996)] Ugh. I hated doing that movie. It was, I thought, going to be an opportunity to have a lot of fun, but it was just chaos and, uh, not so much fun. And not so funny. I mean, Leslie [Nielsen] was great, but it was really his show, and it was just... very chaotic. Behind schedule, over budget. Show less «
[2012, on Pollock (2000)] That was exciting. That was exciting intellectually, educationally, emotionally, the craft of it. It was probably ...Show more »
[2012, on Pollock (2000)] That was exciting. That was exciting intellectually, educationally, emotionally, the craft of it. It was probably the most exciting thing I've ever done. It was full of museum visits and art study and painting classes. And emotional drainage. Working so closely with Ed Harris, who I just think is a genius. Long hours. Hard days. A full character. It was everything I dreamed of. And it was a tough shoot. You know, Ed wasn't always easy [as a director], but he was always right. And he had the Pollock cap on as well. So sometimes you'd have Pollock directing you in a movie, which was cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. And sometimes you would just have Ed Harris and all of his great brilliance and manliness coming from behind the camera. But I would follow Ed up any mountain trail at any time of day or night, knowing he'll take care of me. He's a man. Show less «
[2003 interview] The Oscar is disastrous on a professional level. Suddenly the parts you're offered become smaller and the money less. There...Show more »
[2003 interview] The Oscar is disastrous on a professional level. Suddenly the parts you're offered become smaller and the money less. There's no logic to it. Show less «
[...said that the bar for authenticity was set high when dozens of actors went through a medical boot camp.] "Ryan said they wanted to make ...Show more »
[...said that the bar for authenticity was set high when dozens of actors went through a medical boot camp.] "Ryan said they wanted to make sure you can do four actual procedures," Those included chest tube insertion, central line insertion, intubation, and basic sutures. "Eyes closed." Show less «
[when she faced off against Viola Davis on the hit ABC series, How to Get Away with Murder (2014)] "I took [Viola] down and now I'm here!" [...Show more »
[when she faced off against Viola Davis on the hit ABC series, How to Get Away with Murder (2014)] "I took [Viola] down and now I'm here!" [at Code Black (2015)] Show less «
[the focus being on more human elements in Code Black (2015)] "At the end of the day, Michael's given us a show that's not snarky. It's real...Show more »
[the focus being on more human elements in Code Black (2015)] "At the end of the day, Michael's given us a show that's not snarky. It's real... hard core, ugly sometimes-but with values I can get behind: family, love, health, teamwork, and making each day a little better," Show less «
[on Code Black (2015)] "It's down and dirty," [she declared with a triumphant smile]
[on Code Black (2015)] "It's down and dirty," [she declared with a triumphant smile]
[on Code Black (2015)] "You get involved in the lives of not just the patients coming in, but also in the lives of the doctors."
[on Code Black (2015)] "You get involved in the lives of not just the patients coming in, but also in the lives of the doctors."
[but what exactly does "code black" mean?] "That's the moment in the emergency room when there are more patients than there are doctors and ...Show more »
[but what exactly does "code black" mean?] "That's the moment in the emergency room when there are more patients than there are doctors and beds to take care of them," Show less «
[on working on Code Black (2015)] "It is a glorious organized chaos for the doctors and it is super exciting,"
[on working on Code Black (2015)] "It is a glorious organized chaos for the doctors and it is super exciting,"
[on gaining knowledge for Code Black (2015)] "It's real, it's raw and the amount of knowledge that they want us to acquire so that it feels ...Show more »
[on gaining knowledge for Code Black (2015)] "It's real, it's raw and the amount of knowledge that they want us to acquire so that it feels second nature so that it feels authentic, is a lot," Show less «
[on the real Code Black (2015) hospital] I've never seen anything like that Emergency room!
[on the real Code Black (2015) hospital] I've never seen anything like that Emergency room!
[the focus being on more human elements in Code Black (2015)] "That is what I was brought up to believe. I get the cutting-edge dramas. I lo...Show more »
[the focus being on more human elements in Code Black (2015)] "That is what I was brought up to believe. I get the cutting-edge dramas. I love it. But to spend these kind of hours and devote this kind of energy, I do want to be behind those other values." Show less «
[on working on Code Black (2015)] "There are four residents [working] over our shoulders who we are teaching, and it's about the life in thi...Show more »
[on working on Code Black (2015)] "There are four residents [working] over our shoulders who we are teaching, and it's about the life in this emergency room, based on a real emergency room." Show less «
[on Code Black (2015)] "It is a beautiful, beautiful show,"
[on Code Black (2015)] "It is a beautiful, beautiful show,"
That was fantastic and [How to Get Away With Murder] is a different kind of show. It's a whodunit, it's a ploty, and twisty, kind of show an...Show more »
That was fantastic and [How to Get Away With Murder] is a different kind of show. It's a whodunit, it's a ploty, and twisty, kind of show and [Code Black] is different because it's a formulaic show, It's a joy. You don't want to play the same thing your whole life so that's the joy of acting. Show less «
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