Parker Posey Biography

Summary

"Parker Christian Posey" (born November 8, 1968) is an American actress. She became known during the 1990s, after a series of roles in several well-reviewed independent films. As a result, she has often been referred to as the 'Queen of the Indies'.

Biography

Early life

Posey was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the daughter of Lynda, a chef, and Chris Posey, who owned a Chevrolet dealership. She has a fraternal twin brother, Christopher. Posey's unisex first name was a tribute by her father to 1950s supermodel Suzy Parker. After Posey's birth, the family moved to Greenwood, Mississippi, where her mother worked as a chef and culinary instructor for the Viking Range Corporation, and her father, after coming back from the Vietnam War with long time friend Bill Pearson, opened a dealership named "Posey Chevrolet" in Laurel, Mississippi. The family also lived at times in Monroe, Louisiana. Posey was raised in the Catholic religion.

Film career

Posey attended the State University of New York at Purchase, where she roomed with actress Sherry Stringfield. Posey's first break was in television, when she won the role of Tess Shelby on the daytime soap opera "As the World Turns". (Stringfield, Posey's roommate, was also cast on the daytime drama "Guiding Light" at about the same time.) Posey's first major role in a feature film was in "Dazed and Confused" (1993).

Throughout the late 1990s, Posey starred in a large number of independent films and was named "Queen of the Indies" by Time Magazine, which cited 32 independent films to her credit, including "Personal Velocity", "Clockwatchers", "Party Girl", and "The House of Yes", for which she received especially positive reviews for her portrayal of a delusional woman in love with her own brother. She is part of the acting ensemble that appears in director Christopher Guest's films, including his four mock documentaries ("Waiting for Guffman" in 1996, "Best in Show" in 2000, "A Mighty Wind" in 2003, and "For Your Consideration" in 2006). Posey is also a favorite of director Hal Hartley. She appeared in "Henry Fool" (1998), two of his shorts, "Opera No. 1" (1994) (with Adrienne Shelley, another Hartley regular) and 'Sisters of Mercy' (2004). Posey also starred in his most recent film, "Fay Grim" (2006). Posey received acclaim for her performance in Zoe Cassavetes directorial debut "Broken English" in 2007.

Posey has had supporting roles in several big budget studio films, including "Scream 3" (2000), "You've Got Mail" (1998), "Josie and the Pussycats" (2001), "Laws of Attraction" (2004) and "Blade: Trinity" (2004). She also had a small but notable performance in "Superman Returns", playing

Kitty Kowalski, an assistant to villain Lex Luthor.

Television work

Although Posey primarily works in film, she has appeared in several television projects.

Posey appeared in the television miniseries adaptations of the Armistead Maupin "Tales of the City" books; her character, Connie, was featured in the original 1993 series and the 1998 miniseries 'sequel' covering the second book.

In 2000, she provided the voice of Umbriel the mermaid in the "Futurama" episode 'The Deep South.'

Also in 2000, Parker provided the voice of Becky in an episode of "The Simpsons" titled 'It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Marge.'

She has also had a recurring role on the television series "Will & Grace", as Dorleen, Jack's high-maintenance boss at Barneys.

Posey appeared on the season one finale episode of "Project Runway" in 2005. She was a spectator at New York Fashion Week, and also a judge alongside Nina Garcia, Michael Kors, and German supermodel/host Heidi Klum.

In 2006, Posey guest-starred as the ambitious, back-stabbing lawyer Marlene Stanger in the legal drama "Boston Legal".

Posey was also considered for the role of Rachel Green in "Friends". Other notable roles she was seriously considered for are Kimmy in My Best friend's Wedding, which Cameron Diaz got and Althea in People vs. Larry Flynt, which went to Courtney Love.

Posey will be starring in the up-coming Fox series "The Return of Jezebel James".

Other work

Posey made her stage debut in 2001, and has worked regularly on the stage since. Posey also dabbles in music; she can play the mandolin. She learned to play as preparation for her role in "A Mighty Wind" (2003), a film in which she also sang. She used her vocal talents on several records of her ex-boyfriend, Ryan Adams, whom she dated until early 2005. She also played the mandolin on The Dandy Warhols track 'I Am Sound' from their "Welcome to the Monkey House" LP.

She is also the subject of several songs:

She is the subject of a tribute song by Stuart Davis on his 2006 album ¿What.

L.A. based rappers Trilambs also recorded a song titled Parker Posey in 2001.

Musical project Forms of Things Unknown recorded an experimental music instrumental called From Here to Parker Posey.

Beginning in February 2006, Posey appeared in a commercial for Pepsi Cola opposite Jimmy Fallon, dancing to the song 'Newton - Streamline'. It was prominently aired during the FOX broadcasts of the 2006 World Series in October, and a longer version has also aired in movie theaters. She is a contributing editor to "Open City", a literary magazine whose editor, Thomas Beller, she once dated.

Posey has appeared on the cover of Lucky magazine, an online shopping site.

Personal life

Posey enjoys pottery. In the past, she has dated Stuart Townsend. Posey lives in the East Village on East 10th Street with her Bichon Frisé-Maltese mix dog named Gracie. She lives across the street from 80's teen actress Molly Ringwald.

Parker dated Ryan Adams until 2005.