Kathy Baker
Encyclopedia
Katherine Whitton "Kathy" Baker (born June 8, 1950) is an American stage, film and television actress.
, performing in several of Sam Shepard
's plays before getting her break in an off-Broadway production of Fool for Love opposite Ed Harris
. Her recent projects include All the King's Men
(2006) and The Jane Austen Book Club
(2007).
She has appeared in numerous films including Edward Scissorhands
, The Right Stuff, Street Smart, Jacknife
and Cold Mountain
. As a small-town doctor in the David E. Kelley
television series Picket Fences
she won Emmy awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series three times in the show's four-year run (1993, 1995 and 1996).
Baker later re-teamed with Kelley, appearing in Boston Public
as a teacher named Meredith Peters. Baker guest-starred in the premiere episode of the eighth season of Law and Order: Criminal Intent, playing the role of an ambitious mother of a city politician with a dark family secret. She also had a recurring role in Medium as Allison DuBois
's mother-in-law, and another one in Tom Selleck
's periodic Jesse Stone
crime dramas as Rose, a small-town police officer.
Baker was born in Midland, Texas
, and raised a Quaker in New Mexico
, the daughter of John Seawand Baker, a geologist
and educator and his French-born
wife, Helene Andree (née Whitton). She studied acting at the California Institute of the Arts
in the early 1970s She later earned a B.A.
degree in French
in 1977 from UC Berkeley. She lives in Southern California
with her husband, Steven Robman
.
Career
Baker began her career at San Francisco's Magic TheatreMagic Theatre
The Magic Theatre is a theatre company founded in 1967, presently based at the historic Fort Mason Center on San Francisco's northern waterfront...
, performing in several of Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard is an American playwright, actor, and television and film director. He is the author of several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play Buried Child...
's plays before getting her break in an off-Broadway production of Fool for Love opposite Ed Harris
Ed Harris
Edward Allen "Ed" Harris is an American actor, writer, and director, known for his performances in Appaloosa, Radio, The Rock, The Abyss, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, A History of Violence, and The Truman Show. Harris has also narrated commercials for The Home Depot and other companies...
. Her recent projects include All the King's Men
All the King's Men (2006 film)
All the King's Men is a 2006 film adaptation of the 1946 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren. It was directed by Steven Zaillian, who also produced and scripted....
(2006) and The Jane Austen Book Club
The Jane Austen Book Club
The Jane Austen Book Club is a 2004 novel by American author Karen Joy Fowler. The story, which takes place near Sacramento, California, centers around a book club consisting of five women and one man who meet once a month to discuss Jane Austen's six novels...
(2007).
She has appeared in numerous films including Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands is a 1990 romantic fantasy film directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp. The film shows the story of an artificial man named Edward, an unfinished creation, who has scissors for hands. Edward is taken in by a suburban family and falls in love with their teenage daughter...
, The Right Stuff, Street Smart, Jacknife
Jacknife
Jacknife is a 1989 American film directed by David Jones and starring Robert De Niro and Ed Harris. The film focuses on a small, serious story, with emphasis on characterization and the complex tension between people in a close relationship...
and Cold Mountain
Cold Mountain (film)
Cold Mountain is a 2003 war drama film written and directed by Anthony Minghella. The film is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Charles Frazier...
. As a small-town doctor in the David E. Kelley
David E. Kelley
David Edward Kelley is an American television writer and producer, known as the creator of Picket Fences, Chicago Hope, The Practice, Ally McBeal, Boston Public, Boston Legal and Harry's Law, as well as several films. Kelley is one of the only screenwriters to have had a show created by him run on...
television series Picket Fences
Picket Fences
Picket Fences is a 60-minute American television drama about the residents of the fictional town of Rome, Wisconsin, created and produced by David E. Kelley. The show initially ran from September 18, 1992, to June 26, 1996, on the CBS television network in the United States...
she won Emmy awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series three times in the show's four-year run (1993, 1995 and 1996).
Baker later re-teamed with Kelley, appearing in Boston Public
Boston Public
Boston Public is an American drama television series created by David E. Kelley and broadcast on Fox. It centered on Winslow High School, a fictional public high school located in Boston, Massachusetts. The show was named for the real public school district in which it takes place...
as a teacher named Meredith Peters. Baker guest-starred in the premiere episode of the eighth season of Law and Order: Criminal Intent, playing the role of an ambitious mother of a city politician with a dark family secret. She also had a recurring role in Medium as Allison DuBois
Allison DuBois
Allison DuBois is an American author and medium. DuBois has controversially claimed to possess psychic abilities and use them to help U.S. law enforcement officials solve crimes, which formed the basis of the TV series Medium....
's mother-in-law, and another one in Tom Selleck
Tom Selleck
Thomas William "Tom" Selleck is an American actor, and film producer. He is best known for his starring role as Hawaii-based private investigator Thomas Magnum on the 1980s television show Magnum, P.I.. He also plays Police Chief Jesse Stone in a series of made-for-TV movies based on the Robert B....
's periodic Jesse Stone
Jesse Stone
Jesse Stone was an American rhythm and blues musician and songwriter whose influence spanned a wide range of genres...
crime dramas as Rose, a small-town police officer.
Personal life
Midland, Texas
Midland is a city in and the county seat of Midland County, Texas, United States, on the Southern Plains of the state's western area. A small portion of the city extends into Martin County. As of 2010, the population of Midland was 111,147. It is the principal city of the Midland, Texas...
, and raised a Quaker in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, the daughter of John Seawand Baker, a geologist
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
and educator and his French-born
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
wife, Helene Andree (née Whitton). She studied acting at the California Institute of the Arts
California Institute of the Arts
The California Institute of the Arts, commonly referred to as CalArts, is located in Valencia, in Los Angeles County, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the United States created specifically for students of both the visual and the...
in the early 1970s She later earned a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
in 1977 from UC Berkeley. She lives in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
with her husband, Steven Robman
Steven Robman
Steven I. Robman or Steve Robman is an American television and theatre director/producer.He was graduated from Alexander Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, California , University of California, Berkeley , and the Yale School of Drama .He has been married to actress Kathy Baker since 2003...
.
Filmography
- The Right Stuff (1983)
- A Killing AffairA Killing AffairA Killing Affair, is a 1986 drama film starring Peter Weller, Kathy Baker, John Glover, Bill Smitrovich and Danny Nelson.This films was based on the novel Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday by Robert Houston.It was filmed in Juliette, Georgia...
(1986) - Street Smart (1987)
- Clean and SoberClean and SoberClean and Sober is a 1988 American drama film directed by Glenn Gordon Caron starring Michael Keaton as a real estate agent and his trouble with substance abuse. This film was a dramatic departure from comedies for Keaton. The cast also includes Kathy Baker, M...
(1988) - DadDad (film)Dad is a 1989 comedy-drama film based on William Wharton's novel of the same name. The film stars Jack Lemmon, Ted Danson, Olympia Dukakis, Kevin Spacey and Ethan Hawke, and was written and directed by Gary David Goldberg. The original music score was composed by James Horner...
(1989) - JacknifeJacknifeJacknife is a 1989 American film directed by David Jones and starring Robert De Niro and Ed Harris. The film focuses on a small, serious story, with emphasis on characterization and the complex tension between people in a close relationship...
(1989) - Edward ScissorhandsEdward ScissorhandsEdward Scissorhands is a 1990 romantic fantasy film directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp. The film shows the story of an artificial man named Edward, an unfinished creation, who has scissors for hands. Edward is taken in by a suburban family and falls in love with their teenage daughter...
(1990) - Mister FrostMister FrostMister Frost is a 1990 psychological thriller film starring Jeff Goldblum. The film was directed by French filmmaker Philippe Setbon, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Derry Hall, Brad Lynch and Louise Vincent.-Synopsis:...
(1990) - Article 99Article 99Article 99 is a 1992 American dramatic film written by Ron Cutler and directed by Howard Deutch. It was produced by Orion Pictures and starred Kiefer Sutherland, Ray Liotta, Forest Whitaker, John C. McGinley, Rutanya Alda and Lea Thompson...
(1992) - Honey, I Blew Up the KidHoney, I Blew Up the KidHoney, I Blew Up the Kid is the 1992 sequel to the 1989 film Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. Directed by Randal Kleiser and released by Walt Disney Pictures, the film stars Rick Moranis, Marcia Strassman, Robert Oliveri and Amy O'Neill, who reprise their roles as Wayne, Diane, Nick, and Amy Szalinski...
(1992) - Jennifer EightJennifer EightJennifer 8 is a 1992 film written and directed by Bruce Robinson and starring Andy García, Uma Thurman and John Malkovich.-Plot summary:...
(1992) - Picket FencesPicket FencesPicket Fences is a 60-minute American television drama about the residents of the fictional town of Rome, Wisconsin, created and produced by David E. Kelley. The show initially ran from September 18, 1992, to June 26, 1996, on the CBS television network in the United States...
(1992–1996) - Mad Dog and GloryMad Dog and GloryMad Dog and Glory is a 1993 American comedy-drama film directed by John McNaughton and starring Robert De Niro, Uma Thurman and Bill Murray.-Plot:...
(1993) - Lush LifeLush LifeLush Life is an American sitcom that aired in September 1996 on Fox. The series stars Lori Petty and Karyn Parsons as roommates who shared a studio apartment for financial reasons.-Plot:...
(1993) (TV movie) - To Gillian on Her 37th BirthdayTo Gillian on Her 37th BirthdayTo Gillian on Her 37th Birthday is a 1996 American romantic drama film directed by Michael Pressman, and starring Peter Gallagher and Claire Danes as a father and daughter struggling to come to terms with the tragic death of wife and mother Gillian . The original score was composed by James...
(1996) - Ally McBealAlly McBealAlly McBeal is an American legal comedy-drama series which aired on the Fox network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia...
(1997) - Inventing the AbbottsInventing the AbbottsInventing the Abbotts is a 1997 romance film directed by Pat O'Connor, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Billy Crudup, Liv Tyler, Jennifer Connelly, and Michael Keaton. The screenplay by Ken Hixon is based on a short story by Sue Miller. The original music score is composed by Michael Kamen...
(1997) - The Cider House RulesThe Cider House Rules (film)The Cider House Rules is a 1999 American drama film directed by Lasse Hallström, based on John Irving's novel of the same name. The film won two Academy Awards, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, along with four other nominations at the 72nd Academy Awards...
(1999) - A Season For Miracles (Hallmark TV Movie) (1999)
- Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at HerThings You Can Tell Just by Looking at HerThings You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her is a film written and directed by Rodrigo García starring an ensemble cast. Garcías debut film was shown at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival and won the Un Certain Regard Award...
(2000) - RatzRatzRatz , officially the Movement for Civil Rights and Peace was a left-wing political party in Israel from 1973 until its formal merger into Meretz in 1997.-Background:...
(2000) - Too Young to Be a DadToo Young to Be a DadToo Young To Be A Dad is a made-for-television movie about teen pregnancy that aired in May 2002 on Lifetime.-Plot summary:The film opens with 15 year old Matt Freeman becoming the youngest member to be inducted into his school's Honor Society...
(2002) - The Glass HouseThe Glass House (film)The Glass House is a 2001 film directed by Daniel Sackheim and written by Wesley Strick.-Plot:Sixteen-year-old Ruby and eleven-year-old Rhett lose their parents in a car accident...
(2001) - Ten Tiny Love Stories (2001)
- Boston PublicBoston PublicBoston Public is an American drama television series created by David E. Kelley and broadcast on Fox. It centered on Winslow High School, a fictional public high school located in Boston, Massachusetts. The show was named for the real public school district in which it takes place...
(2001–2002) - Assassination TangoAssassination TangoAssassination Tango is a 2002 crime film written, produced, directed by, and starring Robert Duvall. It is a thriller about an assassin's discovery of Argentine tango. Other actors include Rubén Blades, Kathy Baker and Duvall's wife, Luciana Pedraza. Francis Ford Coppola was one of the executive...
(2002) - Door to DoorDoor to Door (film)Door to Door was a 2002 TV movie about Bill Porter , a door-to-door salesman with cerebral palsy. The film was produced for the TNT cable network and was nominated for twelve Emmy Awards, winning six...
(2002) - Cold MountainCold Mountain (film)Cold Mountain is a 2003 war drama film written and directed by Anthony Minghella. The film is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Charles Frazier...
(2003) - 13 Going on 3013 Going on 3013 Going on 30 is a 2004 American romantic comedy fantasy film starring Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo. It has a similar premise to the classic short story Rip Van Winkle, in which a young person falls asleep and wakes up many years later as an older person...
(2004) - Monk (TV Series)Monk (TV series)Monk is an American comedy-drama detective mystery television series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the titular character, Adrian Monk. It originally ran from 2002 to 2009 and is primarily a mystery series, although it has dark and comic touches.The series debuted on July...
(2004) - Nip/TuckNip/TuckNip/Tuck is an American drama series created by Ryan Murphy, which aired on FX in the United States. The series focuses on McNamara/Troy, a plastic surgery practice, and follows its founders, Sean McNamara and Christian Troy...
(2005) - Spring Break Shark Attack (2005) (TV movie)
- Nine LivesNine Lives (2005 film)Nine Lives is a 2005 American drama film written and directed by Rodrigo García. The screenplay, an example of hyperlink cinema, relates nine short, loosely intertwined tales with nine different women at their cores. Their themes include parent-child relationships, fractured love, adultery,...
(2005) - MediumMedium (TV series)Medium is an American television drama series that premiered on NBC on January 3, 2005, and ended on CBS on January 21, 2011. Themed on supernatural gifts, its lead character, Allison DuBois , is a medium employed as a consultant for the Phoenix, Arizona district attorney's office...
(2005–2010) - All the King's MenAll the King's Men (2006 film)All the King's Men is a 2006 film adaptation of the 1946 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren. It was directed by Steven Zaillian, who also produced and scripted....
(2006) - The Jane Austen Book ClubThe Jane Austen Book Club (film)The Jane Austen Book Club is a 2007 American romantic drama film written and directed by Robin Swicord. The screenplay, adapted from the 2004 novel of the same name by Karen Joy Fowler, focuses on a book club formed specifically to discuss the six novels written by Jane Austen...
(2007) - Jesse Stone: Sea Change (2007) (TV movie)
- Law & Order: SVU (2007)
- Gilmore GirlsGilmore GirlsGilmore Girls is an American family comedy-drama series created by Amy Sherman-Palladino, starring Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel. On October 5, 2000, the series debuted on The WB and was cancelled in its seventh season, ending on May 15, 2007 on The CW...
(2007) - Last Chance HarveyLast Chance HarveyLast Chance Harvey is a 2008 American romantic drama film written and directed by Joel Hopkins. The screenplay focuses on two lonely people who tentatively forge a relationship over the course of three days...
(2008) - Shades of Ray (2008)
- Law & Order: CI (2009)
- Jesse Stone: Thin Ice (2009) (TV movie)
- Jesse Stone: No Remorse (2010) (TV movie)
- Miss Nobody (post-production)
- Law & OrderLaw & OrderLaw & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
(2010) - Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost (2011) (TV movie)
- Take ShelterTake ShelterTake Shelter is a 2011 American drama film starring Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain. The film is written and directed by Jeff Nichols. Plagued by a series of apocalyptic visions, a young husband and father questions whether to shelter his family from a coming storm, or from...
(2011) - Against the WallAgainst The WallAgainst The Wall is a 1994 drama film starring Samuel L. Jackson and Kyle MacLachlan. It was shot in Nashville, Clarksville, and the Tennessee State Penitentiary. The film is loosely based on the true story of a prison riot at the Attica Correctional Facility. The tagline is "39 Men Died. The Story...
(2011)
External links
- Kathy Baker 2003 Interview on Sidewalks EntertainmentSidewalks EntertainmentSidewalks Entertainment is a long-running, weekly American television series that is a combination of a talk show, magazine show and variety show featuring celebrity interviews, music, artistic and novelty acts, and rising performers...