Mercedes J. Ruehl is an American theater, television and film actor.
Personal life
Ruehl was born in
Jackson Heights, QueensJackson Heights is a neighborhood in the Northwestern portion of the borough of Queens in New York, New York, United States. The neighborhood is part of Queens Community Board 3...
, New York City, the daughter of Mercedes J., a school teacher, and Vincent Ruehl, an FBI agent. She was raised Catholic. Her father was of German and
IrishThe Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
descent and her mother was of Cuban and Irish ancestry. Ruehl attended College of New Rochelle and graduated in 1969. She is married to painter,
David GeiserDavid Geiser is an American painter and creator of several underground comix.- Life and works :David Geiser is an abstract expressionist painter, born in Rochester, New York in 1948. He studied at the University of Vermont, École des Beaux-Arts, and the Art Students League...
, with whom she adopted a son, Jake (born 1997). She had another son, Christopher, whom she placed in adoption in 1976; he later became Jake's godfather.
Her brother,
Peter RuehlVincent Peter Ruehl, known as Peter Ruehl was an American-born Australian newspaper columnist, best known for the humorous column he wrote thrice weekly for The Australian Financial Review, in which he offered an American view on life in Australia...
, moved to Australia, where he became a popular newspaper columnist.
Career
Ruehl began her career in regional theatre with the
Denver Center Theatre CompanyThe Denver Center for the Performing Arts ' is an organization in Denver, Colorado which provides a showcase for live theatre, a nurturing ground for new plays, a preferred stop on the Broadway touring circuit, a graduate-level training school for actors, acting classes for the community and rental...
, taking odd jobs between engagements. In the late 1970s, Ruehl began chalking up New York stage successes, notably in
I'm Not RappaportI'm Not Rappaport is a play by Herb Gardner originally staged by Seattle Repertory Theatre in 1984. Its Broadway debut production, directed by Daniel Sullivan, starring Judd Hirsch, Cleavon Little, Jace Alexander, and Mercedes Ruehl, opened on November 19, 1985 at the Booth Theatre, where it ran...
(1984). On the stage, she won the 1984
Obie AwardThe Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
for her performance in
The Marriage of Bette and Boo and twenty years later, an Obie for
Woman Before a Glass. She also received a 1991
Tony AwardThe Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
as Best Actress (Play) for
Neil SimonNeil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
's
Lost in YonkersLost in Yonkers is a 1991 Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Neil Simon. After eleven previews, the Broadway production, produced by Emanuel Azenberg and directed by Gene Saks, opened on February 21, 1991 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, where it ran for 780 performances...
. Her performances in two other plays earned her two other Tony nominations:
- In 1995 as Best Actress (Featured Role – Play) for a revival of The Shadow Box
The Shadow Box is a play written by actor Michael Cristofer. The play made its Broadway debut on March 31, 1977. The original cast included Simon Oakland as Joe, Laurence Luckinbill as Brian, Mandy Patinkin as Mark, Geraldine Fitzgerald as Felicity, and Vincent Spano as Steve.-Plot synopsis:The...
;
- In 2002 as Best Actress (Play) for Edward Albee's The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?.
Her most acclaimed film role was in
The Fisher KingThe Fisher King is a 1991 American comedy-drama film written by Richard LaGravenese and directed by Terry Gilliam. It stars Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams, Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer and Michael Jeter...
; her performance in the film earned her the 1991
Academy Award for Best Supporting ActressPerformance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
as well as an American Comedy Award, a Boston Society of Film Critics Award, a Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award, and a Golden Globe. Earlier she had won the 1989
National Society of Film Critics AwardThe National Society of Film Critics is an American film critic organization. As of December 2007 the NSFC had approximately 60 members who wrote for a variety of weekly and daily newspapers.-History:...
for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in
Married to the MobMarried to the Mob is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Jonathan Demme, starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Matthew Modine.Michelle Pfeiffer, in something of a departure from her previous roles, gave an acclaimed lead performance as a gangster's widow from Brooklyn, opposite Matthew Modine as the...
. She played
KACLKACL is the fictional Seattle, Washington radio station on the television show Frasier. It broadcasts many talk radio shows, including The Dr. Frasier Crane Show between 2:00pm–5:00pm each weekday, Bob "Bulldog" Briscoe's top-rated The Gonzo Sports Show, and Gil Chesterton's Restaurant Beat...
station manager Kate Costas in five episodes of
FrasierFrasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee in association with Grammnet and Paramount Network Television.A spin-off of Cheers, Frasier stars...
, and had a major role in the made-for-TV film
All-American Girl: The Mary Kay Letourneau Story. She is the first Cuban American female Academy Award winner. In 2005, she (along with
Esai MoralesEsai Manuel Morales is an American actor. He is well known for his role as Bob Morales in the 1987 biopic La Bamba. He also appeared in the PBS drama American Family and in the Showtime series Resurrection Blvd.. However, he is best known for his roles as Lt...
) received the
Rita MorenoRita Moreno is a Puerto Rican singer, dancer and actress. She is the only Hispanic and one of the few performers who have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony, and was the second Puerto Rican to win an Academy Award....
HOLA Award for Excellence from the
Hispanic Organization of Latin ActorsThe Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors is an active arts service and advocacy organization. It is in the United States and dedicated to Hispanic artists and actors....
.
She has also played the mother of
Vincent ChaseVincent "Vince" Chase is a fictional character on the comedy-drama television series Entourage. He is played by Adrian Grenier.-Personal life:...
in HBO's
EntourageEntourage is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004 and concluded on September 11, 2011, after eight seasons...
.
In 2008, Ruehl returned to the Broadway stage in Manhattan Theater Club's production of
Richard GreenbergRichard Greenberg is an American playwright. He is the author of over 25 plays including eight South Coast Repertory world premieres: Our Mother's Brief Affair, The Injured Party, The Violet Hour, Everett Beekin, Hurrah at Last, Three Days of Rain Richard Greenberg (1958–present) is an American...
's
The American PlanThe American Plan is a play by Richard Greenberg. It was first produced and performed by Manhattan Theatre Club Stage II on January 23, 1990, in New York City, where it ran for 32 performances. The original cast included Rebecca Miller, Tate Donovan, Beatrice Winde, Joan Copeland, and Eric...
playing the role of Eva Adler. The production opened at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre and the limited engagement ran until March 22, 2009. In his rave review in
The New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
,
Ben BrantleyBenjamin D. "Ben" Brantley is an American journalist and the chief theater critic of The New York Times.-Life and career:...
called Ruehl's performance "masterly". Next up for Ruehl is the drama/horror film
What Ever Happened to Barker Daniels?; the film is currently in production and has a release date of 2009. Ruehl is currently starring in Sarah Treem's play The How and The Why, directed by Emily Mann at McCarter Theater.
Music
Though not a singer herself, Ruehl was involved in the production of the album
Haunted by Poe; she also reads passages from the book
House of LeavesHouse of Leaves is the debut novel by the American author Mark Z. Danielewski, published by Pantheon Books. The novel quickly became a bestseller following its March 7, 2000 release. It was followed by a companion piece, The Whalestoe Letters...
by Poe's brother
Mark Z. DanielewskiMark Z. Danielewski, born March 5, 1966 in New York City, New York, is an American author, best known for his debut novel House of Leaves...
on the CD
Don't be Scared, issued to cross-promote both projects.
Filmography
| Year |
Film |
Role |
Other notes |
| 1976 |
Dona Flor and Her Two HusbandsDona Flor and Her Two Husbands is a 1976 comedy film directed by Bruno Barreto. Based on the novel of the same name by Jorge Amado, it takes place in 1940s Bahia. It stars Sônia Braga, José Wilker, and Mauro Mendonça in the leading roles...
|
American girl in casino |
|
| 1979 |
The Warriors |
Policewoman in Central Park |
|
| 1981 |
Four Friends |
Woman in Taxi |
|
| 1986 |
Twisted |
Cybelle |
|
HeartburnHeartburn is a 1986 American drama film directed by Mike Nichols. The screenplay by Nora Ephron is based on her semi-autobiographical novel of the same name, which was inspired by her tempestuous second marriage to Carl Bernstein and his affair with Margaret Jay. Rachel is a food writer at a New...
|
Eve |
|
| 1987 |
Leader of the Band |
Miss Cooper |
|
| Radio Days Radio Days is a 1987 comedy film directed by Woody Allen. The film looks back on an American family's life during the Golden Age of Radio using both music and memories to tell the story.-Plot:...
|
Ad Men |
|
| 84 Charing Cross Road 84 Charing Cross Road is a 1987 British/American drama film directed by David Hugh Jones. The screenplay by Hugh Whitemore is based on a play by James Roose-Evans, which itself was an adaptation of the 1970 epistolary memoir of the same name by Helene Hanff, a compilation of letters between herself...
|
Kay |
|
| The Secret of My Succe$s The Secret of My Success is a 1987 American comedy film starring Michael J. Fox and Helen Slater, produced and directed by Herbert Ross . The screenplay is written by Jim Cash, who previously co-scripted Top Gun.-Plot:Brantley Foster The Secret of My Success (sometimes stylized as The Secret of My...
|
Sheila |
|
| 1988 |
Big Big is a 1988 romantic comedy film directed by Penny Marshall and stars Tom Hanks as Josh Baskin, a young boy who makes a wish "to be big" to a magical fortune-telling machine and is then aged to adulthood overnight...
|
Mrs. Baskin |
|
Married to the MobMarried to the Mob is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Jonathan Demme, starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Matthew Modine.Michelle Pfeiffer, in something of a departure from her previous roles, gave an acclaimed lead performance as a gangster's widow from Brooklyn, opposite Matthew Modine as the...
|
Connie Russo |
National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress The National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress is one of the annual awards given by the National Society of Film Critics.This awards was given for the first time in 1967 to Marjorie Rhodes for her role in The Family Way....
|
| 1989 |
Slaves of New York Slaves of New York is a 1989 comedy-drama Merchant Ivory Productions film. It was directed byJames Ivory, produced by Ismail Merchant, and starred Bernadette Peters, Adam Coleman Howard, Chris Sarandon, Mary Beth Hurt, Mercedes Ruehl, Madeleine Potter, and Steve Buscemi.Based on the stories Slaves...
|
Samantha |
|
| Crimes and Misdemeanors Crimes and Misdemeanors is a 1989 black comedy written, directed by and co-starring Woody Allen, alongside Martin Landau, Mia Farrow, Anjelica Huston, Jerry Orbach, Alan Alda, Sam Waterston and Joanna Gleason....
|
Party Guest |
uncredited |
| 1990 |
Crazy PeopleCrazy People is a 1990 comedy film starring Dudley Moore and Daryl Hannah, and directed by Tony Bill.-Plot:Emory Leeson is an advertising executive who experiences a nervous breakdown. He designs a series of "truthful" advertisements, blunt and bawdy and of no use to his boss Drucker's firm.One of...
|
Dr. Liz Baylor |
|
| 1991 |
Another You Another You is a 1991 American comedy film. It was the final film pairing Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder. Co-stars included Mercedes Ruehl and Vanessa Williams and Kevin Pollak as Phil.-Plot:...
|
Elaine |
|
| The Fisher King The Fisher King is a 1991 American comedy-drama film written by Richard LaGravenese and directed by Terry Gilliam. It stars Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams, Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer and Michael Jeter...
|
Anne Napolitano |
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion PictureThe Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association in 1944 for a performance in a motion picture released in the previous year....
Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress
Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...
Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting ActressThe Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress is an annual award given by the Chicago Film Critics Association.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:...
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting ActressThe Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress is one of the annual awards given by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.This award has been awarded since 1977.-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...
|
| 1993 |
Lost in Yonkers Lost in Yonkers is a 1993 film film adaptation of the Neil Simon play of the same name, directed by Martha Coolidge. It stars Irene Worth, Mercedes Ruehl, and Richard Dreyfuss.-Plot synopsis:...
|
Bella Kurnitz |
|
Last Action HeroLast Action Hero is a 1993 American action-comedy-fantasy film directed and produced by John McTiernan. It is a satire of the action genre and its clichés, containing several parodies of action films in the form of films within the film....
|
Irene Madigan |
|
| 1994 |
On Hope |
Wendy |
|
| 1995 |
Indictment: The McMartin Trial Indictment: The McMartin Trial is a made for TV movie that originally aired on HBO on May 20, 1995. Indictment is based on the true story of the McMartin preschool trial.-Summary:...
|
Lael Rubin |
|
| 1997 |
Roseanna's Grave |
Roseanna 'Rosa' |
|
| 1999 |
The Minus Man The Minus Man is a 1999 film based on the novel by Lew McCreary. It was directed by Hampton Fancher, who also wrote the screenplay. The film centers on a psychotic killer whom Fancher describes as "a cross between Psycho's Norman Bates, Melville's Billy Budd and Being There's Chauncey...
|
Jane Durwin |
|
| Out of the Cold |
Tina |
|
| 2000 |
Spooky House |
Boss |
|
| What's Cooking? What's Cooking? is a 2000 British/American comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha and starring Mercedes Ruehl, Kyra Sedgwick, Joan Chen, Lainie Kazan, Maury Chaykin, Julianna Margulies, Alfre Woodard, and Dennis Haysbert.-Plot:...
|
Elizabeth 'Lizzy' Avila |
|
| More Dogs Than Bones |
Victoria 'Vic' Galletti |
|
| The Amati Girls The Amati Girls is a 2001 drama film written and directed by Anne De Salvo. It stars Cloris Leachman, Mercedes Ruehl, Dinah Manoff, Sean Young, Lily Knight, Lee Grant, and Edith Fields....
|
Grace |
|
| 2004 |
Zeyda and the Hitman Zeyda and the Hitman is a 2004 Canadian television film. The story is about a grandfather who hires a contract killer to assassinate his allergy-prone son-in-law.It was filmed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada....
|
Esther |
|
| 2007 |
A Happy Death |
Aunt Rosa |
|
| 2009 |
Loving Leah Loving Leah is a television movie that aired on CBS as a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie on January 25, 2009. The film is directed by Jeff Bleckner and stars Adam Kaufman as an unobservant Jewish bachelor who feels compelled to marry his observant rabbi brother's widow, Leah to honor him via the...
|
Janice Lever |
|
Television
| Year |
Title |
Role |
Other notes |
| 1984 |
Mom's on Strike |
Sandy |
|
| 1985 |
Our Family Honor Our Family Honor is an American dramatic television series aired in the United States on ABC as part of its 1985 fall lineup.Launched as a two-hour TV-movie, Our Family Honor was about two New York City families who had known each other since their childhoods and who were involved in competing...
|
Louise Taylor |
Episode "Homecoming" |
| 1986 |
Kate & AllieKate & Allie is an American television situation comedy which ran from March 19, 1984 to May 22, 1989. Kate & Allie first aired on CBS as a midseason replacement series and only six episodes were initially commissioned, but the favorable response from critics and viewers alike easily convinced CBS...
|
Millie |
Episode "Late Bloomer" |
| 1990 |
The Cosby ShowThe Cosby Show is an American television situation comedy starring Bill Cosby, which aired for eight seasons on NBC from September 20, 1984 until April 30, 1992...
|
Bernadette Foley |
Episode "The Moves" |
| 1995 |
Indictment: The McMartin Trial Indictment: The McMartin Trial is a made for TV movie that originally aired on HBO on May 20, 1995. Indictment is based on the true story of the McMartin preschool trial.-Summary:...
|
Lael Rubin |
|
1995
-1996 |
FrasierFrasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee in association with Grammnet and Paramount Network Television.A spin-off of Cheers, Frasier stars...
|
Kate Costas |
5 episodes |
| 1997 |
SUBWAY Stories: Tales from the Underground |
Leyla |
segment "Underground" |
| North Shore Fish |
Florence |
|
| 1998 |
Gia Gia is a 1998 biographical television film about the life of model Gia Marie Carangi starring Angelina Jolie, Faye Dunaway, Mercedes Ruehl, and Elizabeth Mitchell. It was directed by Michael Cristofer and written by Cristofer and Jay McInerney...
|
Kathleen Carangi |
|
| 2000 |
All-American Girl: The Mary Kay Letourneau Story |
Jane Newhall |
|
| The Lost Child |
Rebecca |
Hallmark Hall of Fame |
| 2001 |
Mr. Life |
|
|
| 2002 |
Guilt by Association |
Susan Walker |
|
| Widows |
Dolly Rawlins |
TV mini-series |
| 2004 |
1-800-Missing Missing is a Canadian-American crime drama television series based on the 1-800-WHERE-R-YOU book series by Meg Cabot...
|
Emanuelle Baker |
Episode "These Dreams Before Me" |
| Bad Apple |
Lorraine Gibbons |
|
Law & 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,...
|
Zina Rybakov |
Episode "All in the Family" |
| 2005 |
Mom at Sixteen Mom at Sixteen is a 2005 Lifetime Television film about a sixteen-year-old mother, dealing with problems at school and her decaying relationship with her mother, because of her seeing her boyfriend for the first time since before Charley was born.-Plot:...
|
Terry Jeffries |
Nominated — Prism Award Performance in a TV Movie or Miniseries |
| 2006 |
EntourageEntourage is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004 and concluded on September 11, 2011, after eight seasons...
|
Rita Chase |
Vincent and Drama's mother on episodes "Aquamom" and "Return To Queens Blvd" |
| A Girl Like Me: The Gwen Araujo Story A Girl Like Me: The Gwen Araujo Story is a 2006 LGBT biography television film directed by award-winning director Agnieszka Holland and aired on Lifetime Television. The story documents the real life of Gwen Araujo, born Edward Araujo, Jr., a transgender teenager who was murdered after it was...
|
Sylvia Guerrero |
Nominated — Imagen Award for Best Actress - Television |
| 2007 |
Psych Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts...
|
Detective Goochberg |
Episode "Scary Sherry: Bianca's Toast" |
| 2009 |
Law & 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,...
|
Judge Clara Lloyd |
Episode "By Perjury" |
External links
- ITDb
- Ruehl Rules, a May 2005 Playbill
Playbill is a monthly U.S. magazine for theatregoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most Playbills are printed for particular shows to be distributed at the door...
article
- Brief Encounter with Mercedes Ruehl, a May 2002 Playbill interview