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Virginia Madsen
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Virginia Madsen | |
| Born | September 11, 1961 (age 45) Chicago, Illinois |
| Notable roles | Candyman (1992) Sideways (2004) |
Virginia Madsen (born September 11, 1961) is an American actress. She came to fame during the 1980s, having appeared in several films aimed at a teenage audience. During the 2000s, she once again became known after an Academy Award and Golden Globe-nominated role in the film Sideways.
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Madsen was born in Chicago, Illinois to Cal Madsen, a fireman, and Elaine, an Emmy-winning poet, producer and playwright who often works for PBS;[1] Madsen's mother left a career in corporate business to pursue a writing career.[2] Madsen's brother is actor Michael Madsen. Her paternal grandparents were Danish and her mother has Irish and Native American ancestry.[3] Madsen is a graduate of New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois.[4]
Her first stab as a thespian was as her brother’s assistant in magic shows the two would concoct for their family. She later attended the Ted Liss Acting Studio in Chicago and Harand Camp Adult Theater Seminar in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. Of her experience with Liss she said:
I had wanted to join his class since I was 12. It was well worth the wait because I don't think I could have got that sort of training anywhere else especially in the United States...I always wanted to make a real career out of acting.[5]
Audiences first caught a glimpse of Madsen in a bit part she landed as Lisa in the teen sex comedy Class. She was cast as Princess Irulan in David Lynch's science fiction epic Dune (1984).[6] Madsen first became popular with audiences in 1986 with her portrayal of a Catholic schoolgirl who fell in love with a boy from a prison camp in Duncan Gibbons's Fire with Fire. Other noted film appearances include 1990s The Hot Spot with Don Johnson, and the steamy Third Degree Burn with Treat Williams.
She also turned in a solid performance in Francis Ford Coppola's The Rainmaker (1997). Film critic Roger Ebert said that Madsen had a "strong scene",[7] while reviewer James Berardinelli noted that "the supporting cast is solid, with turns from... Virginia Madsen as a witness for the plaintiff".[8] Madsen had spent more than twenty years in minor films before her breakout critically acclaimed performance in Sideways (2004). The role catapulted her onto the fabled Hollywood A-list.[9] Her first major role after Sideways was opposite Harrison Ford in Firewall. She later appeared in Robert Altman's A Prairie Home Companion, in a key role as the angel. Most recently, she co-starred with Jim Carrey in The Number 23 and Billy Bob Thornton in The Astronaut Farmer; both films opened in North America on February 23, 2007.
Madsen has made numerous television appearances including: Star Trek: Voyager, CSI: Miami, Dawson's Creek, The Practice, Frasier, Moonlighting, and other series. She starred opposite Ray Liotta in CBS's short-lived crime drama Smith.
When Madsen arrived in Hollywood, she was engaged to actor Billy Campbell. She married actor Danny Huston in 1989 and they divorced in 1992. Later, Madsen had a relationship with actor Antonio Sabato Jr., with whom she had a son, Jack, in 1994.
Nominations: Academy Awards
- Sideways (2004) - Best Supporting Actress
Nominations: Golden Globes
- Sideways (2004) - Best Supporting Actress
Wins:
- Candyman (1992) - Best Actress: Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films.
- Sideways (2004) - Best Supporting Actress: Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards; Chicago Film Critics Association Awards; Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards; Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards; New York Film Critics Circle Awards; and others.
- Class (1983)
- Electric Dreams (1984)
- Dune (1984)
- Creator (1985)
- Fire with Fire (1986)
- Modern Girls (1986)
- Slam Dance (1987)
- Zombie High (1987)
- Gotham (1988)
- Mr. North (1988)
- Hot to Trot (1988)
- Heart of Dixie (1989)
- The Hot Spot (1990)
- Highlander II: The Quickening (1991)
- Becoming Colette (1991)
- Candyman (1992)
- Caroline at Midnight (1994)
- Blue Tiger (1994)
- The Prophecy (1995)
- Ghosts of Mississippi (1996)
- The Rainmaker (1997)
- Ballad of the Nightingale (1998)
- Ambushed (1998)
- The Florentine (1999)
- The Haunting (1999)
- Lying In Wait (2000)
- After Sex (2000)
- Almost Salinas (2001)
- American Gun (2002)
- Artworks (2003)
- Nobody Knows Anything! (2003)
- Sideways (2004)
- Firewall (2006)
- A Prairie Home Companion (2006)
- The Number 23 (2007)
- The Astronaut Farmer (2007)
- ^ http://www.filmthreat.com/index.php?section=festivals&Id=2086
- ^ http://test.denverpost.com/movies/ci_5276822
- ^ http://www.tv-now.com/intervus/vmadsen/index.html
- ^ http://www.teacherscount.org/campaign/madsen-adams.shtml
- ^ Unofficial Madsen website.
- ^ Madsen's opening monologue from Dune ("In this time, the most precious substance in the universe is the spice melange. The spice extends life. The spice expands consciousness.") was later sampled by Israel-based group Astral Projection in their tracks "Dancing Galaxy" and "Ambient Galaxy" on their album Dancing Galaxy, and by drum'n'bass artist Aphrodite in his song "Spice (Even Spicier)."
- ^ Rogert Ebert review
- ^ James Berardinelli review
- ^ Smoke Magazine article.
- Virginia Madsen at the Internet Movie Database.
- Virginia Madsen article at Memory Alpha, a Star Trek wiki.