Frances McDormand extracted from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, distributed under the GNU Free Documentation License

Frances McDormand
On the set of Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day in May 2007
Born	Frances Louise McDormand June 23, 1957 (1957-06-23) (age 52) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1984–present
Spouse(s)	Joel Coen (1984–present)

Frances Louise McDormand¹ (born June 23, 1957) is an American film, stage, and television actress, well known for her role as Marge Gunderson in Fargo, for which she won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1996.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 4 Filmography 5 References 6 External links

Early life

Frances was born in Chicago, Illinois and was adopted by the McDormands, a Canadian couple: Noreen, a registered nurse and receptionist, and Vernon, a Disciples of Christ pastor. Frances has said that her biological mother may have been one of the parishioners at Vernon's church.² McDormand has a sister, Dorothy A. McDormand, who is an ordained Disciples of Christ minister and chaplain,³ as well as two other siblings, all of whom were adopted by the McDormands, who had no biological children. As her father specialized in restoring congregations,² he frequently moved their family, and they lived in several small towns in Illinois, Georgia, Kentucky and Tennessee,⁴ before settling in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area town of Monessen, where she graduated from high school in 1975. She attended Bethany College in Bethany, West Virginia, and earned a B.A. in Theater in 1979.

In 1982, McDormand earned an M.F.A. from the Yale University School of Drama. She was roommates with Holly Hunter at the time. Her first professional acting job was in Trinidad and Tobago, performing in a play written by poet Derek Walcott and funded by the MacArthur Foundation.

Career

McDormand's film debut was in Joel and Ethan Coen's first film, 1984's Blood Simple. In 1985, McDormand, the Coen brothers, Holly Hunter, and director Sam Raimi shared a house in the Bronx. In 1987 she appeared as the wacky neighbor Dot in the hit film Raising Arizona starring Holly Hunter and Nicolas Cage.

In addition to her early film roles, McDormand played Connie Chapman in the fifth season of the television police drama Hill Street Blues. In 1988, she played Stella Kowalski in a stage production of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire, for which she was nominated for a Tony Award. Frances McDormand is an associate member of the experimental theater company The Wooster Group.

McDormand appeared in several theatrical and television roles during the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. She has gained renown and critical acclaim for her dramatic work, and is a respected actress, having been nominated for Academy Awards four times. In 1988, she was nominated for a Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Mississippi Burning; in 1996, she won the Academy award for Best Actress for her performance as police chief Marge Gunderson in Fargo; in 2000, she earned her second nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her portrayal of a concerned mother in Almost Famous. Also for Almost Famous, she won the Best Supporting Actress nod from the Broadcast Film Critics Association, the Chicago Film Critics Association, Los Angeles Film Critics Association, San Diego Film Critics Society, Southeastern Film Critics Association, and the Florida Film Critics Circle. For her role in Wonder Boys (2000), she won Best Supporting Actress from the Broadcast Film Critics Association, the Florida Film Critics Circle, and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.

In 2006, McDormand received her third Best Supporting Actress nod for her performance in 2005's North Country, although she lost to Rachel Weisz. She also had a role in the film Friends with Money, a dark comedy co-starring Jennifer Aniston, Catherine Keener and Joan Cusack, and directed by Nicole Holofcener. She recently received an Independent Spirit Award for her role in Friends with Money. She also voiced the role of the lady principal Melanie Upfoot in the Simpsons episode Girls Just Want to Have Sums, which aired on April 30, 2006. McDormand has recently starred in the films Burn After Reading and Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day.

Personal life

McDormand has been married to director Joel Coen since 1984, and the two adopted a son from Paraguay, Pedro McDormand Coen, in 1994. They live in New York City. McDormand has starred in six of the Coen Brothers films, including a minor appearance in Miller's Crossing, a secondary role in Raising Arizona and lead roles in Blood Simple, The Man Who Wasn't There, Fargo, for which she won an Academy Award, and more recently Burn After Reading. Additionally, she contributed an uncredited offscreen (voice only) appearance to the opening scene in the Coens' Barton Fink.

Frances McDormand also participates as a member of the Jury for the NYICFF, a local New York City Film Festival dedicated to screening films for children between the ages of 3 and 18.⁵

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1984	Blood Simple	Abby
1985	Crimewave	Nun
	Hill Street Blues	Connie Chapman	6 episodes
	Scandal Sheet		TV
	Hunter	Nina Sloan	Episode:The Garbage Man
1986	Spenser: For Hire	Mary	Episode:A Day's Wages
	Vengeance: The Story of Tony Cimo	Brigette
	The Twilight Zone	Amanda Strickland	(segment "Need to Know")
1987	Raising Arizona	Dot
	Leg Work	Willie Pipal	7 episodes
1988	Mississippi Burning	Mrs. Pell	Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
1989	Chattahoochee	Mae Foley
1990	Miller's Crossing	Mayor's secretary	uncredited
	Darkman	Julie Hastings
	Hidden Agenda	Ingrid Jessner
1991	The Butcher's Wife	Grace
	Barton Fink	Stage Actress (voice)	uncredited
1992	Passed Away	Nora Scanlan
	Sôsei kishi Gaiâsu	Pool Girl	(voice: English version)
	Crazy in Love	Clare	TV
1993	Short Cuts	Betty Weathers	Golden Globe Special Ensemble Cast Award Volpi Cup
1994	Bleeding Hearts	Woman on TV
1995	Palookaville	June
	The Good Old Boys	Eve Calloway	TV
	Beyond Rangoon	Andy Bowma
1996	Primal Fear	Dr. Molly Arrington
	Plain Pleasures
	Fargo	Marge Gunderson	Academy Award for Best Actress American Comedy Award for Funniest Actress in a Motion Picture (Leading Role) Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Chlotrudis Award for Best Actress Empire Award for Best Actress Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress London Film Critics' Circle Award for Actress of the Year National Board of Review Award for Best Actress San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Actress
	Lone Star	Bunny	Lone Star Film & Television Award for Best Supporting Actress
	Hidden in America	Gus	Nominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Miniseries or a Movie
1997	Paradise Road	Dr. Verstak
1998	Madeline	Miss Clavel
	Talk of Angels	Conlon
	Johnny Skidmarks	Alice
2000	Wonder Boys	Dean Sara Gaskell	Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress
	Almost Famous	Elaine Miller	Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Supporting Actress - Drama/Romance Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture Nominated - Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Nominated - Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated - Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
2001	The Man Who Wasn't There	Doris Crane	Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress
	State of Grace	Narrator, Adult Hannah (voice)	unknown episodes
	Upheaval	Anne
2002	City by the Sea	Michelle
	Laurel Canyon	Jane	Gijón International Film Festival Award for Best Actress Nominated - Chlotrudis Award for Best Actress Nominated - Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female
	Searching for Debra Winger	Herself
2003	Something's Gotta Give	Zoe Barry
2004	Last Night	Marit Such	short
2005	Æon Flux	The Handler
	Precinct Hollywood	Narrator (voice)	TV
	North Country	Glory Dodge	Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role Nominated - Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture Nominated - Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Nominated - Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
2006	Friends with Money	Jane	Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female
	The Simpsons	Melanie Upfoot	Episode:Girls Just Want to Have Sums
2008	Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day	Guinevere Pettigrew
	Burn After Reading	Linda Litzke	Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Frances McDormand

• Official Frances McDormand Fansite
• Frances McDormand at the Internet Movie Database
• Frances McDormand at the Internet Broadway Database
• Frances McDormand at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• Frances McDormand at TV.com

v • d • e Academy Award for Best Actress Katharine Hepburn (1981) · Meryl Streep (1982) · Shirley MacLaine (1983) · Sally Field (1984) · Geraldine Page (1985) · Marlee Matlin (1986) · Cher (1987) · Jodie Foster (1988) · Jessica Tandy (1989) · Kathy Bates (1990) · Jodie Foster (1991) · Emma Thompson (1992) · Holly Hunter (1993) · Jessica Lange (1994) · Susan Sarandon (1995) · Frances McDormand (1996) · Helen Hunt (1997) · Gwyneth Paltrow (1998) · Hilary Swank (1999) · Julia Roberts (2000) Complete list · (1928–1940) · (1941–1960) · (1961–1980) · (1981–2000) · (2001-present)

v • d • e Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Jodie Foster (1994) · Susan Sarandon (1995) · Frances McDormand (1996) · Helen Hunt (1997) · Gwyneth Paltrow (1998) · Annette Bening (1999) · Julia Roberts (2000) · Halle Berry (2001) · Renée Zellweger (2002) · Charlize Theron (2003) · Hilary Swank (2004) · Reese Witherspoon (2005) · Helen Mirren (2006) · Julie Christie (2007) · Meryl Streep (2008) · Sandra Bullock (2009)

Persondata
NAME	McDormand, Frances
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	McDormand, Frances Louise
SHORT DESCRIPTION	Actress
DATE OF BIRTH	June 23, 1957
PLACE OF BIRTH	Chicago, Illinois, United States
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH