Ellen Pompeo
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| Ellen Pompeo | |||||||
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 Pompeo at the premiere of 27 Dresses, January 2008 |
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| Born | November 10, 1969 Everett, Massachusetts |
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| Occupation | Actress | ||||||
| Years active | 1982 – present | ||||||
| Spouse(s) | Christopher Ivery (since November 9, 2007) | ||||||
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Ellen Pompeo (born November 10, 1969) is a Golden Globe-nominated and Screen Actors Guild award-winning American actress, known for playing the title role of Meredith Grey on the ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Pompeo was born in Everett, Massachusetts, the daughter of Joseph, a salesman, and Kathleen Pompeo.[1] Pompeo is of Irish and Italian descent and was raised Catholic.[2][3] Her grandfather was born in Gesualdo, a village in Province of Avellino, Italy.[citation needed] Her mother passed away when she was four years old and her father remarried soon after her mother's death. She was nicknamed the pencil and Straciatella (which translated from Italian to "little rags" or "strings")[4] for her thin frame.
For more than two years, she served cocktails in Miami where she met then-boyfriend, fashion photographer Andrew Rosenthal. In 1996, she was bartending at the SoHo Bar & Grill in New York City's Upper West Side when an agent approached her to appear in commercials. Subsequently, she appeared in commercials for Citibank and L'Oreal. She began her career with minor roles on television shows like Strangers with Candy and Law & Order and a handful of films.
[edit] Career
Determined to succeed in acting, Pompeo moved to Los Angeles in 2001. A turning point came when she was selected by director Brad Silberling in 2002 for a role in his film Moonlight Mile playing Jake Gyllenhaal's sympathetic love interest. She also appeared in the film Daredevil playing Matt Murdock's (Ben Affleck) secretary Karen Page, but most of her scenes were deleted from the theatrical version of the film. In 2002 and 2003, Pompeo appeared in Catch Me If You Can and Old School. Television guest roles include two episodes of Law & Order and an episode of Friends. She portrayed Jim Carrey's ex-girlfriend, Naomi, in the 2004 film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Although her scenes were cut from the film, she felt grateful that director Michel Gondry chose her to appear in his film.[5]
Pompeo landed her first major role in the ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy, as the title character, Meredith Grey, a surgical intern at a prestigious hospital. The show became the highest-rated on network TV in its fourth season. In 2007, Pompeo was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama Series. That year, she also signed a new contract for Grey's Anatomy that increased her salary to $200,000 per episode. She is contracted with the show for seven seasons.[6]
On October 13, 2007, Pompeo was honored by the National Italian American Foundation for her achievement in entertainment at a black-tie gala in Washington, D.C.[7]
[edit] Personal life
Pompeo married record producer Chris Ivery on November 9, 2007 at New York's City Hall, with Mayor Michael Bloomberg serving as their witness.[8] They met in 2003 when mutual friends introduced them at a Whole Foods Market, and began dating six months later. They later discovered that they grew up in Boston 10 miles from each other.[9] They now reside in Los Angeles.
[edit] Filmography
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Law & Order (Episode: Savior) | Jenna Weber |
| 1999 | Strangers with Candy (Episode: Feather in the Storm) | Lizzie Abrams |
| 8 1/2 x 11 | Human Resources Woman | |
| Coming Soon | Upset Girl | |
| 2000 | Eventual Wife | Beth |
| In the Weeds | Martha | |
| Law & Order (Episode: Fools for Love) | Laura Kendrick | |
| Get Real (Episode: History Lessons) | Nina Adler | |
| 2001 | The Job (Episode: Anger) | Sue |
| Strong Medicine (Episode: Wednesday Night Fever) | Quincy Dunne | |
| 2002 | Moonlight Mile | Bertie Knox |
| Catch Me If You Can | Marci | |
| 2003 | Daredevil | Karen Page |
| Old School | Nicole | |
| Undermind | Flynn | |
| 2004 | Friends (Episode: The One Where the Stripper Cries) | Missy Goldberg |
| Nobody's Perfect | Veronica | |
| Art Heist | Sandra Walker | |
| Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind | Naomi (deleted scene) | |
| 2005 | Life of the Party | Phoebe Elgin |
| Grey's Anatomy | Meredith Grey 2005-present |
[edit] References
- ^ Ellen Pompeo Quietly Weds in New York - Weddings, Ellen Pompeo : People.com
- ^ The Inner Actor: Ellen Pompeo: strength and tenacity from a challenging early life
- ^ ELLENPOMPEO.NET - Ellen Pompeo Fansite
- ^ Bried, Erin: "Anatomy lesson", Self, February 2006
- ^ Bochroch, Judy: "Anatomy of a Late Bloomer", Allure, December 2006
- ^ Ellen Pompeo: Mer-Der, she wrote | Ellen Pompeo | The Q&A | TV | Entertainment Weekly | 2
- ^ NIAF 32nd Anniversary Convention and Gala
- ^ 'Grey's' Pompeo quietly ties knot in Big Apple
- ^ Ellen Pompeo Dishes on Her Wedding Plans - Ellen Pompeo : People.com
[edit] External links
- Ellen Pompeo at the Internet Movie Database
- Ellen Pompeo at TV.com
- Ellen Pompeo Video Biograph - National Italian American Foundation NIAF Gala 2007
