Ally Sheedy
Ally Sheedy | |
---|---|
Sheedy in 2011 | |
Born |
Alexandra Elizabeth Sheedy June 13, 1962 New York, New York, U.S. |
Occupation | Actress, author |
Years active | 1975–present |
Spouse(s) |
David Lansbury (m. 1992; div. 2008) |
Children | 1 |
Alexandra Elizabeth Sheedy (born June 13, 1962[1]) is an American actress and author. Following her film debut in 1983's Bad Boys, she became known as one of the Brat Pack group of actors in the films The Breakfast Club (1985) and St. Elmo's Fire (1985). She also acted in WarGames (1983) and Short Circuit (1986). For her performance in Lisa Cholodenko's High Art (1998), Sheedy won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead.[2] According to IMDB, High Art was nominated for a number of awards, and won the GLAAD Media Awards 1999 Outstanding Film (Limited Release).[3]
Early life
Sheedy was born in New York City[4] and has two siblings, brother Patrick and sister Meghan. Her mother, Charlotte (née Baum), is a writer and press agent who was involved in women's and civil rights movements,[5] and her father, John J. Sheedy, Jr., is a Manhattan advertising executive.[6][7] Sheedy's mother is Jewish, whereas her father is of Irish Catholic background.[8] Her maternal grandmother was from Odessa, Ukraine.[9] Her parents divorced in 1971.[10]
Sheedy attended Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School in New York City, graduating in 1980. She started dancing with the American Ballet Theatre at age six[11] and was planning to make it a full-time career. However, she gave up dance in favor of acting full-time. At age 12 she wrote a book, She Was Nice to Mice; the book was published by McGraw-Hill Education and became a best-seller.[11] On June 19, 1975, she appeared on the game show To Tell the Truth.[12]
Career
Sheedy started acting in local stage productions as a teenager. After appearing in several television films in 1981, as well as three episodes of the television series Hill Street Blues, she made her feature film debut in Bad Boys (1983), starring Sean Penn, where she played Penn's humiliated girlfriend. The 1980s were her most active period, with roles in popular films such as WarGames, The Breakfast Club, St. Elmo's Fire, Short Circuit, and Maid to Order.
Sheedy starred alongside Radha Mitchell in the 1998 independent film High Art, about a romance between two women and the power of art.[13] Her performance in High Art was recognized with awards from the Independent Spirit Awards, Los Angeles Film Critics Association, and National Society of Film Critics.
In 1999, Sheedy took over the lead role in the off-Broadway production of the musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch. She was the first female to play the part of the genderqueer Hedwig, but her run ended early amid "mixed" reviews, according to E! News.[14] That same year, she was cast as a lead actress in Sugar Town, an independent film, which featured an ensemble cast of actors and musicians.[15]
She was reunited with Breakfast Club co-star Anthony Michael Hall when she became a special guest star on his television show The Dead Zone, in the second-season episode "Playing God," from 2003.[16]
Sheedy has also appeared in the episode "Leapin' Lizards" of C.S.I. in which she played a woman who murdered her boyfriend's wife while mixed up in a cult. On March 3, 2008, Sheedy was introduced as the character Sarah, in the ABC Family show Kyle XY. In 2009, she played the role of Mr. Yang on the USA Network television show Psych (in the third season finale), a role that she reprised in the fourth season, fifth season, and seventh season finales.
Personal life
Sheedy dated Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora for less than a year in the 1980s. She stated in The Los Angeles Times that the relationship led her to abuse drugs, a claim Sambora denied.[17] In 1985, Sheedy was admitted to Hazelden Foundation and in the 1990s was treated for a sleeping pill addiction,[18] an experience which she drew on for her role as a drug-addicted photographer in High Art.[19]
On April 12, 1992, Sheedy married actor David Lansbury, the nephew of actress Angela Lansbury and son of Edgar Lansbury, the original producer of Godspell. They have had one child, who was assigned female at birth in 1994, but now identifies as a man and goes by the name Beckett.[20] Because of this, Sheedy is a strong supporter of transgender advocacy. In May 2008, Sheedy announced that she and Lansbury had filed for divorce.[4]
Me Too campaign
In January 2018, Sheedy tweeted the #MeToo hashtag along with the names of James Franco and Christian Slater, indicating that they have been sexually inappropriate with her and that Franco was the reason she chose to leave show business. She later took down the tweets. When asked by Seth Meyers, Franco stated that he did not know why Sheedy would have tweeted those accusations.[21][22]
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1983 | Bad Boys | J.C. Walenski | |
1983 | WarGames | Jennifer Mack | |
1984 | Oxford Blues | Rona | |
1985 | The Breakfast Club | Allison Reynolds | |
1985 | St. Elmo's Fire | Leslie Hunter | |
1985 | Twice in a Lifetime | Helen Mackenzie | |
1986 | Blue City | Annie Rayford | |
1986 | Short Circuit | Stephanie Speck | |
1987 | Maid to Order | Jessie Montgomery | |
1988 | Short Circuit 2 | Stephanie Speck | Voice cameo (uncredited) |
1989 | Heart of Dixie | Maggie DeLoach | |
1990 | Betsy's Wedding | Connie Hopper | |
1990 | Fear | Cayce Bridges | |
1991 | Only the Lonely | Theresa Luna | |
1992 | Home Alone 2: Lost in New York | Pam Block | Cameo |
1993 | The Pickle | Molly-Girl/Herself | |
1993 | Man's Best Friend | Lori Tanner | |
1994 | Red Shoe Diaries 4: Auto Erotica | Karen | Video; segment: "The Fling" |
1995 | One Night Stand | Mickey Sanderson | |
1997 | Macon County Jail | Susan Reed | |
1997 | The Definite Maybe | Joanne | |
1997 | Amnesia | Martha Keller | |
1997 | Highball | Ally Sheedy | |
1998 | High Art | Lucy Berliner | |
1999 | Advice from a Caterpillar | Jan | |
1999 | Sugar Town | Liz | |
1999 | The Autumn Heart | Deborah | |
1999 | I'll Take You There | Bernice | |
2002 | Just a Dream | Maureen Sturbuck | |
2002 | Happy Here and Now | Lois | |
2003 | A Good Night to Die | Marie | |
2003 | Shelter Island | Louise 'Lou' Delamere | |
2004 | Noise | Charlotte Bancroft | |
2005 | Shooting Livien | Brea Epling | |
2007 | Day Zero | Dr. Reynolds | |
2007 | The Junior Defenders | Jill Fields | Video |
2007 | Steam | Laurie | |
2008 | Harold | Maureen Reynolds | |
2009 | Perestroika | Helen | |
2009 | Life During Wartime | Helen Jordan | |
2010 | Welcome to the Rileys | Harriet | |
2010 | Ten Stories Tall | Jackie | |
2014 | Sins of our Youth | Vicki | |
2014 | Fugly! | Stoddard | |
2016 | Little Sister | Joani Lunsford | |
2016 | X-Men: Apocalypse | Scott Summers' teacher | Cameo |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1981 | CBS Afternoon Playhouse | Cathy | Episode: "I Think I'm Having a Baby" |
1981 | The Best Little Girl in the World | 1st Girl | Movie |
1981 | The Violation of Sarah McDavid | Tracy Barnes | Movie |
1981 | Homeroom | Karen Chase | TV short |
1981 | The Day the Loving Stopped | Debbie Danner | Movie |
1981 | Splendor in the Grass | Hazel | Movie |
1982 | Chicago Story | Episode: "Bright Lights, Big City" | |
1982 | St. Elsewhere | Diane | Episode: "Samuels and the Kid" |
1983 | Hill Street Blues | Kristen | 3 episodes |
1983 | Deadly Lessons | Marita Armstrong | Movie |
1990 | The Lost Capone | Kathleen Hart | Movie |
1992 | Red Shoe Diaries | Karen | Episode: "Accidents Happen" |
1992 | Tattle Tale | Laura Perot | Movie |
1993 | Lethal Exposure | Chris Cassidy | Movie |
1993 | The Hidden Room | Julia | Episode: "Hungry Girls" |
1993 | Chantilly Lace | Elizabeth | Movie |
1994 | Ultimate Betrayal | Adult Mary Rodgers | Movie |
1994 | Parallel Lives | Louise | Movie |
1994 | The Haunting of Seacliff Inn | Susan Enright | Movie |
1995 | The Tin Soldier | Billy's Mom | Movie |
1996 | The Outer Limits | Carter Jones | Episode: "I Hear You Calling" |
1996 | Hijacked: Flight 285 | Deni Patton | Movie |
1997 | Country Justice | Angie Baker | Movie |
1997 | Buried Alive II | Laura Riskin | Movie |
1998 | The Fury Within | Joanna Hanlon | Movie |
1999 | Our Guys: Outrage at Glen Ridge | Det. Kelly Brooks | Movie |
2001 | Oz | Lisa Logan | Episode: "Medium Rare" |
2001 | The Warden | Helen Hewitt | Movie |
2001 | Strange Frequency | Lee Bonner | Episode: "Daydream Believer" |
2002 | Once and Again | Miriam Rose Miller | Episode: "Aaron's List of Dreams" |
2002 | The Interrogation of Michael Crowe | Cheryl Crowe | Movie |
2003 | Life on the Line | Movie | |
2003 | The Dead Zone | Kate Moore | Episode: "Playing God" |
2006 | The Veteran | Sara Reid | Movie |
2007 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Shannon Turner | Episode: "Leapin' Lizards" |
2008–2009 | Kyle XY | Sarah | 4 episodes |
2009 | Citizen Jane | Jane Alexander | Movie |
2009–2011/13 | Psych | Yang | 4 episodes |
2014 | Not With My Daughter (AKA Client Seduction) | Melissa Eco | Movie |
Awards and Nominations
Year | Association | Category | Work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1983 | Saturn Awards | Best Actress | WarGames | Nominated |
1983 | Young Artist Awards | Best Young Motion Picture Actress in a Feature Film | WarGames | Nominated |
1990 | Saturn Awards | Best Actress | Fear | Nominated |
1993 | Man's Best Friend | Nominated | ||
1999 | Independent Spirit Awards | Best Female Lead | High Art | Won |
1999 | Los Angeles Film Critics Association | Best Actress (tie) | High Art | Won |
1999 | National Society of Film Critics | Best Actress (tie) | High Art | Won |
1999 | Boston Society of Film Critics | Best Actress (2nd place) | High Art | Nominated |
1999 | Chicago Film Critics Association | Best Actress | High Art | Nominated |
2005 | MTV Movie Awards | Silver Bucket of Excellence Award (shared with other main cast members) |
The Breakfast Club | Won |
2010 | Gotham Independent Film Awards | Best Ensemble Performance | Life During Wartime | Nominated |
Books
References
- ↑ "Today in history". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 13, 2014. Archived from the original on September 7, 2014. Retrieved June 14, 2014.
- ↑ Independent, Film. "Film Independent Spirit Awards: 31 Years of Nominees and Winners" (PDF). filmindependent.org. filmindependent.org. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
- ↑ High Art, retrieved 2018-01-18
- 1 2 Robledo, S. Jhoanna (September 13, 2009). "Brat Packer Packs Up". New York Magazine. New York City: New York Media. Retrieved September 15, 2009.
- ↑ Leibovich, Lori (June 26, 1998). "Heroine Chic". Salon Magazine. San Francisco, California: Salon Media Group. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
- ↑ "WEDDINGS; Marilyn Webb, John Sheedy Jr". The New York Times. New York City: New York Times Company. March 21, 1993. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
- ↑ "Ally Sheedy Biography (1962–)".
- ↑ Collins, Glenn (May 27, 1991). "Celebrating a Place Where for So Many The Good Life Began". The New York Times. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
- ↑ Sohn, Amy (2011). "Musicians, Mensches, and Muff-Diving: Ally Sheedy by Amy Sohn". Retrieved May 21, 2011.
- ↑ Rochlin, Margy (June 14, 1998). "Ally Sheedy Makes a Bid To Be Taken Seriously". The New York Times. New York City: New York Times Company. Retrieved September 2, 2012.
- 1 2 Dretzka, Gary (June 28, 1998). "Back from the edge, Ally Sheedy may be on the verge of another breakthrough". Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Illinois: Tronc. Retrieved December 3, 2010.
- ↑ "A Young Ally Sheedy on 'To Tell the Truth' in 1975". The Retroist. July 15, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
- ↑ Ebert, Roger (July 3, 1998). "High Art Movie Review & Film Summary (1998)". Chicago Sun-Times. Chicago, Illinois: Sun-Times Media Group. Retrieved January 15, 2017 – via rogerebert.com.
- ↑ Keller, Julie (December 17, 1999). "Ally Sheedy Inches Away from "Hedwig"". E! Online. Los Angeles, California: NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment Group. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
- ↑ Thomas, Kevin (September 17, 1999). "Down and Out in 'Sugar Town' After Fame Has Fled". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California: Tronc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ↑ "Season 2 Overview". The Dead Zone Official Website. Retrieved August 10, 2010.
- ↑ Natale, Richard (June 10, 1998). "On the Upswing". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California: Tronc. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
- ↑ Rochlin, Margy (June 14, 1998). "FILM; Ally Sheedy Makes a Bid To Be Taken Seriously". The New York Times. New York City: New York Times Company. Retrieved June 30, 2010.
- ↑ Winters, Laura (June 21, 1998). "Ally Sheedy, Leaver of the Pack". The Washington Post. Washington DC: Nash Holdings LLC. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
- ↑ Pieklo, Jessica; Gandi, Imani (November 2, 2017). "Boom! Lawyered: Beckett Lansbury and Ally Sheedy on How to Be a Better Ally to Trans People". Rewire.com. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
- ↑ Yahr, Emily (January 11, 2018). "Seth Meyers presses James Franco on why he hasn't contacted Ally Sheedy about her tweets". Washington Post. Washington DC: Nash Holdings LLC. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
- ↑ Robinson, Joanna (January 7, 2018). "Why Did Ally Sheedy Call out Golden Globe Winner James Franco on Twitter?". Vanity Fair. New York City: Condé Nast. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
External links
- Ally Sheedy on IMDb
- Ally Sheedy at the Internet Broadway Database
- Ally Sheedy at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
- Ally Sheedy at AllMovie
- Salon interview (June 25, 1998)
- New York Magazine interview (June 15, 1998)
- "Breakfast Club" cast interview at the Chicago Tribune (February 17, 1985)
- "The Poetry of Ally Sheedy: A Look Back" (February 24, 2012)