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Tea Leoni Profile |
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Birth Date: February 25, 1966
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Birth Place: New York, New York, USA
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Birth Name: Elizabeth Téa Pantaleoni
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Height: 5'8"
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Biography |
Tea Leoni was born on February 25,
1966, in New York City. Her father Anthony was a corporate
lawyer, while her mother Emily was a professional
nutritionist. She went to Brearley, a prominent private
all-girls school on New York City's Upper East Side,
graduated from a boarding school in Putney, Vermont, and
then attended Sarah Lawrence College, where she studied
anthropology and psychology.
Leoni decided to take a break from her collegial studies to
experience other parts of the world. Her journey took her to
Italy to discover her Italian roots, to Japan, where she
worked as an athletic model and taught businessmen how to
relate to American women, and finally the isle of St. Croix,
where she worked on a commercial sailboat as a crew hand.
It was during her travels that Leoni's interest in acting
developed, and while living in Boston, she auditioned for a
role in Angels '88, a Charlie's Angels spin-off (apparently
she did it on a dare). Tea won the part, and while that show
never actually aired due to a writers' strike, she landed a
gig as a replacement for the Lisa DiNapoli character on the
television series Santa Barbara in 1989.
In 1991, Leoni made her big-screen debut playing Connie --
the "Dream Girl" -- in the Blake Edwards comedy Switch. A
small part in the film A League of Their Own followed in
1992, the same year that she landed a role on the
short-lived FOX sitcom Flying Blind. Although the series was
critically acclaimed, it was canceled during its first
season.
Leoni married commercial director Neil Tardio in 1992; the
union ended in divorce in October 1995. In 1994, Tea was
back on the big screen with a feature part in Wyatt Earp, as
well as in the made-for-TV movie The Counterfeit Contessa,
where she starred in the title role.
She guest starred on NBC's Frasier in February 1995, in a
memorable episode in which she played Sam Malone's fiance.
Leoni's profile was given a big boost when she appeared
alongside Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in the summer hit
Bad Boys, in 1995. Later that same year, she debuted as Nora
Wilde on ABC's The Naked Truth. The sitcom was pulled from
ABC after one season, and quickly picked up by NBC, where it
became a hit and ran for another two seasons on the peacock
network.
During her three-year stint on the series, she found time to
appear on the big screen in the David O. Russell comedy
Flirting with Disaster (1996), in the little-seen indie
feature There's No Fish Food In Heaven (a.k.a. Life in the
Fast Lane, 1998), and marry actor David Duchovny of The
X-Files fame in May 1997.
Leoni landed the starring role of reporter Jenny Lerner in
the "comet heading toward Earth" blockbuster Deep Impact
(1998), and then took some time off to have a child.
Daughter Madelaine West Duchovny was born on April 24, 1999.
Leoni returned to the silver screen in 2000, appearing
opposite Nicolas Cage in The Family Man. She won a
co-starring role in the 2001 sequel Jurassic Park III, and
padded her resume with a starring role in Woody Allen's
Hollywood Ending (2002) and a part in People I Know, with Al
Pacino and Kim Basinger. Leoni next gave birth to son Kyd
Miller Duchovny in June 2002.
After a two-year hiatus, Leoni returned to acting with House
of D (2004), husband Duchovny's first foray into film
writing and directing.
Tea also landed a role in 2004's Spanglish, a comedy
directed by James L. Brooks and starring Adam Sandler. In
Fun with Dick and Jane (2005), Leoni recreates the role of
Jane Harper, originally played by Jane Fonda in the 1977
version (Jim Carrey takes over the role formerly portrayed
by George Segal).
In addition to her love for acting and her family, Tea is a
major golf fanatic. |
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Other
Information |
Daughter, Madelaine West Duchovny born [24 April 1999]
Graduated from the Putney School in Putney, VT in 1984.
Her first name is pronounced "TAY-uh."
The name Tea means "goddess"
Auditioned for a "Charlie's Angels" (1976) remake role (as a
dare) and got the part. A writer's strike in Hollywood meant
the series was never made, but the pre-publicity was enough
to get Tea noticed.
Her character in Deep Impact (1998) breaks the story on a
comet which is going to hit the Earth and her character on
"The Naked Truth" (1995) works for "The Comet".
Her paternal grandmother was silent film actress Helenka
Adamowska.
Leoni means "lions" in Italian; her full name, Pantaleoni,
is quite close to the Italian word for "trousers"
(pantaloni).
Gave birth to second child, 7lb. 10-oz. boy, Kyd Miller
Duchovny, in Los Angeles, 15 June 2002.
Her father suffered from skin cancer.
Planned on majoring in anthropology and/or psychology
Attended Sarah Lawrence College
Measurements: 32AA-21-34 (on "Flying Blind" (1992) - 1995)
(Source: Celebrity Sleuth magazine).
Daughter of Emily and Anthony Pantaleoni
Has one brother named Thomas 'Tom' Pantaleoni
Was going to be one of the new Charlie's Angels in the
proposed "Angels '88", along with Claire Yarlett, but the
series never got off the ground.
Her grandmother, Helenka Pantaleoni, co-founded what would
become the US Fund for UNICEF in 1947 and served as its
President for 25 years. Téa herself has served as a Goodwill
Ambassador for UNICEF since 2001.
Calls her children: West and Miller. It is tradition in
their family, to use the middle names as a first name.
Went to Oahu to help search for her cousin, Tim Pantaleoni,
in summer 1995. He mysteriously vanished while hiking and to
this day has never been found.
Her father is of Italian and Polish extraction, while her
Southern-born mother is of Anglo-Saxon ancestry.
She is a vegan.
Grand-niece of Hank Patterson. |
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