Linda Fiorentino

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Linda Fiorentino
Born
Clorinda Fiorentino

March 9, 1958/1960
(age 63 or 61)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
EducationRosemont College
OccupationActress, photographer
Years active1984–2009
Known forThe Last Seduction (1994)
Men in Black (1997)
Dogma (1999)
Spouse(s)John Byrum (div. 1993)

Clorinda "Linda" Fiorentino[1] (born March 9, 1958[1][2] or 1960[3][4]) is an American actress. Fiorentino made her screen debut with a leading role in the 1985 coming-of-age drama film Vision Quest, followed that same year with a lead role in the action film Gotcha! and an appearance in the film After Hours. Fiorentino gained attention for her lead roles in the erotic thriller Jade (1995), the science-fiction action comedy film Men in Black (1997) and the fantasy comedy Dogma (1999). For her performance in the 1994 film The Last Seduction, she won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress, the London Film Critics' Circle Award for Actress of the Year, and was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role.

Early life[]

One of either seven[5] or eight children[1][6] in an Italian-American family, Fiorentino was born in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[1] She grew up in South Philadelphia and later moved with her family to the Turnersville section of Washington Township in nearby South Jersey.[7] In 1976, Fiorentino graduated from Washington Township High School in Sewell, New Jersey.[8] She began performing in plays at Rosemont College in suburban Philadelphia, from which she graduated in 1980 with a bachelor of arts degree in political science.[1][7][9] She trained at the Circle in the Square Theater School in Manhattan while working as a bartender at the nightclub Kamikaze, where Bruce Willis also worked.[6]

Career[]

Fiorentino got her first professional role in 1985 when she starred in Vision Quest.[citation needed] She then starred in the action film Gotcha! which was filmed in Los Angeles, California; Paris, France; and Berlin, Germany.[10] Her co-star, Anthony Edwards, later directed her in Charlie's Ghost Story. In a 1994 appearance on Late Show with David Letterman, Fiorentino said she chose to stop acting for a period of time after Warner Bros. executive Mark Canton told her during the filming of Vision Quest, "you have a great ass, but I think your jeans need to be tighter." She said she returned to acting later to pay off mounting credit card debt.[11]

In 1994, she received accolades for her performance in director John Dahl's neo noir film The Last Seduction, playing the murderous femme fatale, Bridget. Her performance won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress and the London Film Critics' Circle Award for Actress of the Year, and was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. She followed this as the femme fatale in the 1995 erotic thriller Jade, a critical and box-office failure. She later worked again with Dahl on his film Unforgettable (1996).

Fiorentino played the female lead in the highly successful Men in Black in 1997, then appeared in the direct-to-video Body Count in 1998.[12] In 1999, she starred in Dogma as an abortion clinic employee tasked with saving the world.

After a co-starring role in the 2000 heist film Where the Money Is, and a lead role as the titular character in the 2002 film Liberty Stands Still, Fiorentino's career slowed to a halt. She was in talks to star in a series being prepared by Tom Fontana, but ultimately did not take the project.[13] Fiorentino was attached to a Georgia O'Keeffe biographical drama called Till the End of Time, but the project stalled when Fiorentino had a falling out with the producer.[14]

In 2007, Fiorentino optioned the rights to a screenplay about Russian poet Anna Akhmatova, with plans to produce and to possibly star in and direct, but the project was dropped. During this period, she was reported to be developing two documentaries,[15] neither of which moved forward.

Personal life[]

Fiorentino is divorced from film director and writer John Byrum.[6][16] Her sister Donya Fiorentino, who was a model, was married to filmmaker David Fincher and then to actor Gary Oldman.[17][18][19]

In 2009, former Federal Bureau of Investigation agent Mark T. Rossini pleaded guilty to illegally accessing FBI computers during the prosecution of Los Angeles private investigator Anthony Pellicano. Law enforcement officials said Fiorentino previously had a relationship with Pellicano and wanted to assist his defense.[20] According to prosecutors, Fiorentino was then dating Rossini, and told him she was researching a screenplay based on the case. He conducted searches of government computers for information related to the Pellicano case and passed the results to Fiorentino,[21] who then handed the files over to Pellicano's lawyers in a failed effort to help Pellicano avoid a 15-year prison sentence.[20]

Filmography[]

Year Title Role Notes
1985 Vision Quest Carla Released February 1985
1985 Gotcha! Sasha Banicek / CIA Agent Cheryl Brewster Released May 1985
1985 After Hours Kiki Bridges Released September 1985
1985 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Betsy Van Kennon TV series
Episode: "The Night Caller"
1988 The Moderns Rachel Stone
1988 Wildfire Kay
1989 The Neon Empire Lucy TV movie
1991 Queens Logic Carla
1991 Shout Molly
1992 Strangers Helen TV movie
1992 Chain of Desire Alma D'Angeli
1992 Beyond the Law Renee Jason
1993 Acting on Impulse Susan Gittes TV movie
1994 The Last Seduction Bridget Gregory / Wendy Kroy Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead
London Film Critics Circle Award for Actress of the Year
New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress
Society of Texas Film Critics Award for Best Actress
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Nominated—Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress (2nd place)
Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress
Nominated—National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress (3rd place)
1995 Bodily Harm Rita Cates
1995 The Desperate Trail Sarah O'Rourke TV movie
1995 Jade Anna Catrina 'Trina' Maxwell-Gavin / Jade
1995 Charlie's Ghost Story Marta
1996 Unforgettable Martha Briggs
1996 Larger than Life Terry Bonura
1997 Kicked in the Head Megan
1997 Men in Black Laurel Weaver Nominated—Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Supporting Actress – Sci-Fi
Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1998 Body Count Natalie
1999 Dogma Bethany Sloane
2000 Ordinary Decent Criminal Christine Lynch
2000 What Planet Are You From? Helen Gordon
2000 Where the Money Is Carol
2002 Liberty Stands Still Liberty Wallace Direct-to-video
2009 Once More with Feeling Lydia Direct-to-video

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e "Linda Fiorentino". TV Guide. Archived from the original on July 22, 2015. Retrieved May 1, 2015.
  2. ^ "Linda Fiorentino: Facts & Data". Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on November 20, 2019. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  3. ^ "Linda Fiorentino". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on November 23, 2018.
  4. ^ "Linda Fiorentino Filmography". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019.
  5. ^ Gaul, Lou (April 23, 2000). "Actress tries to remain unforgettable". The Beaver County Times. Beaver, Pennsylvania: Calkins Newspapers. Retrieved October 4, 2013.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c Longsdorf, Amy (February 24, 1996). "Spotlight on Linda Fiorentino & John Dahl: Director, Actress Make an 'Unforgettable' Team". The Morning Call. Allentown, Pennsylvania. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b Donahue, Deirdre (May 27, 1985). "Leggy Linda Fiorentino says Gotcha! to Some of the Silver Screen's Cutest Virgin Hunks". People. Time Inc. Archived from the original on August 14, 2017. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  8. ^ Washington Township High School (1976). Musket '76: The Yearbook of Washington Township High School. Sewell, NJ: Washington Township Public School District. p. 62 – via Ancestry.com.(subscription required)
  9. ^ "Linda Fiorentino: About". New York City, New York: Turner Classic Movies. 2021. Archived from the original on March 14, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  10. ^ Canby, Vincent (May 3, 1985). "Screen: The 'Gotcha!' Game". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 28, 2020.
  11. ^ Linda Fiorentino on Letterman. April 30, 2020. Retrieved May 7, 2021 – via YouTube.
  12. ^ "Fiorentino takes 'Split'". Variety. December 3, 1996. Archived from the original on September 1, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
  13. ^ Schneider, Michael; Adalian, Josef (March 28, 2001). "'Law' chases Fiorentino, literally". Variety. Archived from the original on September 1, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
  14. ^ "Inside Move: O'Keeffe suit dropped". 17 July 2003.
  15. ^ McNary, Dave (July 16, 2007). "Fiorentino revives Russian poet". Variety. Archived from the original on September 1, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
  16. ^ Gaul, Lou (April 23, 2000). "Actress tries to remain unforgettable". The Beaver County Times. Beaver, Pennsylvania: Calkins Newspapers. Retrieved October 4, 2013.
  17. ^ "Regrets Only". Los Angeles. May 1997. p. 22.
  18. ^ Walker, Tim (October 8, 2010). "David Fincher: All the best connections". The Independent. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
  19. ^ Matheou, Demetrios (18 September 2011). "Gary Oldman: The spy who came in, and brought the cold with him". The Independent. Archived from the original on 14 February 2019. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
  20. ^ Jump up to: a b Wilber, Del Quentin (May 15, 2009). "Ex-FBI Agent Mark Rossini Sentenced for Using Bureau Computers in Pellicano Case". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. Archived from the original on October 5, 2019.
  21. ^ Stein, Jeff (January 14, 2015). "The Inside Information That Could Have Stopped 9/11". Newsweek. New York City, New York. Archived from the original on October 8, 2019.

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