Everything about Lainie Kazan totally explained
Lainie Kazan (born
May 15,
1940) is an
American actress and
singer.
Biography
Personal life
Kazan was born
Lanie Levine in
Brooklyn,
New York City to an
Ashkenazi Jewish father who worked as a
bookie and a
Sephardic Jewish mother, Carole, whom Kazan has described as "neurotic, fragile and artistic". She serves on the boards of the Young Musician's Foundation,
AIDS Project LA, and
B'nai Brith.
Career
Kazan made her
Broadway debut in
The Happiest Girl in the World in 1961, followed by
Bravo Giovanni (1962). She served as understudy to
Barbra Streisand in
Funny Girl, finally getting to go on eighteen months into the run when the star was felled by a serious throat problem. Coincidentally, both had attended the same high school,
Erasmus Hall High School in
Brooklyn, New York. Kazan's mother alerted the press and, encouraged by rave reviews for her performance, she quit the show and set out to establish herself in a singing career.
As her popularity increased, Kazan posed for a spread in the October 1970 issue of
Playboy. Her photographs inspired the look of
Jack Kirby's
DC Comics superheroine
Big Barda.
Kazan appeared in numerous supper clubs across the country, and she guested on
Dean Martin's variety series twenty-six times. Other television work includes a recurring role as Aunt Freida on the
Fran Drescher sitcom The Nanny and as
Kirstie Alley's mother on
Veronica's Closet, and guest shots on
St. Elsewhere (resulting in an
Emmy nomination),
The Paper Chase,
Touched by an Angel, and
Will & Grace. She also was featured in
My Big Fat Greek Life, a short-lived series based on the
Nia Vardalos hit film
My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
Kazan returned to Broadway to recreate her film role for the musical adaptation of
My Favorite Year, earning a
Tony Award nomination for her performance. More recently she completed a stint in
The Vagina Monologues. She has also appeared in regional productions of
A Little Night Music,
Man of La Mancha,,
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?,
Hello, Dolly!, and
Fiddler on the Roof, among others.
Kazan's feature films include
Francis Ford Coppola's
One from the Heart (1982),
My Favorite Year (1982),
Lust in the Dust (1985),
Harry and the Hendersons (1987),
Beaches (1988),
The Cemetery Club (1993),
Safety Patrol (1998),
My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002),
Gigli (2003),
Red Riding Hood (2004),
Whiskey School (2005), (2007) and
Beau Jest (2007).
In recent years, Kazan has kept busy performing on concert stages and in
Las Vegas and
Atlantic City showrooms.
Filmography
Further Information
Get more info on 'Lainie Kazan'.
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