Jane Krakowski (born October 11, 1968) is an American actress and singer. She is known in television for her roles as Elaine Vassal on
Ally McBeal and
Jenna Maroney on
30 Rock, and in the theatre for her role in
Nine.
Early life
Krakowski was born
Jane Krajkowski in
Parsippany,
New Jersey, the daughter of Barbara, a college theater instructor and producing artistic director for the Women's Theater Company,
and Ed Krajkowski, a chemical engineer.
[Jane Krakowski Biography (1968-)] She has an older brother.
[ Krakowski's father's family is entirely Polish and comes from Kraków,][www.mojawyspa.co.uk/artykuly/14671/Jane-Krakowski-Z-Krakowa-do-Ally-McBeal Pol. Cała rodzina po stronie mojego ojca jest polska (En All my family from my father's side is Polish).] and although she knows few words in Polish, her father and grandparents are fluent.[www.mojawyspa.co.uk/artykuly/14671/Jane-Krakowski-Z-Krakowa-do-Ally-McBeal Pol. (...) mój tata rozmawiał po polsku. Moi dziadkowi rozmawiali na co dzień po angielsku, ale kłócili się tylko po polsku, żebyśmy ich nie zrozumieli! (En (...) my dad spoke Polish, and my grandparents spoke English at home, but they argued only in Polish, because they didn't want to be understood by us).] The Krakowski family celebrate Christmas in the traditional Polish manner and her grandmother makes special dishes, like gołąbki. Krakowski often attends the Twelve Chairs restaurant in SoHo, where they serve Polish meals.[www.mojawyspa.co.uk/artykuly/14671/Jane-Krakowski-Z-Krakowa-do-Ally-McBeal]
Krakowski grew up very much immersed in the local theater scene as a result of her parents' activities, saying in one interview "Instead of hiring baby sitters, they brought me along with them."[ She took ballet lessons from age four, but later stopped because she was the wrong body shape, instead moving more towards Broadway dancing.]
