Parker Christian Posey (born November 8, 1968) is an
American actress. She became known during the 1990s, after a series of roles in several well-received
independent films. As a result, she has often been referred to as the "Queen of the Indies".
Biography
Early life
Posey was born in
Baltimore, Maryland, the daughter of Lynda, a
chef, and Chris Posey, who owned a
Chevrolet dealership. She has a
fraternal twin brother, Christopher. Posey's
unisex first name was a tribute by her father to 1950s supermodel
Suzy Parker. After Posey's birth, the family moved to
Laurel, Mississippi where her mother worked as a
chef and culinary instructor for the
Viking Range Corporation in Greenwood, MS, and her father, after coming back from the
Vietnam War with long time friend Bill Pearson, opened a dealership named
Posey Chevrolet in
Laurel, Mississippi. The family also lived in
Monroe, Louisiana. Posey was raised in the
Catholic religion.
[index magazine interview]
Film career
Posey attended the
State University of New York at Purchase, where she roomed with actress
Sherry Stringfield. Fellow entertainment professionals in her SUNY Purchase acting company (Class of 1991) included actor
Adam Trese, actor
Reno Wilson, and producer
Todd Baker.
Posey's first break was in television, when she won the role of Tess Shelby on the daytime
soap opera As the World Turns. (Stringfield, Posey's roommate, was also cast on the daytime drama
Guiding Light at about the same time.) Posey's first major role in a feature film was in
Dazed and Confused (1993).
Throughout the late 1990s, Posey starred in a large number of
independent films and was named
Queen of the Indies by
Time Magazine,
which cited 32
independent films to her credit, including
Personal Velocity,
Clockwatchers,
Party Girl, and
The House of Yes, for which she received especially positive reviews for her portrayal of a
delusional woman in love with her own brother. She is part of the acting ensemble that appears in director
Christopher Guest's films, including four of his
mock documentaries: (
Waiting for Guffman in 1996,
Best in Show in 2000,
A Mighty Wind in 2003, and
For Your Consideration in 2006). Posey is also a favorite of director
Hal Hartley. She appeared in
Henry Fool (1998), two of his shorts,
Opera No. 1 (1994; with
Adrienne Shelley, another Hartley regular),
Sisters of Mercy (2004), and his most recent film,
Fay Grim (2006). Posey received acclaim for her performance in Zoe Cassavetes's directorial debut
Broken English in 2007.
Though well known for her work in independent cinema, Posey has also had supporting roles in several big budget
studio films, including
Scream 3 (2000),
You've Got Mail (1998),
Josie and the Pussycats (2001),
Laws of Attraction (2004), and
Blade: Trinity (2004). She also had a small but notable performance in
Superman Returns, playing Kitty Kowalski, an assistant to villain
Lex Luthor.
Posey is also set for a role in an upcoming
John Waters film
Fruitcake along with
Johnny Knoxville which will likely be set in her birth town of Baltimore, as with all John Waters's films.
[1]
Television work
Although Posey primarily works in film, she has appeared in several television projects.
- Posey appeared in the television miniseries adaptations of the Armistead Maupin Tales of the City books; her character, Connie, was featured in the original 1993 series and the 1998 miniseries "sequel" covering the second book.
- In 2000, she provided the voice of Umbriel the mermaid in the Futurama episode "The Deep South."
- Also in 2000, Parker provided the voice of Becky in an episode of The Simpsons titled "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Marge."
- She has also had a recurring role on the television series Will & Grace, as Dorlene, Jack's high-maintenance boss at Barneys New York.
- Posey appeared on the season one finale episode of Project Runway in 2005. She was a spectator at New York Fashion Week, and also a judge alongside Nina Garcia, Michael Kors, and German supermodel/host Heidi Klum.
- In 2006, Posey guest-starred as the ambitious, back-stabbing lawyer Marlene "The Squid" Stanger in the legal drama Boston Legal.
- In March 2008, Posey headlined the quickly cancelled Fox series The Return of Jezebel James.
Posey was previously considered for the roles of
Rachel Green in
Friends (which went to
Jennifer Aniston), of Kimmy in
My Best Friend's Wedding (which went to
Cameron Diaz), and of Althea in
The People vs. Larry Flynt (which went to
Courtney Love).
Other work
Posey made her stage debut in 2001, and has worked regularly on the stage since. Posey also dabbles in music; she can play the
mandolin. She learned to play as preparation for her role in
A Mighty Wind (2003), a film in which she also sang. She used her vocal talents on several records of her ex-boyfriend,
Ryan Adams, whom she dated until early 2005. She also played the
mandolin on
The Dandy Warhols track "I Am Sound" from their
Welcome to the Monkey House LP.
She is also the subject of several songs:
- She is the subject of a tribute song by Stuart Davis on his 2006 album ¿What.
- L.A. based rappers Trilambs also recorded a song titled Parker Posey in 2001.
- Musical project Forms of Things Unknown recorded an experimental music instrumental called From Here to Parker Posey.
Beginning in February 2006, Posey appeared in "Spontaneous Combustion", a
Traktor-directed commercial for
Pepsi Cola opposite
Jimmy Fallon, dancing to the song "Newtonndash Streamline". It was prominently aired during the
FOX broadcasts of the
2006 World Series in October, and a longer version has also aired in movie theaters. She is a contributing editor to
Open City, a literary
magazine whose editor,
Thomas Beller, she once dated.
Posey has appeared on the cover of Lucky magazine, an online shopping site.
Will Ferrell stated on the daytime television program
Live With Regis And Kelly that she was
Chris Kattan's "best man" at his wedding.
Filmography
