Laura Kightlinger

Laura Kightlinger
Born Jamestown, New York, USA[1]
Occupation Actress, comedian, writer, producer
Years active 1991—present
Partner(s) Jack Black (1997–2005)
Website http://laurakightlinger.com

Laura Kightlinger (born June 13, 1964) is an American actress, comedian and writer.

She was a writer and consulting producer on Will & Grace, while also occasionally appearing on the show as the character Nurse Sheila. Kightlinger also played the title role in the TV show The Minor Accomplishments of Jackie Woodman, which she created, wrote and executive produced.

Early life

Kightlinger was born and raised in Jamestown, New York.[1] She graduated from Southwestern High School in 1982 and then attended Emerson College.[2][3][4]

Career

Television

After touring as a stand-up comic, Kightlinger got her break writing for the television sitcom Roseanne. She later wrote for Dennis Miller Live and for the 20th season (1994–1995) of Saturday Night Live, on which she was also a featured performer and cast member. Among the celebrities she impersonated were Brooke Shields, Marcia Clark, Paula Poundstone, Mary Hart, and Connie Chung.

Kightlinger worked as a writer and consulting producer on the sitcom Will & Grace. She performed a recurring guest role on the series as Sheila, a nurse at a fertility clinic.

Kightlinger was a correspondent on The Daily Show in 1998. She appeared regularly on the HBO sitcom Lucky Louie. She was a writer and cast member on Roseanne’s short-lived sketch comedy series Saturday Night Special on Fox and also appeared in one episode of Dinner for Five.

In 2006, Kightlinger created, wrote, executive produced and starred in The Minor Accomplishments of Jackie Woodman, a comedy series about two best friends maneuvering through the not-so-glamorous side of Hollywood. The series aired on IFC from August 4 of that year through September 23, 2007. When asked how much of the series was based on her personal experience, Kightlinger responded:

I think like 85% and then the other 15 is the experience of a woman. We usually cull a lot of stories from what happened to us and our friends, so I’d say a lot of it is. I always feel like rejection is my petrol. That’s what keeps me going.[5]

Kightlinger has had two stand-up comedy specials on HBO and six on Comedy Central.[6]

Film

In 1997, Kightlinger appeared in Who's the Caboose?, an independent movie comedy starring Sarah Silverman and Sam Seder.

In 2001, she made a short film, Dependable People,[7] which won both the Black Maria Film Festival Director's Citation (Honorable Mention[8]) and the International Festival of Cinema and Technology Best New Director Award in 2002.[9] It was released on the DVD "Celebrity Mix" with other short films in 2006.[10][11]

In 2003, she directed her first documentary, Sixty Spins Around the Sun, which chronicles the New York City street movement to repeal the Rockefeller Drug Laws.[12] It focuses on political satirist turned activist Randy Credico and his fight to repeal the laws. The film follows Credico to Tulia, Texas during a racially motivated drug bust, which is the subject of an upcoming film starring Halle Berry. Included in this documentary are stand-up comics Larry David, Colin Quinn, Don Gavin, Vanessa Hollingshead and Nick DiPaolo. It won Best Documentary at the 2003 Empire State Film Festival,[13] 2003 Boston International Film Festival,[14] and 2005 Beverly Hills Film Festival (Jury Award).[15]

Kightlinger appeared in Shallow Hal in 2001.[16]

In 2005 she starred in the short film Dysenchanted, directed by Terri Edda Miller, which received critical acclaim.[17]

Book

Kightlinger's book Quick Shots of False Hope was published in 1999. The New York Times Book Review described it as "funny and disturbing", "memorable", and an "idiosyncratic and darkly comic debut." [18] As of 2006, she was adapting the book for film.[19]

Internet

Kightlinger has written several shorts for Funny or Die[20] and Atom.com, including “American Heroine,” in which she starred,[21] and “Roy Fabcock: Legendary Lover.” (2010).[22]

References

  1. 1 2 "Kightlinger, Laura 1964-". Contemporary Authors 234. Gale. 2005. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  2. ↑ Expression. Winter 2007, p. 15. Emerson College.
  3. ↑ Emerson Alumni profiles: Lisa Gregorian, '83, MA '86." Emerson College.
  4. ↑ Wright, Megh (May 8, 2012). "Saturday Night's Children: Laura Kightlinger (1994-1995)". Splitsider.
  5. ↑ Topel, Fred (August 7, 2007). "Laura Kightlinger's Major Accomplishment". craveonline.com. Archived from the original on October 9, 2007. Retrieved May 15, 2013.
  6. ↑ "About Laura Kightlinger". Comedy Central. Retrieved May 15, 2013.
  7. ↑ Dependable People at the Internet Movie Database
  8. ↑ "Black Maria Film and Video Festival Award Winners 2004 (flash pulldown menu)". 2004. Archived from the original on 2004-10-10. Retrieved September 12, 2012. (for name of award only)
  9. ↑ "Film Festival - IFCT, 2002 Awards". International Festival of Cinema and Technology. Archived from the original on 2003-02-14. Retrieved September 12, 2012.
  10. ↑ Tyner, Adam (February 4, 2006). "Celebrity Mix:TLA Releasing // Unrated // January 17, 2006". DVD Talk. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  11. ↑ Longsdorf, Amy (February 10, 2006). "Elizabethtown' misses the mark, even on DVD". Courier Post (Cherry Hill, N.J.). p. B, 23 – via Proquest.(subscription required)
  12. ↑ Moss, Corey (October 6, 2003). "Jack Black Working To Make Dog Turds And Drug Laws Disappear". MTV.com. Retrieved September 12, 2012.
  13. ↑ "Empire Film Festival 2003 Winners". 2003. Archived from the original on 2005-02-03. Retrieved September 12, 2012.
  14. ↑ "First Annual BIFF Award Winners Announced". Boston International Film Festival. July 7, 2003. Archived from the original on December 13, 2003. Retrieved September 12, 2012.
  15. ↑ "2005 Beverly Hills Film Festival Winners". Archived from the original on 2008-05-09. Retrieved 2012-09-12.
  16. ↑ Shallow Hal at the Internet Movie Database
  17. ↑ Tyner, Adam (February 4, 2006). "Celebrity Mix". DVDTalk.com.
  18. ↑ Shapiro, Susan (November 7, 1999). "Quick Shots of False Hope". New York Times Book Review.
  19. ↑ Keepnews, Peter (September 21, 2006). "Wryly, if Warily, Accepting More Than Modest Success". New York Times.
  20. ↑ "Laura Kightlinger's Funny or Die profile". Funny or Die. Retrieved 2012-09-12.
  21. ↑ "Laura Kightlinger, Jay Johnston star in Atom.com's disturbing (funny?) 'American Heroine'". Laughspin.com. January 13, 2011. Retrieved 2012-09-12.
  22. ↑ "Roy Fabcock - Legendary Lover - Video Clip". CC Studios - Comedy Central. November 12, 2010. Retrieved 2012-09-12.

External links

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