Maya Rudolph

Maya Rudolph
Born	Maya Khabira Rudolph July 27, 1972 (1972-07-27) (age 39) Gainesville, Florida, U.S.
Alma mater	Porter College, (UC Santa Cruz) B.A., 1993
Occupation	Actress, comedienne, singer
Years active	1996–present
Partner	Paul Thomas Anderson
Children	3
Parents	Minnie Riperton Richard Rudolph
Notes [1][2]

Maya Khabira Rudolph (born July 27, 1972) is an American actress, comedienne and singer known for her comedic roles as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 2000 to 2007, and for appearing in films such as Away We Go, Bridesmaids, Grown Ups, A Prairie Home Companion and MacGruber. She is the daughter of the late R&B and soul singer Minnie Riperton.

Personal life

Family

Rudolph was born in Gainesville, Florida. She is the daughter of soul singer Minnie Riperton and composer/songwriter/producer Richard Rudolph. Her father is Ashkenazi Jewish and her mother was African-American.^[3][4] Her paternal grandfather was Sidney Rudolph, a philanthropist who once owned all of the Wendy's and Rudy's restaurants in Dade County, FL.^[5] Her family moved to Los Angeles when she and her brother Marc were very young, where they grew up primarily in the Westwood section.^[2]

Maya Rudolph was in the studio with her mother on the day Riperton recorded "Lovin' You",^{[citation needed]} The listener can hear her mother sing "Maya, Maya, Maya" to her daughter near the end of the track. (Riperton had incorporated this into her rendition of the song on Midnight Special.^[6] Riperton died on July 12, 1979, at age 31, from breast cancer, just shy of Rudolph's seventh birthday.^[2] Her godmother was the late R&B star Teena Marie.^[7]

Rudolph lives with director Paul Thomas Anderson and their three children — daughters Pearl Minnie, (born October 2005) and Lucille (born November 6, 2009),^[8] and son Jack (born July 3, 2011).^[9]

Education

Growing up, Rudolph attended high school at Crossroads School in Santa Monica, California, where she became friendly with fellow alumna Gwyneth Paltrow, and continued her education at the University of California, Santa Cruz, where she graduated in 1995 with a B.A. in photography from Porter College.^[10]

Career

Saturday Night Live

In May 2000, Rudolph joined the cast of SNL as a featured player for the final three episodes of the 1999–2000 season, after a stint as a member of The Groundlings improv troupe, where she met future SNL cast member Will Forte.^[2]

Rudolph's characters on the show have included "Attorney Glenda Goodwin" and "Megan" from the "Wake Up, Wakefield!" sketches. Rudolph has performed impressions of Oprah Winfrey, Christina Aguilera, Condoleezza Rice, Paris Hilton, Teresa Heinz Kerry, Tyra Banks, Patti LaBelle, Beyoncé, Liza Minnelli, LaToya Jackson, Diana Ross, Whitney Houston, Rocsi (of 106 & Park), and designer Donatella Versace.^{[citation needed]}

Rudolph's musical talents were frequently employed on SNL. She sang as Beyoncé Knowles in the Prince Show sketches, as the "Space Creature" in the Gays in Space sketches (except for the one on the Season 31 episode hosted by Peter Sarsgaard, because it aired around the time Rudolph was on maternity leave.^{[citation needed]} (Friend Will Forte substituted for her during that episode.) Her ability to change her looks and her command of many accents also led to her playing an unusually wide range of ethnicities on the show, often with only a change of wigs.^{[citation needed]} She has been white (Paris Hilton, Liza Minnelli, Barbra Streisand, Lisa Kudrow), Asian (Lucy Liu, Lisa Ling), black (Diana Ross, Tina Turner), Latina (Charo), as well as people of mixed cultural backgrounds.^{[citation needed]} As "Nooni Schoener," Rudolph, along with Fred Armisen (who, like Rudolph, is also multiracial), created a couple from an unspecified Scandinavian country, who have unplaceable accents and bewilderingly foreign manners. Rudolph was also able to play male characters such as Scott Joplin, Justin Guarini, and Mario Vazquez.^{[citation needed]}

Her final show was on November 3, 2007, with host Brian Williams and musical guest Feist, the last episode before the writers' strike.^{[citation needed]} She returned on October 25, 2008, in a featured guest appearance as Michelle Obama and sang a duet with Kenan Thompson about Amy Poehler's newborn.^{[citation needed]} She then also appeared in the 2008 Christmas episode, where she reprised her role in the sketch Bronx Beat, with Amy Poehler.^{[citation needed]} She also appeared in two sketches in the 2008–2009 season finale with Will Ferrell.^{[citation needed]} She appeared in a Weekend Update Thursday sketch during the fall 2009–10 season as Oprah Winfrey speaking on behalf of Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympics. She also appeared on the show in May 2010 to perform in skits including "The Manuel Ortiz Show" with Betty White.^{[citation needed]}

She returned to SNL for the Season 36 premiere, hosted by Amy Poehler, performing the "Bronx Beat" sketch.^{[citation needed]} She also returned that same season for episode 700, hosted by Tina Fey.^[11]

Television and film

In addition to her work on SNL, Rudolph has appeared on other television shows, including the CBS medical drama series City of Angels and Chicago Hope.^{[citation needed]}

She had small parts in Chuck & Buck, Gattaca, As Good as It Gets, Duplex and Duets; she was also a music supervisor for Duets.^{[citation needed]} Her first prominent film role came in 2006 with A Prairie Home Companion. Earlier, she had co-starred with Luke Wilson in the 2005 Mike Judge sci-fi comedy Idiocracy, although that film was shelved until September 2006 and then only given a limited release.^{[citation needed]} She also guest starred as Rapunzel in the DreamWorks animated film Shrek the Third. She guest starred as Julia in the The Simpsons episode "The Homer of Seville". Rudolph guest starred as character Athena Scooberman in NBC's Kath & Kim, and starred in the film Away We Go with The Office star John Krasinski. In 2010, she appeared in Grown Ups starring Adam Sandler, where she played the wife of Chris Rock's character. In 2011 she appeared in Bridesmaids, together with SNL colleague Kristen Wiig. She currently stars in NBC's latest sitcom, Up All Night, with Christina Appelgate and Will Arnett.

Music

Prior to joining SNL, Rudolph was backing singer (1995-1999)^[1] and briefly a keyboardist in the band The Rentals, with whom she toured for a short time.^[2] She also appears in the music videos of the songs "Waiting" and "Please Let That Be You" by the band.^{[citation needed]} She sang backing vocals for "Barcelona" and "My Head Is in the Sun," both from the album Seven More Minutes. In 2004, she recorded a track with the Rentals frontman Matt Sharp, including a cover of Tegan and Sara's "Not Tonight."^{[citation needed]} Rudolph also performed "Together In Pooping" and "Little Roundworm" with Triumph the Insult Comic Dog (Robert Smigel) on his album Come Poop With Me.

Recurring characters on Saturday Night Live

• Appreciante
• Megan, one of the co-hosts of "Wake Up, Wakefield!"
• Jackie
• Jodi Dietz, one of the co-hosts of "Bronx Beat"
• Beertje Van Beers
• Mrs. Denmont
• Britanica of Gemini's Twin
• Leilani Burke
• Rebecca
• Cocktail Waitress
• Space Creature
• Casey
• Charli Coffee
• Glenda Goodwin
• Patti Sylviac
• Nuni Schoener

Celebrity Impressions on SNL

Amanda Byram Ananda Lewis Barbra Streisand Bern Nadette Stanis (as Thelma Evans) Beyoncé Knowles Charo Christina Aguilera Condoleezza Rice Darcel Wynne Diana Ross Donatella Versace Donna Fargo Emily Robison Fredricka Whitfield Free Gayle King Halle Berry Ivanka Trump Ja'net Du Bois (as Willona Woods) Jennifer Lopez Joyce "Fenderella" Irby Justin Guarini Kara Saun LaToya Jackson Lisa Kudrow

Liza Minnelli Lisa Ling Lucy Liu Lynda Lopez Macy Gray Mario Vasquez Mary Roach Melinda Doolittle Melissa Stark Michelle Obama Mýa Nelly Furtado Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth Oprah Winfrey Paris Hilton Patti LaBelle Phylicia Rashad (as Clair Huxtable) Rocsi Scott Joplin Teresa Heinz Terra Patrick Tina Turner Tyra Banks Valerie Simpson Vanessa Hudgens Wanda Sykes Whitney Houston

Filmography

Films
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1997	As Good as It Gets	Police Woman
	Gattaca	Delivery Nurse
2000	Chuck & Buck	Jamilla
	Duets	Omaha Hostess
2003	Duplex	Tara
2004	50 First Dates	Stacy
2006	A Prairie Home Companion	Stage Manager	Nominated – Gotham Award for Best Ensemble
	Idiocracy	Rita
2007	Shrek the Third	Rapunzel	Voice Only
2009	Away We Go	Verona de Tessant	Nominated — Comedy Film Award for Best Actress Nominated — Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association for Best Actress Nominated — Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated — Black Reel Award for Best Actress Nominated — St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated — Utah Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress
2010	Grown Ups	Deanne McKenzie
	MacGruber	Casey
2011	Zookeeper	Mollie the Giraffe	Voice Only
	Bridesmaids	Lillian
Television
Year	Film	Role	Notes
1996–1997	Chicago Hope	Nurse Leah Martine	Recurring Cast
1997	The Devil's Child	Holly	TV movie
2000	Action	Phina	Episode: Dead Man Floating
	City of Angels	Nurse Grace Patterson	Main Cast
2000–2007	Saturday Night Live	Herself/Various	Repertory Player
2006	Campus Ladies	Professor Theresa Winslow Fabré	Episode: All Nighter
2007	The Simpsons	Julia	Episode: Homer of Seville
2008–2009	Kath & Kim	Athena Scooberman	Recurring Cast
2011–Present	Up All Night	Ava	Main Cast

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Maya Rudolph" (fee, via Fairfax County Public Library). The Complete Marquis Who's Who. Marquis Who's Who. 2010. Gale Document Number: GALE|K2014901123. http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/bic1/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?displayGroupName=Reference&disableHighlighting=false&prodId=BIC2&action=e&windowstate=normal&catId=&documentId=GALE%7CK2014901123&mode=view&userGroupName=fairfax_main&jsid=b5fad977fb57dfcbc27feef7d1f146cb. Retrieved 24 Sep. 2011.  Gale Biography In Context.
2. ^ ^{a b c d e} Itzkoff, Dave (9 September 2011). "Juggling a Comedy Series About Juggling Life’s Tasks". http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/11/arts/television/maya-rudolph-appears-in-the-series-up-all-night.html?pagewanted=1. Retrieved 10 September 2011. 
3. ^ "Maya Rudolph Biography (1972–)". Filmreference.com. http://www.filmreference.com/film/31/Maya-Rudolph.html. Retrieved 2011-01-02. 
4. ^ "The Essence of Lucinda"", Ocala Star-Banner, 6 June 2001 
5. ^ "SIDNEY J. RUDOLPH, PHILANTHROPIST AND RESTAURANT OWNER". Miami Herald. December 23, 1992. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=MH&s_site=miami&p_multi=MH&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB3484EE61794FE&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM. 
6. ^ Minnie Riperton (1975). Minnie Riperton - Lovin' You (Live 1975). The Midnight Special (TV series). Event occurs at 03:07. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7MqTrXwojk&NR=1. Retrieved 2011-09-25. "Maya, Maya, Maya" 
7. ^ "Top 10 little known facts about Teena Marie". CNN Entertainment. December 28, 2010. http://marquee.blogs.cnn.com/2010/12/28/top-10-little-known-facts-about-teena-marie/?hpt=T2. Retrieved May 13, 2011. 
8. ^ "Maya Rudolph Welcomes a Girl". People Magazine. December 04, 2009. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20317392,00.html?. Retrieved May 13, 2011. 
9. ^ "Maya Rudolph Welcomes Son Jack". People.com. Time Inc.. July 19, 2011. http://celebritybabies.people.com/2011/07/19/maya-rudolph-welcomes-son-jack/. Retrieved 2011-07-19. 
10. ^ "Maya Rudolph Biography". TVGuide.com. http://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/maya-rudolph/bio/190553. Retrieved May 15, 2011. 
11. ^ McGlynn, Katla (May 8, 2011). "'SNL': Pregnant Tina Fey & Maya Rudolph Sing Duet About Doin' It". www.huffingtonpost.com. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/08/snl-pregnant-tina-fey-maya-rudolph-sing-duet_n_859117.html. Retrieved 2011-05-09. 

External links

• Maya Rudolph at the Internet Movie Database

Persondata
Name	Rudolph, Maya
Alternative names
Short description	American actor, comedian, impressionist and singer
Date of birth	July 27, 1972
Place of birth	Gainesville, Florida, U.S.
Date of death
Place of death