Jennifer Beals Biography
A thin, naturally attractive brunette with a personable smile and the brains to match her beauty, actress Jennifer Beals was virtually propelled to overnight stardom and fashion icon status with her energetic performance in director Adrian Lyne's 1983 dance drama Flashdance. Though her career would suffer a slight setback when it was revealed that Beals didn't perform all of her own dance moves in the sleeper hit, the talented actress would endure to make something of a comeback in the late '90s.
A Chicago native who was traveling in Europe when her publicist called her for a New York audition that the filmmakers were pitching as a "female Saturday Night Fever," Beals booked the first flight back to the states and, despite the presence of thousands of other eager young actresses, somehow managed to stand out from the crowd to impress producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer. Beals' only other film work to that point was as an extra in 1980's My Bodyguard, so it was quite a gamble to cast a virtual unknown in the lead. This was especially true, given that, days before the film's premiere, Paramount Pictures sold off 25 percent of the film; however, the gamble paid off and Flashdance became nothing less than a cultural phenomenon. With ripped, oversized sweaters adorning teenage girls nationwide, it seemed as if Beals had the cinematic world at her fingertips -- and then the bottom dropped out. When it was later revealed that Beals impressive moves weren't entirely her own, audiences felt betrayed (as if action stars really do all of their own stunts) and subsequently protested the burgeoning actress without taking into consideration that she was the dramatic core of the film.
Opting to continue her education at Yale immediately following Flashdance's production, roles in such efforts as The Bride (1985) and Split Decisions (1988) were squeezed in during Beals' summer breaks. Though neither effort did much to forward Beals' career, the actress would continue to appear in such quirky, low-budget efforts as Vampire's Kiss (1989) and Blood and Concrete (1991) moving into the 1990s. Beals was married to director Alexandre Rockwell in 1986, and in 1992 she would appear opposite Steve Buscemi and Seymour Cassel in Rockwell's comedy drama In the Soup.
If the majority of the 1990s found Beals relegated to mostly unseen independents, high-profile roles in such acclaimed efforts as Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle (1994), Devil in a Blue Dress (1995), and The Last Days of Disco (1998) proved without a doubt that the now-established actress certainly had the skills and endurance to maintain a successful screen career. Though the early years of the millennial turnover may have found Beals on shaky cinematic ground with such efforts as Jim Wynorski's Militia and the tiresomely derivative sequel Turbulence 2: Fear of Flying (both 1990), her reputation as something of an independent darling would solidify with roles in such critically acclaimed indies as The Anniversary Party (2001) and Roger Dodger (2002). Despite her divorce from Rockwell and remarriage to another man unassociated with the film business, Beals would later turn up in the Rockwell-directed comedy 13 Moons (again opposite Buscemi), while preparing for roles in such upcoming features as Runaway Jury and Break a Leg (both 2003). In 2004 Beals took a turn as a lesbian in the made-for-cable series The L Word. In her spare time Jennifer Beals is an avid photographer.
BREAKDANCING: We popped and locked the weekend long - San Diego Union Tribune
BREAKDANCING: We popped and locked the weekend longSan Diego Union Tribune, United States - 10 hours ago... Street" -- and who can forget Jennifer Beals' stunt double in "Flashdance," a male dancer from the mythic Rock Steady Crew (the late Frosty Freeze)? ...
Interview Brief with Jennifer Beals - ACED Magazine
Interview Brief with Jennifer BealsACED Magazine, FL - Aug 3, 2008Chicago-born Jennifer Beals recently did a quick Q and A with ACED to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Flashdance. She is most known for her roles as ...
Mama Mio & Rodial Promise Breast Implants In A Cream - Make Me Heal
Mama Mio & Rodial Promise Breast Implants In A CreamMake Me Heal, CA - Aug 18, 2008... Kirsten Dunst, Christina Aguilera, Stella McCartney, Christy Turlington, Milla Jovovich, Emma Bunton, Jennifer Beals, and Lindsay Davenport to name a few.
Life as a Runway | Lots to Say With Just a T - New York Times
Life as a Runway | Lots to Say With Just a TNew York Times, United States - Aug 13, 2008Briana Brink-Rivera (slide 1) made reference to the ?80s, her off-the-shoulder tee a sexy homage to Jennifer Beals in ?Flashdance. ...
Liz Smith - Baltimore Sun
Liz SmithBaltimore Sun, United States - 23 hours agoThis will reteam her with her pal, L Word star Jennifer Beals. They worked together on the little indie movie Roger Dodger back in 2002. ...
Exclusive: Elizabeth Berkley Utters 'The L Word' - Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment WeeklyExclusive: Elizabeth Berkley Utters 'The L Word'Entertainment Weekly - Jul 22, 2008She'll play the straight girl that got away from Jennifer Beals' Bette in college. Berkley and Beals, in addition to being real-life buds, ...
"Devil in a Blue Dress" - Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times"Devil in a Blue Dress"Los Angeles Times, CA - Aug 5, 2008And in this film noir, Easy stirs up a heap of mischief when he is asked to find a missing white woman (Jennifer Beals) who is supposedly hiding out in the ...
Gossip Girl...and Her Gay - Gay Wired
Gossip Girl...and Her GayGay Wired, CA - Aug 11, 2008Eager to catch up on the dirt since Ross was in Vancouver getting his gay pride on all week, the dishy duo take on Jennifer Beals and The L Word, ...
Interview With Uh Huh Her - AfterEllen.com
Interview With Uh Huh HerAfterEllen.com - Aug 18, 2008While Hailey was making a name for herself alongside Jennifer Beals and Cybill Shepherd, Grey was working with Dr. Dre, Tricky and Kelly Osbourne. ...
Media wages war on Tom Cruise - Variety
VarietyMedia wages war on Tom CruiseVariety, CA - Aug 18, 2008Elizabeth will appear in four of the eight episodes now filming in Vancouver, BC This will re-team her with her pal, "L Word" star Jennifer Beals. ...
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