Monica Potter

Last updated
Monica Potter
Monica Potter at Paleyfest 2013 crop.jpg
Potter in 2013
Born (1971-06-30) June 30, 1971 (age 53)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1993–present
Spouses
Tom Potter
​
​
(m. 1990;div. 1998)​
Daniel Christopher Allison
​
​
(m. 2005;div. 2018)​
Children3

Monica Potter (June 30, 1971) [1] is an American actress. She is known for her starring roles in the films Con Air (1997), Patch Adams (1998), and Along Came a Spider (2001). She also appeared in the horror film, Saw (2004) and The Last House on the Left , a 2009 remake film.

Contents

Potter has also appeared on television, as a series regular on Boston Legal , as well as a Golden Globe-nominated role as Kristina Braverman in the NBC drama series Parenthood (2010–2015). She was a series regular in the CBS drama Wisdom of the Crowd .

Potter is also known as the founder and principal owner of Monica Potter Home, an upscale home goods, natural skin care and home decor business in Cleveland, Ohio. With the family business struggling to make money, the company was featured on the reality TV show, The Profit .

Early life

Monica Potter's mother was a secretary in a hospital, and her father invented the first flame-resistant car wax. [2] Potter has three sisters (Kerry, Jessica, and Brigette). Her maternal grandparents were Irish immigrants, and she was raised Catholic. [3] [4] As a child, Potter wanted to be a nun. [5]

During her childhood she attended the Villa Angela Academy, and graduated from Euclid High School. [6] She also spent part of her early years in Arab, Alabama. [6] Potter had wanted to be an actress since childhood. [3] She began acting at the Cleveland Play House when she was in elementary school. [6] Starting at age 12, she worked at a flower shop, and later in her teens, she worked in a sub sandwich shop and did some modeling for newspaper and magazine ads and local commercials. [7] After appearing in several commercials in Chicago, Potter relocated to Los Angeles in 1994. [6] In 1995, she appeared in the Alan Jackson music video for "Tall, Tall Trees".

Career

Potter made her screen debut in 1994, on CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless as Sharon Newman. [8] In 1995, Potter was featured in the music video for the song "Tall, Tall Trees" by country artist Alan Jackson. She later appeared in several feature films, including Con Air (playing the wife of Nicolas Cage's character) and starring opposite Robin Williams in Patch Adams . In 1998, she played the love interest of doomed distance runner Steve Prefontaine in the movie Without Limits , and also appeared in the British comedy Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence (1998). [9] In 2001, she had two major roles, co-starring with Freddie Prinze, Jr. in Head Over Heels , and in the thriller Along Came a Spider with Morgan Freeman, based on the James Patterson best-seller.

Potter in 2010 Monica Potter at the Television Critics Association -- 27 July 2010.jpg
Potter in 2010

In 2004, Potter played the role of Alison Gordon in the first Saw film. Later Potter worked on television. She was a cast member of the ABC legal drama Boston Legal but left during the second season. In 2009, Potter became a cast member of the new TNT series Trust Me which was cancelled after the first season due to low ratings. In 2009, she had a lead role in the horror-thriller remake of Wes Craven's The Last House on the Left , opposite Tony Goldwyn.

Potter played the role of Kristina Braverman in the comedy-drama Parenthood , receiving critical acclaim for her performance in the fourth season. [10] [11] [12] In 2013, she won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Drama Supporting Actress and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film for her role in the show. [13] [14]

In 2014, Potter created Monica Potter Home, an upscale home goods, natural skin care and home decor business in Cleveland, Ohio. The business began based on her skin care regimen that made use of Sea Buckthorn essential oils. Her father started using a balm, a natural product, on her when she was a young child because of her eczema. The business is a family affair; her mother and sisters work for her in the business. In 2017, with the business failing, she collaborated with Marcus Lemonis of CNBC's The Profit. She and her business appeared with her family and coworkers on Season 5, Episode 4.

In 2015, Potter was joined by her mother and all three sisters on Celebrity Family Feud . [15] The following year, she appeared in a HGTV reality series titled Welcome Back Potter, which chronicled the purchase and restoration of her childhood home in Cleveland, Ohio thirty years after the family sold it in 1987. [16]

In 2016, Counting Crows' frontman Adam Duritz confirmed that the band's song Mrs Potter's Lullaby, from the album This Desert Life (1999), was written about an imaginary version of her, as they had never met. [17] Duritz explained that serendipity led to them meeting (for the first time) for a casual supper with industry friends the day the band was recording the song, and Potter returned to the studio with Duritz to watch them record. They became friends, and a tape he forgot he gave her on the night of the recording ended up salvaging the song, which the band felt they had ruined during post-production and had decided to not keep on the album. [17]

Personal life

Potter was married to Tom Potter from 1990 to 1998; together they have two sons Daniel and Liam. In 2005, Potter married Daniel Christopher Allison, an orthopedic surgeon. [18] [19] Potter and Allison have one child. [20] In March 2015, Potter's husband joined the US Navy Reserve as a physician, with the starting rank of Lieutenant Commander. [21] In February 2018, the couple filed for divorce. [22]

Potter's father died in 2002 of cardiovascular disease. [23]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1996 Bulletproof Biker's Woman
1997 Con Air Tricia Poe
1998 A Cool, Dry Place Kate Durrell
1998 Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence MarthaAlternative title: The Very Thought of You
1998 Without Limits Mary Marckx
1998 Patch Adams Carin Fisher
1999 Heaven or Vegas Lilli
2001 Head Over Heels Amanda Pierce
2001 Along Came a Spider Jezzie Flannigan
2002 I'm with Lucy Lucy
2004 Reversible Errors Muriel Wynn
2004 Saw Alison Gordon
2008 Lower Learning Laura Buchwald
2009 The Last House on the Left Emma Collingwood
2014 Lennon or McCartney HerselfShort documentary film; interview clip [24]
2024 The Girl in the Pool Kristen
2024 Running on Empty Elaine

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1993 Nubeluz DalinaTV pilot for English version of Peruvian TV Children's show.
1994 The Young and the Restless Sharon Newman #1
2003The Lunchbox ChroniclesKateTV pilot
2004 Reversible Errors Muriel WynnMiniseries
2004–2005 Boston Legal Lori ColsonSeries regular, 21 episodes
Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (2005)
2007Protect and ServeLizzie BorelliTV pilot
2009 Trust Me Sarah Krajicek-HunterSeries regular, 13 episodes
2010–2015 Parenthood Kristina BravermanSeries Regular; 103 episodes
Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Drama Supporting Actress (2013)
Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (2013)
Nominated — TCA Award for Individual Achievement in Drama (2013)
2016Welcome Back PotterHerselfSix episodes
2017 Wisdom of the Crowd AlexSeries Regular
2017 The Profit Herself1 Episode
2020–2021 Goliath Christina LukinSeason 3 and 4

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References

  1. ↑ "Packer pushes industry for diversity; June 30 Birthdays". The Orlando Sentinel. June 30, 2024. p. F2. ProQuest   3082229174. Bassist Stanley Clarke is 73. Guitarist Hal Lindes is 71. Actor David Alan Grier is 68. Actor Vincent D'Onofrio is 65. Actor Monica Potter is 53. See also:
    • "Today's Birthdays". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. June 30, 2002. p. 30. ProQuest   402109466. Jazz musician Stanley Clarke 51. Actor-comedian David Alan Grier 47. Boxer Mike Tyson 36. Rocker (Better than Ezra) Tom Drummond 33. Actress ("Along Came a Spider") Monica Potter 31.
  2. ↑ Hobson, Louis B. (December 19, 1998). "Payback time for Potter". Canoe.ca. Archived from the original on January 11, 2014. Retrieved January 10, 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. 1 2 "Potter, Monica: Potter has planted her roots". CANOE - JAM! Movies - Artists. Canoe.ca. April 7, 2001. Archived from the original on July 14, 2012. Retrieved March 31, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  4. ↑ The Full Monica Article on Maxim.com :: Hot Girls, Babes, Sex, Photos, Videos, Gear, Entertainment Archived September 30, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ "While at a National Shrine, Monica Potter Tells Reporter She Once Wanted to be a Nun". 14 December 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Urbancich, John (May 29, 1997). "Ex-Clevelander Soars In "Con Air"". Sun Newspapers, Cleveland. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved November 13, 2007.
  7. ↑ Hobson, Louis B. (April 5, 2001). "Along came Monica". Canoe.ca. Archived from the original on January 11, 2014. Retrieved January 11, 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  8. ↑ "Monica Potter On 'The Young And The Restless': 'Parenthood' Actress Opens Up About Getting Fired". The Huffington Post . June 18, 2013. Retrieved October 9, 2013.
  9. ↑ Monush, Barry; John Willis, eds. (2000). "The Very Thought of You". Screen World. New York - London: Applause: 277. ISBN   9781557834317 – via Google Books. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  10. ↑ "Emmy Hopeful: Monica Potter - 'Parenthood'". ETonline.com. April 29, 2013. Archived from the original on June 15, 2013. Retrieved October 9, 2013.
  11. ↑ "Deserving And Early Emmy Award Prospects For A Perfect World". ScottFeinberg.com. January 22, 2013. Retrieved October 9, 2013.
  12. ↑ Busis, Hillary (July 18, 2013). "Emmy nominations: The biggest snubs". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved October 9, 2013.
  13. ↑ Bierly, James (December 12, 2013). "Golden Globes nominations TV shocks and snubs". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 12, 2013.
  14. ↑ Busis, Hillary (June 11, 2013). "Critics' Choice Television Awards winners: 'Big Bang,' HBO". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved October 9, 2013.
  15. ↑ "S1E01 Series Premiere: Anthony Anderson vs. Toni Braxton; Monica Potter vs. Curtis Stone". ABC.com. 2015-06-21. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
  16. ↑ Stein, Megan (October 13, 2016). "Before and After: Parenthood Star Monica Potter's Childhood Home Makeover". People. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  17. 1 2 Furness, Dyllan (2016-07-19). "The Serendipitous Events Behind "Mrs. Potter's Lullaby"". New Times Broward-Palm Beach . Retrieved 2018-08-27.
  18. ↑ "Monica Potter Biography". TV Guide . Retrieved October 9, 2013.
  19. ↑ "DrAlison.org" . Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  20. ↑ Gee, Alison; Silverman, Stephen M. (August 11, 2005). "Monica Potter Has a Baby Girl". People . Archived from the original on February 20, 2008. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  21. ↑ Exclusive Q&A: 'Parenthood' TV star becomes Navy wife, militarytimes.com, 2015-03-27, accessed 2018-01-09
  22. ↑ Vulpo, Mike (February 2, 2018). "Parenthood's Monica Potter and Husband Divorcing After 10 Years of Marriage". E! . Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  23. ↑ Marrone, Kelly (January 13, 2011). "Interview with 'Parenthood's Monica Potter". Thecelebritycafe.com. Archived from the original on January 10, 2014. Retrieved January 8, 2014.
  24. ↑ Falkner, Scott (22 December 2014). "Lennon or McCartney? New Documentary Asks 550 Celebrities Their Preference — See Their Answers". Inquisitr . Retrieved 11 November 2016.
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