Marcia Gay Harden Biography Prolific and respected actress Marcia Gay Harden has made a name for herself not only for her impressive list of awards but for her great versatility as well. Seamlessly jumping from comedy to drama, Gay Harden has found success in everything from Mystic River to Flubber. Marcia Gay Harden was born August 14, 1959 in La Jolla, California. Her parents were Beverly Bushfield and Thaddeus Harold Harden, a housewife and Navy officer respectively. Due to her father’s vocation, the family relocated often. Gay Harden, therefore, lived everywhere from Japan, Greece, and Germany to California and Maryland. In 1976, she graduated from Surrattsville High School. She went on to attend the University of Texas at Austin, where she received her degree in theater. She later earned her MFA in New York University’s prestigious theater program. She made her onscreen debut in the 1979 short Not Only Strangers. Finding numerous parts on television series and bit roles in film, Gay Harden earned her first real critical attention when she appeared in the Coen Brother’s film Miller’s Crossing. The cast included Gabriel Byrne, John Turturro, Albert Finney, and Steve Buscemi. She is also noted for portraying Ava Gardner in 1992’s Sinatra opposite Olympia Dukakis, Gina Gershon, and Philip Casnoff.
After a slew of roles, Gay Harden earned her first really commercial success in The First Wives Club. Finding herself in good comedic company, the film also starred Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn, Diane Keaton, Maggie Smith, Sarah Jessica Parker, Stockard Channing, and Elizabeth Berkley. She continued with this commercial streak in the Robin Williams comedy Flubber as well as the Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins, and Claire Forlani romance Meet Joe Black. It wasn’t until 2000, however, when Gay Harden made critics sit up and pay attention to her acting prowess. Starring with Ed Harris in Pollock, she took home the coveted Oscar statuette for Best Supporting Actress. Just three years later, she would earn her second Oscar nomination for the Clint Eastwood directed drama Mystic River starring power actors Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, and Kevin Bacon.
For the last four years, Gay Harden has split her time between serious roles that challenge her as an actress and more lighthearted fare. Highlights include the independent film Casa de los Babys with Rita Moreno, Daryl Hannah, Lili Taylor, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Mary Steenburgen, the comedy Welcome to Mooseport, and the Richard Gere true life comedy The Hoax. Adding to her accolades, Gay Harden’s guest spot on the crime drama series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit won her an Emmy nomination in 2007. Most recently, she can be seen in the Penn directed film Into the Wild with Emile Hirsch, William Hurt, Catherine Keener, Vince Vaughn, and Jena Malone. Harboring a love for live theater as well, Gay Harden made her Broadway debut in 1993 with Angels in America. So impressive was her performance that she was nominated for a Tony Award as Best Actress in 1993. In her personal life, she married Thaddaeus Scheel on July 9, 1996. They are still together, and they have three children. | 
