Laura Harring | |
|---|---|
 Harring in 2016 | |
| Born | Laura Elena Herring Martínez (1964-03-03)March 3, 1964 (age 61) Los Mochis,Sinaloa, Mexico |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Spouse | |
| Beauty pageant titleholder | |
| Title | |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Major competition(s) |
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| Website | lauraharring |
Laura Elena Harring (néeHerring Martínez, formerlyGräfin von Bismarck-Schönhausen; born March 3, 1964) is an American actress and beauty pageant titleholder who wonMiss USA 1985 and later began acting in television and film. She is best known for her lead role as Rita in the 2001 movieMulholland Drive. Her other films includeThe Forbidden Dance (1990),John Q (2002),Willard (2003),The Punisher (2004),The King (2005),Love in the Time of Cholera (2007),Ghost Son (2007),The Caller (2008),Drool (2009),Sex Ed (2014), andInside (2016). She also played Carla Greco inGeneral Hospital (1990–1991), Paula Stevens onSunset Beach (1997), and Rebecca "Becca" Doyle inThe Shield (2006).
Laura Elena Herring Martínez was born inLos Mochis,Sinaloa, Mexico, on March 3, 1964.[1] Her mother, María Elena Martínez-Cairo, is a Mexicanspiritual teacher,real estate investor, and former secretary. Her father, Raymond Herring, was a Mexican developer and organic farmer of Austrian-German descent.[2] The two divorced in 1971. Harring lived the first ten years of her life in Guasave Sinaloa Mexico, before her family relocated toSan Antonio, Texas. Harring suffered a head wound from a.45 bullet when she was caught by stray fire from adriveby shooting at age 12.[3][4] At age 16, she convinced her family to let her study inSwitzerland atAiglon College. Harring studied theatre atLondon Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, having trained in the Italiancommedia dell'arte, as well asLatin dances, including theArgentinetango.[5] She eventually returned to the United States, settling down inEl Paso, Texas, and began competing in beauty pageants.
Harring won Miss El Paso USA,Miss Texas USA, thenMiss USA 1985, becoming the firstHispanic woman to do so.[6][7][8] Harring then spent the next year traveling through Asia, exploring Europe and working as a social worker in India.[9]
Harring began acting in 1987, in theNBC television movieThe Alamo: 13 Days to Glory (1987).[6] She playedRaúl Juliá's character's wife, having been cast by NBC producers after they saw her on the Miss USA broadcast and contacted her with the role.[10] In 1989, appeared in her first movieSilent Night, Deadly Night 3: Better Watch Out!,[11] in the supporting role of Jerri, a flight attendant.[12]
In 1990, Harring was lead actress in theColumbia Pictures releaseThe Forbidden Dance, in which she played the role of Nisa, a Brazilian princess.[13] That same year, she began a recurring role on theABC daytime soapGeneral Hospital, as Carla Greco.[14] The next few years, she had supporting roles in movies -Exit to Eden (1994),[15] andBlack Scorpion II: Aftershock (1997).[16] In 1997, she played the role of Paula Stevens in theNBC soap operaSunset Beach.[17] After leaving the show, she guest-starred onFrasier in the episode "Dial M for Martin", and appeared in the comedy filmLittle Nicky.[18]
Harring is best known for her performance inDavid Lynch's 2001 movieMulholland Drive, oppositeNaomi Watts andJustin Theroux. She played both the characters of Rita (an amnesiac who names herself afterRita Hayworth when seeing the name on a poster for the movieGilda) and Camilla.[19] In response to her performance and the choice of her for the role, film criticRoger Ebert wrote, "Not many actresses would be bold enough to name themselves after Rita Hayworth, but Harring does, because she can. Slinky and voluptuous in clinging gowns, all she has to do is stand there and she's the first good argument in 55 years for aGilda remake."[20] Comparisons were also made between Harring andAva Gardner by theInternational Herald Tribune.[21][22] In 2002, she was awarded the American Latino Media Arts (ALMA) Award for Outstanding Actress in a Feature Film for her performance. Harring went on to work twice more with Lynch—as an anthropomorphic rabbit in the limited seriesRabbits (2002)[23] and in acameo appearance inInland Empire (2006).[24]
In 2002, she appeared inJohn Q,[25] and was female lead oppositeJean-Claude Van Damme inDerailed. In 2003, she starred inMi Casa, Su Casa together withBarbara Eden.[citation needed] In 2004, she was the spoiled wife of antagonist Mr. Saint (John Travolta), Livia Saint[26] in the movie adaptation ofMarvel Comics'sThe Punisher.[27] In 2005, Harring starred in the independent filmThe King, and later had roles inNancy Drew,Love in the Time of Cholera,The Caller,[21] andDrool, in which she plays an abused wife fleeing her husband.[28]
In 2006, Harring joined the cast ofFX's crime drama,The Shield, as defense attorney Rebecca Doyle,[29] appearing in nine episodes of season five. In the role, she is hired by lead characterVic Mackey to protect his team of corrupt police officers against an Internal Affairs investigation.[29] From 2009 to 2010, she also appeared in four episodes as Evelyn Bass/Elizabeth Fisher inThe CW seriesGossip Girl.[30][31] In the show, she plays a woman posing as the long-lost mother of the character Chuck Bass, before her deceit is discovered by the other characters. She also guest-starred onLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit in 2003,Law & Order: Criminal Intent in 2010, andNCIS: Los Angeles in 2012 and 2016.[32] Harring was also cast in the independent filmThe Loner directed by Daniel Grove.[33] In 2016 she was cast in the English-language remake of the filmInside,[34] and in Legendary's first digital filmThe Thinning, alongsideLogan Paul andPeyton List. In 2022, she appeared in the romantic comedyFather of the Bride playingDiego Boneta's mother.[35]
In 1987, Harring marriedCount Carl-Eduard von Bismarck-Schönhausen, great-great-grandson ofOtto von Bismarck. They divorced after two years of marriage in 1989.[36]
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| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Silent Night, Deadly Night 3: Better Watch Out! | Jerri | [11][12] |
| 1990 | The Forbidden Dance | Nisa | [13] |
| 1991 | Dead Women in Lingerie | Marcia | |
| 1994 | Exit to Eden | M.C. Kindra | [15] |
| 1997 | Black Scorpion II: Aftershock | Babette | [16] |
| 1997 | Hoover Park | Unknown | |
| 2000 | Little Nicky | Mrs. Dunleavy | [18] |
| 2001 | Final Payback | Gina Carrillo | |
| 2001 | Feather Pimento | Woman in Red | Short film |
| 2001 | Mulholland Drive | Camilla Rhodes/Rita | Credited as Laura Elena Harring[19]ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture |
| 2002 | John Q. | Gina Palumbo | [25] and was female lead oppositeJean-Claude Van Damme inDerailed |
| 2002 | Derailed | Galina Konstantin | |
| 2002 | Rabbits | Jane | [23] |
| 2003 | Willard | Cathryn | |
| 2003 | Loco Love | Catalina | |
| 2003 | The Poet [fr] | Paula | |
| 2004 | The Punisher | Livia Saint | [37][27] |
| 2005 | All Souls Day | Martia | |
| 2005 | The King | Twyla | |
| 2006 | Walkout | Francis Crisostomo | |
| 2006 | Inland Empire | Jane Rabbit / Party Guest | [24] |
| 2007 | Ghost Son | Stacey | |
| 2007 | Nancy Drew | Dehlia Draycott | |
| 2007 | Love in the Time of Cholera | Sara Noriega | |
| 2008 | One Missed Call | Mrs. Raymond | Cameo |
| 2008 | The Caller | Eileen | [21] |
| 2009 | Drool | Anora Fleece | [28] |
| 2010 | Kluge | ||
| 2011 | Elwood | Julie Jacobs | Short film |
| 2013 | Return to Babylon | Alla Nazimova | |
| 2014 | Ice Scream | Wendy | |
| 2014 | Taco Shop | ||
| 2014 | Manson Girls | Alice Rainer | |
| 2014 | Sex Ed | Lupe | |
| 2016 | The Thinning | Georgina Preston | |
| 2016 | Inside | The Woman | [34] |
| 2016 | Love Kills | Rosa | |
| 2018 | The Thinning: New World Order | Georgina Preston | |
| 2022 | Father of the Bride | Marcela Castillo | [35] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | The Alamo: 13 Days to Glory | Santa Anna's bride | Television movie[6] |
| 1988 | Desperado: Avalanche at Devil's Ridge | Unknown | Television movie |
| 1988 | Beauty and the Beast | Carmen | Episode: "The Alchemist" |
| 1989 | Alien Nation | Female Newcomer | Episode: "Three to Tango" |
| 1990–91 | General Hospital | Carla Greco | Recurring role[14] |
| 1992 | Baywatch | Princess Catherine Randenberg | Episode: "Princess of Tides" |
| 1993 | Blossom | Nurse | Episode: "The Fifty-Minute Hour" |
| 1993 | Rio Diablo | Maria Benjamin | Television movie |
| 1995 | Empire | Gabriella Cochrane | Unsuccessful television pilot |
| 1995–96 | Flipper | Garcia | 3 episodes |
| 1996 | Baywatch Nights | Charlotte 'Charlie' McBride | Episode: "Thin Blood" |
| 1996, 1999 | Silk Stalkings | Paula Houston / Yvette | Episodes: "Family Values", "Cook's Tour" |
| 1997 | Sunset Beach | Paula Stevens | Series regular, 141 episodes. Nominated —ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Soap Opera[17] |
| 1997 | California | Christina Guevara | Unsuccessful television pilot (spin-off fromDr. Quinn, Medicine Woman) |
| 1998 | Frasier | Rebecca Wendell | Episode: "Dial M for Martin" |
| 2000 | Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction | Mysterious Woman | Episode: "Episode 30" Segment: Deadbeat Daddy |
| 2000 | Black Scorpion | Ariana | Episode: "Out of Thin Air" |
| 2000 | A Family in Crisis: The Elian Gonzales Story | Marisleysis Gonzalez | Television movie |
| 2003 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Joan Quentin | Episode: "Perfect" |
| 2006 | The Shield | Rebecca Doyle | 8 episodes[29] |
| 2007 | My Neighbor's Keeper | Kate Powell | Television movie |
| 2009 | Gossip Girl | Evelyn Bass/Elizabeth | 4 episodes[30][31] |
| 2010 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Marta Caldera | Episode: "True Legacy"[32] |
| 2012–19 | NCIS: Los Angeles | Julia Feldman | 5 episodes[32] |
| 2014–15 | Chasing Life | Olivia Ortiz | Episodes: "Guess Who's Coming to Donate?", "First Person" |
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Laura Shaw | Miss Texas USA 1985 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by New MexicoMai Shanley | Miss USA 1985 | Succeeded by TexasChristy Fichtner |
| Media offices | ||
| Preceded by | Miss USAcolor commentator (withLeeza Gibbons) 1990 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Miss USAcolor commentator (withArthel Neville) 1994 | Succeeded by |
| ||||
