Marisa Tomei was born on December 4, 1964, inBrooklyn, New York, to Gary A. Tomei, a trial lawyer, and his wife, Adelaide (née Bianchi), an English teacher.[7] She has a younger brother, actor Adam Tomei,[8] and was partly raised by her paternal grandparents.[9] Tomei's parents are both ofItaliandescent; her father's ancestors came fromTuscany,Calabria, andCampania, while her mother's ancestors are from Tuscany andSicily.[10][11] She graduated fromEdward R. Murrow High School in 1982.[12][13]
Tomei grew up in theMidwood neighborhood of Brooklyn.[14] While there, she became captivated by theBroadway shows to which her theater-loving parents took her and was drawn to acting as a career. At Andries Hudde Junior High School, she played Hedy LaRue in a school production ofHow to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. She also attended Albee School of Dance. After graduating from high school, she attendedBoston University for a year.[9]
Tomei followed upAs the World Turns in 1987 with a main role on thesitcomA Different World as Maggie Lauten during the first season. She appeared briefly in the filmThe Toxic Avenger coming out of the shower in the health club. Her film debut was a minor role in the 1984comedy filmThe Flamingo Kid, in which she played Mandy, a waitress. She had only one line in the film. In 1986 she had a small role in theBob andHarvey Weinstein directed comedy filmPlaying for Keeps which was a financial and critical failure.
During this phase, she made her stage debut in 1987 at the age of 22 in the off-Broadway playDaughters, playing Cetta. The role earned her rave reviews and theTheatre World Award for outstanding debut on stage. She continued to take roles off-Broadway in the playsBeirut in 1987,Sharon and Billy in 1988, andWhat the Butler Saw in 1989. She also portrayed Rosa Delle Rose inThe Rose Tattoo at theWilliamstown Theatre Festival. She took more prominent roles oppositeSylvester Stallone in the comedyOscar (1991), andNicolas Cage in theerotic thrillerZandalee (1991).
Following several small films, includingOscar,[15] Tomei came to international prominence with her comedic performance in the 1992 filmMy Cousin Vinny starring oppositeJoe Pesci for which she received critical praise.[16] CriticVincent Canby wrote, "Ms. Tomei gives every indication of being a fine comedian, whether towering overMr. Pesci and trying to look small, or arguing about a leaky faucet in terms that demonstrate her knowledge of plumbing. Mona Lisa is also a first-rate auto mechanic, which comes in handy in the untying of the knotted story."[17] For her performance, Tomei was namedBest Supporting Actress at the1993 Academy Awards, prevailing overMiranda Richardson,Joan Plowright,Vanessa Redgrave andJudy Davis.
American film criticRex Reed created controversy (and a minor Hollywood myth)[18][19][20] when he suggested thatJack Palance had announced the wrong name after opening the envelope.[21][22] While this allegation was repeatedly disproved[23][24]—even theAcademy officially denied it[22]—Tomei called the story "extremely hurtful". APrice Waterhouse accountant explained that if such an event had occurred, "we have an agreement with the Academy that one of us would step on stage, introduce ourselves, and say the presenter misspoke."[25] In 2015, whenThe Hollywood Reporter polled hundreds of academy members, asking them to re-vote on some past decisions, Academy members indicated that, given a second chance, they would still award the 1992 Best Supporting Actress award to Tomei.[26]
In 1998, she was nominated for theAmerican Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actress forTamara Jenkins'cult filmSlums of Beverly Hills. The independent feature was well received by critics and the public,[28] withJanet Maslin ofThe New York Times writing, "Jenkins makes the most of an especially ingratiating cast, with Ms. Tomei very charming and funny as Rita,"[29] andEmanuel Levy ofVariety describing Tomei as "spunky and sexy... more subdued than she usually is."[30] Tomei spent several years away from high-profile roles[why?] and major motion pictures in the late 1990s before rising again to prominence in the early 2000s.[31]
During the 1990s, Tomei made several television appearances. In 1996, she made a guest appearance on the sitcomSeinfeld, playing herself in the two-part episode "The Cadillac". In the episode,George Costanza attempts to get a date with her through a friend ofElaine Benes. She also made an appearance onThe Simpsons as movie star Sara Sloane, who falls in love withNed Flanders. FormerSaturday Night Live cast memberJay Mohr wrote in his bookGasping for Airtime that, as guest host in October 1994, Tomei insisted that the proposed sketch "Good Morning Brooklyn" not be used because she did not like the idea of being stereotyped. This displeased SNL's writers and performers given the show's penchant for satirizing celebrities.[32] Tomei parodied herMy Cousin Vinny role and its considerable Brooklyn influence in a skit spoofing the 1995O.J. Simpson murder trial.[33]
In 1998 she made herBroadway debut playing Susy Hendrixin the revival of theFrederick Knott playWait Until Dark acting oppositeQuentin Tarantino at theBrooks Atkinson Theatre.[34]Ben Brantley ofThe New York Times compared her performance unfavorably toAudrey Hepburn who played the role in the1967 film. Brantley wrote, "[Tomei]'s a fine, vibrant actress, and heaven knows she works hard here, but she isn't well cast. The appeal of [Hepburn] in the part was of seeing her fragile, ladylike persona turn tough and muscular, and Ms. Tomei's performance allows for no similar transition".[3] Matt Wolf ofVariety wrote "Tomei gives a likable, if not wildly interesting performance".[35]
In 2001, she appeared inTodd Field'sIn the Bedroom starringTom Wilkinson andSissy Spacek. The film earned aBest Picture nomination. Tomei herself earned several awards including a ShoWest Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2002.Variety wrote, "Tomei is winning in what is surely her most naturalistic and unaffected performance,"[36] whileThe New York Times writerStephen Holden exclaimed, "Ms. Tomei's ruined, sorrowful Natalie is easily her finest screen role."[37]In the Bedroom earned Tomei a second Academy Award nomination and her firstGolden Globe Award nomination forBest Supporting Actress. Tomei also shared a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination forOutstanding Performance by a Cast.
In 2008, Tomei played Cassidy/Pam, a strugglingstripper, in theDarren Aronofsky filmThe Wrestler. She appeared in several nude dance numbers in the film. Aronofsky said, "This role shows how courageous and brave Marisa is. And ultimately she's really sexy. We knew nudity was a big part of the picture, and she wanted to be that exposed and vulnerable."[38] Numerous critics heralded this performance as a standout in her career.The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "Tomei delivers one of her most arresting performances, again without any trace of vanity."[39]Ty Burr ofThe Boston Globe wrote, "Tomei gives a brave and scrupulously honest performance, one that's most naked when Pam has her clothes on."[40]Variety exclaimed, "Tomei is in top, emotionally forthright form as she charts a life passage similar to Pam's."[41] For her performance she was nominated for her firstBAFTA, secondGolden Globe and thirdAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actress.[citation needed] In 2009, Tomei recorded the role ofMary Magdalene inThomas Nelson's audio Bible productionThe Word of Promise.[42]
Tomei briefly dated actorRobert Downey Jr. in the early 1990s.[66] Between 2008 and 2012, Tomei was in a relationship with actorLogan Marshall-Green. They were rumored to be engaged, but a representative for Tomei denied this.[67] To date, Tomei has never been married.[68] Tomei said in 2009, "I'm not that big a fan of marriage as an institution, and I don't know why women need to have children to be seen as complete human beings."[67][69]
Tomei has supported voting, drawing attention to the Voter ID assistance available throughVoteRiders.[70]
Tomei was featured in two programs dealing with genealogical research:Who Do You Think You Are? and the PBS programFinding Your Roots. Researchers mapped out Tomei's family tree and analyzed her DNA. When Tomei's friend, actressJulianne Moore, appeared onFinding Your Roots, Tomei and Moore learned they are cousins.[71]
^Roeper, Richard (2000).Urban Legends: The Truth Behind All Those Deliciously Entertaining Myths That Are Absolutely, Positively, 100% Not True. Newburyport, Maryland: Career Press. p. 127.ISBN1-56414-418-6.
^Wilson, Dave; Signorelli, James (October 1, 1994),Marisa Tomei/Bonnie Raitt, Saturday Night Live, Ellen Cleghorne, Chris Elliott, Chris Farley, retrievedAugust 12, 2024
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