NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Thora Birch

Thora Birch (born March 11, 1982) is an American actress. She was one of the leading child actors of the 1990s, starring in movies such as Hocus Pocus (1993), Now and Then (1995), and Alaska (1996). Since the 1990s she has moved on to more mature roles, with notable performances in films such as American Beauty (1999) and the acclaimed cult film Ghost World (2001). Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... is the 70th day of the year (71st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Flag Seal Nickname: City of Angels Location Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates , Government State County California Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) Geographical characteristics Area City 1,290. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... For other uses of terms redirecting here, see US (disambiguation), USA (disambiguation), and United States (disambiguation) Motto In God We Trust(since 1956) (From Many, One; Latin, traditional) Anthem The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City National language English (de facto)1 Demonym American... The Actor: The Screen Actors Guild Award Statue The Screen Actors Guild Awards are an annual award given by the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) to recognize outstanding performances by members. ... The SAG Award for Best Cast in a Motion Picture is an award given by the Screen Actors Guild to honor the finest acting achievements in film. ... American Beauty is a 1999 drama film that explores themes of romantic and paternal love, freedom, sexuality, beauty, self-liberation, existentialism, the search for happiness, and family against the backdrop of modern American suburbia. ... is the 70th day of the year (71st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke whilst waiting between takes during location filming. ... Hocus Pocus is a childrens Halloween-themed film released by Disney. ... Now and Then Movie Poster Now and Then is a 1995 film directed by Lesli Linka Glatter and starring Demi Moore, Melanie Griffith, Rosie ODonnell and Rita Wilson, which tells the story of four friends that have been busy with their lives until an important event takes place and... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... American Beauty is a 1999 drama film that explores themes of romantic and paternal love, freedom, sexuality, beauty, self-liberation, existentialism, the search for happiness, and family against the backdrop of modern American suburbia. ... Ghost World is a 2001 film by Terry Zwigoff, based on a graphic novel by Daniel Clowes, also titled Ghost World. ...

Biography

Early life and career

Birch was born in Los Angeles, California, the eldest child of Jack Birch and Carol Connors. Both her parents (who have managed her career and remain her managers right up to the present day) were former adult film actors; her mother appeared in the notorious pornographic film Deep Throat.^[1] Birch, who has a brother named Bolt Birch, is of Jewish, Nordic, and Italian descent. The family's original surname was "Biersch", coming from her German Jewish ancestors.^[2] The name 'Thora' is a feminized form of the name Thor, the God of the Sky and of Thunder in Norse mythology. From an early age, Birch was encouraged by her parents to audition for commercials. She landed several parts representing companies such as Quaker Oats and Vlasic Pickles. In 1988, she broke into acting when landing the role of Molly in the short-lived television series Day By Day in which she was billed simply as "Thora." That same year she played an important role in the movie Purple People Eater opposite Ned Beatty and Neil Patrick Harris for which she won a Youth In Film Award for her performance. Los Angeles and L.A. redirect here. ... Carol Connors (born November 13, 1952) is an American erotic actress. ... Pornographic movies appeared shortly after the creation of the movie technology that made them possible. ... Pornography (from Greek πορνογραφια pornographia — literally writing about or drawings of harlots) is the representation of the human body or human sexual behaviour with the goal of sexual arousal, similar to, but (according to some) distinct from, erotica. ... Deep Throat is an American pornographic movie released in the summer of 1972, written and directed by Gerard Damiano and starring Linda Lovelace (the pseudonym of Linda Susan Boreman). ... American Jews, or Jewish Americans, are Jews who are American citizens or resident aliens. ... Political map of the Nordic countries and associated territories. ... An Italian-American is an American of Italian descent. ... The Germans (German: die Deutschen), or the German people, are a nation in the meaning an ethnos (in German: Volk), defined more by a sense of sharing a common German culture and having a German mother tongue, than by citizenship or by being subjects to any particular country. ... The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ... For other uses, see Thor (disambiguation). ... This article is about the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... Norse, Viking or Scandinavian mythology comprises the indigenous pre-Christian religion, beliefs and legends of the Scandinavian peoples, including those who settled on Iceland, where most of the written sources for Norse mythology were assembled. ... Quaker Oats Company makes many types and flavors of oatmeal. ... Day by Day was a short-lived television sitcom which starred Christopher Daniel Barnes, Thora Birch, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Courtney Thorne-Smith. ... Ned Thomas Beatty (born July 6, 1937) is an Academy Award-nominated American character actor. ... Neil Patrick Harris (born June 15, 1973) is an Emmy-nominated American actor. ...

Paradise

Birch's breakthrough role came in 1991 when she was cast as 'tomboy' Billie Pike in the movie Paradise which also starred Don Johnson, Melanie Griffith and Elijah Wood. To obtain the role, she had to compete with more than 4,000 other young hopefuls who auditioned for it. Birch received enormous praise for her performance and her career thereafter went from strength to strength. For other uses, see Tomboy (disambiguation). ... Paradise is a 1991 film written and directed by Mary Agnes Donoghue. ... For other persons named Don Johnson, see Don Johnson (disambiguation). ... Melanie Griffith (born August 9, 1957, in New York City) is an Academy Award-nominated American film actress. ... Elijah Jordan Wood (born January 28, 1981) is an American actor. ...

1991-1995

Thora's ability to portray herself as a young tomboy landed her several parts during the period 1991-1995, including the role of Dani in Hocus Pocus (1993). Her acting ability moreover continued to attract much praise and she won leading roles in such films as All I Want For Christmas (1991) and Monkey Trouble (1994). She also appeared in two big-budget blockbuster Harrison Ford films, Patriot Games (1992) and its sequel, Clear and Present Danger (1994). Hocus Pocus is a childrens Halloween-themed film released by Disney. ... All I Want for Christmas is a 1991 comedy movie that stars Lauren Bacall, Thora Birch and Ethan Randall. ... Monkey Trouble is a 1994 family film directed by Franco Amurri and starring Thora Birch. ... For the silent film actor, see Harrison Ford (silent film actor). ... Patriot Games (1987) is a novel by Tom Clancy. ... Clear and Present Danger is a 1994 film directed by Phillip Noyce, based on the book of the same name by Tom Clancy. ...

Now & Then

Birch's performance in the 1995 film Now And Then is generally regarded as one of her best performances to date.^{[citation needed]} It also starred Gaby Hoffmann, Christina Ricci, Demi Moore, Rosie O'Donnell and Melanie Griffith. Directed by Lesli Linka Glatter, the film is about four friends who have been so preoccupied with their own lives that they have not seen one another for some time until the impending birth of one of their babies reunites them. Upon reuniting, they reminisce about events during the summer of 1970 when they were 12 which were ultimately influential in shaping their lives. It was during that summer, a mixture of both happy and sad events, that they realized that adulthood was fast approaching, that they began to work out what life was about and what they wished to do with their own lives. They also promised to be there for another, hence the reason why they were reuniting for the birth of the baby. The film, a female take on the film Stand By Me, was an enormous success and Birch won great critical acclaim for her performance. Now and Then Movie Poster Now and Then is a 1995 film directed by Lesli Linka Glatter and starring Demi Moore, Melanie Griffith, Rosie ODonnell and Rita Wilson, which tells the story of four friends that have been busy with their lives until an important event takes place and... Gabrielle Mary Hoffmann (born January 8, 1982 in NYC, USA) is an American actress. ... Christina Ricci (born February 12, 1980) is an Emmy Award-nominated American actress who first achieved fame for her role as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family (1991), and its sequel Addams Family Values (1993). ... Demi Kutcher (born Demetria Gene Guynes on November 11, 1962) is an American actress. ... Rosie ODonnell (born March 21, 1962 in Bayside, Queens, New York) is an 11-time Emmy Award-winning American talk show host, television personality, comedienne, film, television, and stage actress. ... Melanie Griffith (born August 9, 1957, in New York City) is an Academy Award-nominated American film actress. ... For other uses, see Stand by Me. ...

Alaska

By 1996, Thora was one of leading child actresses of her generation. She consolidated her position with a leading role in the adventure film, Alaska (1996) in which she plays the role of Jessie Barnes who has moved to Alaska with her father (played by Dirk Benedict) and brother after the death of her mother. Her father is a former airline pilot and upon moving to Alaska, he starts earning a living by delivering supplies to small towns in the Alaskan wilderness in his light aircraft. Whilst making a delivery, his plane crashes into a mountainside. Concluding that not enough was being done to locate him, Jessie and her brother set out on a successful attempt to find him with the help of a baby polar bear. This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Dirk Benedict (born Dirk Niewoehner on March 1, 1945) is an American movie and television actor, perhaps best known for playing the characters Lt. ...

1996-1999: break from acting

After guest-starring appearances in the The Outer Limits, Promised Land and Touched By An Angel, Thora took a break from acting for a couple of years. In 1999, she returned in the made-for-TV movie Night Ride Home and also took a small uncredited role in the Natalie Portman film Anywhere But Here. She also was initially cast in the role of Tammy Metzler in the dark-comedy Election, but ended up leaving after only the third day of filming after disagreements with director/writer Alexander Payne. Jessica Campbell was then given the role of Metzler. The Outer Limits is an American television series. ... Promised Land was a television series which ran on CBS from 1996 to 1999. ... This section contains a list of trivia items. ... â€œTelefilmâ€ redirects here. ... Natalie Portman (â€Ž; born June 9, 1981) is a Golden Globe-winning, Academy Award-nominated Israeli-American actress. ... Anywhere But Here is a 1999 film by Wayne Wang starring Susan Sarandon and Natalie Portman, based on the novel by Mona Simpson. ... This article is about the 1999 film Election. ... Constantine Alexander Payne (born February 10, 1961 in Omaha, Nebraska) is an Academy Award winning American film director and screenwriter. ...

American Beauty

Later in 1999, Birch won enormous critical praise playing the role of Jane Burnham in American Beauty and was nominated for a British Academy of Film and Television Arts award. The movie itself went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. As Birch was barely 17 at the time she made the film, and thus classified as a minor in the United States, her parents had to approve her brief topless scene in the movie and they and child labor representatives were on the set for the shooting of it. American Beauty is a 1999 drama film that explores themes of love, freedom, self-liberation, the search for happiness, and family against the backdrop of modern American suburbia. ... BAFTA Award The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organisation that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ... Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent and most watched film awards ceremony in the world. ... In law, the term minor (also infant or infancy) is used to refer to a person who is under the age in which one legally assumes adulthood and is legally granted rights afforded to adults in society. ... A young boy recycling garbage in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam in 2006 Child labor is the employment of children under an age determined by law or custom. ...

Ghost World

After leading roles in The Smokers (2000), Dungeons & Dragons (2000), and The Hole (2001), Birch landed the leading role in Ghost World alongside Scarlett Johansson, Steve Buscemi and Brad Renfro and was nominated for a Golden Globe for best actress for her performance. The Smokers is a 2000 black comedy film directed and written by Kat Slater. ... Dungeons & Dragons is a 2000 live-action film directed by Courtney Solomon and based on the role-playing game of the same name. ... The Hole is a 2001 psychological horror-thriller directed by Nick Hamm, based on the novel After the Hole by Guy Burt. ... Ghost World is a 2001 film by Terry Zwigoff, based on a graphic novel by Daniel Clowes, also titled Ghost World. ... Scarlett I. Johansson[1] (born November 22, 1984) is a BAFTA-winning and four-time Golden Globe-nominated actress and singer, of dual American and Danish citizenship. ... Steven Vincent Buscemi (born December 13, 1957) is an Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominated American actor and film director. ... Bradley Barron Renfro (July 25, 1982 - May 22, 2007) was an American actor, born in Knoxville, Tennessee and was raised by his grandmother. ...

2001 to 2008

Birch's most notable roles since 2001 have been that of Liz Murray in Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story (2003) and April in Slingshot (2005). Recent films include Dark Corners (in which she appeared in the lead role as a woman who wakes up one day as a different person and ends up being stalked by gruesome creatures), Tainted Love, and Winter of Frozen Dreams. Dark Corners is a 2006 horror/thriller film starring Thora Birch about a troubled young woman (Birch) wakes up one day as a different person - someone who is stalked by creatures. ...

Birch will next star in the film Train alongside her brother Bolt Birch. The movie entails a trip to Europe for a group of American college athletes who unknowingly board a train that is occupied by a brutal killer. Birch has also been negotiating to have a part in the 2009 film Frail. She will reportedly play Chloe, a mysterious young, naive girl from the Midwest. In the film, the Chloe character and a private-eye struggle to come to terms with their dark pasts.

Future ambition

Birch has indicated that she aspires to become a director and has recently begun directing short video sketches for a sketch comedy troupe called The Doomed Planet. The sketches can be seen on her official website.

Awards

Wesley Cook Bentley (born September 4, 1978 in Jonesboro, Arkansas) is an American film actor. ... This article is about the original U.S. music television channel. ...

Filmography

From the album 18, released in 2002. Dark Corners is a 2006 horror/thriller film starring Thora Birch about a troubled young woman (Birch) wakes up one day as a different person - someone who is stalked by creatures. ... Shamrock Boy is a future Irish film to be released in 2007. ... Silver City is a 2004 political satire and drama film written and directed by John Sayles. ... â€œTelefilmâ€ redirects here. ... The Hole is a 2001 psychological horror-thriller directed by Nick Hamm, based on the novel After the Hole by Guy Burt. ... Ghost World is a 2001 film by Terry Zwigoff, based on a graphic novel by Daniel Clowes, also titled Ghost World. ... Dungeons & Dragons is a 2000 live-action film directed by Courtney Solomon and based on the role-playing game of the same name. ... The Smokers is a 2000 black comedy film directed and written by Kat Slater. ... For other uses, see Anywhere But Here. ... American Beauty is a 1999 drama film that explores themes of love, freedom, self-liberation, the search for happiness, and family against the backdrop of modern American suburbia. ... â€œTelefilmâ€ redirects here. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Now and Then is a 1995 film directed by Lesli Linka Glatter and starring Demi Moore, Melanie Griffith, Rosie ODonnell and Rita Wilson, which tells the story of four friends that have been busy with their lives until an important event reunites them in their home town of Shelby... Clear and Present Danger is a 1994 film directed by Phillip Noyce, based on the book of the same name by Tom Clancy. ... Monkey Trouble is a 1994 family film directed by Franco Amurri and starring Thora Birch. ... Hocus Pocus is a childrens Halloween-themed film released by Disney. ... Patriot Games is a film based on the novel of the same name by Tom Clancy. ... Itsy Bitsy Spider (also known as Incy Wincy or Eency Weency Spider) is a popular nursery rhyme that describes the adventures of a spider as it ascends, descends and reascends the downspout of a gutter system (or, alternatively, the spout of a teapot). ... All I Want for Christmas is a 1991 comedy movie that stars Lauren Bacall, Thora Birch and Ethan Randall. ... Paradise is a 1991 film written and directed by Mary Agnes Donoghue. ... This article is about the film Parenthood. ... A television program is the content of television broadcasting. ... Day by Day was a short-lived television sitcom which starred Christopher Daniel Barnes, Thora Birch, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Courtney Thorne-Smith. ... The Purple People Eater was a novelty song, written by Barry Cryer and performed by Sheb Wooley (1921-2003), that reached #1 in the Billboard pop charts in 1958. ... Moby (born Richard Melville Hall, September 11, 1965) is an American DJ, songwriter, musician and singer. ...

From the album Results May Vary, released in 2003. Limp Bizkit is an American nu metal band from Jacksonville, Florida. ... Eat You Alive is a song by the band Limp Bizkit from their fourth studio album Results May Vary. ... Results May Vary is the fourth album by Limp Bizkit, released on September 23, 2003. ...

References

Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Sunday Times is a popular South African Sunday newspaper. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... is the 81st day of the year (82nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

Hidden categories: Articles that may contain original research since December 2007 | All articles that may contain original research | Articles lacking in-text citations | All articles with unsourced statements | Articles with unsourced statements since April 2008

For the in-memory database management system, see In-memory database. ... TV.com is a website belonging to the CNET Games and Entertainment family of websites. ... is the 70th day of the year (71st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Los Angeles and L.A. redirect here. ... Motto: (traditional) In God We Trust (official, 1956â€“present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic - President George W. Bush (R) - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized...

Contents

Early life and career

Paradise

1991-1995

Now & Then

Alaska