Born March 25, 1965, Sarah Jessica Parker is an American actress who has done movies and theater but is best known for her role as Carrie Bradshaw, a newspaper journalist on HBO TV series “Sex and the City,” for which she won four Golden Globes and two Emmys.
Parker was born in Nelsonville, Ohio, to Stephen Parker, a Jewish American businessman. Her parents divorced early on in Parker's life and her mother Barbara remarried Paul Forste.
She grew up with her mom, stepfather and seven siblings. As a young girl, she began training in music and ballet, and was cast in the Broadway production of “The Innocents.”
Her family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, and then to New York City, where Parker developed her career as a child actress. In 1977, the family moved to Englewood, New Jersey where she attended Dwight Morrow High School.
Parker attended the School for Creative and Performing Arts, the School of American Ballet and the Professional Children's School, and later Dwight Morrow High School. She and four siblings appeared in a revival of “The Sound of Music.”
Parker appeared in the Broadway musical “Annie,” first in the small role of “July,” and then succeeding Andrea McArdle and Shelley Bruce in the lead as the plucky Depression-era orphan.
In 1982, Parker was cast in the TV sitcom “Square Pegs,” but the show lasted only one season. She then began making feature movies: “Footloose” in 1984, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” and “Firstborn,” in 1985
In 1991, she appeared in a supporting role in the romantic comedy, “L.A. Story,” for which she garnered positive reviews. The following year she landed a starring role in “Honeymoon in Vegas,” co-starring Nicolas Cage. In 1993, she made the trashy but commercial film “Hocus Pocus.”
In 1997, the script for HBO's comedy series “Sex and the City” was sent to Parker and the show's creator Darren Star. Despite some doubts, Parker agreed to star. The first season of the show was an instant success, and continued this way for years.
Despite the show's raunchy tone, Parker retained the strict no-nudity clause of her contract throughout the six-season run. Parker became a producer for the show starting with its third season. In 2004, Parker won an Emmy award for her lead role, after five losses.
In December 2005, Parker appeared in her first theatrical film in years, “The Family Stone,” for which she received a Golden Globe nomination as Best Actress. Her next film, the romantic comedy “Failure to Launch,” co-starring Matthew McConaughey, was released in 2006.
Parker has become influential in the fashion world. She is considered one of the more stylish celebrities and has been recognized as “Best Dressed” in certain magazines. In 2000, she hosted the MTV Movie Awards and appeared in 15 different costumes throughout the show.
In 2003, Parker signed a deal with Garnier to appear in TV and print advertising promoting their Nutrisse hair products. In 2004, she fronted an international campaign by Gap but her contract was terminated in spring 2005 in favour of British soul singer Joss Stone.
Parker released her own fragrance in 2005 called “Lovely.” In 2007, she launched her own fashion line, Bitten, in partnership with discount clothing chain Steve & Barry's. After the enormous success of “Lovely”, Parker released her second fragrance “Covet.”
Parker had relationships with actor Robert Downey Jr. and singer Joshua Kadison. On May 19, 1997, she married actor Matthew Broderick in a historic synagogue on the Lower East Side of Manhatta. Parker and Broderick have Jewish ancestry and consider themselves to be Jewish. The couple's first child, James Wilkie Broderick, was born on October 28, 2002, named after Broderick's father, the Irish-American actor James Broderick.
Filmography
1982 Square Pegs Patty Greene
1983 Somewhere Tomorrow Lori Anderson
1984 Footloose Rusty
1985 Girls Just Want to Have Fun Janey Glenn
1986 A Year in the Life Kay Erickson (The “Free Spirited” girl)
Flight of the Navigator Carolyn McAdams
1991 L.A. Story SanDeE*
1992 Honeymoon in Vegas Betsy/Donna
1993 Striking Distance Jo Christman/Det. Emily Harper
Hocus Pocus Sarah Sanderson
1994 Ed Wood Dolores Fuller
1995 Miami Rhapsody Gwyn Marcus
1996 Mars Attacks! Nathalie Lake
If Lucy Fell Lucy Ackerman
The First Wives Club Shelly Stewart
1997 'Til There Was You Francesca Lanfield
1998 Sex and the City Carrie Bradshaw 6 seasons
1998-2004
1999 Dudley Do-Right Nell Fenwick
2000 State and Main Claire Wellesley
2001 Life Without Dick Colleen Gibson direct-to-video
2005 The Family Stone Meredith Morton
2006 Strangers With Candy Peggy Callas
Failure to Launch Paula
2007 Smart People Janet
2007 Slammer Maggie Ray
2008 Bolt Voice
2008 Sex and The City Carrie Bradshaw
