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Jennifer Beals
Acting
1963-12-19 - Present
Jennifer Beals (height 5' 8½" (1.74 m)) is an American actress and a former teen model. She is known for her roles as Alexandra "Alex" Owens in the 1983 film Flashdance, and as Bette Porter on the Showtime drama series The L Word. She earned an NAACP Image Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination for the former. She has appeared in more than 50 films. Beals was born on the South Side of Chicago, the daughter of Jeanne (née Anderson), an elementary school teacher, and Alfred Beals, who owned grocery stores. She is multiracial; her father was African American, and her mother is Irish American. She has two brothers, Bobby and Gregory.Her father died when Beals was nine years old, and her mother married Edward Cohen in 1981. Beals has said her biracial heritage had some effect on her, as she "always lived sort of on the outside", with an idea "of being the other in society". She got her first job at age 13 at an ice cream store, using her height at the time (she is now nearly 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)), to convince her boss she was 16. Beals was inspired to become an actress by two events: doing a high school production of Fiddler on the Roof and seeing Balm in Gilead with Joan Allen while volunteer-ushering at the Steppenwolf Theatre. Beals graduated from the progressive Francis W. Parker School. She also was chosen to attend the elite Goodman Theatre Young People's Drama Workshop. Beals attended Yale University, receiving a B.A. in American literature in 1987; she deferred a term so she could film Flashdance. While at Yale, Beals was a resident of Morse College. Description above from the Wikipedia article Jennifer Beals, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Credits
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AfterasKaren Gibson
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The Book of EliasClaudia
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FlashdanceasAlex Owens
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Runaway JuryasVanessa Lembeck
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Four RoomsasAngela
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Luckiest Girl AliveasLolo Vincent
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Before I FallasMrs. Kingston
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A Wife's NightmareasLiz
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Full OutasValorie Kondos-Field
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The Grudge 2asTrish Kimble
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Caro diarioasSelf
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Devil in a Blue DressasDaphne Monet
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Turbulence 2: Fear of FlyingasJessica
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Manhattan NightasLisa Wren
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Vampire's KissasRachel
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My BodyguardasClifford's Friend (uncredited)
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The BrideasEva
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The Thief and the CobblerasPrincess YumYum (voice)
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Roger DodgerasSophie
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The Last Days of DiscoasNina
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Split DecisionsasBarbara Uribe
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Catch That KidasMolly Phillips
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The White OrchidasVivian
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Mrs. Parker and the Vicious CircleasGertrude Benchley
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The Prophecy IIasValerie Rosales
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Queen to PlayasL’Américaine
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Blood and ConcreteasMona
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In the SoupasAngelica Pena
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Let It Be MeasEmily Taylor
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Wishful ThinkingasElizabeth
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That's Dancing!as
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Dr. MasSonja Vogler
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13 MoonsasSuzi
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MilitiaasJulie Sanders
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Troubled WatersasFBI Agent Beck
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The Big Pardon 2asJoyce Ferranti
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Break a LegasJuliet
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CinemanovelsasClementine
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They Shoot Divas, Don't They?asSloan McBride
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IndecencyasEllie Shaw
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The SpreeasXinia Kelly
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My Name Is SarahasSarah Winston
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The Search for One-eye JimmyasEllen
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The Anniversary PartyasGina Taylor
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A House DividedasAmanda Dickson
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The GambleasLady Olivia Candioni
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Dead on SightasRebecca Darcy
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CinderellaasCinderella
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SonsasTransvestite
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Something MoreasLisa
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The Twilight of the GoldsasSuzanne Stein
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Night OwlasJulia
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Body and SoulasGina
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A Night for Dying TigersasMelanie
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A Fuller LifeasSelf - Reader (segment "Crime Reporter")
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Without MaliceasSamantha Wilkes
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Feast of All SaintsasDolly Rose
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Out of LineasOfficer Jenny Capitanas
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Desolation SoundasElizabeth Storey
Starz Inside: Fashion in FilmasSelf
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The Madonna and the DragonasPatty Meredith
Hello Out ThereasJudith
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The Night Before the Night Before ChristmasasAngela Fox
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Terror Stalks the Class ReunionasVirginia
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Faerie Tale Theatre: CinderellaasCinderella