Jill Hennessy

Jillian Noel Hennessy (born November 25, 1968) is a Canadian actress, known for her television roles on Law & Order and Crossing Jordan.

Biography

Early life

Hennessy was born in Edmonton, Alberta. Her father, John Hennessy, was a meat salesman, a job that required considerable travel and resulted in frequent moves for the family. Her mother, Maxine, left the family in 1982, and Jill was partially raised by her paternal grandmother, Eleanor, living in Kitchener, Ontario.^[1] She has a younger brother, John Hennessy Jr., and an identical twin sister, Jacqueline, who is a magazine writer and TV show host in Canada. Hennessy has Irish, French, Swedish and Italian ancestry on her father's side, and mostly Gypsy Ukrainian, as well as Austrian, ancestry on her mother's.^[2] She graduated from Grand River Collegiate Institute in Kitchener, Ontario and used to busk (play the guitar and sing for money) in the Toronto Subway.

Career

Hennessy and her sister played twin prostitutes in 1988's Dead Ringers. She was short-listed for the role of Dana Scully, on The X-Files. Hennessy is famous for playing Claire Kincaid on Law & Order (1993 – 1996) and the lead role as Jordan Cavanaugh on Crossing Jordan. In 2000, Hennessy wrote, produced, and co-directed an independent film called The Acting Class. Inspired by a true story, the comedic faux documentary looks at the trials and tribulations of a dysfunctional acting class. The film co-starred her sister, and included cameos by a number of Hennessy's former Law & Order co-stars. In 2001 she portrayed the role of Jackie Kennedy in the film Jackie, Ethel, Joan: The Women of Camelot. She also appeared on Broadway in the musical Buddy - The Buddy Holly Story in 1990.

Most recently, she portrayed Tim Allen's wife in the 2007 movie Wild Hogs.

On March 6, 2007, it was announced that she would receive a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.

Personal life

Hennessy is multi-lingual, being able to speak Italian, French, Spanish, and German. She married Paolo Mastropietro, a former bartender and sometime actor, on October 1, 2000. Her husband opened a tavern in Northvale, New Jersey in 1999, and named it Hennessy Tavern,^[3] after his wife. The tavern serves comfort food and is located next to the former bowling alley where Ed (TV series) was filmed. Hennessy also enjoys riding motorcycles with her husband. They also had a second marriage ceremony in January 2001, which took place at New York City Hall with Mayor Rudolph Giuliani officiating. Their son, Marco, was born on September 17, 2003.

Hennessy is a fan of the Indigo Girls and a poster of the act hangs in the kitchen of Jordan's on-screen apartment. She sometimes makes appearances at music events as a guest guitarist where she usually performs barefoot.

Footnotes

Wikipedia information about Jill Hennessy This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Jill Hennessy". It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer). Help contribute to Americola and edit this article.