Parker Posey

Parker Christian Posey (born November 8, 1968) is an American actress and musician. She frequently works with Christopher Guest and has appeared in several of his mockumentaries, such as Waiting for Guffman (1996), Best in Show (2000), A Mighty Wind (2003), For Your Consideration (2006), and Mascots (2016). Posey is the recipient of a Golden Globe Award nomination, a Satellite Award nomination and two Independent Spirit Award nominations.

Parker Posey
Posey at WonderCon 2018
Born	Parker Christian Posey (1968-11-08) November 8, 1968 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Alma mater	Purchase College
Occupation	Actress musician
Years active	1991–present

Posey made her film debut in Joey Breaker (1993). Following small roles in Coneheads and the cult classic Dazed and Confused (also 1993), she was labeled "Queen of the Indies"[1] for starring in a succession of independent films throughout the 1990s, such as Sleep with Me (1994), Frisk, Party Girl, The Doom Generation, Kicking and Screaming (all 1995), The Daytrippers (1996), Henry Fool, The House of Yes and Clockwatchers (all 1997). Her other notable film appearances include You've Got Mail (1998), Scream 3 (2000), Josie and the Pussycats (2001), Personal Velocity, The Sweetest Thing (both 2002), Blade: Trinity (2004), Superman Returns, Fay Grim (both 2006), Broken English (2007), The Eye (2008), Spring Breakdown (2009), Irrational Man (2015), Café Society (2016) and Columbus (2017).

Outside of film, Posey starred in the television movie Hell on Heels: The Battle of Mary Kay (2002) and has guest-starred on numerous series, such as Futurama (2000), The Simpsons (2000), Will & Grace (2001), Boston Legal (2006), Parks and Recreation (2011), The Good Wife (2011–12), Louie (2012), Inside Amy Schumer (2014), and Search Party (2016). Since 2018 she has starred as Dr Smith on the Netflix series Lost in Space.

Early life

Posey was born November 8, 1968, in Baltimore, Maryland, to Lynda (née Patton),[2][3] a chef, and Chris Posey, owner of a car dealership. She has a twin brother, Christopher. After Posey's birth, her family lived in Monroe, Louisiana for 11 years.[4] They later moved to Laurel, Mississippi, where her mother worked as a chef and culinary instructor for the Viking Range Corporation in Greenwood, and her father operated a car dealership. Posey was raised as a Catholic.[5]

Career

Acting

Posey at Fox Upfronts in 2007.

Posey attended the State University of New York at Purchase, where she studied drama and roomed with actresses Sherry Stringfield[6] and Orlagh Cassidy.

Posey got her first break in television with the role of Tess Shelby on the daytime soap opera As the World Turns. Posey's first major role in a feature film was in Dazed and Confused (1993) with Ben Affleck, Matthew McConaughey, and Jason London.[7]

The film received favorable reviews from critics and has been identified as a cult classic. In 2003, Entertainment Weekly ranked the film #17 on their list of "The Top 50 Cult Films",[8] third on their list of the 50 Best High School Movies,[9] 10th on their "Funniest Movies of the Past 25 Years" list,[10] and ranked it #6 on their "The Cult 25: The Essential Left-Field Movie Hits Since '83" list.[11]

In 1994, she appeared in Hal Hartley's short film Opera No. 1, with Adrienne Shelley. Throughout the late 1990s, Posey co-starred in 32 independent films and was nicknamed "Queen of the Indies".[1] These films include Personal Velocity, Basquiat, Clockwatchers, The Daytrippers, Party Girl and The House of Yes. In particular, she received positive reviews for The House of Yes, for her role as a delusional woman in love with her own brother.[12][13] In an interview in January 2012, Parker said that the unofficial title has sometimes been a hindrance:

I'm trying to work in studio movies, but they won't hire me. I get feedback from my agent saying, 'She's too much of an indie queen.' And then on the other side, my name doesn't get the financing to do a movie over $1 million. And I'm called 'the indie queen.' So it's really a challenging path because I know so much about the indie side of the business. Because I grew up in it ... But it's different times. And this stuff gets projected onto me. People are like, 'You're here [at the Sundance film festival] every year, you do so many indie movies.' And I'm like, 'No, I did Broken English five years ago.'[14]

She has co-starred in Christopher Guest's films, including five of his mock documentaries, the first being Waiting for Guffman in 1996. In 1998, Posey appeared in Hartley's film Henry Fool, and the big budget studio film You've Got Mail with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.

Posey exiting the premiere of the film Mascots at the Toronto International Film Festival

In 2000, she starred in Guest's third mock documentary Best in Show, and in the big budget horror film Scream 3. Critical reaction to Posey's performance in the latter film was highly positive, and earned her an MTV Movie Award nomination. However, she lost to Adam Sandler, who won it for his performance in Big Daddy. The next year she played the antagonist in Josie and the Pussycats. From 2001-2002, she appeared in a supporting role in the popular NBC sitcom Will & Grace.

In 2003, she starred in Guest's A Mighty Wind. The next year she appeared in Sisters of Mercy, Laws of Attraction, and Blade: Trinity. Posey then co-starred in the 2005 film Adam & Steve.[15]

In 2006, Posey appeared in Superman Returns as Kitty Kowalski, Lex Luthor's ditzy sidekick,[7] a character based on Eve Teschmacher from the 1978 film Superman. Posey was the only actress considered for the role.[16][17] Superman Returns was a box office success.[18] The film was also successful at the 33rd Saturn Awards, Posey, a few fellow cast members, and the visual effects department were all nominated.[19] Later the same year she played the title character in Fay Grim, the sequel to Henry Fool, and appeared in For Your Consideration.

In 2007, Posey was cast in the lead role on the TV series The Return of Jezebel James.[20] The show was originally given 13 episodes, but, the show was cut to seven episodes in anticipation of the pending writers strike.[21][22] It premiered on the Fox television network in 2008 as a mid-season replacement. However, the show was officially canceled after the third episode aired due to unacceptably low ratings.[23] She starred in Zoe Cassavetes' 2007 film Broken English.[24] Broken English screened at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival.[25] It was also entered into the 29th Moscow International Film Festival.[26] The film was nominated at the 23rd Independent Spirit Awards for Best First Screenplay and Posey was nominated for Best Female Lead.[27] She was set to co-star in John Waters' film Fruitcake with Johnny Knoxville. The film was to be set in her hometown of Baltimore, Maryland.[28] However, Waters announced that he has canceled Fruitcake, saying "I can't get it made ... I thought it would do well, but it's not. In this economy, I'm going to have to do a puppet show."[29]

Emma Stone, Woody Allen, and Posey at the Cannes Film Festival premiere of Irrational Man in 2015

In 2012, Posey starred in four episodes of the third season of Louie as Liz, Louis C.K.'s love interest. She received positive reviews for her stint on the show. The website Vulture stated "Posey is superb in a brilliantly written role."[30] Lindsay Bahr of Entertainment Weekly said "Posey used her arsenal of talent and the material written and directed by C.K. to bring Liz to life".[31] Andy Greenwald of GrantLand felt Posey was "funny, engaging, and breathless", and went on to call Posey "one of the most gifted actors alive".[32] Later the same year she was honored with the Excellence in Acting Award at the Provincetown International Film Festival.

Posey appeared in Ned Rifle, the third and final film in Hartley's Henry Fool trilogy, again reprising her role of Fay Grim.[33] On November 6, 2013, Hartley launched a fundraising campaign through Kickstarter to produce the film, netting a total of $384,000. Posey, Liam Aiken, James Urbaniak, and Thomas Jay Ryan, as well as some crew members, appeared in several videos promoting the campaign.[34] The film premiered on September 7, 2014 at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.[35] It was also screened in the Panorama section of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival on February 6, 2015.[36]

In July 2014, it was announced that Posey had signed on to co-star in Woody Allen's mystery drama Irrational Man with Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone, and Jamie Blackley.[37] The film had its world premiere on May 16, 2015, at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.[38][39] In July 2015, Parker revealed that before being cast in the film, she had considered quitting acting, as she feared that she "saw the independent film movement go away from me ... it's a world market now. They're made from real star power. Whoever's hot at the moment." When Allen cast her, she cried, as "the independent film way of working is something that was in my bones. It's like being a part of a punk band but no one's singing punk rock anymore. Only a few bands are able to play, and Woody Allen is one of them. That's why I cried. It was a relief."[40]

In 2018, she appeared as Dr. Smith in Lost in Space, the Netflix remake of the 1965 TV series.[41]

Stage and music

Posey appeared on Broadway in 2000, playing alongside Matthew Broderick in Elaine May's "Taller Than a Dwarf," which was directed by Alan Arkin. She later appeared off Broadway alongside Ethan Hawke and Bobby Cannavale in David Rabe's Hurlyburly in 2005, and then originated the role of Pony Jones in Will Eno's The Realistic Joneses in 2012.

She learned to play the mandolin to prepare for her role in A Mighty Wind (2003),[7] a film in which she also sang. She provided vocals on several of her ex-boyfriend Ryan Adams' records. She also played the mandolin on The Dandy Warhols track "I Am Sound" from their Welcome to the Monkey House LP.[42]

Memoir

You're on an Airplane: A Self-Mythologizing Memoir is Parker Posey's first book. The memoir is centred around the idea that its reader is sitting next to Posey on an airplane, and the product is a mixture of anecdotes from her career, random observations, various stories about her life, and home-made photo collages.[43] The book, although largely comedic in tone due to her acting experience, also covers many dark topics from her personal life and the film industry.[44] The book has received generous critical acclaim. Vogue says, "Excellent ... a celebration of peculiarity." According to Elle magazine, the memoir is "A humour-packed, irreverent, eccentric book packed with personal stories, whimsical how-tos and recipes, as well as collages made by her."[43] Esquire writes, "Posey is a natural storyteller; performing, in any way really, is mostly about sharing stories. And she's gathered some good ones for her memoir, which also perfectly encapsulates the delightful weirdo you assume she is just by watching her play different people on screen."[45]

Personal life

Posey has lived in both Greenwich Village and the East Village.[46]

Filmography

Parker Posey film work

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1993	Coneheads	Stephanie
1993	Joey Breaker	Irene Kildare
1993	The Wake	Beachgoer	Uncredited
1993	Description of a Struggle	Wanda
1993	Dazed and Confused	Darla Marks
1994	Mixed Nuts	Rollerblader
1994	Amateur	Girl Squatter
1994	Opera No. 1	Fairy # 1	Short film
1994	Iris		Short film
1994	Final Combination	Denise
1994	Sleep with Me	Athena
1995	Party Girl	Mary
1995	An Eviction Notice		Short film
1995	Drunks	Debbie
1995	Flirt	Emily
1995	The Doom Generation	Brandi
1996	Frisk	Fergie
1996	Kicking and Screaming	Miami
1996	subUrbia	Erica
1996	Basquiat	Mary Boone
1997	The House of Yes	"Jackie-O" Pascal	Sundance Film Festival Award for Special Recognition Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1997	The Daytrippers	Jo Malone
1997	Waiting for Guffman	Libby Mae Brown
1997	Clockwatchers	Margaret Burre
1998	Henry Fool	Fay Grim
1998	What Rats Won't Do	Mirella Burton
1998	You've Got Mail	Patricia Eden
1998	The Misadventures of Margaret	Margaret Nathan
1999	Dinner at Fred's	Celia
1999	The Venice Project	Myra
1999	Gunshy		Short film
2000	Scream 3	Jennifer Jolie	Nominated—MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance
2000	Best in Show	Meg Swan
2001	The Anniversary Party	Judy Adams
2001	Josie and the Pussycats	Fiona
2002	The Sweetest Thing	Judy Webb
2002	Personal Velocity	Greta	Nominated—Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Female Nominated—New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress (2nd place)
2003	A Mighty Wind	Sissy Knox	Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast Nominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast
2003	The Event	Nick
2004	Blade: Trinity	Danica Talos
2004	The Sisters of Mercy		Short film
2004	Laws of Attraction	Serena Jamison
2005	Adam & Steve	Rhonda
2006	For Your Consideration	Callie Webb	Nominated—Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Ensemble Cast
2006	Fay Grim	Fay Grim
2006	The OH in Ohio	Priscilla Chase
2006	Superman Returns	Kitty Kowalski	Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress
2007	Broken English	Nora Wilder	Nominated—Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Female
2008	The Eye	Helen Wells	Nominated - Fright Meter Awards for Best Supporting Actress
2009	Spring Breakdown	Becky St. Germaine	Direct-to-DVD
2010	Happy Tears	Jayne
2011	Inside Out	Claire Small
2011	The Love Guide	Angelica Lovecraft
2012	Price Check	Susan Felders
2013	Highland Park	Shirley Paine
2013	Hair Brained	Shelia Pettifog
2013	And Now a Word From Our Sponsor	Karen Hillridge
2014	Grace of Monaco	Madge Tivey-Faucon
2014	Ned Rifle	Fay Grim
2015	Irrational Man	Rita Richards
2016	Café Society	Rad
2016	The Architect	Drew
2016	Mascots	Cindi Babineaux
2017	Columbus	Eleanor
2018	The Con Is On	Gina
2020	Elsewhere	Marie

Parker Posey television work

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1991	First Love, Fatal Love		Television film
1992	As the World Turns	Tess Shelby	Episode: "December 24, 1992"
1993	Tales of the City	Connie Bradshaw	4 episodes
1993	Tracey Ullman Takes on New York	Libby	TV Special
1998	More Tales of the City	Connie Bradshaw	Episode: "1.1"
2000	Futurama	Umbriel	Voice; episode: "The Deep South"
2000	The Simpsons	Becky	Voice; episode: "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Marge"
2001	Further Tales of the City	Connie Bradshaw	3 episodes
2001	Will & Grace	Dorleen	2 episodes
2002	Hell on Heels: The Battle of Mary Kay	Jinger Heath	Television film Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film
2004	Frankenstein	Detective Carson O'Conner	Television film
2006	Boston Legal	Marlene Stanger	4 episodes
2008	The Return of Jezebel James	Sarah Tompkins	7 episodes
2009	Bored to Death	Michelle Whiting	Episode: "The Case of the Stolen Skateboard"
2011	Parks and Recreation	Lindsay Carlisle Shay	Episode: "Eagleton"
2011	The Big C	Poppy Kowalski	3 episodes
2011–2012	The Good Wife	Vanessa Gold	3 episodes
2012	Hemingway & Gellhorn	Mary Welsh Hemingway	Television film
2012	Louie	Liz	4 episodes
2012	New Girl	Casey	Episode: "Re-Launch"
2014	Inside Amy Schumer	Parker Posey	Episode: "Allergic to Nuts"
2015	Portlandia	Herself	Episode: "Fashion"
2015	Granite Flats	Alice White	8 episodes
2015	Drunk History	Mary Phelps Jacob	Episode: "Inventors"
2016	Skylanders Academy	Dreamcatcher	Voice; episode: "Dream Girls"
2016	Search Party	Brick	3 episodes
2018–present	Lost in Space	June Harris / Dr. Smith	Main role; 20 episodes Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress in Streaming Presentation (2019)
2018	Robot Chicken	Lenny Busker / Angela / Sphinx	Voice; episode: "Gimme That Chocolate Milk"
2020	High Fidelity	Noreen Parker	Episode: "Uptown"

References

1. Corliss, Richard (February 17, 1997). "Queen of the Indies". Time.
2. "Obituaries for Friday, March 28, 2008 Archived March 18, 2012, at the Wayback Machine March 28, 2008, Leader Call
3. "Now, We're Just Parker Posey's Parents - Humor Keeps Actress's Popularity In Perspective" Archived July 17, 2015, at the Wayback Machine July 2006, Jackson Mississippi Clarion-Ledger
4. "A Woman of Independent Means". October 12, 1997.
5. "Index magazine interview". Indexmagazine.com. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
6. Smith, Chris (October 6, 1997). "Ring Around the Posey". New York Magazine: 42.
7. Carr, David (May 6, 2007). "An Indie Star Whose Life Is an Indie Film". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 24, 2012.
8. "The Top 50 Cult Films". Entertainment Weekly. May 23, 2003.
9. "50 Best High School Movies". Entertainment Weekly. July 31, 2008. Retrieved April 21, 2009.
10. "The Comedy 25: The Funniest Movies of the Past 25 Years". Entertainment Weekly. August 27, 2008. Retrieved August 27, 2008.
11. "The Cult 25: The Essential Left-Field Movie Hits Since '83" list". Entertainment Weekly. September 3, 2008. Retrieved September 4, 2008.
12. Baker, Bob (July 21, 2003). "Parker Posey still poised on the brink of broader fame". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Los Angeles Times.
13. Murray, Steve (December 15, 2002). "Parker Posey sees irony in 'queen of the indies' title". The Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Atlanta Journal Constitution.
14. Peter Knegt (January 27, 2012). "Parker Posey on 'Price Check,' Sundance and the State of Independent Film". IndieWire. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
15. Holden, Stephen (March 31, 2006). "In 'Adam & Steve' a Second Chance for Lovers After a Disastrous Striptease the First Time Around". The New York Times.
16. Scott Chitwood (May 5, 2006). "Superman Returns Set Visit - Part 13". Superhero Hype!. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
17. Jeff Jensen (June 23, 2006). "Greatest American Hero?". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
18. "2006 Domestic Grosses". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 6, 2008.
19. "Past Saturn Awards". Saturn Awards.org. Archived from the original on February 7, 2008. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
20. Olsen, Mark (June 17, 2007). "Parker Posey's secret? 'It's all hair and shoes'". Archived from the original on September 1, 2007. Retrieved June 29, 2007.
21. "Fox Renews 'Death' Vows, Picks up Sextet". The Futon Critic.
22. Ausiello, Michael (October 12, 2007). "The Ausiello Report: Setback for AS-P's Jezebel James?". TV Guide. Archived from the original on March 7, 2008.
23. "The Return of Jezebel James Cancelled". Gilmore Girls News. March 26, 2008. Archived from the original on October 16, 2009.
24. Scheck, Frank (June 25, 2007). "Parker Posey just the fix for "Broken English"". Archived from the original on September 24, 2012.
25. Buchanan, Kyle (January 2012). "Parker Posey on the Glory Days of Sundance and the Perils of Modern-Day Indie Filmmaking". Vulture.
26. "29th Moscow International Film Festival (2007)". MIFF. Archived from the original on April 21, 2013. Retrieved May 30, 2013.
27. Kay, Jeremy (November 7, 2007). "Haynes, Schnabel, Reitman films lead Independent Spirit nominations". Screen International.
28. Lawson, Liz (May 9, 2008). "Parker Posey, Johnny Knoxville join Waters' Fruitcake". Paste Magazine. Archived from the original on October 6, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2009.
29. "Waters' Kids Movie Scrapped". IMDb. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
30. What to Stream Now. ""Parker Posey Has Revealed the Even Greater Show Hiding Within Louie", July 27, 2012". Vulture.com. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
31. Bahr, Lindsey (June 26, 2013). ""EW speaks with Posey about her theories on Liz and the brilliance of Louis C.K.", June 26, 2013". Ew.com. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
32. "Parker Posey Talks About Her Role on Louie, the Fine Line Between Sad and Funny, and What Louis C.K. Looks Like in a Dress «". Grantland.com. July 27, 2012. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
33. McNary, Dave (March 13, 2014). "Aubrey Plaza Joins Hal Hartley's 'Ned Rifle' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
34. "NED RIFLE by Hal Hartley". Kickstarter. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
35. Jagernauth, Kevin (July 22, 2014). "TIFF 2014 Lineup Includes 'The Imitation Game,' 'While We're Young,' 'Nightcrawler,' 'Men, Women & Children' & More". Indiewire. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
36. "Panorama 2015: Probing the Past to Shape the Future". Berlinale. Archived from the original on December 25, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2014.
37. Kroll, Justin (July 24, 2014). "Parker Posey and Jamie Blackley Join Woody Allen's Next Film". variety.com. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
38. Scott Foundas (May 6, 2015). "Irrational Man Review: Woody And Joaquin Plot The Perfect Murder". Variety. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
39. Maane Khatchatourian (April 11, 2015). "[PHOTO] Emma Stone in Woody Allen's 'Irrational Man'". Variety. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
40. Kevin Fallon (July 17, 2015). "Why Parker Posey Almost Quit Acting: 'I Saw the Independent Film Movement Go Away From Me'". The Daily Beast. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
41. Petski, Denise (November 22, 2016). "'Lost In Space': Parker Posey Joins Netflix Series Remake". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
42. "Dandy Warhols - Welcome to the Monkey House CD". CD Universe. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
43. Parker Posey - You're on an Airplane - Little, Brown Book Group. February 5, 2019.
44. "Someone Needs to Give Parker Posey Her Own Show". Vogue. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
45. "Make Way for Her", The University Press of Kentucky, 2018, pp. 155–166, doi:10.2307/j.ctt1x76h5x.11, ISBN 9780813175133 Missing or empty |title= (help)
46. Doge, Annie (May 4, 2017). "Live in Parker Posey's former East Village co-op for $2M". 6sqft. Retrieved March 5, 2019.

External links

• Parker Posey on IMDb