Early life

Andie MacDowell was born in Gaffney, South Carolina, the daughter of Pauline "Paula" Johnston (née Oswald), a music teacher, and Marion St. Pierre MacDowell, a lumber executive. Her ancestry includes English, French, Scottish, Irish, and Welsh. Her family owned an Antebellum period summer house in Arden, North Carolina, which has since been made into a bed-and-breakfast named the Blake House Inn. Graffiti from her childhood visits are preserved in an upstairs bedroom closet. She attended Winthrop University for two years before moving briefly to Columbia, South Carolina. She was initially spotted by a rep from Wilhelmina Models while on a trip to Los Angeles before she would later sign with Elite Model Management in New York City in 1978.

Career

In the early 1980s, MacDowell modelled for Vogue magazine and appeared in ad campaigns for Yves Saint Laurent, Vassarette, Armani perfume, Sabeth-Row, Mink International, Anne Klein and Bill Blass. A series of billboards in Times Square and national television commercials for Calvin Klein drew attention to her and led to her 1984 film debut in Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, a role in which her lines were dubbed by Glenn Close because her Southern accent was too pronounced for her to play the role of an Englishwoman. The irony of this is not lost, as in the original book by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Jane travels to Africa with her father, and both are from the American South. In 1985, she had a small part in St. Elmo's Fire.

MacDowell studied method acting with teachers from the Actors Studio, in addition to working privately with the renowned coach Harold Guskin. Four years later, director Steven Soderbergh cast her in the independent film Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989). Her performance earned her an Independent Spirit Award, a Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress, several other award nominations and led to a series of starring roles in films such as Green Card, The Object of Beauty, and Short Cuts. In the 1990s, MacDowell achieved stardom due to the box office success of director Harold Ramis's 1993 comedy, Groundhog Day, and Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), opposite Hugh Grant.

Since 1986, MacDowell has appeared in print and television advertisements for the cosmetic and haircare company L'Oréal. In later years she has acted primarily on television and in independent films. In 2012 she co-starred in the short-lived ABC Family series Jane by Design. From 2013 to 2015, she starred in the Hallmark Channel family series Cedar Cove.

Personal life

MacDowell married rancher and fellow former model Paul Qualley in 1986. The two met while both were posing for Gap ads. They had a son, Justin (born 1986), and two daughters, Rainey (born 1990, named Miss Golden Globe 2012) and Sarah Margaret Qualley (born 1994), an actress. They divorced in 1999. She was married to businessman Rhett Hartzog from November 10, 2001, until their divorce in October 2004.

As of 2013, MacDowell resides in Marina Del Rey, California.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1984	Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes	Miss Jane Porter
1985	St. Elmo's Fire	Dale Biberman
1988	The Secret of the Sahara	Anthea	TV mini-series
1989	Sex, Lies, and Videotape	Ann Bishop Mullany	Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama Nominated—National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress Nominated—New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress
1990	Green Card	Brontë Parrish	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1991	Hudson Hawk	Anna Baragli
1991	Object of Beauty, TheThe Object of Beauty	Tina
1991	Women & Men 2: In Love There Are No Rules	Emily	TV movie
1992	Player, TheThe Player	Herself	Cameo appearance
1993	Short Cuts	Ann Finnigan	Golden Globe Special Ensemble Cast Award Volpi Cup for Best Emsemble Cast Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress
1993	Groundhog Day	Rita Hanson	Saturn Award for Best Actress
1993	Deception	Elizabeth 'Bessie' Faro / Ruby Cairo	aka Ruby Cairo
1994	Four Weddings and a Funeral	Carrie	Nominated—David di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actress Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1994	Bad Girls	Eileen Spenser
1995	Unstrung Heroes	Selma Lidz
1996	Multiplicity	Laura Kinney
1996	Michael	Dorothy Winters	Goldene Kamera Award for Best International Actress
1997	End of Violence, TheThe End of Violence	Page Max
1997	Muppets Tonight	Herself	Guest star on Season 2 Episode 11
1998	Shadrach	Trixie Dabney
1999	Just the Ticket	Linda Palinski	Also producer
1999	Muppets from Space	Shelley Snipes
1999	The Muse	Laura Phillips
2000	Harrison's Flowers	Sarah Lloyd
2001	Town & Country	Eugenie Claybourne	Also uncredited producer
2001	On the Edge	Lisa	TV movie segment: "Reaching Normal"
2001	Crush	Kate Scales
2001	Dinner with Friends	Karen	TV movie
2002	Jo	Jo	TV movie
2002	Ginostra	Jessie Benson
2003	The Practice	Grace Chapman	1 episode
2005	Last Sign, TheThe Last Sign	Kathy MacFarlane
2005	Beauty Shop	Terri
2005	Riding the Bus with My Sister	Rachel Simon	TV movie
2005	Tara Road	Marilyn
2006	Barnyard	Etta the Hen	Voice
2007	Intervention	Kelly
2008	Inconceivable	Lottie Louise Du Bose
2009	Six Wives of Henry Lefay, TheThe Six Wives of Henry Lefay	Kate
2008	The Prince of Motor City	Gertrude Hamilton	TV movie
2009	5th Quarter, TheThe 5th Quarter	Maryanne Abbate
2010	As Good as Dead	Helen Kalahan
2010	Lone Star	Alex	Not airs TV series, 2 episodes
2010	Daydream Nation	Enid Goldberg
2010	At Risk	Monique Lamont	TV movie
2010	The Front	Monique Lamont	TV movie
2011	Monte Carlo	Pamela Bennett-Kelly
2011	Footloose	Vi Moore
2012	30 Rock	Claire Williams	1 episode (Leap Day)
2012	Jane by Design	Gray Chandler Murray	Main cast; 18 episodes
2013-2015	Cedar Cove	Olivia Lockhart	Main cast
2013	Breaking at the Edge	Dr. Ghozland
2015	Magic Mike XXL	Nancy

[ Source: Wikipedia ]