Early life

Curtis was born in Santa Monica, California, to actor Tony Curtis and actress Janet Leigh. Her paternal grandparents were Hungarian Jewish immigrants and two of her maternal great-grandparents were Danish. Curtis's parents divorced in 1962, after which her mother married Robert Brandt. Curtis has an older sister, Kelly Curtis, who is also an actress, and several half-siblings (all from her father's remarriages), Alexandra, Allegra, Benjamin, and Nicholas Curtis (who died in 1994 of a drug overdose). Curtis attended Westlake School (now Harvard-Westlake School) in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills High School, and graduated from Choate Rosemary Hall. Returning to California in 1976, she attended the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California. She considered majoring in social work, but quit after one semester to pursue an acting career.

Career

Film

Curtis's film debut occurred in the 1978 horror film Halloween, in which she played the role of Laurie Strode. The film was a major success and was considered the highest grossing independent film of its time, earning accolades as a classic horror film. Curtis was subsequently cast in several horror films, garnering her the title, "scream queen".

Her next film was the horror film The Fog, which was helmed by Halloween director John Carpenter. The film opened in February 1980 to mixed reviews but strong box office, further cementing Curtis as a horror film starlet. Her next film, Prom Night, was a low-budget Canadian slasher film released in July 1980. The film, for which she earned a Genie Award nomination for Best Performance by a Foreign Actress, was similar in style to Halloween, yet received negative reviews which marked it as a disposable entry in the then-popular "slasher film" genre. That year, Curtis also starred in Terror Train, which opened in October and was met with negative reviews akin to Prom Night. Both films performed moderately well at the box office.

Curtis had a similar function in both films - the main character whose friends are murdered, and is practically the only protagonist to survive. Film critic Roger Ebert, who had given negative reviews to all three of Curtis's 1980 films, said that Curtis "is to the current horror film glut what Christopher Lee was to the last one-or Boris Karloff was in the 1930s". Curtis later appeared in Halloween II, Halloween H20: 20 Years Later and Halloween: Resurrection, as well as giving an uncredited voice role in Halloween III: Season of the Witch.

Her role in 1983's Trading Places helped Curtis shed her horror queen image, and garnered her a BAFTA award as best supporting actress. 1988's A Fish Called Wanda achieved near cult status - while showcasing her as a comedic actress; she was nominated for a BAFTA as best leading actress. She won a Golden Globe for her work in 1994's True Lies. Her film roles also include Disney's Freaky Friday (2003), opposite Lindsay Lohan, filmed at Palisades High School in Pacific Palisades, California, near where Curtis and Guest live with their children. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for this film.

In October 2006, Curtis told Access Hollywood that she had closed the book on her acting career to focus on her family. She returned to acting after being cast in June 2007 in Disney's live-action-animated film, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, co-starring opposite Piper Perabo as one of three live-action characters in the film. She also starred in the 2010 comedy film You Again, opposite Kristen Bell and Sigourney Weaver.

Television

Curtis made her television debut in an episode of Columbo, but her first starring TV role was opposite Richard Lewis in the situation comedy Anything But Love, which ran for four seasons from 1989 through 1992. Her performance as Hannah Miller received both a Golden Globe and People's Choice Award. She appeared as nurse Lt. Duran in the short-lived television series, Operation Petticoat; based on the big-screen version which starred her real-life father.

She starred in the 1981 TV film Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story, playing the role of the eponymous doomed Playmate. She earned a Golden Globe nomination for her work in TNT's adaptation of the Wendy Wasserstein play The Heidi Chronicles. More recently, Curtis starred in the CBS television movie Nicholas' Gift, for which she received an Emmy nomination. Curtis also appeared in the science fiction series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, and an early episode of The Drew Carey Show. Jamie Lee Curtis was a game-show panelist on several episodes of Match Game.

In 2012, she appeared in 5 episodes of the television series NCIS, playing the role of Dr. Samantha Ryan, a potential romantic interest of Special Agent Gibbs (Mark Harmon). It has been hinted that her role may be a recurring one. During an interview, she openly said that if they could develop a story line, she would be more than happy to be on the show more. It was at least the second time Harmon has worked with Curtis; he played her character's fiancé and later husband in the 2003 remake of Freaky Friday.

Children's books

Working with illustrator Laura Cornell, Curtis has written a number of children's books, all published by HarperCollins Children's Books.

• When I Was Little: A Four-Year Old's Memoir of Her Youth, 1993.
• Tell Me Again About The Night I was Born, 1996.
• Today I Feel Silly, and Other Moods That Make My Day, 1998; listed on the New York Times best-seller list for 10 weeks.
• Where Do Balloons Go?: An Uplifting Mystery, 2000.
• I'm Gonna Like Me: Letting Off a Little Self-Esteem, 2002.
• It's Hard to Be Five: Learning How to Work My Control Panel, 2004.
• Is There Really a Human Race?, 2006.
• Big Words for Little People, ISBN 978-0-06-112759-5, 2008.
• My Friend Jay, 2009, edition of one, presented to Jay Leno
• My Mommy Hung the Moon: A Love Story, 2010.

Invention

In 1987, Curtis filed a US patent application that subsequently issued as Patent No. 4,753,647. This is a modification of a diaper with a moisture proof pocket containing wipes that can be taken out and used with one hand. Curtis refused to allow her invention to be marketed until companies started selling biodegradable diapers, although the full statutory term of this patent expired February 20, 2007, and is now in the public domain.

Humanitarian and political causes

In March 2012, Curtis was featured with Martin Sheen and Brad Pitt in a performance of Dustin Lance Black's play '8' — a staged reenactment of the federal trial that overturned California's Prop 8 ban on same-sex marriage — as Sandy Stier. The production was held at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre and broadcast on YouTube to raise money for the American Foundation for Equal Rights.

Philanthropic efforts

Curtis is a staunch supporter of children's hospitals and their advocacy efforts. Currently, she plays a leadership role for Children's Hospital Los Angeles and supported the 2011 opening of a new inpatient facility for the organization. During California's 2008 general election, Curtis appeared in the "YES on Prop 3" TV advertisements.

Curtis was guest of honor at the 11th annual gala and fundraiser in 2003 for Women in Recovery, a Venice, California-based non-profit organization offering a live-in, twelve-step program of rehabilitation for women in need. Past honorees of this organization include Sir Anthony Hopkins and Dame Angela Lansbury. Curtis is also involved in the work of the Children Affected by AIDS Foundation, serving as the annual host for the organization's "Dream Halloween" event in Los Angeles, launched every year in October.

Personal life

Curtis married actor Christopher Guest on December 18, 1984, becoming the Lady Haden-Guest when her husband inherited the Barony of Haden-Guest in 1996, upon the death of his father. She originally fell in love when she saw a picture of him from the movie This Is Spinal Tap in Rolling Stone saying to her friend Debra Hill "Oh, I'm going to marry that guy", actually marrying him five months later. The couple have two adopted children (Annie, b. 1986; Thomas b. 1996). Curtis is actor Jake Gyllenhaal's godmother.

She is close friends with actress Sigourney Weaver. In a 2015 interview, she admitted that she has never watched Weaver's film, Alien, in its entirety because she was too scared.

On her website, Curtis tells her young readers that she "moonlights as an actor, photographer, and closet organizer." She takes time to support various philanthropic groups. Curtis appeared on the cover of the May/June 2008 issue of AARP Magazine, with gray hair and in water up to her chest.

Curtis is a recovering alcoholic, and was once addicted to pain killers that she began using after a routine cosmetic surgical procedure. She became sober in 1999 and maintains that recovery is the greatest achievement of her life.

Curtis has appeared in advertisements for Activia since 2007, and is a blogger for The Huffington Post online newspaper.

She is a fan of World of Warcraft, and has attended ComicCon and BlizzCon incognito.

Filmography

Films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1978	Halloween	Laurie Strode
1980	The Fog	Elizabeth Solley
1980	Prom Night	Kim Hammond	Nominated - Genie Award for Best Performance by a Foreign Actress
1980	Terror Train	Alana Maxwell	Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Actress
1981	Escape from New York	Narrator / Computer	Voice only, uncredited
1981	Roadgames	Pamela "Hitch" Rushworth
1981	Halloween II	Laurie Strode
1982	Halloween III: Season of the Witch	Telephone Operator	Voice only, uncredited
1983	Trading Places	Ophelia	BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role
1984	Love Letters	Anna Winter
1984	The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension	Sandra Banzai	In extended version
1984	Grandview, U.S.A.	Michelle "Mike" Cody
1985	Perfect	Jessie
1987	A Man in Love	Susan Elliot
1987	Amazing Grace and Chuck	Lynn Taylor
1988	Dominick and Eugene	Jennifer Reston
1988	A Fish Called Wanda	Wanda Gershwitz	Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1989	Blue Steel	Megan Turner	Festival du Film Policier de Cognac Special Mention Award Mystfest Film Festival Award for Best Actress
1991	Queens Logic	Grace
1991	My Girl	Shelly DeVoto
1992	Forever Young	Claire Cooper
1994	My Girl 2	Shelly DeVoto Sultenfuss
1994	Mother's Boys	Judith "Jude" Madigan
1994	True Lies	Helen Tasker	American Comedy Award for Funniest Actress in a Motion Picture Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Saturn Award for Best Actress Nominated - Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actress - Action/Adventure Nominated - MTV Movie Award for Best Performance Nominated - MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss Nominated - Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
1996	House Arrest	Janet Beindorf
1997	Fierce Creatures	Willa Weston
1998	Halloween H20: 20 Years Later	Laurie Strode / Keri Tate	Nominated - Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actress - Horror Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Actress
1998	Homegrown	Sierra Kahan
1999	Virus	Kelly Foster
2000	Drowning Mona	Rona Mace
2001	The Tailor of Panama	Louisa Pendel
2001	Daddy and Them	Elaine Bowen
2001	Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys	Queen Camilla	Voice only
2002	Halloween: Resurrection	Laurie Strode
2003	Freaky Friday	Tess Coleman / Anna Coleman	Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated - Satellite Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Actress
2004	Christmas with the Kranks	Nora Krank
2005	The Kid & I	Herself
2008	Beverly Hills Chihuahua	Aunt Viv
2010	You Again	Gail
2011	The Little Engine That Could	Beverly "Bev"	Voice only
2012	From Up on Poppy Hill	Ryoko Matsuzaki	Voice only, English version
2014	Veronica Mars	Gayle Buckley
2015	Spare Parts	Principal Karen Lowry

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1977	Quincy, M.E.	Girl in Dressing Room	Episode: "Visitors in Paradise"
1977	The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries	Mary	Episode: "Mystery of the Fallen Angels"
1977	Columbo	Waitress	Episode: "The Bye-Bye Sky High I.Q. Murder Case"
1977-78	Operation Petticoat	Lt. Barbara Duran	23 episodes
1978	Charlie's Angels	Linda Frey	Episode: "Winning Is for Losers"
1978	The Love Boat	Linda	Episode: "Till Death Do Us Part, Maybe/Chubs/Locked Away"
1979	Buck Rogers in the 25th Century	Jen Burton	Episode: "Unchained Woman"
1981	She's in the Army Now	Pvt. Rita Jennings	TV movie
1981	Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story	Dorothy Stratten	TV movie
1982	Callahan	Rachel Bartlett	TV movie
1982	Money on the Side	Michelle Jamison	TV movie
1985	Tall Tales & Legends	Annie Oakley	Episode: "Annie Oakley"
1986	As Summers Die	Whitsey Loftin	TV movie
1989-92	Anything but Love	Hannah Miller	56 episodes Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Television Series Musical or Comedy Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Television Series Musical or Comedy
1995	The Heidi Chronicles	Heidi Holland	TV movie Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Miniseries or Television Film
1996	The Drew Carey Show	Sioux	Episode: "Playing a Unified Field"
1998	Nicholas' Gift	Maggie Green	TV movie Nominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress - Miniseries or a Movie
2000	Pigs Next Door	Clara	Voice only
2005	A Home for the Holidays	TV Program Host	TV movie
2012	NCIS	Dr. Samantha Ryan	5 episodes
2012-15	New Girl	Joan Day	5 episodes
2014	Only Human	Evelyn Lang	TV movie
2015-present	Scream Queens	Dean Cathy Munsch	13 episodes Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Television Series Musical or Comedy Nominated - People's Choice Award for Favorite Actress in a New TV Series Nominated - Satellite Award for Best Actress - Television Series Musical or Comedy Pending - Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television

Charities

Jamie Lee Curtis supports the following charitable causes: Red Cross, Children, Literacy, AIDS.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]