Gaby Hoffmann
Encyclopedia
Gabriella Mary "Gaby" Hoffmann (born January 8, 1982) is an American actress.

Birth

Hoffmann was born in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

. Her mother, Viva
Viva (Warhol superstar)
Viva is an American actress, writer and a former Warhol superstar.-Career:She was born Janet Susan Mary Hoffmann in Syracuse, New York. She was given the name Viva by Andy Warhol before the release of her first film but later used her married last name . She appeared in several of Warhol's films...

 (aka Janet Susan Mary Hoffmann), is an actress and writer and appeared in many of Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol
Andrew Warhola , known as Andy Warhol, was an American painter, printmaker, and filmmaker who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art...

's movies during the 1960s. Hoffmann also has a half-sister, Alexandra (Alex) Auder, who is 10 years older than she and who also works as an actor, author, and teaches yoga
Yoga
Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul...

.. In her autobiography Famous for 15 Minutes: My Years With Andy Warhol, Isabelle Collin Dufresne (known as 'Ultra Violet' and who was a member of Warhol’s 'Factory'
The Factory
The Factory was Andy Warhol's original New York City studio from 1962 to 1968, although his later studios were known as The Factory as well. The Factory was located on the fifth floor at 231 East 47th Street, in Midtown Manhattan. The rent was "only about one hundred dollars a year"...

  clique along with Hoffmann’s mother) says that Gaby Hoffman's father was a soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...

 actor who denied paternity. She did not name him. Hence, Hoffmann’s last name is her mother's maiden name. Her birth is documented in Brigid Berlin's
Brigid Berlin
Brigid Berlin is an American artist and former Warhol superstar.-Early years:Berlin was the eldest of three daughters born to socialite parents, Muriel Johnson "Honey" Berlin and Richard E. Berlin, into a world of Manhattan privilege. Her father was chairman of the Hearst media empire for 32 years...

 The Andy Warhol Diaries. An entry dated January 10, 1982, two days after Hoffman was born, says that a friend of Warhol’s telephoned Warhol up and told him that they were going to the Chelsea Hotel to see Viva and her new baby.

Life at the Chelsea Hotel

Until 1993, Hoffmann had lived in the well-known Chelsea Hotel
Hotel Chelsea
The Hotel Chelsea, also known as the Chelsea Hotel, or simply the Chelsea, is a historic New York City hotel and landmark, known primarily for its history of notable residents...

  in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, which Hoffmann later said she enjoyed. According to Hoffmann, she and her best friend Talya Shomron would roller-skate in the hallways, spy on the drug dealer across the hall, and persuade the bellman to go to the neighbourhood deli at night and get them ice cream. Hoffman and her mother left the Chelsea Hotel in July 1993 after a dispute of long standing with the management, but the hotel ended up featuring prominently in Hoffmann’s future. The idea for her 1994 sitcom Someone Like Me originated after Gail Berman
Gail Berman
Gail Berman is the former president of entertainment at Fox Broadcasting Company and the former president of Viacom's Paramount Pictures.She graduated from the University of Maryland in 1978...

 (now president of Viacom
Viacom
Viacom Inc. , short for "Video & Audio Communications", is an American media conglomerate with interests primarily in, but not limited to, cinema and cable television...

's Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...

), the show's producer, read a New York Times article about the Hotel which referred to a children's book which Viva and friend Jane Lancellotti wrote entitled Gaby at the Chelsea (a take on Kay Thompson
Kay Thompson
Kay Thompson was an American author, composer, musician, actress and singer. She is best known as the creator of the Eloise children's books.-Background:Catherine Louise Fink was born in St...

’s 1950’s classic Eloise
Eloise (books)
Eloise is the name of the protagonist in a series of children's books written by Kay Thompson and illustrated by Hilary Knight.Eloise is a six-year-old girl who lives in the "room on the tippy-top floor" of the Plaza Hotel in New York with her Nanny, her pug dog Weenie, and her turtle Skipperdee. A...

 books). After leaving the Chelsea Hotel, Hoffmann and her mother (and their two Eskimo dogs) moved to a two-bedroom rented house in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California
Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California
Woodland Hills is a district in the city of Los Angeles, California.Woodland Hills is located in the southwestern area of the San Fernando Valley, east of Calabasas and west of Tarzana, with Warner Center in its northern section...

 which ended up being badly damaged in a January 17, 1994 Northridge earthquake. While regrouping their living situation, Gaby and her mother temporarily lived at The Oceana Suites Hotel in Santa Monica, not too distant from Malibu.

Early acting career

Hoffmann began her acting career at the age of four to help pay the family bills by acting in commercials. However, she tired of the tough schedules and temporarily retired. Nevertheless, upon hearing that Macaulay Culkin
Macaulay Culkin
Macaulay Carson Culkin is an American actor. He became widely known for his portrayal of Kevin McCallister in Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. He is also known for his roles in Richie Rich, Uncle Buck, My Girl, The Pagemaster, and Party Monster...

 was making a lot of money from his movies her "competitive spirit got the best of her", as she later put it, and she re-entered the profession. In 1989, she starred in her first movie, Field of Dreams
Field of Dreams
Field of Dreams is a 1989 American fantasy-drama film directed by Phil Alden Robinson and is from the novel Shoeless Joe by W. P. Kinsella...

, with Kevin Costner
Kevin Costner
Kevin Michael Costner is an American actor, singer, musician, producer, director, and businessman. He has been nominated for three BAFTA Awards, won two Academy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards. Costner's roles include Lt. John J...

. She followed this up with 1989’s Uncle Buck
Uncle Buck
Uncle Buck is a 1989 John Hughes comedy film starring John Candy, Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Gaby Hoffman, and Macaulay Culkin, and co-stars Jay Underwood and Laurie Metcalf.-Plot:Bob Russell Uncle Buck is a 1989 John Hughes comedy film starring John Candy, Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Gaby...

with John Candy
John Candy
John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...

, (which also starred Macaulay Culkin) and then went on to star in This Is My Life
This is My Life (film)
This Is My Life is a 1992 film that marked the directorial debut of screenwriter Nora Ephron. The screenplay, written by Ephron and her sister, Delia Ephron, is based on the book, This Is Your Life, by Meg Wolitzer. The film tells the story of Dottie Ingels , who works at a cosmetics counter but...

(1992), Sleepless in Seattle
Sleepless in Seattle
The film was originally to have been scored by John Barry, but when he was given a list of 20 songs he had to put in the film, he quit.#As Time Goes By - Jimmy Durante #A Kiss to Build a Dream on - Louis Armstrong #Stardust - Nat King Cole...

(1993) with Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks
Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks is an American actor, producer, writer, and director. Hanks worked in television and family-friendly comedies, gaining wide notice in 1988's Big, before achieving success as a dramatic actor in several notable roles, including Andrew Beckett in Philadelphia, the title...

 and The Man Without a Face
The Man Without a Face
The Man Without a Face is a 1993 drama film starring and directed by Mel Gibson. The film is based on Isabelle Holland's 1972 novel of the same name. Gibson's directorial debut received respectful reviews from most critics.-Plot:...

with Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...

. According to Hoffmann, it was the praise she received for her performance in This is My Life which encouraged her to pursue an acting career in Hollywood full time as it gave her the confidence she needed to handle major roles.

Someone Like Me (1994)

In 1994, Hoffmann was given the starring role in her own sitcom Someone Like Me (on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...

) about a young girl, Gaby, and her dysfunctional family. Although generally well received, the show only lasted six episodes. Publicity work for the show included personal appearances by Hoffmann on late night talk shows like The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...

.

Freaky Friday (1995)

After Someone Like Me, Hoffmann won the lead role in the TV film Freaky Friday
Freaky Friday (1995 film)
Freaky Friday is a 1995 television film based on the book Freaky Friday.-Plot:A mother, Ellen, and daughter Annabelle find it difficult to get along with each other, each professing that the other has no idea what her life is like...

, a remake of the 1976 film of the same name
Freaky Friday (1976 film)
Freaky Friday is a 1976 American comedy film starring Jodie Foster as Annabel Andrews and Barbara Harris as her mother.The film is based on the novel of the same name by Mary Rodgers, in which mother and daughter switch bodies and get a taste of each others' lives. The cause of the switch is left...

 starring Shelly Long. Hoffmann received very good reviews for her performance. Later in 1995, Hoffmann would star as the object of a custody battle in the 1995 CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

 TV film Whose Daughter Is She?.

Later acting career and college: 1996–2003

Between 1996–2000, Hoffmann landed roles in several films including Everyone Says I Love You
Everyone Says I Love You
Everyone Says I Love You is a 1996 American musical film that was written and directed by Woody Allen. The film features many stars, including Julia Roberts, Alan Alda, Edward Norton, Drew Barrymore, Gaby Hoffmann, Tim Roth, Goldie Hawn, and Natalie Portman.Set in New York, Venice, and Paris, the...

(1996), Volcano (1997), Snapped
Snapped
Snapped is an American true crime television series that airs on the Oxygen Network. Snapped debuted on August 6, 2004 and is produced in conjunction with Jupiter Entertainment.-Synopsis:...

(1998), 200 Cigarettes
200 Cigarettes
200 Cigarettes is a 1999 comedy-drama film starring Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck, Dave Chappelle, Guillermo Díaz, Angela Featherstone, Janeane Garofalo, Gaby Hoffman, Kate Hudson, Courtney Love, Jay Mohr, Martha Plimpton, Christina Ricci and Paul Rudd. The film also features paintings by Sally...

(1999), Coming Soon (1999), Black & White
Black and White (1999 film)
Black and White is a 1999 American film directed by James Toback, starring Robert Downey, Jr., Gaby Hoffmann, Allan Houston, Jared Leto, Scott Caan, Claudia Schiffer, Brooke Shields and a number of rap musicians, namely members of the Wu-Tang Clan and Onyx .The...

(1999), You Can Count on Me
You Can Count on Me
You Can Count on Me is a 2000 American drama film starring Laura Linney, Mark Ruffalo, Rory Culkin, and Matthew Broderick. Written and directed by Kenneth Lonergan, it tells the story of Sammy, a single mother living in a small town, and her complicated relationships with family and friends...

(2000), and Perfume
Perfume (2001 film)
Perfume is a 2001 film about the fashion industry in New York City.-Plot:Prior to a major show, the people involved find themselves embroiled in their own personal battles....

(2001). She received excellent reviews for her performance as Odette in All I Wanna Do
The Hairy Bird
The Hairy Bird , also released under the titles Strike! and All I Wanna Do , is a 1998 comedy film written and directed by Sarah Kernochan...

(1998), which also starred Kirsten Dunst
Kirsten Dunst
Kirsten Caroline Dunst is an American actress, singer and model. She made her film debut in Oedipus Wrecks, a short film directed by Woody Allen for the anthology New York Stories...

 and Rachael Leigh Cook
Rachael Leigh Cook
Rachael Leigh Cook is an American actress, known for her role in the romantic comedy She's All That and her This is Your Brain on Drugs public service announcement.-Early life:...

. The film (released as Strike! in some parts of the world and The Hairy Bird in others) is a comedy about an all-girls school during the early 1960s where the students protest at a proposed merger with an all-boys school.

In 1999, Hoffmann entered Bard College
Bard College
Bard College, founded in 1860 as "St. Stephen's College", is a small four-year liberal arts college located in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.-Location:...

 in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 to pursue a degree in literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...

. Starting in 2001, she put her acting career on hold to complete her studies. She graduated in 2003.

Theatre work in New York: 2003–2007

Between 2003 and 2007, Hoffmann largely concentrated on a theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...

 career in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

. Roles included 24 Hour Plays (as Denise at the American Airlines Theatre), The Sugar Syndrome
The Sugar Syndrome
The Sugar Syndrome is a play written by British writer Lucy Prebble. It has won several awards and as of 2009 has been sold in seven languages.-Synopsis:...

(Williamstown Theatre Festival - July
July 2005
2005: January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – December – →-News collections and sources:* Wikipedia:News collections and sources....

/August 2005), and Third (Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre/Lincoln Centre Theatre - September
September 2005
-News collections and sources:* Wikipedia:News collections and sources.* Wikipedia:News sources – This has much of the same material organized in a hierarchical manner to help encourage NPOV in our news reporting....

 - December 2005). In late 2005, she starred in an episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Law & Order: Criminal Intent is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 2001, as the second spin-off of Wolf's successful crime drama...

. She also appeared in the Broadway play Suburbia
SubUrbia
subUrbia is a play by Eric Bogosian chronicling the nighttime activities of a group of aimless 20-somethings still living in their suburban Boston hometown and their reunion with a former high school classmate who has become a successful musician...

, alongside Kieran Culkin and Jessica Capshaw at the Second Stage Theatre on 43rd Street in New York City, which ran from September to October 2006. Hoffmann then returned to the 24 Hours Plays where she acted alongside Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer Joanna Aniston is an American actress, film director, and producer, best known for her role as Rachel Green on the television sitcom Friends, a role which earned her an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.Aniston has also enjoyed a successful film career,...

.

Return to film work: 2007–present

Since 2007, Hoffmann has made a gradual return to film acting. In 2007, she starred in the film Severed Ways: The Norse Discovery of America. In 2008, she appeared in Guest of Cindy Sherman, a documentary on art-scene commentator Paul Hasegawa-Overacker's relationship with enigmatic photographer Cindy Sherman
Cindy Sherman
Cindy Sherman is an American photographer and film director, best known for her conceptual portraits. Sherman currently lives and works in New York City. In 1995, she was the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship. She is represented by Sprüth Magers Berlin London in and Metro Pictures gallery in...

. Later in 2008, Hoffmann appeared in the documentary Chelsea on the Rocks, which is a tribute to the Chelsea Hotel where she grew up. Directed by Abel Ferrara
Abel Ferrara
Abel Ferrara is an American film screenwriter and director. He is best known as an independent filmmaker of such films as The Driller Killer , Ms. 45 , King of New York , Bad Lieutenant and The Funeral .-Early life:Ferrara was born in the Bronx of Italian and Irish descent...

, the documentary highlights the many personalities and artistic voices that have emerged from the legendary residence.

In 2009, Hoffman had a supporting role in Todd Solondz
Todd Solondz
Todd Solondz is an American independent film screenwriter and director known for his style of dark, thought-provoking, socially conscious satire. Solondz has been critically acclaimed for his examination of the "dark underbelly of middle class American suburbia", a reflection of his own background...

's Life During Wartime, and the thriller 13
13 (film)
13 is an English-language remake of the 2005 French film 13 Tzameti. The film is directed and written by Géla Babluani, who directed and wrote the original film. A trailer was released in August 2010.-Plot:...

with Mickey Rourke
Mickey Rourke
Philip Andre "Mickey" Rourke, Jr. is an American actor, screenwriter and retired boxer, who has appeared primarily as a leading man in action, drama, and thriller films....

 (released in 2010).

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1989 Field of Dreams
Field of Dreams
Field of Dreams is a 1989 American fantasy-drama film directed by Phil Alden Robinson and is from the novel Shoeless Joe by W. P. Kinsella...

Karin Kinsella
1989 Uncle Buck
Uncle Buck
Uncle Buck is a 1989 John Hughes comedy film starring John Candy, Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Gaby Hoffman, and Macaulay Culkin, and co-stars Jay Underwood and Laurie Metcalf.-Plot:Bob Russell Uncle Buck is a 1989 John Hughes comedy film starring John Candy, Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Gaby...

Maizy Russell
1992 This Is My Life
This is My Life (film)
This Is My Life is a 1992 film that marked the directorial debut of screenwriter Nora Ephron. The screenplay, written by Ephron and her sister, Delia Ephron, is based on the book, This Is Your Life, by Meg Wolitzer. The film tells the story of Dottie Ingels , who works at a cosmetics counter but...

Opal Ingels
1993 Sleepless in Seattle
Sleepless in Seattle
The film was originally to have been scored by John Barry, but when he was given a list of 20 songs he had to put in the film, he quit.#As Time Goes By - Jimmy Durante #A Kiss to Build a Dream on - Louis Armstrong #Stardust - Nat King Cole...

Jessica
1993 Megan Norstadt
1994 Someone Like Me Gaby Stepjak 5 episodes
1995 Freaky Friday
Freaky Friday (1995 film)
Freaky Friday is a 1995 television film based on the book Freaky Friday.-Plot:A mother, Ellen, and daughter Annabelle find it difficult to get along with each other, each professing that the other has no idea what her life is like...

Annabelle Andrews TV movie
1995 Whose Daughter Is She? Andrea Eagerton TV movie
1995 Now and Then Young Samantha Albertson
1996 Everyone Says I Love You
Everyone Says I Love You
Everyone Says I Love You is a 1996 American musical film that was written and directed by Woody Allen. The film features many stars, including Julia Roberts, Alan Alda, Edward Norton, Drew Barrymore, Gaby Hoffmann, Tim Roth, Goldie Hawn, and Natalie Portman.Set in New York, Venice, and Paris, the...

Lane Dandridge
1997 Volcano Kelly Roark
1998 Odette AKA, All I Wanna Do and Strike
1998 Snapped Tara
1999 200 Cigarettes
200 Cigarettes
200 Cigarettes is a 1999 comedy-drama film starring Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck, Dave Chappelle, Guillermo Díaz, Angela Featherstone, Janeane Garofalo, Gaby Hoffman, Kate Hudson, Courtney Love, Jay Mohr, Martha Plimpton, Christina Ricci and Paul Rudd. The film also features paintings by Sally...

Stephie
1999 Coming Soon Jenny Simon
1999 Black and White
Black and White (1999 film)
Black and White is a 1999 American film directed by James Toback, starring Robert Downey, Jr., Gaby Hoffmann, Allan Houston, Jared Leto, Scott Caan, Claudia Schiffer, Brooke Shields and a number of rap musicians, namely members of the Wu-Tang Clan and Onyx .The...

Raven
2000 You Can Count on Me
You Can Count on Me
You Can Count on Me is a 2000 American drama film starring Laura Linney, Mark Ruffalo, Rory Culkin, and Matthew Broderick. Written and directed by Kenneth Lonergan, it tells the story of Sammy, a single mother living in a small town, and her complicated relationships with family and friends...

Sheila
2001 Perfume
Perfume (2001 film)
Perfume is a 2001 film about the fashion industry in New York City.-Plot:Prior to a major show, the people involved find themselves embroiled in their own personal battles....

Gabrielle Mancini
2005 Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Law & Order: Criminal Intent is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 2001, as the second spin-off of Wolf's successful crime drama...

Burnett / Rachel Coburn Episode: "The Good Child
The Good Child
"The Good Child" is a fourth season episode of the television series Law & Order: Criminal Intent.-Plot summary:Detectives Goren and Eames investigate the case of a retired couple found murdered at their home by their daughter...

"
2007 Severed Ways
Severed Ways
Severed Ways: The Norse Discovery of America is a 2009 independent adventure drama film that tells a story of Norse explorers battling nature, natives and Christianity in North America in the year 1007 AD...

2009 Dr. Sally Eastman TV movie
2009 Life During Wartime
Life During Wartime (film)
Life During Wartime is a 2009 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Todd Solondz, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival on September 2009. It is a direct, but loose sequel to his 1998 film Happiness, with new actors playing the same characters, and imperfect continuity...

Wanda
2010 13
13 (film)
13 is an English-language remake of the 2005 French film 13 Tzameti. The film is directed and written by Géla Babluani, who directed and wrote the original film. A trailer was released in August 2010.-Plot:...

Clara
2010 Private Practice Emily Episode: "Just Lose It"
2011 Rhonda Cerone Episode: "Killer Song"
2011 Wolfe with an E Karen Completed

External links

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