Biography
Baker earned widespread acclaim for her gritty performance in "Street Smart" (1987) before tackling a challenging part in the recovery drama "Clean and Sober" (1988). She turned to a more comedic role as a flirtatious housewife in "Edward Scissorhands" (1990) and eventually found her way onto television with a regular role as a small town doctor and wife to the sheriff on David E. Kelley's quirky drama "Picket Fences" (CBS, 1992-96). From …
Latest Tv Credits
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Career Milestones
2012 | Acted alongside Drew Barrymore in "Big Miracle," a drama centered on a campaign to save a family of gray whales trapped by rapidly forming ice in the Arctic Circle | |
2011 | Cast in the drama "Take Shelter" opposite Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain | |
2011 | Cast in the action drama feature "Machine Gun Preacher," starring Gerard Butler | |
2008 | Co-starred with Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson in "Last Chance Harvey" | |
2007 | Cast in the feature adatation of "The Jane Austen Book Club," as Bernadette a 67-years-young yoga enthusiast | |
2005 | Joined the cast of supernatural drama series "Medium" (NBC, CBS) in the recurring role of Marjorie Dubois | |
2005 | Cast in the ensemble "Nine Lives"; Rodrigo García directs a series of vignettes, offering glimpses into the lives of nine women | |
2004 | Played Jennifer Garner's mother in the coming-of-age romantic comedy "13 Going on 30" | |
2003 | Featured in "Cold Mountain," which starred Nicole Kidman and Jude Law | |
2002 | Played Gladys in the made for television movie "Door to Door"; received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a TV-movie | |
2002 | Acted opposite Robert Duvall in "Assassination Tango" | |
2001 | Co-starred in the thriller "The Glass House" | |
2001 | Received sixth career Emmy nomination for guest role of a controling mother on Fox's "Boston Public," created by David E. Kelley; joined cast as series regular during the 2001-02 season | |
2000 | Earned an Emmy nomination for a guest appearance on "Touched By an Angel" (CBS) | |
2000 | Starred as a woman who employs a magic ring to make her ordinary life spectacular in the Showtime original children's movie "Ratz" | |
2000 | Had featured role in the Sundance-screened episodic film "Things You Can Tell Just By Looking at Her"; aired on Showtime in 2001 | |
1999 | Reteamed with director Michael Pressman as a single-minded social worker in the holiday drama "A Season for Miracles" (CBS) | |
1999 | Had featured role as one of the nurses at the orphanage in Lasse Hallstrom's adaptation "The Cider House Rules" | |
1998 | Had a recurring role on "The Practice" (ABC) as a woman accused of murdering a baby | |
1998 | Starred as a survivor of the Oklahoma City bombing who struggles to deal with her life after the tragedy in Lifetime's "Oklahoma City: A Survivor's Story" | |
1997 | Featured in the HBO original TV-movie "Weapons of Mass Distraction" | |
1997 | Played a widowed mother of two sons in the period drama "Inventing the Abbotts" | |
1997 | Starred in the fact-based TV-movie "Not in This Town" (USA Network) as a community activist working to lessen the influence of white supremecists | |
1997 | Featured on the ABC anthology series "Gun" | |
1996 | Played the sister-in-law of a man mourning his wife's death in "To Gillian on her 37th Birthday" | |
1994 | Featured in the independent drama "Lush Life" (Showtime) | |
1993 | Reteamed with De Niro in "Mad Dog and Glory" | |
1992 | First role as a TV series regular, "Picket Fences" (CBS); won three Emmy Awards playing the wife of the town sheriff in this quirky drama-comedy created by David E. Kelley | |
1992 | Was a supporting player in the comedy "Article 99" and the thriller "Jennifer 8" | |
1991 | Starred in the NBC TV-movie "One Special Victory" | |
1990 | Featured in the HBO original film "The Image" | |
1990 | Had a memorable featured role as a flirty neighbor smitten with Johnny Depp in "Edward Scissorhands" | |
1989 | Starred with Robert De Niro as a spinster schoolteacher who puts her life on hold to watch over her troubled brother (Ed Harris) in the drama feature "Jacknife" | |
1988 | Co-starred with Michael Keaton as a recovering drug addict in "Clean and Sober" | |
1988 | Played the mother of a suicidal teen in the moving drama "Permanent Record" | |
1987 | Guest starred on episodes of "Amazing Stories" (NBC) and "Mariah" (ABC) | |
1987 | Co-starred as a doomed prostitute in the feature "Street Smart" | |
1986 | Had early television credit as co-star in the fact-based TV-movie "Nobody's Child" (CBS) | |
1986 | First feature leading role, "My Sister's Keeper" | |
1983 | Film acting debut in "The Right Stuff", starring Shepard and Harris | |
1983 | Made Off-Broadway debut reprising role in "Fool For Love" | |
1982 | Starred opposite Ed Harris in the San Francisco premiere of Sheperd's "Fool for Love"; credited as Kathy Whitton Baker (date approximate) | |
| Featured in the Magic Theatre production "The Man Who Killed the Buddha", where she was spotted by Sam Shepard | ||
| While working as a pastry chef in San Francisco, auditioned at the Magic Theatre | ||
1977 | Returned to California | |
1975 | Moved to Paris to study cooking at Le Cordon Bleu | |
1970 | Successfully auditioned for the CalArts acting program; attended for one year and subsequently dropped out | |
1960 | Began acting in Albuquerque Children's Theatre at age ten (date approximate) | |
| Raised in New Mexico | ||
Awards
2001 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress In a Drama Series in Boston Public |
2000 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in The Cider House Rules |
2000 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress In a Drama Series in Touched By an Angel |
1996 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress For a Drama Series in Picket Fences |
1996 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in Picket Fences |
1995 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Drama in Picket Fences |
1995 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in Picket Fences |
1995 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series in Picket Fences |
1995 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in Picket Fences |
1994 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Drama in Picket Fences |
1994 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in Picket Fences |
1993 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Drama in Picket Fences |
1993 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in Picket Fences |
1988 | Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female in Street Smart |
1987 | Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress in Street Smart |
1987 | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress in Street Smart |