Kirstie Alley
1951 -
Actress
Kirstie Alley attended college at the University of Kansas.
Alley rose to prominence in the 1982 movie Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, playing Vulcan officer Saavik. Alley turned down the role of Saavik in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock because she didn't want to be type cast as a Vulcan. Alley also co-starred in a short-lived secret agent television series, Masquerade.
Alley played neurotic corporate executive Rebecca Howe on the long-running hit TV series Cheers, replacing Shelley Long. She later starred in the movie Look Who's Talking with fellow Scientologist, John Travolta. Both that film and its sequel, Look Who's Talking Too earned more than $ 100 Million at the box office.
Her NBC-TV sitcom Veronica's Closet ran for three seasons in the 90's. Alley received reportedly $2 Million in up front fees for her work on that series and $ 150,000 per episode.
Alley has been honored with two Emmy Awards during her career. After being nominated twice for her work on Cheers to no avail, she cemented her place in TV history when, on her third nomination, she took home the statuette for her endearing work on that series. In her speech, she thanked her husband for giving her "the big one". All night, the moment was made fun of by hosts and the show's creators. Alley won her second Emmy for her portrayal of the title role in the dramatic TV film, David's Mother (1994).
Kirstie Alley was married to actor Parker Stevenson from 1983 to 1997. During their marriage, the couple adopted a boy and then later a girl and afterwards Alley experienced a miscarriage as well as a stillbirth. According to media reports at the time of the couple's divorce, Stevenson walked away from the marriage with a healthy $6 Million settlement, after asking for $75,000 per month in alimony from Alley. At the time of their split, Alley and Stevenson were joint owners of a mansion in Los Angeles, complete with exotic animals, and vacation homes in Maine and Kansas. They owned, as well, two yachts, and several high-performance cars. The couple today share joint custody of their children.
Alley has struggled with obesity for years. Her weight yo-yos from high to low as she struggles and then brings her weight under control, only to lose it and gain weight again. Despite her weight, high or low, Alley remains in demand for TV and movie roles. She is currently filming a series for the cable station Showtime, called Fat Actress, which deals with the travails of an actress whose career suffers due to her problems with her weight.
For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Kirstie Alley has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7000 Hollywood Blvd.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Kirstie Alley".
Credits: Wikipedia
