Biography for
Edie Falco More at IMDbPro »

Date of Birth

5 July 1963, Brooklyn, New York, USA

Birth Name

Edith Falco

Nickname

Kitten

Height

5' 5" (1.65 m)

Mini Biography

Edith Falco, called Edie, was born on July 5, 1963, grew up on Long Island and attended SUNY Purchase, where she was trained in acting at the prestigious Conservatory of Theatre Arts and Film. After graduating she lived in Manhattan, auditioning for roles and supporting herself as best she could, such as working parties for an entertainment company where she would wear a Cookie Monster costume and urge people to get on the dance floor. Falco began getting film roles, mostly smaller supporting parts, starting in the late 1980s. Her first notable role was a supporting part in Bullets Over Broadway (1994).

Ironically, it was in television where the conservatory-trained Falco's career first flowered. She obtained her first recurring roles in 1993, on the acclaimed police dramas "Homicide: Life on the Street" (1993), as the wife of a blinded police officer, and "Law & Order" (1990) as a Legal Aid attorney. Next came a recurring role on the prison drama "Oz" (1997), as a sympathetic corrections officer. All the while she continued to work in film, still in small supporting roles.

Supporting herself in acting continued to be a challenge until at last Falco found success in 1999, when she was cast in the HBO series "The Sopranos" (1999), as Carmella, the wife of New Jersey Mafia street boss Tony Soprano. "The Sopranos" gained her a great deal of visibility and praise for her exceptionally strong dramatic skills. In 2000 Falco became the first actress in history to sweep all of the major television awards (the Emmy, the Golden Globe and the SAG Award) in one year for a dramatic role. She is also the first female actor ever to receive the Television Critics Association Award for Individual Achievement in Drama.

Interestingly, her roles have frequently put her on one side of the law or the other--a defense attorney, a corrections officer, a cop's wife, a mobster's wife, a police officer (in a pilot for a television adaptation of the movie Fargo (1996)). She has also worked frequently on the stage, such as her award-winning work in the play "Sideman," in "The Vagina Monologues," and in revivals of "Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune" (which was hugely successful) and "'night Mother."

Unlike her brashly assertive alter-ego Carmella Soprano, Falco is self-described as shy, but is clearly a witty and down-to-earth person. She sometimes travels with her beloved dog Marley, driving so that the dog does not have to travel in the baggage compartment. At one point Falco had a relationship with her "Frankie and Johnny" co-star Stanley Tucci. She was treated for breast cancer in 2004 and her prognosis is very good. In December of 2004, Falco adopted a baby boy, who she named Anderson.

IMDb Mini Biography By: Larry-115

Trade Mark

Tough, materialistic women

Trivia

Graduated from SUNY Purchase whose alumni are known collectively as "The Purchase Mafia".

Is the daughter of art director Frank Falco and actress Judith M. Anderson.

Edie graduated from the acting program at the State University of New York at Purchase. After graduation, she worked as a clown and other similar roles at weddings and birthday parties.

Is of Swedish and Italian heritage.

She is the first actress to ever sweep the top three television awards. In 2000, she received the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, The Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Drama Series, and the SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series, all in the same year for her performance as "Carmela Soprano" in the hit HBO series "The Sopranos" (1999).

Her uncle is renowned fiction writer Ed Falco, who teaches at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

Has a dog named Marley.

Has fully recovered from breast cancer in 2004.

Has been sober for thirteen years.

One of her earlier roles was in "The King's Creampuffs" at aged 6.

Adopted a baby boy, and named him Anderson after her mother. It is her mother's maiden name. [December 2004]

Was forced to vacate the role of "Jenny" in Broadway's "The Threepenny Opera" due to her commitments to "The Sopranos" (1999). She was replaced by Cyndi Lauper.

Adopted a baby girl from Florida and named her Macy (February 2008).

Personal Quotes

"I actually washed my window once, and it fell through-it was being held together by the dirt." - describing a dilapidated apartment where she once lived as a struggling actress in New York City.

"The high-grossing films are not all that interesting to me, I have to say. It's not stuff I would want to be in. Yes, you would want the big paycheck, but that's never really been my concern."

Where Are They Now

(November 2004) Starring in Marsha Norman's 1983 drama, "'Night Mother", at the Royale Theater in New York City.

Browse biographies section by name

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z