You know Jamie Donnelly from her double-wide smile and champagne
personality. A veteran actress of stage, television, and movies, Jamie
is a bonafide cult figure for not one but two major 20th century
cultural events: The original "Rocky Horror Show", both at the Roxy in
Los Angeles and on Broadway with Tim Curry, in which she coined the
roles of Trixie and Magenta, and "Grease" on Broadway and in the movie
with John and Olivia in which she played Jan, the "brusha brusha" Pink
Lady.
After growing up in New Jersey where she could see the glittering
skyline of New York City across the river, Jamie did a couple dozen
summer stock musicals before she landed on Broadway at the age of
seventeen in Kander and Ebb's, "Flora, The Red Menace". She both
understudied Liza Minelli's Tony award winning title role and
originated the character of Lulu. A darling of the New York theatre
crowd, she continued starring in a succession of Broadway musicals such
as "George M" at the Palace opposite Joel Grey. One of her favorite
memories is having been taught "Falling in Love with Love" by Richard
Rodgers which she sang at the Helen Hayes Theatre in "Rodgers and
Hart".
Jamie also worked off-Broadway in the original company of "You're A
Good Man, Charlie Brown", in regional theatre for "Hot L Baltimore",
overseen by the playwright, Lanford Wilson, in soap opera for a
recurring role as Dusty Maguire on "The Guiding Light", guest starring
on television series "Policewoman" and "Barnaby Jones", and television
movies as a country western star with James Franciscus, "The Dream
Makers".
In another favorite part of her life, Jamie spent years on a ranch in
Montana riding horses and writing screenplays for Hollywood, including
"Desperado" from the Eagles album, with the love of her life, her
husband, novelist Stephen H. Foreman ("Toehold"). They have a son and
daughter, Sevi (b. 1987) and Madden (b. 1989), young musicians in their
own right. While her kids were growing up Jamie became the beloved
acting coach of some of the best actors and actresses in Hollywood
today.
She's excited about coming back to her public opposite Marisa Tomei and
John C. Reilly in the upcoming Fox Searchlight feature, "The Untitled
Duplass Brothers Film", a guest starring role in the final season of
the Golden Globe and Emmy winner, "Monk", Nickelodeon's "The Naked
Brothers Band", and Lifetime's "The Legend of Lucy Keyes". It should
surprise no one that Jamie's blood type is, honest to God, "B
Positive".
