The L Word

Background:

“People have this perception of a gay lifestyle - that it's so different, when really it's exactly the same. Problems at work. Problems at home. Jealousy. It runs the gamut. But I think maybe that's why this show is a hit: People identify with it regardless.” Leisha Hailey on “The L Word”

American actress and musician who trained at the famed American Academy Dramatic Arts Leisha Hailey is best known to TV audiences as Alice Pieszeck on Showtime's hit drama “The L Word” (2004-present). She is also memorable for playing the lesbian punk rocker on the critically-praised independent movie “All Over Me” (1997) and has appeared as a guest star in TV shows like “Grey's Anatomy” and “CSI.” On the music industry, the openly lesbian enjoyed some success during the 1990s as member of the now defunct pop-punk duo Gush (formerly The Murmurs), along with former classmate Heather Grody. They signed with MCA Records and released several albums, most notably “Blender” (1998). She now sings and plays the guitar for the Los Angeles-based group Uh Huh Her, which she founded in 2006 with Camila Grey. Hailey is the owner of Marfa Records, which is a home for artist Amy Cook.

“The more people are out the easier it is for everyone else. I was never in the closet and once I told my parents about it, and they were amazing, I never had anyone to keep it from.” Leisha Hailey,

5' 6” Hailey is a lesbian, a truth she disclosed when she was a teenager. In the early 1990s, she was romantically linked to singer K.D. Lang, who produced some songs on her rock duo album, “Blender,” and considered Hailey as the inspiration for her album “Invincible Summer” (2000). After they broke up, Hailey started a new relationship with Nina Garduno. They are involved in the arts scene in Marfa, Texas.

“I was a soccer star… I was a goalscorer, but then I busted my knee out and my whole career ended.” Leisha Hailey

Hailey is a soccer player. She denied a rumor that she is a fan of Man United.

Graduate of AADA

Childhood and Family:

Leisha Hailey was born on July 11, 1971, in Okinawa, Japan, to American parents. She was raised in Bellevue, Nebraska. After graduating from Bellevue West High School in Nebraska, she moved to New York City to attend the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and graduated in 1991. There, she met her music partner, Heather Grody.

Blender

Career:

Leisha Hailey had early stage experience playing a leading role in a high school production of “Oliver” while she was in Nebraska. After relocating to NYC, she formed a pop duo called The Murmurs, along with Heather Grody, her classmate in ADDA. They performed in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and East Village before moving to Los Angeles. In 1992, they released an independent debut album, “Who are We.” After signing with MCA/Universal Records, they released a self-titled album in 1994 that consisted of such songs as “You Suck,” “Bad Mood” and “Mission.”

Hailey and The Murmurs released their next albums, “White Rabbit” and “Pristine Smut,” in 1995 and 1997, respectively. However, they did not enjoyed huge break until the 1998 album “Blender.” In the album, they collaborated with several musicians, including K.D. Lang, Charlotte Caffey and Jane Wiedlin fron the The Go-Go's, as well as the renowned British production team Lupino and Franglen. The following year, in summer, they hit the road as part of Sarah McLachlan's “Lilith Fair” tour.

In the meantime, Hailey found herself taking on some acting gigs. She made her TV debut as a guest star in the comedy series “Boy Meets World” (1996), playing Corinna. Her first major role arrived in the next year when she was cast as the lesbian punk rocker, Lucy, in the critically-acclaimed Lesbian-themed film “All Over Me,” costarring with Alison Folland, Tara Subkoff, Cole Hauser and Wilson Cruz. The Alex Sichel-directed collected several honors in festival circuits, including the Reader Jury of the “Siegessäule” Award at Berlin International Film Festival and the Grand Jury Prize nomination at the Sundance. Hailey also appeared in the comedy/romance “Some Girl” (1998) and the 13-minute indie-comedy “Sleeping Beauties” (1999).

2001 found Hailey and Grody changing the name of their group from The Murmurs to Gush. The same year also saw Hailey take part in the short film “Size 'Em Up.” She continued to star as Marigold in the Megan Holley-helmed independent film “The Snowflake Crusade” (2002), opposite Scot McKenzie. Her breakthrough as an actress came in 2004 when Hailey won the costarring role of the explicitly bisexual Alice Pieszecki on the Showtime new drama “The L Word,” along side Jennifer Beals. The series went on to became a hit, which subsequently launched Hailey's profile. On her character on the show, she said, “I think when characters are perfect it's hard to believe because none of us in life are really like that. Alice is not hiding anything, she comes clean about who she is. She's a good friend to the other characters, sort of a hub, who the other characters come to. And I think people can see their friends in her.”

The success, however, was not without cost. When Hailey started working in her first TV series, her long-term partnership with Grody ended, when the Gush split up. Undaunted with the experience, she established her own record label, “Marfa Records,” in 2005 and formed a new group, Uh Huh Her, in the following year, along with bassist and keyboardist Camila Grey. They have released an EP in July 2007. A new album is expected to be released in March 2008.

During hiatus from “The L Word,” Hailey executive produced “Raising Teen,” a 2005 documentary about teenagers raised by gay parents. She also made guest appearances in such series as “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” (2006), “Grey's Anatomy” and “American Dad!” (both 2007), and acted as Shelly in the film “Cucina, La” (2007).

Awards:
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