While some may not recognize Margo Martindale's name, many recognize her face. An actress onscreen from the early '90s, Martindale's list of memorable roles is long, and the character actress found a strong niche playing mothers (Million Dollar Baby) grandmothers (Hannah Montana: The Movie), and generally maternal figures (Practical Magic). Martindale even parodied her own typecasting, playing the mother of the title character in the biopic spoof Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. Martindale would continue to act at a furious pace for years to come, appearing in movies like Secretariat, and on shows like Justified and A Gifted Man.
Margo Martindale
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- Was a high-school cheerleader, and was voted Football Sweetheart and Miss Jacksonville Sweetheart in her senior year.
- Received a theater scholarship to the University of Michigan.
- After college, performed with Christopher Reeve in a 1974 Harvard Summer School Repertory Theater production of The Threepenny Opera.
- Performed with Actors Theatre of Louisville in 1982 and '83 before landing in New York, where her credits included the original production of Steel Magnolias ('87).
- Had a small role in Lonesome Dove (1989); later TV credits include recurring roles in Dexter, 100 Centre Street and The Riches.
- Made movie debut in the 1990 Tom Cruise NASCAR action adventure Days of Thunder; other notable films include The Rocketeer ('91), Lorenzo's Oil ('92), Dead Man Walking ('95), Million Dollar Baby (2004) and Hannah Montana: The Movie ('09).
- Earned a 2004 Tony nomination for her Broadway debut as Big Mama in a revival of Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.