Helen Slater

Name: Helen Slater
Date of Birth: December 15, 1963
Place of Birth: Massapequa, Long Island, New York, USA

Mini-bio: Helen Slater was born Helen Schlacter to Gerald and Chrin Schlacter in Massapequa, Long Island, New York. Appearing in many shows as a child, she attended the New York High School of Performing Arts...( read more), graduating in 1982. Having made her acting debut in the after-school special Amy & the Angel (1982), co-starring with James Earl Jones and Matthew Modine - the only film in which she appeared as a brunette - Helen took her career very seriously. Within months of her graduation, she attended auditions for the upcoming spin-off of the famous Superman (1978) franchise, Supergirl (1984). It was to be shot in England at Pinewood Studios, where the first "Superman" movies were filmed. Slater even spoke to Christopher Reeve about playing a superhero to assure herself she could do it. After being the first to present herself for audition, she was cast as the lead in the film and her career took off. Although Supergirl (1984) received mixed reviews, most critics were impressed with Helen's abilities. In fact, the critics' consensus was that she did a better job at keeping a secret identity (a mousy schoolgirl) than Reeve did as Clark Kent. In her next film, she was cast as a modern-day Joan of Arc in The Legend of Billie Jean (1985) with Yeardley Smith and Peter Coyote. The film, though not particularly successful, has managed to attract a somewhat cult following. She next appeared in one of her best-received roles, that of the female half of the bumbling husband-and-wife team that kidnaps Bette Midler in the comic blockbuster Ruthless People (1986), and scored again in the hit The Secret of My Succe$s (1987). Both roles helped to cement her status as an actress of note. Next, she and her friend Melanie Mayron starred in the feminist comedy Sticky Fingers (1988), a critical but not financial success. It was in this film and her next, Happy Together (1989/I), that she was able to prove that she could do comedy as well as drama. She went on to do more feature films such as City Slickers (1991), A House in the Hills (1993) and Lassie (1994), before making regular appearances on television. Her regional stage credits include appearances in such plays as "Grease" and "Shakespeare and Friends". On Broadway, she starred in "Responsible Parties" and "Almost Romance". She also attended classes at both NYU and UCLA, trying to broaden her acting abilities. On television, she has appeared in "Caroline in the City" (1995), as well as many others. She also became a spokeswoman for Preference by L'Oreal in both TV and print ads. She is an accomplished pianist and now has an album out called "One of These Days". She co-founded the New York theater group The Naked Angels with her friend Gina Gershon. In 1990, she married award-winning editor Robert Watzke and they have a daughter, born in 1995. She stepped out of the limelight for a couple of years, appearing mainly in the occasional TV show, but came back strong in 2003, showing moviegoers and TV audiences how great an entertainer she really is.

Post it anywhere	Link it anywhere
<div style="font-size:11px;text-align:center;"><a href="http://www.flixster.com/actor/helen-slater"> <img src="http://content6.flixster.com/photo/31/76/79/3176792_tml.jpg" width="240" height="240" alt="Helen Slater" /></a><br/><a href="http://www.flixster.com/actor/helen-slater">Helen Slater</a></div>	<a href="http://www.flixster.com/actor/helen-slater">Helen Slater</a>

report missing or incorrect data

Helen Slater Wiki Profile

Welcome to the Helen Slater wiki profile. This page is created by Flixster users like you with the help of friendly community Flixster Experts.

No Expert yet! Want your picture here? Click here.

Adding your knowledge to this page is easy. Just click the "EasyEdit" button below. To become a Flixster Expert or find out more about the program, click here. And for general help on the wiki, click here.

No pages yet
Add a page

Helen Slater Biography Helen Slater Quotes Helen Slater Best Movies and Characters

EasyEdit

(What's this?)

What's going on here?
Flixster members are collaborating to create the definitive resource for Helen Slater information on the Internet. We're adding all the images, info, and ideas that best tell this actor's unique story. To add your knowledge of Helen Slater, just log in and click the EasyEdit button at the top of the wiki pages. (Click here for help.)

Helen Slater mini-bio: Helen Slater was born Helen Schlacter to Gerald and Chrin Schlacter in Massapequa, Long Island, New York. Appearing in many shows as a child, she attended the New York High School of Performing Arts, graduating in 1982. Having made her acting debut in the after-school special Amy & the Angel (1982), co-starring with James Earl Jones and Matthew Modine - the only film in which she appeared as a brunette - Helen took her career very seriously. Within months of her graduation, she attended auditions for the upcoming spin-off of the famous Superman (1978) franchise, Supergirl (1984). It was to be shot in England at Pinewood Studios, where the first "Superman" movies were filmed. Slater even spoke to Christopher Reeve about playing a superhero to assure herself she could do it. After being the first to present herself for audition, she was cast as the lead in the film and her career took off. Although Supergirl (1984) received mixed reviews, most critics were impressed with Helen's abilities. In fact, the critics' consensus was that she did a better job at keeping a secret identity (a mousy schoolgirl) than Reeve did as Clark Kent. In her next film, she was cast as a modern-day Joan of Arc in The Legend of Billie Jean (1985) with Yeardley Smith and Peter Coyote. The film, though not particularly successful, has managed to attract a somewhat cult following. She next appeared in one of her best-received roles, that of the female half of the bumbling husband-and-wife team that kidnaps Bette Midler in the comic blockbuster Ruthless People (1986), and scored again in the hit The Secret of My Succe$s (1987). Both roles helped to cement her status as an actress of note. Next, she and her friend Melanie Mayron starred in the feminist comedy Sticky Fingers (1988), a critical but not financial success. It was in this film and her next, Happy Together (1989/I), that she was able to prove that she could do comedy as well as drama. She went on to do more feature films such as City Slickers (1991), A House in the Hills (1993) and Lassie (1994), before making regular appearances on television. Her regional stage credits include appearances in such plays as "Grease" and "Shakespeare and Friends". On Broadway, she starred in "Responsible Parties" and "Almost Romance". She also attended classes at both NYU and UCLA, trying to broaden her acting abilities. On television, she has appeared in "Caroline in the City" (1995), as well as many others. She also became a spokeswoman for Preference by L'Oreal in both TV and print ads. She is an accomplished pianist and now has an album out called "One of These Days". She co-founded the New York theater group The Naked Angels with her friend Gina Gershon. In 1990, she married award-winning editor Robert Watzke and they have a daughter, born in 1995. She stepped out of the limelight for a couple of years, appearing mainly in the occasional TV show, but came back strong in 2003, showing moviegoers and TV audiences how great an entertainer she really is.

VITAL STATS

Helen Slater Information:

Eye color:

Height:

Nickname(s):

Notable feature(s):

Education:

Family:

Resides in:

Religious affiliations:

Political affiliation:

Personal interests/hobbies:

Charities/Causes:

Other:

Last update: Aug 12 2008, 10:42 PM EDT by ed (content history | content tools) (help)

Keyword tags:

Helen Slater Biography Helen Slater Quotes Helen Slater Best Movies and Characters

Meet Other Fans

Comments

alesaenz1

I love this actress!!! She was great on Supergirl. And I like her on 12:01 and The Secret of my Success too!

posted 162 days ago
jtfmulder

I am always looking for good quality photos of Helen Slater from Supergirl with dark hair and not in her costume.

I met her before Supergirl had opened and she was surprised that I knew who she was. Nice lady.

posted 251 days ago
XxCOOKIEXCUTTERxX

hey u rock my socks

posted 526 days ago