| Biography 
An actress noted as much for her exotic, almost otherworldly  beauty
  as  she  is  for  her considerable talent, Uma Thurman is one of the
  most  renowned  actresses  of  her  generation.  The   daughter   of
  celebrated  professor of Buddhist Studies, Robert F. A. Thurman, and
  Nena von Schlebrugge, a  model  and  psychotherapist  who  was  once
  married  to  Timothy  Leary, Thurman was born in Boston on April 29,
  1970. Raised with  three  brothers  in  Amherst,  where  her  father
  taught   at   Amherst   College,   she  enjoyed  a  fairly  bohemian
  upbringing, one that was marked by visits from Eastern holy men  and
  Tibetan  refugees.  Encouraged  to  think  for  herself  and  to  be
  independent, Thurman, who had been  interested  in  acting  from  an
  early  age,  left her Massachusetts boarding school at the age of 15
  to pursue an acting career. Moving to New York, she earned a  living
  by  washing  dishes and modeling, though the latter means of support
  never agreed with her. The  fledgling  actress  made  her  debut  in
  _Kiss  Daddy  Goodnight  (1987)_  (qv), a forgettable film that cast
  her as a teen vamp who seduces and robs unsuspecting men.  She  also
  had  a  starring  role  in  the  teen comedy _Johnny Be Good (1988)_
  (qv), but it  was  with  her  role  in  Stephen  Frears'  _Dangerous
  Liaisons  (1988)_  (qv)  as  Cecile  de Volanges, the impressionable
  convent  girl  deflowered  by  John  Malkovich's  slimy  Vicomte  de
  Valmont,  that  Thurman  first  gained  recognition. Her scenes with
  Malkovich, particularly the one in which he offered to teach  her  a
  few  bedroom terms in Latin, proved to be some of the most memorable
  of the year, resulting in a sizable helping of fame  for  the  young
  actress.  Further  recognition  followed with Thurman's portrayal of
  Henry Miller's wife -- and the object of both his  and  Anais  Nin's
  affections  --  in  Philip  Kaufman's  _Henry  &  June (1990)_ (qv).
  Unfortunately,  the  actress'  role  in  the  NC-17  film  --  which
  required  her  to  take  part  in explicit love scenes with Maria de
  Medeiros  --  inspired  a  great  deal  of  unwelcome,  stalker-like
  attention  from  any  number  of "fans," causing Thurman to shy away
  from doing a subsequent number of films. The projects she  did  take
  part  in -- _Robin Hood (1991/I) (TV)_ (qv), _Final Analysis (1992)_
  (qv), _Jennifer Eight (1992)_  (qv),  _Mad  Dog  and  Glory  (1993)_
  (qv),  Gus  Van  Sant's _Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1994)_ (qv) --
  all proved to be forgettable affairs. By the time she  received  the
  script   for   Quentin   Tarantino's  _Pulp  Fiction  (1994)_  (qv),
  Thurman's career was in great need  of  resuscitation.  Fortunately,
  Pulp  Fiction  provided  just  that.  A huge, unanticipated success,
  Pulp Fiction was the most talked-about film of the year,  eventually
  becoming  recognized  as  one  of  the most influential films of the
  decade. For her part, Thurman gave a sly, smoldering performance  as
  Mia  Wallace,  the coke-snorting wife of gangster Marsellus Wallace,
  and soon found herself  enjoying  both  a  Best  Supporting  Actress
  Oscar   nomination  and  an  accompanying  resurgence  in  Hollywood
  popularity. She followed the success  of  Pulp  Fiction  with  three
  relatively  modest  romantic comedies, _Month by the Lake, A (1995)_
  (qv), _Truth About Cats and Dogs, The (1996)_ (qv),  and  _Beautiful
  Girls  (1996)_  (qv). The 1997 future dystopia _Gattaca (1997)_ (qv)
  did little for Thurman but  introduce  her  to  co-star  and  future
  husband  Ethan  Hawke  (the  two  married  in  May of 1998 and had a
  daughter later that year; Thurman had been married once  before,  to
  Gary  Oldman);  _Batman  &  Robin  (1997)_ (qv), that same year, was
  less than a bright spot in  Thurman's  career.  1998  proved  to  be
  similarly  disappointing,  with  both  _Avengers,  The (1998)_ (qv),
  which cast the actress as the cat-suited Emma  Peel  opposite  Ralph
  Fiennes'  John  Steed,  and  Bille August's _Misérables, Les (1998)_
  (qv)  experiencing  swift  deaths  at  the   box   office.   Thurman
  resurfaced  in  1999  in  Woody  Allen's widely acclaimed _Sweet and
  Lowdown (1999)_ (qv). The story of  a  famed  jazz  guitarist  (Sean
  Penn)  whose  talent  is  inversely  proportional to his merits as a
  human being, it cast Thurman as his brilliant but  unfaithful  wife.
  In  the  spring  of  2000  Uma signed on to become the new "face" of
  cosmetics giant Lancome. This, needless  to  say,  catapulted  Uma's
  popularity,  nabbing  her  over 9 magazine covers in just 12 months.
  Her new-found model status garnered her many movie  offers,  and  in
  late  2000  she  played  Anne  in _Vatel (2000)_ (qv), followed by a
  very strong performance as Charlotte  Stant  in  _Golden  Bowl,  The
  (2000)_  (qv),  co-starring  Anjelica Huston. With several films due
  for release and her second child on  the  way,  it  looks  like  the
  second  decade of Uma Thurman's career will be even more interesting
  than the first.
 Biography courtesy of the Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com).
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