Leah Remini Biography

Leah Marie Remini (born June 15, 1970) is an American actress, producer, author, and comedian. She is best known for her roles as Carrie Heffernan on the comedy series The King of Queens (1998-2007) and Lara in the film Old School, as well as a co-hosting The Talk from 2010-2011.

Born in New York City, Remini began her acting career as a teenager after she relocated with her mother to Los Angeles in 1983, obtaining guest roles on the television series Who's the Boss? and Living Dolls.

She was later cast on King of Queens in 1998, and appeared on the show until its conclusion in 2007. In 2015, Remini starred in the show Leah Remini: It's All Relative.

Also in 2015, Remini released Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, her memoir about her experience with Scientology and reasons for leaving it. In 2016, she followed up her memoir with a documentary television series, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, to highlight other former Scientologists' experiences.

Early life

Remini was born June 15, 1970 in Brooklyn, New York City, to George Remini, who owned an asbestos removal company, and his wife, Vicki Marshall, a schoolteacher. Her mother is of Austrian Jewish descent, while her father has Sicilian ancestry. Remini has an older sister named Nicole and four half-sisters: Christine, Stephanie (died 2013), Elizabeth, and Shannon.

She was baptized Roman Catholic and raised in the Catholic tradition during her early childhood; when she was nine years old, her mother joined the Church of Scientology, and Remini was thereafter raised as a Scientologist. At thirteen years old, Remini moved to Los Angeles, California with her mother, where she spent the remainder of her teenage years.

Career

Acting

One of Remini's early television roles was on Who's the Boss? as Charlie Briscoe, which led to a spin-off series entitled Living Dolls, in which Remini starred with Halle Berry. The show premiered in late 1989 and ran for 12 episodes before being cancelled.

Remini appeared on Saved by the Bell, playing Stacey Carosi. She then appeared in two series, First Time Out and Fired Up. In 1993, she appeared on Cheers as the daughter of Carla and Nick Tortelli (Rhea Perlman and Dan Hedaya). In 1994, Remini auditioned for the role of Monica Geller on Friends, but the role went to Courteney Cox. Remini later appeared in the 1995 Friends episode "The One with the Birth" in which she played a pregnant woman. In 1998, Remini landed the role of Carrie Heffernan on the CBS sitcom The King of Queens. The series was successful, and ran for nine seasons.

During her time on the show, she had a supporting role in the comedy film Old School (2003). Remini also starred in her own reality show, which aired on VH1. The King of Queens ran for nine seasons, from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007. Since The King of Queens ended, Remini has starred in nine-episode webisodes of In the Motherhood, along with Chelsea Handler and Jenny McCarthy. She has made two guest appearances on Chelsea Lately. On December 15, 2009, Remini appeared as Carrie Heffernan on Lopez Tonight, with George Lopez as Doug Heffernan in an episode reuniting the cast of the George Lopez sitcom. Remini and Holly Robinson Peete appeared on The Young and the Restless on July 28, 2011.

In October 2011, it was announced that Remini signed a talent development deal at ABC and ABC Studios that required the network and the studio to develop a comedy project for Remini to star in and produce. In March 2012, it was announced that Remini would star in an ABC comedy Family Tools, a remake of the UK comedy series White Van Man. The series premiered on May 1, 2013, and was not renewed owing to low ratings, ending its run on July 10, 2013.

On September 4 that year, it was announced publicly on Good Morning America that Remini would compete as a contestant on season 17 of Dancing with the Stars, in which she was partnered with professional dancer Tony Dovolani. The couple made it to the 10th week of competition and reached 5th place. Remini later returned in season 19 as a guest co-host on week 6. She returned as guest co-host on season 21 during weeks 6 and 7.

On November 22, 2013, it was announced that Remini joined the cast of the TV Land comedy The Exes, filling a recurring role starting in the third season.

Remini and her husband Angelo starred in a reality television series titled Leah Remini: It's All Relative. The show focuses on Remini's family life. It premiered on TLC on July 10, 2014. According to Remini, the purpose of the show is to highlight the fact that she's a normal person just like everyone else and that celebrity doesn't change that.

Remini developed an eight-episode series for A&E focusing on ex-Scientologists speaking candidly about their experiences entitled Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath. The show premiered November 29, 2016. In a statement released by the network Leah said:

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In early 2017, Remini returned to acting and was announced as one of the leads in NBC's sitcom What About Barb?, a gender-swapped version of the 1991 Frank Oz comedy What About Bob?. She will be playing Suzanne, a renowned psychotherapist and best-selling author. Jessica Gunning will be her co-star. In March 2017, it was announced Remini would reunite with Kevin James on the season finale of Kevin Can Wait.

The Talk

Remini was a co-host on The Talk, a CBS talk show which premiered October 18, 2010. Julie Chen, Sara Gilbert, Holly Robinson Peete, and Sharon Osbourne were her co-hosts. The show is similar to The View and seeks to address motherhood and contemporary issues. Remini drew criticism within the first week of the show's debut, accused of being too loud, brash, and obtrusive. It was stated on one episode that she had received a significant amount of negative Twitter feedback on this subject. Remini addressed the issue, stating she refused to change who she is and asserting that thousands of fans like her for who she is. Her co-hosts supported her response. After the first season ended, Remini was not asked to return to the show. Just weeks after Remini was let go, Holly Robinson Peete was also informed that her contract was not being renewed.

A refusal to disclose why Remini and Peete were fired brought on a great deal of criticism of the show and protests from the stars' fans. While there was much speculation that their former Talk co-host, Julie Chen, had involvement in the decision, as she is married to CBS President/CEO Leslie Moonves, it was Sharon Osbourne who stated, regarding their dismissals, in December 2011 on The Howard Stern Show: "Some people don't really know who they are. And you have to know who you are when you're in something like this. You can't pretend to be something you're not. You have to know your brand. You can't be all things to everyone." Osbourne replied to criticism about the refusal to inform Remini and Peete why they were let go, rhetorically stating, "Why should we call them to discuss?"

In March 2012, a heavily publicized Twitter dispute ignited between Remini and Osbourne when Remini fired back at Osbourne for her comments on The Howard Stern Show. In response to questions from her Twitter followers, Remini tweeted:

</ref> Haters Gon' Hate. True. But, Haters have the balls to say they 'Hate'...not call themselves your friend. She had us fired all the while calling me and Holly her friend. Heartbreaking. Yes. She had us fired she told Howard Stern. Explains why she never called us back.}}

In response, Osbourne tweeted, "I had absolutely nothing to do with her departure from the show and have no idea why she continues to take to Twitter to spread this false gossip." Leah knows that I have never been in the position to hire or fire anyone on the show. That being said, my only wish is that Leah would just stop all this negative, unprofessional and childish behavior. It's been seven months. It's time to move on. Leah is a very talented actress and I only wish her happiness and success. I know that better things are to come if she can just get beyond this negativity. Remini tweeted a challenge to Osbourne to establish in a court of law what statements she (Remini) had made that were untrue.

While co-hosting The Talk, Remini turned down various parts on situation comedies, stating that any new role would make her feel as if she were cheating on Doug Heffernan, her character's husband on The King of Queens. She added that she needs to spend more time with her child and family.

Personal life

Remini met her husband, a Puerto Rican man named Angelo Pagn, at a Cuban restaurant in 1996. He has three sons from previous relationships. They were married on July 19, 2003. Their daughter, Sofia, was born on June 16, 2004.

Scientology

Beginning at age nine, Remini was a member of the Church of Scientology. In December 2005, she helped promote the gala opening of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights Psychiatry: An Industry of Death museum on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Responding to criticism of Scientology during an interview on CNN, Remini said, "If somebody is going to get turned off about something because of what they read or heard, then that person's not smart enough to even enter a church. If you're really against something, then know what you're against."

In July 2013, Remini left the Church of Scientology, owing to policies that forbid members from questioning the management of church leader David Miscavige, which she believed was corrupt; the reported abuse of members of its Sea Org religious order; its policy of "disconnection"; and its practice of branding those who have left the church of their own accord as "Suppressive Persons". According to former high-ranking Sea Org member Mike Rinder, Remini's problems with the Church began when she asked about the whereabouts of Miscavige's wife Shelly at the 2006 wedding of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, and was told profanely that she lacked the rank to do so. Remini then filed a "knowledge report" that was critical of Miscavige, Cruise, and other senior Scientology members and behavior on the part of members that was inconsistent with Church rules. She was subsequently "subjected to years of 'interrogations' and 'thought modification'" that led to her being blacklisted within the Church, while fellow parishioners with whom she had been friends for decades wrote internal reports about her, resulting in a Church investigation into her family.

During a September 9, 2013, appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Remini discussed her departure from the Church and the loss of friends who are still in the Church and, according to Remini, are not permitted to have contact with her. Following her departure from the Church, she publicly expressed her appreciation for those who supported her departure. Remini's sister, Nicole, who had earlier left the Church herself, revealed that the rest of their family left the Church along with her to avoid being split up by the Church's disconnection policy. Writer and director Paul Haggis, who had previously been the most famous person to publicly disavow Scientology, wrote an open letter, published by The Hollywood Reporter, thanking Remini for standing by him after he left the Church and praised her "enormous amount of integrity and compassion".

In August 2013, it was disclosed that Remini had filed a missing person report with the Los Angeles Police Department concerning the disappearance of Shelly Miscavige. After the report was filed, the Los Angeles Police Department looked into the matter, allegedly met with Shelly in person, closed the investigation, and said Remini's report was "unfounded". The Church said in a statement that the whole affair was simply harassment and a publicity stunt for Remini.

In October 2013, it was reported that Remini had been subpoenaed to testify in a Comal County, Texas lawsuit against the Church of Scientology and its leader David Miscavige, regarding acts of alleged harassment and surveillance against the wife of a former member, Monique Rathbun (who was married to ex-Scientology executive Mark Rathbun). Rathbun's attorney, Ray Jeffery, says he wants Remini, a former Scientologist, to give a deposition in the hopes she could testify that Miscavige has vast influence over the operations of the church and had to have known about the alleged harassment.

Remini released her memoir Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology on November 3, 2015. In a 2015 interview with People magazine, Remini stated that she was embracing Catholicism and found comfort in the religion's practices, contrasting her experiences with Scientology.

Filmography

Film

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1997	Critics and Other Freaks	Actress at audition
1998	Follow Your Heart	Angie
2003	Old School	Lara Campbell
2017	Mad Families	Cheyenne
2017	The Clapper	Producer Louise	In post-production
2017	Handsome	Esta

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1988	Head of the Class		Episode: "Let's Rap"
1989	Who's the Boss?	Charlie Briscoe	2 episodes
	Living Dolls		12 episodes
1990	Normal Life	Carol	Episode: "And Baby Makes..."
1991	Paradise	Rose	Episode: "Out of the Ashes"
	The Hogan Family	Joanne	Episode: "A Sneaking Suspicion"
	The Man in the Family	Tina Bavasso	7 episodes
	Saved by the Bell	Stacey Carosi	6 episodes
1991-1993	Cheers	Serafina Tortelli	2 episodes
1992	Blossom	Ellen	Episode: "You Must Remember This"
	Getting Up and Going Home	Stephanie O'Neil	Television film
1993	Evening Shade	Daisy	3 episodes
	Harlan & Merleen	Frankie	Television film
1994	The Commish	Gail Ross	Episode: "Sergeant Kelly"
	Renegade	Tina	Episode: "The King and I"
1994-1996	Phantom 2040	Sagan Cruz (voice)	22 episodes
1995	Diagnosis: Murder	Agnes Benedetto	Episode: "How to Murder Your Lawyer"
	Friends	Lydia	Episode: "The One with the Birth"
	First Time Out	Dominique Costellano	12 episodes
	Star Witness		Television film
1996	Biker Mice from Mars	Carbine (voice)	2 episodes
	Home Improvement	Maria Gomez	Episode: "The Bud Bowl"
	NYPD Blue	Angela Bohi	Episode: "Closing Time"
1997-1998	Fired Up	Terry Reynolds	28 episodes
1998-2007	The King of Queens	Carrie Heffernan	207 episodes
2001	Hooves of Fire (American redub)	Vixen (voice)	Television film
2002	Legend of the Lost Tribe (American redub)	Koala (voice)
2003	VH1 Inside Out: Leah Remini's Wedding Special	Herself	Documentary
2004	VH1 Inside Out: Leah Remini's Baby Special
2005	Fat Actress		Episode: "The Koi Effect"
2007-2008	In the Motherhood	Kim	8 episodes
2009	Lopez Tonight	Carrie Heffernan	Cameo appearance Episode: "December 15, 2009"
	Married Not Dead	Jessica	Television film
	It Takes a Village	Karen
2010-2011	The Talk	Herself	Talk show host, 135 episodes
2011	Toddlers and Tiaras: Where Are They Now?	Juana	Short
2012	The High Fructose Adventures of Annoying Orange	Polly Prune / Butch Ravioli	2 episodes
2013	Family Tools	Terry Baumgardner	Lead character, 10 episodes
	Phineas and Ferb	Doreen	2 episodes
2013, 2014, 2015	Dancing with the Stars	Herself	Contestant on season 17 Eliminated 8th; 5th place Guest co-host for season 19 and season 21
2014	RuPaul's Drag Race	Herself / Guest Judge	Episode: "Glamazon by Colorevolution"
	Hollywood Game Night	Herself	Episode: "A Hollywood Scandal"
2014-2015	The Exes	Nikki Gardner	Recurring role, 15 episodes
	Leah Remini: It's All Relative	Herself	TLC reality show, 26 episodes
2015	Repeat After Me		Episode: "#1.5"
2016	Match Game		Recurring panelist, 2 episodes
2016-present	Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath		Presenter, 8 episodes
2017	Milo Murphy's Law	Ms. Baxter (voice)	Episode: "The Substitute/Time Out"
	What About Barb?	Dr. Suzanne Marvin	Television film
2017-present	Kevin Can Wait	Vanessa Cellucci	2 episodes

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1993	Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers	Grace Nakimura	Voice

Bibliography