Molly Shannon Biography

Molly Helen Shannon (born September 16, 1964) is an American comic actress best known for her work as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1995 to 2001 and for starring in the films Superstar and Year of the Dog. More recently, she starred in NBC's Kath & Kim from 2008 to 2009 and on the TBS animated series Neighbors from Hell. Throughout Shannon's career she has appeared in a number of films in supporting roles.

Fellow Saturday Night Live alumna Kristen Wiig said on the 2010 DVD The Women of SNL, "The amazing Molly Shannon, she's just completely fearless."

Early life

Shannon was born in Shaker Heights, Ohio, on September 16, 1964, to an Irish American Catholic family. Her mother, Mary Margaret "Peg" (née Keating), was a teacher, and her father, James Francis Shannon, was a sales manager. Shannon was involved in a car accident when she was four years old which killed her mother, younger sister and cousin. Shannon attended St. Dominic School in Shaker Heights for grade school, and Hawken School in Gates Mills, Ohio. She attended New York University, where she studied drama and graduated from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts in 1987.

Career

Before Saturday Night Live, Shannon had a struggling career in movies, her most notable being a supporting role as Meg in the 1989 horror film remake of The Phantom of the Opera with Robert Englund. In 1991, she had a brief appearance in the second season of Twin Peaks, and in 1993, she appeared with minor roles in two episodes of In Living Color, the first in a fake TV commercials with Chris Rock (played by Shawn Wayans), and the second in a sketch with Jim Carrey, playing LAPD Sergeant Stacey Koon.

Shannon's major break came in February 1995, when she was hired as a featured player on Saturday Night Live to replace Janeane Garofalo after Garofalo left mid-season. Shannon was one of the few cast members to be kept (along with David Spade, Norm Macdonald, Mark McKinney and Tim Meadows) when Lorne Michaels engaged in a major cast overhaul between seasons 20 and 21.

She appeared in a 1997 episode of Seinfeld entitled "The Summer of George," where she played Sam, the co-worker who drove Elaine Benes crazy because she did not swing her arms while walking. She also appeared in Sheryl Crow's video for the song "A Change (Will Do You Good)" and played the recurring role of loony neighbor Val Bassett, Grace Adler's nemesis, on Will & Grace, appearing in five episodes over the sitcom's eight-season run. In 1998, she played the role of Emily Sanderson in the film A Night at the Roxbury, featuring Will Ferrell and Chris Kattan who were also cast members of SNL at the time.

In 1999, Shannon starred in Superstar, a feature film based on her most famous SNL character, Mary Katherine Gallagher, the awkward Catholic school student who aspires to be a musical superstar.

Shannon left SNL in 2001, surpassing Victoria Jackson as the show's longest-serving female cast member (she has since been surpassed by Rachel Dratch, Maya Rudolph, and Amy Poehler). In 2003, she appeared in the romantic comedy My Boss's Daughter and the television remake of The Music Man.

In 2004, she starred in a short-lived Fox network television series Cracking Up with actor Jason Schwartzman. That same year, she guest starred in an episode of Scrubs and starred as Mrs. Baker in the film Good Boy!. In 2006, Shannon was featured in the Sofia Coppola directed movie Marie Antoinette as Aunt Victoire. The next year, Shannon guest starred on ABC's Pushing Daisies and the film Evan Almighty. Shannon also made a rare move to drama, appearing in the critically acclaimed film Year of the Dog in 2007.

Shannon hosted Saturday Night Live on May 12, 2007, making her the second former female cast member to host (after Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and the first one to have been a cast member for Lorne Michaels (Louis-Dreyfus was a cast member under Dick Ebersol).

In 2008, Shannon starred as Kath in the US version of the hit Australian sitcom Kath & Kim. Also in 2008, she starred in an episode of the comedy series Pushing Daisies and the TV movie More of Me.

In early 2010, Shannon was cast in a recurring role on the Fox television series Glee as Brenda Castle, an astronomy and badminton teacher who has a rivalry with main character Sue Sylvester.

She returned to Saturday Night Live for a special Mother's Day episode on May 8, 2010, and also the October 2010 reunion special "Women of SNL".

Shannon replaced Katie Finneran in the role of Marge McDougall in the Broadway revival of Promises, Promises on 12 October 2010, and will remain through its closure on 2 January 2011 along with co-stars Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth.

Shannon's first children's book, Tilly the Trickster, was released September 1, 2011.

As of Spring, 2012, she has replaced Pauley Perrette as the spokesperson for Expedia.com.

Personal life

Shannon married artist Fritz Chesnut on May 29, 2004. They have two children: daughter Stella (b. 2003), and son Nolan (b. 2005).

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1989	'	Meg
1991	Twin Peaks	Judy Swain	1 episode
1993	In Living Color	Officer Trainee	1 episode
1993	General Hospital	Surrogate Mother #2	1 episode
1994	'		1 episode
1994	Sister, Sister	Cashier	1 episode
1994	Ellen	Woman	1 episode
1995	Saturday Night Live	Various	120 episodes (1995"2001)
1995	Return to Two Moon Junction	Traci
1996	Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace	Homeless Lady
1997	Dinner and Driving	Arguing Woman in Café
1997	'	Melody Pugh	1 episode
1997	Seinfeld	Sam	1 episode ("The Summer of George")
1998	'	Aanl
1998	Happiness	Nancy
1998	'	Emily Sanderson
1998	Daydream Believer	Susan Bradley
1999	Analyze This	Caroline
1999	Never Been Kissed	Anita
1999	My Neighbors the Yamadas	Matsuko Yamada	Dubbed English Voice
1999	Superstar	Mary Katherine Gallagher
1999	Will & Grace	Val Bassett	5 episodes (1999"2004)
2000	SNL Fanatic	Anna Nicole Smith	TV
2000	My 5 Wives	Barbara Van Dyke
2000	How the Grinch Stole Christmas	Betty Lou Who
2001	Wet Hot American Summer	Gail von Kleinenstein
2001	Saturday Night Live Primetime Extra 1	Elizabeth Taylor	TV
2001	Osmosis Jones	Mrs. Boyd
2001	Serendipity	Eve
2001	Shallow Hal	Mrs Mary Larson	Uncredited
2002	Sex and the City	Lily Martin	3 episodes
2002	'	Tracy
2003	American Splendor	Stage Actor Joyce
2003	'	Mrs Eulalie Mackechnie Shinn	TV
2003	Ed	Linda Berringer	1 episode
2003	My Boss's Daughter	Audrey Bennett
2003	Good Boy!	Mrs. Baker
2004	Scrubs	Denise Lemmon	1 episode
2004	'	Angie	TV
2004	Cracking Up	Lesley Shackleton	7 episodes (2004"2006)
2005	Here Comes Peter Cottontail: The Movie	Jackie Frost	Voice
2005	American Dad!	Kristy	3 episodes (2005"2007)
2006	Shut Up and Sing	Trish
2006	Scary Movie 4	Marilyn
2006	Marie Antoinette	Aunt Victoire
2006	Little Man	Soccer Mom
2006	Talladega Nights	Mrs. Dennit
2006	My Gym Partner's a Monkey	Pretties	1 episode
2006	'	Patience the Vampire	TV / Voice
2006	Gray Matters	Carrie
2006	Air Buddies	Molly	Voice
2007	'	Amanda Masterson
2007	Year of the Dog	Peggy
2007	30 Rock	Katherine Catherine Donaghy	1 episode
2007	Evan Almighty	Eve Adams
2007	More of Me	Alice	TV
2007	Pushing Daisies	Dilly Balsam	1 episode
2008	More of Me	Alice	Made of televisión
2008	Snow Buddies	Molly	Voice
2008	Igor	Eva	Voice
2008	Kath & Kim	Kath	18 episodes (2008"2009)
2009	What Goes Up	Penelope Little
2009	'	Jeannie	1 episode
2010	Glee	Brenda Castle	2 episodes: "Bad Reputation" and "Dream On"
2010	Neighbors from Hell	Tina Hellman	Voice
2011	Bad Teacher	Melody Tiara
2011	'	Frankie's sister, Janet	2 episodes:"Thanksgiving III" and The Name"
2011	Up All Night	Nancy	2 episodes: "Hiring and Firing" and "First Birthday"
2012	Casa de Mi Padre	Sheila
2012	The Five-Year Engagement	Onion Chef
2012	Hotel Transylvania	Wanda	Voice
2012	Web Therapy	Kirsten Noble	2 episodes: "National Exposure" and "Adaptation"
2013	Scary Movie 5	Heather Daltry
2013	Happily Divorced	Peggy	1 episode: "I Object"
2013	Enlightened	Eileen Foliente	TV Nominated"?Critics' Choice Television Award for Guest Performer in a Comedy Series Nominated"?Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
2013	Hannibal	"mother" of a special family	1 episode: ""?uf" pulled from broadcast in USA (parts not containing "mother" shown as webseries); episode shown outside USA
2013	Jessie	Col. Beverly Shannon	1 episode: "GI.Jessie"
2014	Life After Beth		Filming

Saturday Night Live characters

Original characters

• Mary Katherine Gallagher, Shannon's best known character. An odd, outcast student at a Catholic school who enjoyed performing in the choir and school plays. Shannon starred in a 1999 feature film based on the character.
• Sally O'Malley, a proud 50-year old dancer with a bouffant hairdo, who wore tight red pants and proclaimed how much she loved to "kick, stretch and kick!"
• Circe Nightshade, co-host of "Goth Talk" (with Chris Kattan).
• Miss Colleen, co-host of "Dog Show" (with Will Ferrell).
• Elizabeth, one of the "Southern Gals".
• Helen Madden, an overly exuberant self-proclaimed "Joyologist", who appeared on talk shows with the trademark catchphrase "I love it, I love it, I love it!"
• Veronica Kilvere, an airhead fashion model who hosts the "Veronica & Co." talk show.
• Janette Blow, wife of Joe Blow (played by Colin Quinn) on "The Local News" public-access television cable TV talk show.
• Terri Rialto, co-host of the NPR radio show "Delicious Dish" (with Ana Gasteyer).
• Margaret Healy, a woman who enjoys doing lots of voices and accents.
• Jeannie Darcy, an unfunny mullet-haired stand-up comedian, who ended almost every joke with the phrase "Don't get me started, don't even get me started!"

Celebrity impressions

• Angelina Jolie
• Ann Miller
• Anna Nicole Smith
• Betty Boothroyd
• Brooke Shields
• Elizabeth Taylor
• Björk
• Bobbi McCaughey
• Cate Blanchett
• Courtney Love
• Donatella Versace
• Debbie Rowe
• Denise Rich
• Gisele Bündchen
• Gwen Stefani
• Emma Bunton
• Janis Joplin
• Julianna Margulies
• Kim Cattrall
• Liza Minnelli
• Madonna
• Meredith Vieira
• Minnie Driver
• Monica Lewinsky
• Paula Zahn
• Shania Twain
• Soon-Yi Previn
• Tori Amos