Anna Chlumsky Biography

Anna Chlumsky (born December 3, 1980) is an American film, stage and television actress who rose to prominence for her role as Vada Sultenfuss in My Girl (1991), as well as in its 1994 sequel. Chlumsky abandoned her acting career in 1999 to study at the University of Chicago, and pursued other work before returning to acting in her late twenties, starring in independent films such as Blood Car (2007) and In the Loop (2009). As of 2012, Chlumsky has a starring role in the HBO series Veep, for which she was nominated in 2013 for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

Career

1989"1998: Early career

Chlumsky entered show business at an early age, modeling with her mother in an advertising campaign, though her roles in My Girl (1991) and My Girl 2 (1994) brought her fame. She also starred in Trading Mom (1994) alongside Sissy Spacek, as well as in Gold Diggers: The Secret of Bear Mountain with Christina Ricci. In the mid to late 1990s, Chlumsky starred in several television film and series.

1999"2005: Hiatus from acting

As a child Chlumsky considered working with horses or in paleontology. Once she reached adulthood, roles became scarce and she began to consider other careers. She attended the University of Chicago, graduating in 2002 with a BA in International Studies.

After graduation she worked as a fact-checker for the Zagat Survey and served as an editorial assistant for a HarperCollins science fiction-fantasy imprint. She found this work unsatisfying and decided to return to acting. She went to the Atlantic Acting School in Manhattan to receive formal training.

2006"present: Return

Chlumsky appeared on the March 8, 2007, episode of 30 Rock, called "The Fighting Irish," as Liz Lemler; as Mary Calvin in a season 17 episode of Law & Order, first airing on January 12, 2007; and as Lisa Klein in a season 20 episode, first airing March 15, 2010. She was in four episodes of the ABC dramedy Cupid.

Chlumsky starred in the Off Broadway production of Unconditional by Brett C. Leonard at The Public Theater, which opened on February 2008; it was produced by the LAByrinth Theater Company, She also starred in Lanford Wilson's Balm in Gilead in November 2005 at the American Theatre of Actors in New York City. In June 2012 she starred in the world premiere of David Adjmi's 3C at the Rattlestick Playwrights Theater in New York.

She appeared in Armando Iannucci's BBC Films political satire In The Loop, costarring with Peter Capaldi, Tom Hollander, Chris Addison, James Gandolfini, and Mimi Kennedy, a quasi-spinoff of Iannucci's BBC TV series The Thick of It. She plays Liza, a State Department assistant in the movie. Chlumsky currently plays the chief of staff to vice-president Julia Louis-Dreyfus in HBO's Veep, also produced by Iannucci.

Dan Aykroyd, who played her father in the two My Girl films, has said that a script for a third film has been in development since 2003. In April 2012 Chlumsky "put to rest" any rumors that such a film was in development.

In addition to her role on Veep, Chlumsky has appeared in multiple television series between 2011 and 2013, including White Collar, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and NBC's adaptation of Hannibal.

Personal life

Chlumsky was born in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of Nancy (Zuncic), a singer, actress, and former stewardess, and Frank Chlumsky, Jr., a chef and saxophone player. She is of Czech descent. Chlumsky graduated from Walther Lutheran High School, and in 2002 from the University of Chicago.

In October 2007, Chlumsky announced her engagement to Army Reserve member Shaun So. They married on March 8, 2008 in Brooklyn, New York. The couple has one daughter, Penelope Joan So (born July 2013).

Filmography

Film and television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1989	Uncle Buck	School Child
1991	My Girl	Vada Margaret Sultenfuss	Won " MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss (shared with Macaulay Culkin) Nominated " MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo (shared with Culkin)
1994	My Girl 2	Vada Sultenfuss
1994	Trading Mom	Elizabeth Martin
1995	Gold Diggers: The Secret of Bear Mountain	Jody Salerno	Won " Young Artist Awards for Best Young Leading Actress in a Feature Film
1997	A Child's Wish	Missy Chandler	TV movie
1997	Miracle in the Woods	Gina Weatherby / Field Pea	TV movie
1998	Cupid	Jill	Episode: "Meat Market"
1998	Early Edition	Megan Clark	Episode: "Teen Angels"
2005	Wait	Cara	Short
2007	Eight Days a Week	Riley McGann	Unaired series
2007	30 Rock	Liz Lemler	Episode: "The Fighting Irish"
2007 2010	Law & Order	Mary Calvin, Lisa Klein	"Charity Case" "Innocence"
2007	Blood Car	Lorraine
2008	Eavesdrop	Chelsea
2009	House Rules	Scotty Fisher	TV movie
2009	In the Loop	Liza Weld
2009	The Good Guy	Lisa
2009	Cupid (2009 TV series)	Josie	4 episodes; the 2nd rom-com dramedy of the same name
2009	My Sweet Misery	Chloe
2009	12 Men of Christmas	Jan Lucas	TV movie
2010	The Quinn-tuplets	Rachel Quinn	TV (pilot) movie
2010	Civil Unions: A Love Story		Short
2010	Covert Affairs	Vivian Long	Episode: "I Can't Quit You Baby"
2011	Lights Out	Charlie	Episodes: "Headgames", "The Shot"
2011	Three Weeks, Three Kids	Jennifer Mills	TV Movie
2011	The Pill	Nelly
2011	White Collar	Agent Melissa Matthews	Episodes: "Where There's a Will", "Countdown"
2012	Bert and Arnie's Guide to Friendship	Sabrina
2012" present	Veep	Amy Brookheimer	Series regular Nominated " Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (2013)
2012	Army Wives	Jessica Anderson	Episode: "Tough Love"
2012	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Jocelyn Paley	Episode: "Twenty-Five Acts"
2013	Hannibal	Miriam Lass	Episode: "Entrée"