Jessica St. Clair Biography

Jessica St. Clair (born September 21, 1976) is an American actress and improvisational comedian from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. With frequent collaborator Lennon Parham, she co-created and co-starred in NBC's Best Friends Forever and USA Network's Playing House.

Life and career

St. Clair was born and raised in Westfield, New Jersey, where she attended Westfield High School. She is a graduate of Middlebury College. She began her comedy career as a regular improviser and sketch performer at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York and Los Angeles, originally as a member of the improv team "Mother". Her first major television work was as a regular panelist on the VH1 series Best Week Ever, offering comedic insights on pop-culture and the news of the week. She then co-starred in the short-lived ABC sitcom In the Motherhood in 2009.

St. Clair has since gained notice for her frequent guest appearances (often alongside performing partner Lennon Parham) on podcasts such as Comedy Bang! Bang!, where she plays the show's teenage intern Marissa Wompler. In 2015, St. Clair and Parham spun-off their characters in a new Earwolf podcast called WOMP It Up!, with St. Clair as host Marissa Wompler and Parham co-hosting as Marissa's teacher Miss Listler. Frequent guests on the podcast include Brian Huskey as Marissa's stepdad "Seth" and Jason Mantzoukas as Marissa's former flame Eric "Gutterballs" Gutterman. The podcast ran through the summer of 2015, returning after a hiatus on November 16, 2015.

St. Clair and frequent collaborator Lennon Parham created and starred in the NBC comedy series Best Friends Forever, which premiered on April 4, 2012 and aired for one season. St. Clair and Parham created and starred in their second comedy Playing House, which premiered on USA on April 29, 2014 and concluded its second season in fall 2015. A third season was announced in January 2016.

St. Clair has had recurring roles on television programs such as Veep, Weeds, The McCarthys, Marry Me, American Housewife, Worst Week, and United States of Tara. She was also part of the recurring cast on the Comedy Central series Review, playing the role of Suzanne, the long-suffering wife of host Forrest MacNeil (played by Andy Daly). St. Clair's notable work in film includes supporting roles in Bridesmaids, She's Out of My League, Afternoon Delight, and Enough Said.

Personal life

St. Clair is married to playwright and poet Dan O'Brien. Their daughter Isobel Kelly O'Brien was born on October 1, 2013.

In 2015, St. Clair said she and Lennon Parham had both learned Transcendental Meditation.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2004	Terrorists	Jennifer Castle
2006	For Your Consideration	Hula Balls Spokeswoman
2007	Trendsetters	Julie Campbell	Short film
2008	College Road Trip	Ms. Prince
2009	Stay Cool	Darcy Portola
2009	'	Connor's Mother	Short film
2009	'	Selleck Customer, Wife
2009	Taking Chances	Reporter
2009	It's Complicated	Wedding Specialist
2010	She's Out of My League	Debbie
2010	'	Lena	Short film
2010	'	Herself	Short film; also writer
2010	Life As We Know It	Beth
2011	Bridesmaids	Whitney
2012	Wanderlust	Deena Schuster
2012	The Dictator	Denise
2013	Afternoon Delight	Stephanie
2013	Enough Said	Cynthia
2015	Addicted to Fresno	Kristen

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2002	'	Various	3 episodes
2003-2004	'	Correspondent	Series regular
2004	Things I Hate About You	Juror	Episode: "Patrick and Renee"
2005	Lies and the Wives We Tell Them To		TV pilot
2007	'	Jen	TV pilot
2007	Samantha Who?	Valerie	Episode: "The Wedding"
2008-2009	Worst Week	Sarah	6 episodes
2009	United States of Tara	Tiffany St. Claire	2 episodes
2009	In the Motherhood	Emily	Series regular
2009	Labor Pains	Pregnancy Class Instructor	TV movie
2009	Hank	Peggy	Episode: "Yard Sale"
2010	'	Kelly (voice) Friend (voice)	2 episodes
2010	Notes from the Underbelly	Violet	Episode: "Spinning Out of Control"
2010	Sons of Tucson	Marcia Teel	Episode: "Sally Teel"
2010	Weeds	Rebekkah	3 episodes
2011	Parks and Recreation	Denise Burkiss	Episode: "Road Trip"
2011	Curb Your Enthusiasm	Anna	Episode: "The Divorce"
2011	Love Bites	Chloe	3 episodes
2011	How to Be a Gentleman	Pam	Episode: "How to Attend Your Ex-Fiance's Wedding"
2012	Best Friends Forever	Jessica Black	Lead role; also co-creator, writer, executive producer
2013	The Office	Casey Dean	Episode: "A.A.R.M."
2013-2014	Veep	Dana	4 episodes
2014-2017	Review	Suzanne MacNeil	20 episodes
2014-present	Playing House	Emma Crawford	Lead role; also co-creator, writer, executive producer
2014-2015	The McCarthys	Katrina	6 episodes
2014-2015	Marry Me	Julie	3 episodes
2015	Comedy Bang! Bang!	Miss Polite	Episode: "Mark Duplass Wears a Striped Sweater and Jeans"
2015	Key & Peele	Amy	Episode: "Killer Concept Album"
2015	Sofia the First	Athena (voice)	Episode: "The Secret Library"
2016	Animals.	Kaitlin (voice)	Episode: "Pigeons."
2017	American Housewife	Chloe Brown Mueller	2 episodes
2017	Portlandia	Squirrel (voice)	Episode: "Separation Anxiety"
2017	Teachers	June Harris	Episode: "Held Back"
2017	Angie Tribeca	Mrs. Claire Farnsworth	Episode: "Welcome Back, Blotter"
2017	Bob's Burgers	Nancy (voice)	Episode: "Zero Larp Thirty"