  patricia davies clarkson (born december 29, 1959) is an american actress. she has starred in many leading and supporting roles in films such as the station agent, the green mile, far from heaven, high art, dogville, good night, and good luck, easy a, and cairo time. she was nominated for the academy award for best supporting actress and the golden globe for her performance in pieces of april (2003). she twice won the primetime emmy award for outstanding guest actress in a drama series for her recurring role in six feet under. in 1998 she was nominated for a drama desk award for best featured actress in a play for her off-broadway performance in the maiden's prayer. ==early life== clarkson was born in new orleans, louisiana, the daughter of jacquelyn (nÃ©e brechtel), a local new orleans politician and councilwoman, and arthur, a school administrator who worked at louisiana state university's department of medicine.patricia clarkson profile, filmreference.com; accessed july 9, 2014.patricia clarkson biography, movies.yahoo.com; accessed july 9, 2014. she studied drama at fordham university, where she graduated summa cum laude, and earned her mfa at the yale school of drama"clarkson shifts her weight" in the washington times (march 28, 2008), p. d1 before making her film debut in the untouchables in 1987. ==career== clarkson's broadway theatre credits include the house of blue leaves and eastern standard. she had supporting roles in a series of high-profile films in her early career. her first movie role, at age 27, was as the wife of eliot ness (kevin costner) in the untouchables. she was also featured in the dead pool, rocket gibraltar and everybody's all-american. she starred in the short-run television series davis rules, and in the miniseries alex haley's queen. more o
1959_births 20th-century_American_actresses 21st-century_American_actresses Actresses_from_New_Orleans,_Louisiana American_film_actresses American_people_of_Catalan_descent American_stage_actresses American_television_actresses Fordham_University_alumni Living_people Primetime_Emmy_Award_winners Yale_School_of_Drama_alumni