Rita Wilson

Margarita Ibrahimoff (born October 26, 1956)[1] better known as Rita Wilson is an American actress, singer, songwriter and producer. She appeared in the films Sleepless in Seattle (1993), Now and Then (1995), Jingle All the Way (1996), The Story of Us (1999) and Runaway Bride (1999). Wilson has also performed on Broadway and on television, and she has produced several films, including My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002).
== Early life ==
Rita Wilson was born as Margarita Ibrahimoff in Los Angeles, California.[1] Her mother, Dorothea Genkos, was Greek, born and raised in Sotirë near Dropull i Sipërm in Albania, close to the border of Greece.[2] Her father, Hassan Halilov Ibrahimoff was a Pomak (Bulgarian Muslim) born in Breshtene (Oraio), Greece, close to the border of Bulgaria. Wilson's father moved from Bulgaria to the United States in 1949.[3][4][3][5] He converted from Islam to Orthodox Christianityupon his marriage, and changed his name to Allan Wilson in 1960,[3] choosing his name after a local street. Rita was raised in the Greek Orthodox faith.[6] Her father in addition to Bulgarian could speak "Russian, Turkish, Polish, Greek, a little bit of Italian, a little bit of French" according to Rita's husband Tom Hanks, who said he modeled his portrayal of the character Viktor Navorski in the film The Terminal on his father-in-law.[7]
== Career ==
Wilson's career began with a guest appearance on The Brady Bunch in the 1972 episode "Greg's Triangle," where she played Pat Conway, one of the candidates running against Marcia for head cheerleader. She also twice appeared on M*A*S*H in 1982 as Nurse Lacey as well as the sitcoms Three's Company and Bosom Buddies starring her future husband Tom Hanks, and as Hester Rose Crane, the deceased mother of Frasier Crane on Frasier. She has appeared in numerous movies, including Volunteers, Teen Witch, Barbarians at the Gate, The Bonfire of the Vanities, Mixed Nuts, Sleepless in Seattle, Now and Then, That Thing You Do!, Jingle All the Way, Runaway Bride, Invisible Child, The Story of Us, Raise Your Voice, It's Complicated, and Larry Crowne.
She played Susan Borman, wife of astronaut Frank Borman, in the HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon. On television, she guest starred in many television series, including Frasier, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Good Wife, Body of Proof, and Girls.
Wilson performed on Broadway, where she performed the role of Roxie Hart from June to August 2006 in the revival of Chicago.
She is often credited with being the driving force behind actress-playwright Nia Vardalos's movie deal for My Big Fat Greek Wedding, which became the highest-grossing independent film of all time and for which she served as a producer.[8] Since Wilson is a Greek-American, Wilson was convinced that she could relate to the situation in which the film's main character, Toula, found herself. Her confidence in Vardalos paid off tremendously. A sequel, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2, which Wilson co-produced and in which she had a supporting role, was released in 2016.
Wilson's long-standing interest in singing led her to record a debut solo album, AM/FM, which she released on May 8, 2012, on the Decca Records label. The album featured classics from the 1960s/1970s, including a cover of "Wichita Lineman" that she performed with the song's writer-composer, Jimmy Webb.[9][10]
== Personal life ==
Wilson married actor Tom Hanks in 1988, and they have two sons, Chester and Truman.[11] Wilson has two stepchildren, Colin and Elizabeth Hanks. Wilson has one grandchild, and two step-grandchildren.[12]
She contributed to the Moffitt Cancer Center by donating "True Hearts" jewelry made of sterling silver and 14k gold. The proceeds will[when?] benefit several charities. Wilson has credited Rosie O'Donnell as inspiration for her charitable work, particularly with cancer and children's charities.[13]
She is a member of the Greek Orthodox Church.[14]
In April 2015, Wilson announced that she was diagnosed with breast cancer and had undergone a double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.[15] After a one-month hiatus, she returned to Larry David's Fish in the Dark Broadway show.[16]
== Activism ==
In 2015 Wilson signed an open letter which the ONE Campaign had been collecting signatures for; the letter was addressed to Angela Merkel and Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, urging them to focus on women as they serve as the head of the G7 in Germany and the AU in South Africa respectively, meant to set the priorities in development funding before a main UN summit in September 2015 that was to establish new development goals for the generation.[17]
== Filmography ==
Roles as an actress
Year	Title 	Role 	Notes
1972	The Brady Bunch 	Pat Conway 	Television program
Episode: "Greg's Triangle"
1979	The Day It Came to Earth[18] 	Debbie 	
1980	Cheech & Chong's Next Movie 	Actress 	
1981	Bosom Buddies 	Cindy 	Television program
Episode: "All You Need is Love"
1982	M*A*S*H 	Nurse Lacey 	Television program
Episodes: "Blood and Guts"
"Hey, Look Me Over"
1983	Three's Company 	Agnes Platt 	Television program
Episode: "Alias Jack Tripper"
1985	Volunteers 	Beth Wexler 	
1986	227 	Dr. Peterson 	Television program
Episode: "Mary Nightingale"
1989	Teen Witch 	Dancer 	
1989	Midnight Caller 	Connie Zymak 	Television program
Episodes: "Mercy Me"
"Based on a True Story"
"The Reverend Soundbite"
1990	Sinners[citation needed] 	Margaret 	
1990	The Bonfire of the Vanities 	P.R. Woman 	
1991	Tales from the Crypt 	Jess Gilcrist 	Television program
Episode: "Mournin' Mess"
1993	Sleepless in Seattle 	Suzy 	
1994	Mixed Nuts 	Catherine O'Shaughnessy 	
1995	Now and Then 	Chrissy DeWitt Williams 	
1996	No Dogs Allowed[citation needed] 	 	
1996	That Thing You Do! 	Marguerite 	
1996	Jingle All the Way 	Liz Langston 	
1998	Psycho 	Caroline 	
1998	The Emperor's New Clothes: An All-Star Illustrated Retelling of the Classic Fairy Tale	The Weaver Thief Wife 	Voice
1999	Invisible Child 	Annie Beeman 	
1999	Runaway Bride 	Ellie Graham 	
1999	Frasier 	Mia Preston/Hester Crane	Television program
Episode: "Momma Mia"
1999	The Story of Us 	Rachel 	
2001	Perfume 	Roberta 	aka Dress to Kill
2001	The Glass House 	Grace Avery-Baker 	(uncredited)[citation needed]
2001	Curb Your Enthusiasm 	Anne Michaelson 	Television program
Episode: "The Doll"
2002	Auto Focus 	Anne Crane 	
2003	My Big Fat Greek Life 	Cousin Ariana 	Television program
Episode: "Ariana"
2004	Raise Your Voice 	Francis Fletcher 	
2005	The Chumscrubber 	Terri Bratley 	
2005	Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D 	Beta Station Commander 	Voice only
2006	Beautiful Ohio 	Judith Messerman 	
2009	My Life in Ruins 	Elinor 	
2009	Old Dogs 	Jenna 	
2009	It's Complicated 	Trisha 	
2011	The Art of Getting By 	Vivian Sargent 	
2011	Larry Crowne 	Wilma Gammelgaard 	
2011	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit 	Bree Mazalon 	Television program
Episode: "Delinquent"
2011	The Good Wife 	Viola Walsh 	Television program
Episodes: "Net Worth"
"Great Firewall"
"Live from Damascus"
"Two Girls, One Code"
"Outside the Bubble"
2012	Jewtopia 	Arlene Lipschitz 	
2012	Who Do You Think You Are? 	Herself 	Television program
Episode: "Rita Wilson"
2013	The Tutor[citation needed] 	Tina 	Short film
2013	Girls 	Evie Michaels 	Television program
Episodes: "It's About Time"
"Females Only"
"Truth or Dare"
"Iowa"
"Wedding Day"
2014	Dawn Patrol 	Shelia 	
2016	My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 	Anna 	
2016	Brother Nature 	Cathy Turley 	
2018	Gloria Bell 	 	
Category:1956 births
Category:American film actresses
Category:American people of Bulgarian descent
Category:American people of Greek descent
Category:American television actresses
Category:American voice actresses
Category:Living people
Category:Actresses from Los Angeles, California
Category:American female singers
Category:Decca Records artists
Category:American film producers
Category:Film producers from California
Category:Women film producers
Category:Actresses of Bulgarian descent
Category:Actresses of Greek descent
Category:20th-century American actresses
Category:21st-century American actresses
Category:Greek Orthodox Christians from the United States