Kathy Najimy

Kathy Ann Najimy (/nəˈdʒɪmi/ nə-JIM-ee; born February 6, 1974 in San Diego, California)[1] is an American actress. She is best known for voicing Peggy Hill on the animated television series King of the Hill (1997–2010), and for her roles in the films Sister Act (1992) and Hocus Pocus (1993), as well as her portrayal of Olive Massery on the NBC sitcom Veronica's Closet (1997–2000). Prior to achieving wider recognition, she was known for her professional partnership with Mo Gaffney, working as the duo "Kathy and Mo".
== Early life ==
Najimy was born on February 6, 1974 in San Diego, California, the daughter of Lebanese American parents Samia (née Massery) and Fred Najimy, a postal worker.[2][3] She was raised Maronite Catholic[4] and attended Crawford High School.[5]
== Career ==
Najimy's film career began in the early 1990s, with a number of off-beat minor roles, but her first major role was in the 1992 comedy Sister Act, in the role of Sister Mary Patrick. She reprised this role in 1993 in Sister Act 2. She also starred in Hocus Pocus with Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker as the Sanderson sisters. She appeared with Ellen Degeneres in three episodes of her sitcom Ellen, playing a different character each time (including a non-speaking cameo in the iconic "Puppy Episode") and in the TV movie If These Walls Could Talk 2. In 1997, she lent her voice to Warner Bros. Family Entertainment as Tilly the Hippo in the film Cats Don't Dance, alongside actors Scott Bakula, Jasmine Guy, John Rhys-Davies and Don Knotts, and has also played a role on the Nightmare Ned video game. In 1998, she made a cameo in Bride of Chucky as the maid who discovers Diane's and Russ's bodies. In 1999, she played the Stepmother in CinderElmo, a primetime special for Sesame Street. In 2001, she co-starred in the hit comedy film Rat Race alongside John Cleese, Rowan Atkinson, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Whoopi Goldberg, Jon Lovitz and Seth Green. She guest starred in That's So Raven. She has made four movies with Goldberg (Soapdish, Sister Act 1 and 2, and Rat Race).
From film, Najimy expanded into television roles, including a dramatic recurring role on Chicago Hope. Najimy was part of the cast of Veronica's Closet from 1997 to 2000. She co-created and starred in the hit Off-Broadway show and HBO specials "Kathy & Mo", with friend and actress Mo Gaffney. She appeared as Mae West in the Broadway hit Dirty Blonde. She also portrayed Dr. Mildred Finch on Numbers. Najimy also provided the voice of the drama teacher, Miss Thespius, in the 1998 Disney show Hercules: The Animated Series.
In 2003, Najimy provided the voice of Margalo in Stuart Little: The Animated Series, taking over from Melanie Griffith. She is the co-creator and director of the musical revue Back to Bacharach and David, which ran in New York City in 1992 and 1993, and which she directed again in Los Angeles in April 2009. She also appeared in Drop Dead Diva. In October 2009, Najimy played a police officer investigating an attack on Wisteria Lane on an episode of Desperate Housewives.[6] In March 2010, she appeared in the Ugly Betty episode "Million Dollar Smile", portraying Betty's new orthodontist, Dr. Frankel. In July 2011, Najimy appeared in TNT's Franklin and Bash episode "Bangover", playing a judge. Premiering in August 2015, Najimy appeared in Disney's Descendants as the Evil Queen. In the movie, she makes references to her previous role as Mary Sanderson in Hocus Pocus.[7]
== Other work ==
Najimy, an outspoken feminist, is also noted as an activist for human rights and gay rights. She uses her celebrity status to donate money to charities by appearing on game shows. She appeared as a contestant on a celebrity version of The Weakest Link where she won $50,000 (beating Anthony Anderson) for The Feminist Majority Foundation's Campaign to Stop Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan. She has appeared three times on Celebrity Poker Showdown and won the season six tournament, donating the $100,000 to V-Day, an organization that helps stop violence against women and girls. She was also crowned Grand Champion on CBS's Gameshow Marathon in 2006, donating the $100,000 winnings to Girls Best Friend, a charity that helps empower girls.[citation needed] She's also worked with PETA on a number of animal welfare issues and posed with Todd Oldham for the "I'd Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" campaign.[8] In 2013, she was a contestant on Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off on Team Rachael where she was playing for PETA, cooking only vegetarian food. She was eliminated on the Feb. 3 episode, reaching third place.[9] PETA awarded her their Compassionate Action Award in 2014.[10]
In 1981, she was a contestant on Family Feud, which was used as the finale in Gameshow Marathon. Najimy and her family were winners on both shows. In the 1981 Feud episode they won by 230 points, and in the Marathon version they scored 202 points to give Najimy the win. Najimy also appeared on the $25,000 Pyramid as a civilian contestant, on the episode dated July 31, 1985. Her celebrity partners were Constance McCashin and LeVar Burton. She failed to reach the bonus round, although she did win a Commodore 64 computer. She claimed, on the Pyramid show, that she also had been on American Bandstand. She returned to the "Pyramid" (The $100,000 Pyramid) on the June 26, 2016, episode as a celebrity guest opposite Rosie O'Donnell.[11] She appeared once again in Season 2, Episode 7 on July 23, 2017 to play against Alexandra Wentworth, helping her contestant partner win the $150,000 grand prize.[12][13]
Najimy is also very vocal about issues regarding weight and body imagingamong females. In August 2006 Najimy voiced her opinions over a remark made by Heidi Klum on the television series Project Runway after Klum said one model's outfit made her look plus sized.[14]
== Personal life ==
In August 1998, Najimy married actor/singer Dan Finnerty.[15][16] Gloria Steinemofficiated the ceremony.[15] Najimy and Finnerty have daughter, named Samia, born in 1996, and a son, named Joey born in 1999, and a son, named Ben born in 2002, and a daughter, named Sally born in 2005.
== Filmography ==
=== Film ===
Year	Title 	Role 	Notes
1991	The Hard Way 	Lang's "Girl Friday" 	
1991	Soapdish 	Tawny Miller 	
1991	The Fisher King 	Crazed Video Customer 	
1992	Topsy and Bunker: The Cat Killers	Marge 	
1992	This Is My Life 	Angela 	Credited as Kathy Ann Najimy
1992	Sister Act 	Sister Mary Patrick 	American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
Nominated – MTV Movie + TV Award for Best Breakthrough Performance
1993	Hocus Pocus 	Mary Sanderson 	Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress
1993	Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit 	Sister Mary Patrick 	Nominated – American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
1994	It's Pat 	Tippy 	
1995	Jeffrey 	Acolyte 	
1997	Cats Don't Dance 	Tillie Hippo (voice) 	
1997	Nevada 	Ruth 	
1998	Hope Floats 	Toni Post 	
1998	Zack and Reba 	Mrs. Simpson 	
1998	Bride of Chucky 	Tabby, Motel Maid 	
1998	The Jungle Book: Mowgli's Story 	Chil (voice) 	Direct-to-video
2000	Attention Shoppers 	Penelope 	
2001	The Wedding Planner 	Geri 	
2001	Rat Race 	Beverly 'Bev' Pear 	
2003	Star Baby 	Alexis 	
2004	Bottle Bay Musical Movie 	Bingette Bunny (voice) 	
2006	Say Uncle 	Maggie Butler 	
2006	Brother Bear 2 	Aunt Taqqiq (voice) 	Direct-to-video
2008	WALL-E 	Mary (voice) 	
2010	Step Up 3D 	Moose's Mom 	
2012	BearCity 2: The Proposal 	Rose 	
2012	The Guilt Trip 	Gayle 	
2013	A Madea Christmas 	Kim 	
2015	Descendants 	The Evil Queen Grimhilde	
2016	No Letting Go 	Dr. Nancy Harris 	
2017	A Change of Heart 	Ruthie 	
2017	Dating My Mother 	Lisa 	
2018	Dumplin 	Ms. Mitchellchuck 	
=== Television ===
Year 	Work 	Role 	Notes
1985 	The $25,000 Pyramid 	Herself (contestant) 	Celebrity Guests: Constance McCashin & LeVar Burton[18]
1985 	Walls of Glass 	 	
1991 	The Kathy & Mo Show: Parallel Lives	Herself 	Television Special
CableACE Award for Performance in a Comedy Special(shared with Mo Gaffney) (1993)
Nominated – CableACE Award for Writing an Entertainment Special(shared with Mo Gaffney) (1993)
1994 	In Search of Dr. Seuss 	Kathy Lane 	Television movie
1994 	Ellen 	Theresa / Lorna Irons / Woman in Gay Bar 	3 Episodes: "So Funny" (Season 2) / "Go Girlz" (Season 3) / "The Puppy Episode, Part 2" (Season 4)
1994 	ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter 	Dr. Femus 	Short
1995 	The Kathy & Mo Show: The Dark Side 	Herself 	Television Special
CableACE Award for Comedy Special(shared with Mo Gaffney, Paula Mazur & Dean Parisot) (1995)
CableACE Award for Performance in a Comedy Special(shared with Mo Gaffney) (1995)
1996 	Adventures from the Book of Virtues	The Old Woman (voice) 	1 episode
1996 	Chicago Hope 	Dr. Barbara 'Bix' Konstadt 	recurring role; 3 episodes
Nominated – Viewers for Quality Television Award for Best Recurring Player (1996)
1997–1999 	Hey Arnold 	Madame Blanche (voice) 	2 episodes
1997–2000 	Veronica's Closet 	Olive Massery 	67 episodes
OFTA Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Series (1998)
OFTA Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (1998)
1997–2010 	King of the Hill 	Peggy Hill(voice) 	258 episodes
Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting by a Female Performer in an Animated Television Production(2001)
OFTA Television Award for Best Voice-Over Performance (2001)
Nominated – Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting by a Female Performer in an Animated Television Production(1998)
Nominated – OFTA Television Award for Best Voice-Over Performance (1998, 2004, 2005)
1997 	Early Edition 	Psychic 	Episode: "Psychic"
1997 	Shantay 	Toyota Carter 	Short
1998–1999 	Hercules 	Thespis the Muse (voice) 	2 episodes
1998–2000 	Pepper Ann 	Coach Doogan / Margot LaSandre (voice) / Additional Voices	5 episodes
1999 	The Wild Thornberrys 	Ostrich #1 / Sand Grouse (voices) 	Episode: "Have Yourself a Thornberry Little Christmas"
1999 	The Sissy Duckling 	Mother Duck #1 (voice) 	Television film
1999 	CinderElmo 	Elmo's Stepmother 	Television movie
2000 	If These Walls Could Talk 2 	The doctor in the made-for-TV movie's "2000" segment 	Television movie
2000 	Leaving Peoria 	Dr. Albright 	Short
2000–2001 	Little Bill 	Mrs. Shapiro (voice) 	2 episodes; succeeded Madeline Kahn, the original voice of Mrs. Shapiro, shortly after her death in 1999.
2001 	The Legend of Tarzan 	Dania (voice) 	1 episode
2002 	The Scream Team 	Mariah 	Television movie
2002 	Looking Glass 	White Queen 	Television movie
2003 	The Mummy 	Calliope / Aglaophone #2 (voices) 	1 episode
2003 	Stuart Little 	Margalo (voice) 	Episode: "The Meatloaf Bandit"
2003 	Ozzy & Drix 	Loretta Epstein (voice) 	1 episode
2004–Present	Oswald 	Bingette Bunny (voice) 	
2004 	Higglytown Heroes 	Photographer Hero (voice) 	1 episode
2004 	Rocket Power 	Patsy (voice) 	1 episode
2005 	Wayside 	Mrs. Jewls (voice) 	Television movie
2005 	Getting Played 	Dr. Heidi Z. Klemmer 	Television movie
2005 	Balto III: Wings of Change 	Dipsy (voice) 	Video
2006 	Scooby-Doo! Pirates Ahoy! 	Sunny St. Cloud (voice) 	Video
2006 	Tom and Jerry: Shiver Me Whiskers 	Blue Parrot Betty (voice) 	Video
2006 	Rugrats 	Goosey (voice) 	1 episode
2006 	That's So Raven 	Lora Stelladora 	Episode: "The Dress Is Always Greener"
2006–2007 	Numbers 	Dr. Mildred Finch 	9 episodes
2007 	The Suite Life of Zack & Cody 	Principal 	Episode: "First Day of High School"
2008 	Tinker Bell 	Minister of Summer (voice) 	Video
2009 	Drop Dead Diva 	Claire Porter 	Episode: "The Magic Bullet"
2009 	Desperate Housewives 	Detective Denise Lapera 	Episode: "Careful the Things You Say"
2010 	Ugly Betty 	Dr. Frankel 	Episode: "Million Dollar Smile"
2010–present	American Dad! 	Barbara "Barb" Hanson (voice) 	
2010 	RuPaul's Drag Race 	Herself (Guest Judge) 	Episode: "Country Queens"
2011 	Mr. Sunshine 	Myrna 	Episode: "Employee of the Year"
2011 	Five 	Rocky 	Television movie
2011–2012 	Make It or Break It 	Sheila / Sheila Baboyon / Kelly's Mom 	5 episodes
2012 	Men at Work 	Sasha Ryan 	Episode: "Heterotextual Male"
2012 	How to Fall in Love 	Kim 	Television movie
2012 	Stars in Shorts 	Sid's Mother 	
2013 	Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off	Herself 	Season 2 participant (Team Rachael)
2013 	The Big C 	Therapist 	4 episodes
2014–2015 	Inside Amy Schumer 	Herself 	2 episodes
2014–present	Veep 	Wendy Keegan 	10 episodes
2015–present	Younger 	Denise Heller 	5 episodes
2015–2016 	Unforgettable 	Sandra Russo 	Series regular, 10 episodes
2015 	A Christmas Melody 	Sarah 	Hallmark television movie
2015 	Difficult People 	Carol Donato 	Episode: "The Children's Menu"
2016 	Harvey Beaks 	Hanzi / Angry Bride 	4 episodes
2016–2017 	Graves 	Sylvia Miller 	4 episodes
2016–2018 	The $100,000 Pyramid 	Herself (celebrity guest) 	5 episodes
2017 	Elementary 	Rayna Carno 	Episode: "Rekt in Real Life"
2017 	BoJack Horseman 	Marcie (voice) 	Episode: "Commence Fracking"
2017 	The President Show 	Ivana Trump 	Episode: "I Came Up with Christmas: A President Show Christmas"
2018 	Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure 	Mother (voice) 	Episode: "Freebird"
Category:Living people
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Category:Actresses from San Diego
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Category:American film actresses
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Category:American people of Lebanese descent
Category:American television actresses
Category:American voice actresses
Category:Contestants on American game shows
Category:LGBT rights activists from the United States
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Category:Stuart Little
Category:1974 births
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