Biography
Thora Birch: Named after the Norse god of Thunder, Thora was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. At the age of four, a close family friend noticed her outgoing personality and uncanny knack for imitating commercials. At the age of six (and 40 national commercials later) she landed a spot on the NBC sitcom, Day by Day (1988) and won a Young Artist Award for her introductory performance in the family film, Purple People Eater (1988) with Shelley Winters and Neal Patrick Harris. Shortly thereafter, she landed another role in a short-lived sitcom, Parenthood (1990) based on the film of the same name and co-starring Leonardo DiCaprio.
By the age of 9, Thora had her life pretty much figured out; she told the L.A. Times that she planned on becoming a director by the age of 24, then spend a year ice skating, spend a year as a police officer, and finally become a singer. She picked up her last name (was previously credited simply as ‘Thora”) and gained widespread praise for her turn in Paradise (1991) as a neighborhood tomboy living next door to Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson. She scored a high-profile supporting role as Harrison Ford’s daughter in Patriot Games (1992) and reprised the role in Clear and Present Danger (1994) In between those two films she kept busy with All I Want for Christmas (1992), Hocus Pocus (1993), and Monkey Trouble (1994). In ’95, Birch graduated to adolescent territory with her turn in Demi Moore’s 1st producing effort, Now and Then (1995) and followed that up with the top-billed role in the snowy adventure, Alaska (1996).
She started out 1999 with the made for TV Night Ride Home, and ended it with the Academy Awards’ 1999 pick for Best Picture, American Beauty. Reaching this higher level of success launched a series of edgier and/or more mature roles for Thora in The Smokers (2000), Dungeons & Dragons (2000), Ghost World (2001, for which she received a Best Actress Golden Globe nomination), The Hole (2002), Homeless to Harvard (2003, Emmy nomination), and The Weinstein Company’s Slingshot (2005), following up with a dual role in Dark Corners (2006). She has most recently been seen in Train, Deadline, and Lifetime’s Pregnancy Pact, with more to follow…
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