Helen Hunt

Seriously, who isn't mad about Helen Hunt, the star of the wildly successful television sitcom, Mad About You? As the wife of co-star Paul Reiser (annoying guy in a bunch of telecom commercials), Helen charmed millions and millions of viewers with her unique humor and approachable good looks. Although journalists from "Off the Records, on the Q-T - Hush Hush" magazine have quoted Peas as saying, "Don't get me wrong, I like Helen just as much as the next busboy, but there is just something odd about her facial bone structure that I can't quite grasp."

Helen Hunt was born on June 15, 1963 in Culver City, CA; her papa is Gordon Hunt, a pioneer in the research of ketchup synthesis. Okay okay, we are being silly here�Gordon Hunt has no relations to the popular Hunt's food products, but he is a certified, first rate acting coach and director. Now, the staffs of L&B are informed (and we received with a bit of skepticism) that Helen decided to pursue an acting career at the age of SIX! Furthermore, by the age of ten, Helen had already studied at the Interlochen School (Michigan) and at Goodman Theater (Chicago), and had appeared in several TV movies. In addition, the young Helen made an appearance on The Mary Tyler Moore Show (at nine), secured a recurring role on St. Elsewhere, and starred in The Taming of the

Shrew and Our Town (two classical NY theatre productions). Hey wait, our featured star from last month, Denzel Washington, was the start in St. Elsewhere...groovy...far-out!!!

By the early to mid-80's, Helen found herself entrenched in the reputation as a "TV" actress; aiming to expaaaaannnd her acting resume, she actively sought out projects on the big screen and on the stages of Broadway. Ms. Hunt received her first film assignment in Peggy Sue Got Married (1986), where she was the on-screen daughter of Kathleen Turner and our favorite Cage-man Nicolas. During this early period in her career, Helen received critical acclaim for her role in The Waterdance. By this time, Ms. Hunt is already established herself as one of the, if not THE "hardest-working gal in showbiz (quote by Eric Stoltz)." Since then, Helen's amazing performances in Twister (1996) and As Good As It Gets (1997) have only perpetuated America's love affair with her.

Another movie of note on Helen's resume is Project X, where she hooked up with co-star Matthew Broderick. That "venture" didn't last long, however, and Helen then dated a C.A.A. agent (what is that? China Airlines Agency?). Helen Hunt eventually married Hank Azaria, who does the voices of several The Simpsons characters; this Hank Azaria also played the hilariously funny cross-dressing houseboy in The Birdcage (another connection to our former celebrity of the month, Robin Williams). Hunt and Azaria got married in July of 1999, but failed to live happily ever after, as they formally separated awfully close to their one-year anniversary. Sometimes, having a cross-dressing routine and multiple cartoon voices just aren't enough to keep a girl happy.

Before we leave you, we would like to remind L&B readers that in the series Mad About You (where Helen won FOUR consecutive Emmys), the co-starring dog choice was very good. Unfortunately, the choice of the co-starring dog in As Good As It Gets was rather regrettable.