Alex Borstein

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Alexandrea Borstein (born February 15, 1971) is an American actress, voice actress, writer and comedian.

1 Early life
2 Career
3 Profile on MADtv
- 3.1 Characters
- 3.2 Impressions
4 Trivia
5 Selected filmography
6 External links

[edit] Early life

Borstein was born in Chicago, Illinois to a Jewish American family. Her family moved to Southern California during the early 1980s. She later moved to San Francisco, where she attended San Francisco State University. She took a job at an ad agency where she wrote print ads for Barbie.

[edit] Career

She started improv classes with the ACME Comedy Theater where she met both her writing partner and her future husband. Alex and her writing partner began to work on the animated series Casper. Shortly after, she left her ad job to become a full time writer. In 1996, while still writing for Casper, Alex worked on the popular TV show Power Rangers Zeo, where she provided the voice of Queen Machina, the queen of the Machine Empire.

Image:Lois griffin.jpg

In 1997 Alex became a cast member on the sketch comedy show MADtv. She is best known for playing Miss Swan, which was based on a combination of the singer Björk and her real life grandmother^{[citation needed]} who was Hungarian-Mongolian.^{[citation needed]}

During her time on MADtv she met Seth MacFarlane who was starting a FOX animated sitcom, Family Guy. Alex started providing the voice of Lois and various others. Alex became engaged to be married when her boyfriend Jackson Douglas proposed to her during the taping of a MADtv skit. She was married in 1999.

In 2000 Alex won the role of "Sookie St. James" in the WB show Gilmore Girls. In the original pilot, she played Sookie’s role, but she was unable to continue once the show was picked up because she was still under contract for MADtv. She was replaced by Melissa McCarthy. Alex instead guest starred in Season 1 in several episodes as the harpist Drella. She returned in Seasons 3 and 5 to play Miss Celine, a middle-aged celebrity fashion advisor. Alex’s husband, Jackson Douglas appears on Gilmore Girls as Jackson Belville, Sookie's husband.

Alex left MADtv in 2002, the same year Family Guy was canceled from the FOX lineup. However, Family Guy returned in 2005, and Alex now remains on as a producer and primary staff writer for the show where she also provides the voices of Lois and various others.

Since Alex left MADtv she has appeared playing roles such the school principal in The Lizzie McGuire Movie, the best friend of Halle Berry in Catwoman, and an employee at CBS News in Good Night, and Good Luck.

[edit] Profile on MADtv

Borstein joined the cast of MADtv during Season 3 as a featured player, but she was upgraded to repertory in mid-season. If Borstein had any memorable character on the show that would become a landmark, it would be Ms. Swan, a dim-bulb woman based on Björk (whom Borstein would also lampoon) and her real-life grandmother. Her character would star in a parody of X-Files, as well as a special five part sketch in Season 5, which featured celebrity appearances from the likes of Dennis Hopper, Gary Marshall, Mark Hamill, Susan Sarandon, and Tony Shalhoub. Ms. Swan is often considered the most popular and well known character in the series.^{[citation needed]}

Outside of Ms. Swan, Borstein also played Eracist Anne, "Stick Chick" Echo, singer Jasmine Wayne-Wayne, child prodigy Karen Goddard, lounge singer Shaunda, News at Six's outside-the-studio reporter Sue Napersville, and Cordo the GAP troll. If Seth Green would ever appear on the show and play mean boss Mr. Brightling, Borstein would play his mother Mama Brightling.

Borstein also impressed audiences with her hilarious, and dead-on impersonation of Rosie O'Donnell. Borstein also appeared as Björk, Chelsea Clinton, Jane Pauley, Janeane Garafalo, Monica Lewinski, Patsy Ramsey, Regis Philbin, and Vivian Vance (as Ethel Mertz in parodies of I Love Lucy).

[edit] Characters

Anne (The Eracists)
Cordo (The GAP troll)
Echo (Stick Chicks)
Jasmine Wayne-Wayne (Behind the Music)
Karen Goddard
Lily Wender
Mama Brightling
Ms. Swan
Sarah Jessica Johnson Love/Britney (Pretty White Kids with Problems)
Shaunda
Sue Napersville (News at 6)

[edit] Impressions

[edit] Trivia

Her husband Jackson made a marriage proposal during a skit on MADtv.
Her production company is named Crackerpants, Inc..
Her school bus driver was John Malkovich.^{[citation needed]}
She speaks fluent Spanish.^{[citation needed]}
She has made at least three guest appearances on Drawn Together, once as Lois Griffin, her character on Family Guy.
In an episode of Family Guy entitled "Don't Make Me Over", an animated version of a character she used to play on MADtv named Ms. Swan made a brief appearance and was voiced by her as well.