Maya Rudolph | |
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Rudolph at the 2012 Paley Center
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Born |
Gainesville, Florida, U.S. |
July 27, 1972
Residence | San Fernando Valley, California, U.S. |
Occupation |
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Years active | 1996–present |
Partner(s) |
Paul Thomas Anderson (2001–present) |
Children | 4 |
Parent(s) |
Richard Rudolph Minnie Riperton |
Maya Khabira Rudolph (born July 27, 1972) is an American actress, comedian, and singer. After becoming a member of The Groundlings improv troupe in the late 1990s, Rudolph joined the NBC television series Saturday Night Live, on which she was a cast member from 2000 to 2007. She then ventured into film, appearing in 50 First Dates (2004) and A Prairie Home Companion (2006).
Since leaving Saturday Night Live, Rudolph has appeared in Grown Ups (2010), Bridesmaids (2011), Grown Ups 2 (2013) and Sisters (2015). She has also lent her voice to the animated films Shrek the Third (2007) and Big Hero 6 (2014). In addition to her film appearances, Rudolph also starred as Ava Alexander on the NBC sitcom Up All Night from 2011 to 2012, and co-hosted her own variety show Maya & Marty.
Rudolph was born in Gainesville, Florida, the daughter of soul singer-songwriter Minnie Riperton and composer, songwriter, and producer Richard Rudolph. Her father is an Ashkenazi Jew, and her mother was African-American. Her paternal grandfather was Sidney Rudolph, a philanthropist who once owned all of the Wendy's and Rudy's restaurants in Dade County, Florida. Her great-grandfather was Lithuanian; he was born in Vilnius, changed his surname from "Rudashevsky" to "Rudolph", and was one of the founding members of Congregation Beth Shalom, a Conservative Jewish synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.