Faith Coley Salie (born April 14, 1971) is an American journalist, writer, actress, comedian, television, radio, and podcast host and Rhodes scholar. She is a contributor to ''

CBS Sunday Morning ''CBS News Sunday Morning'' (normally shortened to ''Sunday Morning'' on the program itself since 2009) is an American news magazine television program that has aired on CBS since January 28, 1979. Created by Robert Northshield and original host ...

'' and a panelist on

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

’s '' Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!''. She hosted ''Science Goes To The Movies'' on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

and

CUNY TV , mottoeng = The education of free people is the hope of Mankind , budget = $3.6 billion , established = , type = Public university system , chancellor = Fél ...

. She is a storyteller for The Moth, with her story viewed over 4 million times. Her first book, ''Approval Junkie'', "a collection of daring, funny essays chronicling the author's adventures during her lifelong quest for approval," was published by

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

in April 2016. Salie adapted it into a solo show which she performed Off-Broadway at the Minetta Lane Theater in New York City in 2021. The play premiered at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia in 2019.

Early life

Salie was born in

South Weymouth, Massachusetts ("To Work Is to Conquer") , image_map = Norfolk County Massachusetts incorporated and unincorporated areas Weymouth highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250px , map_caption = Location in Norfolk County in Massa ...

, to Robert Salie and Gail Coley Salie. She grew up in

Dunwoody, Georgia Dunwoody is a city located in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. As a northern suburb of Atlanta, Dunwoody is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. It was incorporated as a city on December 1, 2008 but its area establishment dates back to t ...

, with her two older brothers. Salie was raised

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

. Salie began dancing at age three and decided she wanted to be an actor after getting the lead in the fourth-grade class play. She began performing professional children's theatre at 13. In college, she performed in plays and musicals with

Matt Damon Matthew Paige Damon (; born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. Ranked among ''Forbes'' most bankable stars, the films in which he has appeared have collectively earned over $3.88 billion at the North Americ ...

Mo Rocca Maurice Alberto Rocca (born January 28, 1969) is an American humorist, journalist, and actor. He is a correspondent for ''CBS Sunday Morning'', the host and creator of ''My Grandmother's Ravioli'' on the Cooking Channel, and also the host of '' Th ...

and

China Forbes China Forbes (born April 29, 1970) is an American singer and songwriter who has been the lead singer of the band Pink Martini since 1995. Life and career The daughter of Peggy (née Woodford) and Donald Cameron Forbes, China Forbes was born and ...

Education

Salie graduated in 1989 from

North Springs High School North Springs Charter High School (formerly called North Springs High School from 1963 to 2007) is a charter high school located in Sandy Springs, Georgia, United States. It is the only magnet school in the Fulton County School System The Ful ...

Fulton County, Georgia Fulton County is located in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,066,710, making it the state's most-populous county and its only one with over one million inhabi ...

(now

Sandy Springs, Georgia Sandy Springs is a city in northern Fulton County, Georgia and an inner ring suburb of Atlanta. The city's population was 108,080 at the 2020 census, making it Georgia's seventh-largest city. It is the site of several corporate headquarters, i ...

). She enrolled as an undergraduate at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

and transferred after one year to

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. She graduated

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...

and

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

from Harvard with a degree in History and Literature of Modern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. She won Harvard's prestigious literary award, the

Bowdoin Prize The Bowdoin Prizes are prestigious awards given annually to Harvard University undergraduate and graduate students. From the income of the bequest of Governor James Bowdoin, AB 1745, prizes are offered to students at the University in graduate and ...

, as well as the Jonathan Levy Award for best actor. Chosen for a

Rhodes scholarship The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

, she earned an

M.Phil. The Master of Philosophy (MPhil; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. In the United States, an MPhil typically includes a taught portion and a significant research portion, during which a thesis project is conducted under supervision. An MPhil ...

in Modern English Literature from

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College (, ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by William of Waynflete. Today, it is the fourth wealthiest college, with a financial endowment of £332.1 million as of 2019 and one of the s ...

Professional career

Upon moving to Los Angeles from Oxford, Salie appeared in small roles on ''

Sweet Valley High ''Sweet Valley High'' is a series of young adult novels attributed to American author Francine Pascal, who presided over a team of ghostwriters to produce the series. The books chronicle the lives of identical twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefi ...

'' and '' Married... with Children'' before being cast on '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine''. She played the role of Sarina Douglas in two episodes, "

Statistical Probabilities "Statistical Probabilities" is the 133rd episode of the syndicated American science fiction television series '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'', the ninth episode of the sixth season. Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures on ...

" (1997) and "

Chrysalis A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...

" (1998). Salie, as Sarina Douglas, appears on a ''Deep Space Nine'' trading card. Salie starred in the 2004

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels *Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 *Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing company ...

improvisational Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

situation comedy A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

'' Significant Others'', as well as other television sitcoms and dramas, including ''

Sex and the City ''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy, romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO. An adaptation of Candace Bushnell's Sex and the City (newspaper column), newspaper column and 1996 book anthology of the ...

'' and ''

Unhappily Ever After ''Unhappily Ever After'' is an American sitcom television series that aired for 100 episodes on The WB from January 11, 1995, to May 23, 1999, for a total of five seasons. The series was produced by Touchstone Television. Synopsis The series fo ...

'', in which she played goth girl Caitlin Blackpool for a season. As a

stand-up comedian Stand-up comedy is a comedy, comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of One-line joke ...

and "pop-culture pundit," she appeared on several

VH-1 VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Communi ...

shows including ''Best Week Ever'', ''I Love the...90s'', and ''Undateable''. In 2006, Salie moved to Manhattan to host the

Public Radio International Public Radio International (PRI) was an American public radio organization. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, PRI provided programming to over 850 public radio stations in the United States. PRI was one of the main providers of programm ...

show '' Fair Game from PRI with Faith Salie''. It was a daily satirical news and entertainment show and podcast. On ''Fair Game'', Salie interviewed hundreds of newsmakers including

Lorne Michaels Lorne Michaels (born Lorne David Lipowitz; November 17, 1944) is a Canadian-American producer, screenwriter, and comedian. He is best known for creating and producing ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1980, 1985–present) and producing the '' La ...

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

Anthony Hopkins Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins (born 31 December 1937) is a Welsh actor, director, and producer. One of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actors, he is known for his performances on the screen and stage. Hopkins has received many accolad ...

Zach Galifianakis Zachary Knight Galifianakis (born October 1, 1969) is an American actor and comedian. He appeared in ''Comedy Central Presents'' special and presented his show ''Late World with Zach'' on VH1. Galifianakis has starred in films including ''Th ...

Leonard Nimoy Leonard Simon Nimoy (; March 26, 1931 – February 27, 2015) was an American actor, famed for playing Spock in the ''Star Trek'' franchise for almost 50 years. This includes originating Spock in the original ''Star Trek'' series in 1966, then ...

, and

Chelsea Handler Chelsea Joy Handler (born February 25, 1975) is an American comedian, actress, writer, television host, and producer. She hosted the late-night talk show ''Chelsea Lately'' on the E! network from 2007 to 2014 and released a documentary series, ...

. She was a regular contributor to an ethics column for ''

O, The Oprah Magazine ''O, The Oprah Magazine'', also known simply as ''O'', is an American monthly magazine founded by talk show host Oprah Winfrey and Hearst Communications. Overview It was first published on April 19, 2000. , its average paid circulation was ...

''. Salie has appeared as a guest on ''

The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', often referred to as ''The Oprah Show'' or simply ''Oprah'', is an American daytime broadcast syndication, syndicated talk show that aired nationally for 25 seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in Chicag ...

'', ''

The O'Reilly Factor ''The O'Reilly Factor'' (originally titled ''The O'Reilly Report'' and also known as ''The Factor'') is an American cable television news and talk show. ''The O'Reilly Factor'' first aired in the United States on Fox News Channel on October 7 ...

'', and ''

Anderson Anderson or Andersson may refer to: Companies * Anderson (Carriage), a company that manufactured automobiles from 1907 to 1910 * Anderson Electric, an early 20th-century electric car * Anderson Greenwood, an industrial manufacturer * Anderson ...

''. Since ''Fair Game'', Salie has hosted many podcasts, including ''Wait Wait Naked and Ashamed'' (about the 20th anniversary of ''Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!''), ''Broadway Revival'' for Audible, ''Real Good'' for Stitcher, ''One Plus One'' for Wondery, and ''Authorized'' (about sex and romance in literature) for Audible. She has twice guest-hosted ''Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!'' In February 2011, she hosted a Bravo special of ''Approval Matrix'', a TV adaptation of ''

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

'' magazine's feature by the same name. From 2008 to 2010, she hosted

Sundance Channel Sundance Channel can refer to: * Sundance TV, formerly known as Sundance Channel (United States). * Sundance Channel (Canada) * Sundance Channel (Netherlands) * Sundance Channel (Europe) Sundance Channel can refer to: * Sundance TV, formerly kno ...

’s coverage of the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

, where she interviewed actors and directors such as

Jennifer Lawrence Jennifer Shrader Lawrence (born August 15, 1990) is an American actress. The world's highest-paid actress in 2015 and 2016, her films have grossed over $6 billion worldwide to date. She appeared in ''Time''s 100 most influential people i ...

Robert Redford Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the List of awards and nominations received by Robert Redford, recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Awards, Academy Award from four nomi ...

, Ryan Gosling,

Philip Seymour Hoffman Philip Seymour Hoffman (July 23, 1967 – February 2, 2014) was an American actor. Known for his distinctive supporting and character roles—typically lowlifes, eccentrics, underdogs, and misfits—he acted in many films and theatrical produ ...

Chris Rock Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and filmmaker. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best come ...

Amy Poehler Amy Poehler (; born September 16, 1971) is an American comedian, actress, writer, producer, and director. After studying improv at Chicago's Second City and ImprovOlympic in the early 1990s, Poehler co-founded the improvisational-comedy tro ...

Billy Bob Thornton Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker and musician. He had his first break when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller ''One False Move'', and received international attention after writing, directing, a ...

Joan Rivers Joan Alexandra Molinsky (June 8, 1933 – September 4, 2014), known professionally as Joan Rivers, was an American comedian, actress, producer, writer and television host. She was noted for her blunt, often controversial comedic persona—heavi ...

, Michelle Williams, Dax Shepard,

Elijah Wood Elijah Jordan Wood (born January 28, 1981) is an American actor and producer. He is best known for his portrayal of Frodo Baggins in the ''Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy (2001–2003) and '' The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey'' (2012). Wood ...

, and

Ashton Kutcher Christopher Ashton Kutcher (; born February 7, 1978) is an American actor, producer, entrepreneur, and former model. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a People's Choice Award, and nominations for two Young Artist Awards, a S ...

. Salie has been a contributor to

CBS News Sunday Morning ''CBS News Sunday Morning'' (normally shortened to ''Sunday Morning'' on the program itself since 2009) is an American news magazine A news magazine is a typed, printed, and published magazine, radio or television program, usually published ...

since 2009. She regularly does stories and commentaries on the show, on topics ranging from time travel to gender pronouns to British vs. American English to the journey of a pointe shoe to the Nutcracker stage. She is a regular panelist on the

quiz show '' Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!''. She hosted the live, daily Sirius show ''News & Notes'' for the Entertainment Weekly channel in 2013. In 2012, Salie hosted the

National Book Award The National Book Awards are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors. The Nat ...

s. She has moderated events at venues such as the Paley Center for Media, Tribeca Film Festival, 92nd Street Y, the American Museum of Natural History, the New York Public Library, the

World Science Festival The World Science Festival is an annual science festival produced by the World Science Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in New York City. There is also an Asia-Pacific event held in Brisbane, Australia. The foun ...

and

Comic-Con A comic book convention or comic-con is an event with a primary focus on comic books and comic book culture, in which comic book Fan (person), fans gather to meet creators, experts, and each other. Commonly, comic conventions are multi-day events ...

Approval Junkie and other writing

In Salie’s book ''Approval Junkie: My Heartfelt (and Occasionally Inappropriate) Quest to Please Just About Everyone, and Ultimately Myself'', she shares stories of the lengths she’s gone to for validation, such as winning her high school pageant, choosing the dress to wear to her divorce, and undergoing a kind of exorcism to please her ex-husband, whom she calls her “wasband.” She adapted the book into a play with Amanda Watkins, who directed both the Alliance Theatre's Hertz Stage in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

and the Off-Broadway runs. Salie has also written for ''The New York Times'', ''Time'', ''USA Today'', and ''McSweeney’s''.

Personal life

Salie is married to John Semel. They were married on October 9, 2011, in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. The couple has a son, born in 2012, and a daughter, born in 2014. Salie has been very public about her fertility treatments and challenges and speaks often about becoming a mother for the first time in her 40s. She lives in Manhattan with her family.

Filmography

Film

* ''Running Woman'' (1998) * ''Till Death Us Do Part'' (1998) * '' The Trip'' (2002) * ''

Wild Things 2 ''Wild Things 2'' is a 2004 erotic thriller film directed by Jack Perez and starring Susan Ward, Leila Arcieri, Isaiah Washington and Linden Ashby. It is a sequel to '' Wild Things'' (1998) and the second film in the ''Wild Things'' series. The ...

'' (2004)

Television

* ''

Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All ''Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All'' is a 1989 first novel by Allan GurganusReed, Susan and Hutchings, Davi"He's 42, She's 99—Together They Make the South Rise Again"''People Magazine'', September 18, 1989 which was on the New York Tim ...

'' (1994) * ''Alien Avengers'' (1996) * '' Married... with Children'' (1996) * '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' (1997–1998) * ''

'' (1998–1999) * ''

Sabrina the Teenage Witch ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'' is a comic book series published by Archie Comics about the adventures of a fictional American teenager named Sabrina Spellman. Sabrina was created by writer George Gladir and artist Dan DeCarlo, and first appear ...

'' (1999) * ''

Charmed ''Charmed'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Constance M. Burge and produced by Aaron Spelling and his production company Spelling Television, with Brad Kern serving as showrunner. The series was originally broadcast ...

'' (2000) * ''

'' (2000) * '' Black Scorpion'' (2001) * ''

Odyssey 5 ''Odyssey 5'' is a Canadian science fiction series, which was shown in 2002 on Space in Canada and on Showtime in the United States. The premise involves five space travelers who witness the destruction of the Earth; they are given the opportu ...

'' (2002) * ''

Astro Boy ''Astro Boy'', known in Japan by its original name , is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka. It was serialized in Kobunsha's ''Shōnen'' from 1952 to 1968. The 112 chapters were collected into 23 ''tankōbon'' vo ...

'' (2003) * '' Dragnet'' (2003) * ''

Miss Match ''Miss Match'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Jeff Rake and Darren Star and production company, produced by 20th Century Fox Television, Darren Star Productions, and Imagine Entertainment, Imagine Television. It aired ...

'' (2004) * '' Significant Others'' (2004) – main role * '' Close to Home'' (2006)

Awards

Salie has won five

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...

s as a Contributing Commentator to ''

'' with the show's wins for Outstanding Morning Program in 2013, 2015, 2019 and 2021.The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Announces the Winners of the 48th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards, 2021. https://theemmys.tv/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/day-48th-winners-telecast-cbs.pdf

References

External links

Official personal website
*
Faith Salie appearances on C-SPAN
{{DEFAULTSORT:Salie, Faith American television actresses American women comedians American radio personalities American Rhodes Scholars American television personalities American women television personalities Harvard University alumni Public Radio International personalities 1971 births Living people People from Sandy Springs, Georgia People from Weymouth, Massachusetts Actresses from Boston Actresses from Georgia (U.S. state) 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American comedians