Jessica R. Lundy (born March 20, 1966) is an American

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...

best known for her television roles, especially as Joel Fleishman's fiancée/ex-fiancée Elaine Shulman on the series '' Northern Exposure''.

Early life and education

Lundy was born in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

, the daughter of Jean (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

McDonald) and Joel Lundy, a surgical

oncologist Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...

. She grew up in

Avon, Connecticut Avon ( ) is a town in the Farmington Valley region of Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town had a population of 18,932. History Avon was settled in 1645 and was originally a part of neighboring Farmington, ...

. Lundy has a younger sister, Judy. Lundy attended the

Circle in the Square Theatre School Circle in the Square Theatre School is a non-profit, tax exempt drama school associated with Circle in the Square Theatre; it is the only accredited conservatory attached to a Broadway theatre. It offers two 2-year full-time programs: a Profession ...

. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 1987 at the

Tisch School of the Arts The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic and media arts school of New York University. Founded on August 17, 1965, Tisch is a training ground for artists, scholars of the a ...

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

, where she majored in drama and performing arts. Lundy moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

in 1990.

Career

Lundy made her film debut with '' Bright Lights, Big City'' (1988). That same year, she appeared in ''

Caddyshack II ''Caddyshack II'' is a 1988 American sports comedy film and a sequel to the 1980 film '' Caddyshack''. Directed by Allan Arkush and written by Harold Ramis (who co-wrote and directed the original ''Caddyshack'') and PJ Torokvei, it stars Jack ...

'' (1988). Lundy also appeared opposite

John Larroquette John Bernard Larroquette (; born November 25, 1947) is an American actor. He is known for his starring roles in the NBC military drama series '' Baa Baa Black Sheep'' (1976–1978), the NBC sitcom '' Night Court'' (1984–1992; for which he rec ...

in the 1990 film '' Madhouse''. Lundy auditioned for the role of

Elaine Benes Elaine Marie Benes () is a fictional character on the American television sitcom ''Seinfeld'', played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Elaine's best friend in the sitcom is her ex-boyfriend Jerry Seinfeld, and she is also good friends with George Costanz ...

on ''Seinfeld''. From 1990 to 1991, Lundy appeared opposite

Edward Woodward Edward Albert Arthur Woodward, OBE (1 June 1930 – 16 November 2009) was an English actor and singer. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he began his career on stage. Throughout his career, he appeared in productions ...

in the short-lived series '' Over My Dead Body''. Lundy has also performed in theater. In 1994, Lundy portrayed Rita Altabel in an

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

production of ''

Uncommon Women and Others ''Uncommon Women and Others'' (1977), is the first play by noted 20th-century American playwright Wendy Wasserstein. Production history The play was initially produced at Yale University in 1975, as Wasserstein's master's thesis. The play pre ...

''. From 1995 to 1996, Lundy played the titular role of Gloria in the short-lived sitcom ''

Hope and Gloria ''Hope & Gloria'' is an American sitcom television series created by Bill and Cheri Steinkellner, that aired on NBC from March 9, 1995, through June 22, 1996. The show was canceled after 35 episodes. It starred Cynthia Stevenson as Hope, a high- ...

''. In 1996, she appeared opposite

Tom Arnold Tom Arnold may refer to: * Tom Arnold (actor) (born 1959), American actor * Tom Arnold (economist) (born 1948), Irish CEO of Concern Worldwide * Tom Arnold (footballer) (1878–?), English footballer * Tom Arnold (literary scholar) (1823–1900), ...

in ''

The Stupids The Stupids are a fictional family which appear in a series of children's books written by Harry Allard and James Marshall. The Stupids draw their humor from the fact that they are incompetent to the point of confusing the most simple concep ...

''. From 2015 to 2019 Lundy portrayed Inspector Amanda Wainwright in the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

educational series '' The Inspectors''. In 2016, she won a

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 ...

for Outstanding Performer in Children's Programming for her performance on ''The Inspectors''.Another win - ‘The Inspectors’ star receives Daytime Emmy (Retrieved May 7th 2019) https://link.usps.com/2016/05/02/another-win/

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lundy, Jessica 1966 births 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from San Diego American film actresses American television actresses Circle in the Square Theatre School alumni Daytime Emmy Award winners Living people People from Avon, Connecticut