Jill Marie Schoelen (born March 21, 1963) is an American former

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a 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 term is (), li ...

. She is best known for ''

Chiller A chiller is a machine that removes heat from a liquid coolant via a vapor-compression, adsorption refrigeration, or absorption refrigeration cycles. This liquid can then be circulated through a heat exchanger to cool equipment, or another p ...

'' (1985), '' The Stepfather'' (1987), '' Cutting Class'' (1989), ''

The Phantom of the Opera ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (french: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra) is a novel by French author Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serial in from 23 September 1909 to 8 January 1910, and was released in volume form in late March 1910 by Pier ...

'' (1989), '' Popcorn'' (1991), '' Rich Girl'' (1991), and ''

When a Stranger Calls Back ''When a Stranger Calls Back'' is a 1993 American made-for-television psychological horror film and a sequel to the 1979 classic '' When a Stranger Calls'' which reunites stars Carol Kane and Charles Durning (reprising their roles as Jill Johnso ...

'' (1993). For her numerous horror film appearances, she is widely regarded as a scream queen.

Career

Schoelen’s theatrical debut was in the 1981 TV pilot '' The Best of Times'', which starred

Crispin Glover Crispin Hellion Glover (born April 20, 1964) is an American actor. He is known for portraying eccentric characters on screen, such as George McFly in ''Back to the Future'' (1985), Layne in ''River's Edge'' (1986), Andy Warhol in ''The Doors' ...

and

Nicolas Cage Nicolas Kim Coppola (born January 7, 1964), known professionally as Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. Born into the Coppola family, he is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Gui ...

. Schoelen went on to star in such movies as ''

D.C. Cab ''D.C. Cab'' (also known as ''Street Fleet'') is a 1983 American comedy film written and directed by Joel Schumacher, based on a story by Topper Carew and Schumacher, and starring Max Gail, Adam Baldwin, Mr. T, Charlie Barnett, Gary Busey, Mar ...

'' (1983), ''

'' (1985), '' That Was Then... This Is Now'' (1985), '' Babes in Toyland'' (1986), '' The Stepfather'' (1987), ''

Billionaire Boys Club The Billionaire Boys Club was an investing and social club organized in 1983 by Joseph Henry Hunt (born Joseph Henry Gamsky) in Southern California. It was originally simply named "BBC", the initials of Bombay Bicycle Club, a restaurant Hunt had ...

'' (1987 TV miniseries), '' Cutting Class'' (1989), ''

'' (1989), '' Popcorn'' (1991), ''

'' (1993), and '' There Goes My Baby'' (1994). She guest starred on episodes of '' T. J. Hooker'', ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books is a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adolescence in the American Midwest (Wisconsin, Kansas, ...

'', '' Murder, She Wrote'', '' Diagnosis: Murder'', ''

Sara Sara may refer to: Arts, media and entertainment Film and television * ''Sara'' (1992 film), 1992 Iranian film by Dariush Merhjui * ''Sara'' (1997 film), 1997 Polish film starring Bogusław Linda * ''Sara'' (2010 film), 2010 Sri Lankan Sinhal ...

'', ''

Hell Town ''Born to the West'' (reissue title ''Hell Town'') is a 1937 American Western film starring John Wayne, Marsha Hunt, and John Mack Brown. Filmed in black and white and based upon a Zane Grey novel, the movie incorporates footage from an ea ...

'', and Aaron Spelling’s '' The Heights'' (1992). In 1988,

Sean Penn Sean Justin Penn (born August 17, 1960) is an American actor and film director. He has won two Academy Awards, for his roles in the mystery drama ''Mystic River'' (2003) and the biopic ''Milk'' (2008). Penn began his acting career in televisi ...

cast her in a dramatic play he wrote and directed, ''The Kindness of Women''. Schoelen and Penn worked together again on stage, starring opposite each other in

David Rabe David William Rabe (born March 10, 1940) is an American playwright and screenwriter. He won the Tony Award for Best Play in 1972 ('' Sticks and Bones'') and also received Tony award nominations for Best Play in 1974 ('' In the Boom Boom Room''), ...

’s ''

Hurlyburly ''Hurlyburly'' is a dark comedy play by David Rabe, first staged in 1984. The title refers to dialogue from Shakespeare's ''Macbeth''. Plot ''Hurlyburly'' depicts the intersecting lives of several low-to-mid-level Hollywood players in the 198 ...

'' (1988/1989), in a production that David Rabe also directed. In 2009, she released her debut album, ''Kelly’s Smile'', a jazz album that is composed of songs related to her childhood friend, Kelly Troup, who grew up across the street from Schoelen.

Personal life

Schoelen was born in Burbank, California. She dated Keanu Reeves during the time they starred in '' Babes in Toyland'' (1986). She was engaged to Brad Pitt for three months in 1989. In 1993, Schoelen married film composer

Anthony Marinelli Anthony Marinelli (born March 19, 1959) is an American musician, composer and conductor. In his early career, he composed and performed accompaniment on the synthesizer for albums including Michael Jackson's ''Thriller'' (1983). Marinelli ha ...

, and soon after retired from her acting career to be a stay-at-home mother. Schoelen and Marinelli have two sons.Starzik.com
accessed May 20th, 2015.

Filmography

Films

TV

Radio and podcast appearances

Schoelen appeared on Ken Reid's ''TV Guidance Counselor'' podcast on August 10, 2016.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schoelen, Jill 1963 births Actresses from Los Angeles American film actresses American television actresses Living people People from Burbank, California 21st-century American women