Rosa Blasi (born December 19, 1972) is an American actress, author, model and therapist. She is known for her roles as Luisa Delgado in the Lifetime medical drama series '' Strong Medicine'' and Barb Thunderman in the

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

series ''

The Thundermans ''The Thundermans'' is an American comedy television series created by Jed Spingarn that aired on Nickelodeon from October 14, 2013 to May 25, 2018. The series stars Kira Kosarin, Jack Griffo, Addison Riecke, Diego Velazquez, Chris Tallman, R ...

''.

Early life

Blasi was born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

on December 19, 1972. Her parents, Rocco and Joyce Blasi, are of Italian, Irish, and Puerto Rican origin. Blasi is a classically trained mezzo soprano. She also comes from a strong

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

background; ranging from the esteemed Piven Performance Company, as well as

The Second City The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise and is the oldest ongoing improvisational theater troupe to be continually based in Chicago, with training programs and live theatres in Toronto and Los Angeles. The Second City Theatre o ...

, to starring in numerous musicals and touring with

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particularly popular with country audiences but also charted m ...

. Blasi has two sisters, Marina and Tasha, and two brothers, Michael and Rocky.

Career

Blasi's television debut was a recurring role 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 ...

soap opera ''

The Bold and the Beautiful ''The Bold and the Beautiful'' (often referred to as ''B&B'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. It premiered on March 23, 1987, as a sister show to the Bells' other soap opera ''The Yo ...

''. Soon to follow was a starring role in the MTV/

UPN The United Paramount Network (UPN) was an American broadcast television network that launched on January 16, 1995. It was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries' United Television. Viacom (through its Paramount Television unit, which pr ...

sitcom ''Hitz''. She soon found herself guest starring in numerous shows such as ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons. It premiered on September 16, 1993, and ended on May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee (as Grub ...

'', ''

Becker Becker () is one of the German-language surnames, along with Bäcker and Baecker, that derive from the root, which refers to baking. The surname began as a name for a baker (and thus his family). In northern Germany it can also derive from the ...

'', '' Caroline in the City'', '' V.I.P.'', ''Grown Ups'', and ''

Beverly Hills, 90210 ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (often referred to by its short title, ''90210'') is an American teen drama television series created by Darren Star and produced by Aaron Spelling under his production company Spelling Television. The series ran for ...

.'' She later starred in the dramatic

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

film ''Noriega: God's Favorite''. The film was directed by Roger Spottiswoode and co-starred Bob Hoskins. In her breakout role, Blasi starred in the Lifetime drama series '' Strong Medicine'' from 2000 to 2006 as a doctor in a medical drama with a focus on feminist politics, health issues, and class conflict. She made an appearance in "Shootout", a 2005 episode of ''

CSI: Miami ''CSI: Miami'' (''Crime Scene Investigation: Miami'') is an American police procedural drama television series that ran from September 23, 2002 until April 8, 2012 on CBS. Featuring David Caruso as Lieutenant Horatio Caine, Emily Procter as Dete ...

''. Audiences saw Blasi in her first role in a major film as the wife of

Bill Pullman William Pullman (born December 17, 1953) is an American actor. After graduating with a Master of Fine Arts degree in theater, he was an adjunct professor at Montana State University before deciding to pursue acting. He made his film debut in ''R ...

's character in ''

The Grudge ''The Grudge'' is a 2004 supernatural horror film directed by Takashi Shimizu, written by Stephen Susco, and produced by Sam Raimi, Robert Tapert, and Takashige Ichise. A remake of Shimizu's 2002 Japanese horror film '' Ju-On: The Grudge'', i ...

''. Blasi appeared during ''

The Vagina Monologues ''The Vagina Monologues'' is an episodic play written in 1996 by Eve Ensler which developed and premiered at HERE Arts Center, Off-Off-Broadway in New York and was followed by an Off-Broadway run in at Westside Theatre. The play explores c ...

'' at the Apollo Theater and has also been a recurring performer at the "What a Pair" benefit concert for breast cancer research and has recorded numerous radio and television voice-overs. She was a repeat guest on talk shows such as ''

Politically Incorrect ''Political correctness'' (adjectivally: ''politically correct''; commonly abbreviated ''PC'') is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in socie ...

with Bill Maher'' (where she admitted, in an appearance alongside Rev. Jerry Falwell, "No, my boobs aren't real—they're real paid for, though! No debt collectors trying to repo my boobs!") and '' The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn''. She played Ronnie Cruz in ''

Make It or Break It ''Make It or Break It'' ( ''MIOBI)'' is an American teen/family drama television series that focused on the lives of teen gymnasts who strived to make it to the Olympic Games in 2012. The series was inspired by Touchstone's 2006 teen comedy-dra ...

''. She also played Barb Thunderman in

's ''

'', as well as a recurring character in '' General Hospital''. She wrote a comedic memoir titled ''Jock Itch: Misadventures of a Retired Jersey Chaser'' (2011) published by

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News ...

Personal life

Blasi married New York Giants fullback

Jim Finn James Finn Jr. (born December 9, 1976) is a former American football fullback. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears as the final pick of the 1999 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Pennsylvania. High school career Fi ...

on February 14, 2004. Blasi gave birth to her first child, a daughter, on September 20, 2006. The couple divorced in 2008. On May 3, 2014, Blasi married Todd William Harris, a mortgage broker. They married 16 months after they first connected on

Match.com Match is an online dating service with web sites serving over 50 countries in twelve languages. Its headquarters are in Dallas, Texas. The company has offices in Dallas, West Hollywood, San Francisco, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, and Beijing. Match is ...

. She has a stepdaughter from Harris's previous relationship. In 2019, Blasi earned her

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in clinical psychology and is a registered associate marriage and family therapist with a specialization in addiction and recovery. On December 24, 2020, her father Rocco succumbed to COVID-19. He was 87 years old.

Filmography

Film

Television series

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Blasi, Rosa 1972 births Living people 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American actresses 21st-century American singers 21st-century American women singers Actresses from Chicago American actresses of Puerto Rican descent American female dancers American film actresses American mezzo-sopranos American musical theatre actresses American people of Irish descent American people of Italian descent American people of Puerto Rican descent American philanthropists American soap opera actresses American stage actresses American television actresses Hispanic and Latino American actresses Hispanic and Latino American women singers Singers from Chicago