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
Lifetime may refer to:
* Life expectancy, the length of time a person is expected to remain alive
Arts, entertainment, and media
Music
* Lifetime (band), a rock band from New Jersey
* ''Life Time'' (Rollins Band album), by Rollins Band
* ...
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. Its ...
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,
Illinois 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 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 op ...
, to starring in numerous musicals and touring with Kenny Rogers. 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 Entertainme ...
soap opera '' The Bold and the Beautiful''.[ Soon to follow was a starring role in the ]MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
/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'', '' Becker'', '' 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 film ''Noriega: God's Favorite''. The film was directed by Roger Spottiswoode and co-starred Bob Hoskins
Robert William Hoskins (26 October 1942 – 29 April 2014) was an English actor. His work included lead roles in films and television series such as '' Pennies from Heaven'' (1978), ''The Long Good Friday'' (1980), ''Mona Lisa'' (1986), ''Who ...
.
In her breakout role, Blasi starred in the Lifetime
Lifetime may refer to:
* Life expectancy, the length of time a person is expected to remain alive
Arts, entertainment, and media
Music
* Lifetime (band), a rock band from New Jersey
* ''Life Time'' (Rollins Band album), by Rollins Band
* ...
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
Class conflict, also referred to as class struggle and class warfare, is the political tension and economic antagonism that exists in society because of socio-economic competition among the social classes or between rich and poor.
The forms o ...
. 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 Detec ...
''. 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'', it ...
''.
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 co ...
'' 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-dr ...
''. She also played Barb Thunderman in 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. Its ...
's ''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 ...
'', 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.
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
Finn ...
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 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