Born:
December 25, 1952
in
Guyana
Best Known For:
ER and The Shield.
Early-life:
Carol Christine Hilaria Pounder was born on Christmas Day 1952 in Guyana. Her early years were spent on a sugar cane plantation, but when her parents moved to the US, she and her sister were sent to a convent boarding school in England, where Pounder became interested in art and the classics. On leaving, she moved to New York to study at Ithaca College, where she began acting.
Career:
Pounder's first professional work came in regional theatre, followed by several New York productions. She later moved to Hollywood, making her movie debut in 1979's All That Jazz. Roles in Union City and Prizzi's Honour followed, but she didn't make critics sit up and take notice until her lead role in 1987's Bagdad Cafe. Since then, she has appeared in Postcards from the Edge, Benny & Joon, Sliver, and Face/Off. A three-year stint in ER made her famous across the globe, and she appeared in acclaimed series The Shield for six years. Since 2009, she has played a recurring character in American fantasy drama Warehouse 13.
Quote:
'I'm an international small-town girl.'
Trivia:
Pounder is one of the founders of Artists for a New South Africa.