Concetta Tomei

Character actress Concetta Tomei was born on December 30 1945 and raised in her hometown of Kenosha Wisconsin the only child of a policeman who was a talented artist on the sly She came from a long line of educators and was likely drawn to that career at an influential age She attended the University of Wisconsin at Madison where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in education After teaching school in a Milwaukee suburb for four years however she abruptly quit to pursue her acting dream She became a student of the famed Goodman School of Drama in Chicago where she received a another degree a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theater arts She started her professional career on the stock and repertory stages and gathered a formidable list of early credits appearing in such plays as A Streetcar Named Desire Candida Blithe Spirit and The Corn Is Green She made her debut on Broadway replacing Carole Shelley in The Elephant Man playing the actressgrande dame Mrs Kendal She continued in her role when a subsequent tour went out starring David Bowie Seeking oncamera experience she moved out West in the 1980s and found plentiful work on TV with her allcontrolling severelooking femmes which culminated in the critically acclaimed Vietnam War drama China Beach 1988 in which she played a hardasnails major She continued with a host of guest parts on LA Law Murphy Brown Picket Fences and Wings among many others Not readily known for her film work she has nevertheless offered occasional arch support since 1991 in such pictures as Dont Tell Mom the Babysitters Dead 1991 Twenty Bucks 1993 Out to Sea 1997 Deep Impact 1998 The Muse 1999 and View from the Top 2003 Another regular series TV role came with Providence 1999 in which she played a chainsmoking mom