Ellen Pompeo

Ellen Kathleen Pompeo (born November 10, 1969) is an American actress.

Pompeo was born in Everett, Massachusetts, on November 10, 1969.

Her father was born in Gesualdo, Italy, and was of Italian, English, and Irish descent; and her mother of Irish ancestry.

She was raised as a Catholic.

Her mother died of an accidental painkiller overdose when she was four.

They moved to New York City in 1995, where she was approached by a casting director to appear in ads for Citibank and L'Oreal.

Pompeo's early work included adverts and small independent films.

She made her television debut in 1996 by guest-starring in the NBC legal police drama Law & Order.

She made her feature film debut in 1999 with the romantic comedy Coming Soon, and went on to play minor roles in films like In the Weeds and Mambo Café but found little initial success.

She made her feature film debut in Coming Soon (1999), playing a small part.

She made her second appearance in Law & Order in 2000, and then guest-starred on Strangers with Candy, Strong Medicine, and Friends.

She then moved to Los Angeles in 2001.

She participated in the film Mambo Café with Thalía.

A turning point came in her career in 2002, when she was noticed for her role in Brad Silberling's romantic drama Moonlight Mile.

Pompeo was then cast in ABC's popular medical drama Grey's Anatomy, and gained worldwide recognition for her portrayal of the title character Dr. Meredith Grey.

The role on the long-running series earned her a Screen Actors Guild Award.

The character became widely popular, making Pompeo one of the most renowned television actresses.

In 2002, Pompeo was selected by director Brad Silberling for a lead role in his film Moonlight Mile, playing Jake Gyllenhaal's character's sympathetic love interest.

While generally praising the cast, Jeff Vice of Deseret News noted Pompeo's "extremely appealing" performance.

Other commentators considered her performance worthy of an Academy Award.

Also in 2002, Pompeo appeared in the biographical crime drama film Catch Me If You Can; and in 2003, she appeared in Old School as Luke Wilson's love interest.

Pompeo's other film roles include the comedy Old School (2003), the superhero film Daredevil (2003), the caper film Art Heist (2004), and the comedy drama Life of the Party (2005).

In addition to her acting career, she has directed two episodes of Grey's Anatomy and founded a production company, Calamity Jane.

She played the role of Karen Page in the 2003 film Daredevil, and the following year, she starred in Art Heist.

She portrayed Jim Carrey's ex-girlfriend, Naomi, in the 2004 film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Although her scenes were cut from that film, she felt grateful that director Michel Gondry selected her for it.

Pompeo landed her first major role in 2005 on the ABC medical drama series Grey's Anatomy, created by Shonda Rhimes.

She has played the title character and series' protagonist, Meredith Grey, a surgical intern at the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital since the show's pilot episode.

In 2006, Pompeo said, "I think having my mother die at such a very young age—when she was 39—[made me] appreciate life so much."

She has five older siblings: three sisters and two brothers.

She was nicknamed "the pencil", and "stracciatella" (gelato flavor).

She worked as a bartender in Miami when she started dating her then boyfriend.

She has been married to music producer Chris Ivery since 2007; they have three children.

Her father remarried soon after; he died on September 1, 2012.

In 2016, she was ranked fourth in the list of highest paid TV actresses by Forbes, with earnings of $14.9 million; she became the third highest-paid female and the fifth highest-paid actor overall in 2018 with earnings of $23.6 million.

She was also the highest-ranked actress from a drama series on the list.

One of the world's highest-paid actors since 2017, she has made multiple appearances on Forbes ' year-end lists.

Her accolades include a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination.

Born in Everett, Massachusetts, Pompeo moved to Miami and then New York City, where a casting director discovered her and signed her for an ad campaign for L'Oreal.

She made her screen debut with NBC's legal drama Law & Order, then guest-starred in other television shows, including the comedy Strangers with Candy, the medical drama Strong Medicine and the sitcom Friends.