*Melanie Griffith
(59 years old)
9 August 1957
New York City, New York, USA
5' 9¼" (1.76 m)
(59 years old)
9 August 1957
New York City, New York, USA
5' 9¼" (1.76 m)
She was only fourteen years old, while he was a twice-divorced 22-year-old. Tippi took a very liberal approach and allowed Melanie to move in with Don at a tender age. She skipped a grade and graduated from Hollywood Professional School when she was just sixteen. Even though Melanie didn't like modeling, she continued to do so to pay the bills. One day, she went to meet with director Arthur Penn for what she thought was a modeling assignment. It was actually an audition for his film La noche se mueve (1975), and Penn cast her as a runaway nymphet. She was immediately typecast in more nymphet roles, with her beautiful nude body a permanent fixture in films like "Smile" and "One on One". She also married Johnson when she was 18, but it was short-lived, possibly because her early movie success outshone his. Melanie became addicted to drugs and alcohol, a fact well known to studio executives, who stopped considering her for film roles. She switched over to acting on television, and met her second husband, Steven Bauer, on the set of the TV movie Reclutas novatas (1981). He helped her to overcome her addictions and got her to take acting classes with Stella Adler in New York. The classes paid off, and she returned to acting in feature films, when director Brian De Palma cast her as a porno actress in his murder mystery Doble cuerpo(1984). She received rave reviews and a National Society of Film Critics awards as Best Supporting Actress, as well as a Golden Globe nomination. Jonathan Demme was so impressed with her performance that he cast her in the title role in Algo salvaje (1986) without even auditioning her. Again, she received critical acclaim and a Golden Globe nomination.
The birth of her first child, Alexander, in 1985, didn't help to save her struggling marriage, and she and Bauer divorced in 1987. Soon after, Melanie's career skyrocketed when Mike Nichols cast her in Armas de mujer (1988), a box-office hit for which she received an Academy Award nomination as Best Actress and won the Golden Globe Award as Best Actress in a Comedy. However, making the film had not been easy for her, as she continued to suffer from drug and alcohol addictions. Nichols pushed her into a rehabilitation clinic after filming wrapped. En route to the clinic, she called Don Johnson for support, and they reconciled after her release from the clinic. She got pregnant in 1989 with their daughter Dakota Johnson, and they remarried that year.
Now sober, Melanie concentrated on her film career, but the films she chose often flopped badly, such as La hoguera de las vanidades (1990). Even though she gave heartfelt performances in all her films, she was often miscast, with her breathy little-girl voice not helping matters in her starring roles as a spy in Resplandor en la oscuridad (1992) and as a homicide detective going undercover in the Hassidic Jewish community in New York City in Una extraña entre nosotros (1992). Melanie had other high-profile flops with Nacida ayer (1993) and Un regalo para papá (1994). It seemed like she was on the verge of a comeback when she received glowing reviews for her supporting role as a desperate housewife in Ni un pelo de tonto (1994) and acted in another minor hit Amigas para siempre (1995). She returned to television and received a Golden Globe nomination for the mini-series "Buffalo Girls" (1995). But it was personal life that made the headlines when she left Johnson because of his own substance-abuse problems, reconciled with him briefly when he became sober, only to leave him again, this time for Antonio Banderas, her married co-star from Two Much (1995). Both she and Banderas created a scandal with their torrid romance, and the tabloids followed their every move, including her divorce from Johnson and his divorce from wife Ana Leza. Melanie became pregnant with her third child, and she and Banderas married in 1996. Their daughter Stella Banderas was born later that year, and the notorious couple were forgiven by the public and the media.
Melanie again tried to resurrect her career by signing onto the television series "Me and George," but it never even aired. She turned to independent films and earned strong reviews for her role as a heroin user on the run in the crime drama Al final del edén(1998). She also acted in Woody Allen's Celebrity (1998), and portrayed actress Marion Davies in the made-for-cable TV movie RKO 281 (1999), a part that garnered her both Golden Globe and Emmy nominations. Melanie also acted in Crazy in Alabama (1999)_, which marked the directorial debut of her husband and produced by the couple's production company, Greenmoon Productions. Unfortunately, the film was yet another major flop for Melanie. In 2000, she had her last major roles to date in the little-seen independent films Cecil B. Demente (2000) and Along for the Ride (2000). As a result, film offers dried up. That same year, Melanie returned to rehab due to a painkiller addiction. She experienced a great loss in 2001, when her father died at age 67.
In 2003, Melanie turned to the Broadway stage, and packed houses with her turn as the murderess "Roxie Hart" in the musical "Chicago," for which she received a rave review from the New York Times theater critic. It renewed her confidence, as she had never sang, danced or been on the Broadway stage before. In 2005, she surprised TV viewers by playing a sexy mom to the title characters on the sitcom Twins (2005), which was canceled after one season. Her career took another blow when her next attempt at a TV series, Viva Laughlin (2007), was canceled after just two episodes. Melanie would not act again for the remainder of the decade, because, by self-admission, she couldn't obtain any worthwhile roles. In 2009, Melanie was back in rehab yet again for continued substance-abuse problems, and emerged after a three-month stay. Professionally, she was faced with more disappointment in 2012 when This American Housewife (2012), a Lifetime series that Banderas produced for her to star in, never aired. She went back to the stage in 2012 and played mother to Scott Caan in a play that he wrote titled "No Way Around but Through." She impressed Caan enough to recommend her to the producers of his television show "Hawaii Five-O". In 2014, she played a recurring role as his mother on the show.
Melanie has had many obstacles in her life, but she has overcome them thanks to the support of her husband Antonio Banderas, her three children, and mother Tippi Hedren. Banderas and Griffith are involved in many charities, including raising funds for Tippi's Shambala preserve, a refuge for wild animals. Melanie also runs a non-profit organization for benefiting burned children. She filed for divorce from Banderas on June 2014, citing irreconcilable differences.
Melanie Griffith was born on August 9, 1957, in New York City, New York, to model and actress Tippi Hedren, and advertising executive Peter Griffith, who himself had acted. Her mother, from Minnesota, is of Swedish, German, and Norwegian ancestry, and her father, from Maryland, was of English, as well as Irish, Scottish, and Welsh, descent.
Her parents' marriage ended in 1961 and Tippi came to Los Angeles to get a new start. Tippi caught the eye of the great director Alfred Hitchcock, who gave her starring roles in Los pájaros (1963) and Marnie, la ladrona (1964). Tippi married her then-agent, Noel Marshall, in 1964 (they divorced in 1982), and Melanie grew up with three stepbrothers. Meanwhile, her father married Nanita Greene Samuels, with whom he had two more children: Melanie's half-siblings Tracy Griffith and Clay A. Griffith. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Ramstep
Her parents' marriage ended in 1961 and Tippi came to Los Angeles to get a new start. Tippi caught the eye of the great director Alfred Hitchcock, who gave her starring roles in Los pájaros (1963) and Marnie, la ladrona (1964). Tippi married her then-agent, Noel Marshall, in 1964 (they divorced in 1982), and Melanie grew up with three stepbrothers. Meanwhile, her father married Nanita Greene Samuels, with whom he had two more children: Melanie's half-siblings Tracy Griffith and Clay A. Griffith. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Ramstep
Spouse*
Antonio Banderas (14 May 1996 - 21 July 2015) (divorced) (1 child)
Don Johnson (26 June 1989 - 1996) (divorced) (1 child)
Steven Bauer (May 1982 - 1987) (divorced) (1 child)
Don Johnson (8 January 1976 - 1976) (divorced)
Trade Mark*
Breathy, little girl voice
Platinum blonde hair
Sparkling blue eyes
Voluptuous figure
Trivia*
Her mother, Tippi Hedren, recently stated that the miniature doll of Hedren given to Melanie by Alfred Hitchcock was not intended to be a prank by the director. He merely wanted to give Melanie a beautiful doll with her mother's image, but it happened that the doll was in a wooden box. When Melanie received the gift, she freaked out and became upset thinking that it was indeed meant to be her mother in a coffin.Born at 11:49pm-EDT
Older half-sister of Tracy Griffith and Clay A. Griffith.
Daughter of Peter Griffith and Tippi Hedren.
14 November 2000 - checked into a Marina Del Rey, California hospital to help her scale back on the use of painkillers she had been prescribed for a neck injury.
In 1980, she went to a movie and dinner with Ricci Martin (son of Dean Martin). Upon leaving La Dome, a restaurant on Sunset Boulevard, a car ran through the crosswalk and hit Melanie. The front of the car struck her hip in mid-stride, whiplashing her head back into the windshield. As the car screeched to a stop, Melanie catapulted more than a dozen feet forward to the curbside, hitting with great force. Melanie was rushed to a hospital. To this day, Melanie still experiences pain from that accident.
Real-life daughters Dakota Johnson and Stella Banderas appear as her character's daughters in the film Locos en Alabama (1999) directed by her husband Antonio Banderas. Her half-sister Tracy Griffith also has a small role in the film.
Claims that it was love at first sight when she met her husband Antonio Banderas on the set of Two Much (1995). He had sprinted out of his trailer like a starstruck schoolboy to greet her on her first day on the set. Excited and nervous, the first thing he asked her was how old she was. She cursed, laughed, and then finally answered that she was 37. They stayed together for 19 years.
She was unable to star in El cielo protector (1990) and Mejor... imposible (1997) because of pregnancies.
She has three homes: Los Angeles, Aspen and Marbella, Spain.
Coincidentally, she bears the same first name as her mother Tippi Hedren's character, Melanie Daniels, in Los pájaros (1963).
Was eighteen when she married Don Johnson for the first time. He was eight years older than she, and they met on the set of her mother's film The Harrad Experiment (1973) when she was 14.
In 2002, Melanie told Larry King on his show that her best films are: La noche se mueve(1975), Algo salvaje (1986), Armas de mujer (1988), and Ni un pelo de tonto (1994).
Auditioned for the role of Susan in Buscando a Susan desesperadamente (1985), but lost out to Madonna.
Her son, Alexander Bauer (born in 1985), is the godson of Warren Beatty. She first met Beatty a decade earlier when she auditioned for his film El último testigo (1974). She didn't get the role but their friendship lasted. She is also friends with Beatty's wife Annette Bening and his sister Shirley MacLaine.
Her father had English, as well as Irish, Scottish, Welsh, and Northern Irish (Scots-Irish) ancestry. Her mother is of half Swedish, one quarter German, and one quarter Norwegian descent.
Goes through two boyfriends in Armas de mujer (1988). As the film begins, she is in a relationship with Alec Baldwin, but at the end, she is in a relationship with Harrison Ford. Both Baldwin and Ford have played Jack Ryan in adaptations of the Tom Clancy novels.
First "Miss Golden Globe" to win a Golden Globe Award herself.
Joanne Woodward told a 17-year-old Melanie on the set of Con el agua al cuello (1975) that her goals were to marry a movie star (Paul Newman); have beautiful babies (she had three); and win an Oscar (which she did in 1958). Melanie said that she adopted the goals for herself by marrying a movie star (Antonio Banderas); have beautiful babies (she also had three); but has expressed frustration that she has not won an Oscar even though she was nominated in 1989.
She and her daughter Dakota Johnson are the only mother-daughter couple to be "Miss Golden Globe".
While in Washington, D.C. addressing the senate on Arts funding, she fell asleep twice during a speech by her host Michigan Senator Spencer Abraham. She apologized citing jet-lag as her reason for snoozing.
Her French dubbing voice Dorothée Jemma is also the French dubbing voice of Sheryl Leeand Jennifer Aniston.
Melanie said that fans sometimes confuse her with actress Meg Ryan, whom she admires. She would sign Meg Ryan's name so as not to disappoint the fans. Ryan said the same thing happened to her where fans thought she was Melanie.
Checked into the Cirque Lodge in Utah for rehab treatments [August 24, 2009]. Same place where Kirsten Dunst and Lindsay Lohan spent time in recent years.
Ex-stepdaughter of Nanita Greene Samuels, Noel Marshall, and Luis Barrenechea.
Stepdaughter of Martin Dinnes and Debra Griffith.
Underwent surgery for the early stages of skin cancer in December 2009.
Her mother was 22 while her father was only 18 when they married in 1952.
Daughter-in-law of Ana Banderas and Jose Banderas.
Sister-in-law of Francisco Banderas.
Has been a heavy smoker since she was 12 years old.
Friends with actresses Daryl Hannah, Demi Moore, Jamie Lee Curtis, Sharon Stone and Eva Longoria.
One of her mentors was Bob Fosse. He considered casting her in his film Star 80 (1983) but instead chose Mariel Hemingway to play the slain actress Dorothy Stratten.
Holds the record - along with Madonna and Demi Moore - for the most Razzie Award nominations for Worst Actress with 6 nominations. She was nominated for La hoguera de las vanidades (1990), Resplandor en la oscuridad (1992), Una extraña entre nosotros(1992) (both in the same year), Nacida ayer (1993), Two Much (1995), Locos en Alabama(1999) and Cecil B. Demente (2000). She won for Resplandor en la oscuridad (1992) and Una extraña entre nosotros (1992). She also won Worst Supporting Actress for Mulholland Falls (La brigada del sombrero) (1996).
Directed by eight Academy Award winners: Jonathan Demme, Robert Redford, Mike Nichols, Tony Richardson, John Schlesinger, Sidney Lumet, Robert Benton, and Woody Allen.
Gave birth to her 1st child at age 28, a son Alexander Griffith Bauer on August 22, 1985. Child's father is her now ex-2nd husband, Steven Bauer.
Gave birth to her 2nd child at age 32, a daughter Dakota Mayi Johnson (aka Dakota Johnson) on October 4, 1989. Child's father is now ex-3rd husband, Don Johnson.
Gave birth to her 3rd child at age 39, a daughter Stella del Carmen Banderas Griffith (aka Stella Banderas) on September 24, 1996. Child's father is her now estranged 4th husband, Antonio Banderas.
(June 6, 2014) Filed for divorce from her 4th husband of 18 years Antonio Banderas.
She stays on good terms with her ex-husbands (Don Johnson, Steven Bauer, and Antonio Banderas), since they share children together (Dakota Johnson, Alexander Bauer, Stella Banderas). She attends events with them and posts pictures on her twitter and instagram accounts with flattering captions calling them "handsome".
Personal Quotes*
[about her work with James Woods] It's kind of like being pregnant. You know, you go through the initial joy of it. Then you go through wanting it to be over. And then you're finished with it and you forget how bad it was.There's a bit of a stripper in every woman.
I don't walk around with fear. I walk around with strength. I believe in cause and effect.
I don't think I'm beautiful. When I look in the mirror, I just see me - and, I'm pretty used to me.
Antonio [husband Antonio Banderas] is the best. He is compassionate and humble.
Angelina Jolie may get him [husband Antonio Banderas] in bed for eight hours on a movie set, but I get him in bed every day.
[on being typed as a sex symbol] I hope not! I don't want to be -- I've done enough parts like that. I can't say I won't do more, but I really want to do a variety of roles.
I would just like to be able to give to people through acting. If I can entertain people by being somebody else and allow somebody to feel something, then that makes me feel good.
I like smoking! I mean, God, I quit everything else, can't I smoke?
[on researching the Holocaust for her film, Shining Through (1992)] I didn't know that 6 million Jews were killed. That's a lot of people... until I started researching the movie I didn't know it was that many people. I thought it was like in the hundreds of thousands. I didn't realize it was 6 million people. What I was trying to say was I think a lot of people don't know it was that severe. I wasn't born during the war. I was born in '57... but I think a lot of people don't know.
Salary*
The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990) $1.000.000
Milk Money (1994) $2.000.000
