Name : Mimi Rogers
Birth Name : Miriam Spickler
Date of Birth : 27 January 1956
Place of Birth : Coral Gables, Florida, USA
Height : 5' 8½" (1.74 m)
Occupation : Actress
Nationality : American
Brother : Paul Spickler. younger
Daughter : Lucy Julia Ciaffa. born on November 20, 1994; father, Chris Ciaffa
Father : Phil Spickler. moved family frequently; Scientologist
Son : Charles Rogers Ciaffa. born on July 30, 2001; father, Chris Ciaffa
Years active : 1981–present
Spouse : James Rogers (m. 1976–1980) , Tom Cruise (m. 1987–1990) , Chris Ciaffa (m. 2003–present)
BIOGRAPHY
Born Miriam Spickler in Coral Gables, FL, on Jan. 27, 1956, she spent much of her early childhood in transit, moving to various states (as well as a stint in the UK) before settling in Southern California. An exceptional student, Rogers graduated from high school at age 14, but traded college for considerable community service. A member of the Church of Scientology since childhood, Rogers married Church counselor Jim Rogers in 1977, but the couple divorced in 1980.
Shortly after that, she made her screen debut on a pair of “Hill Street Blues” (NBC, 1981-87) episodes. More TV guest work soon followed, including gigs on “Quincy” (NBC, 1976-83) and “Magnum, P.I.” (CBS, 1980-88). Her first acting notices came with a regular role on the short-lived fashion series “Paper Dolls” (ABC, 1984), which was followed by more substantial parts in TV-movies and features, including “Gung Ho” (1986) and “Street Smart,” for which she received positive press as Christopher Reeve’s love interest.
But it was Ridley Scott’s neo-noir “Someone To Watch Over Me” (1987) that brought Rogers fully into the spotlight. Playing a Park Avenue socialite who witnesses a murder and, in the process of being protected by him, becomes the object of working class cop Tom Berenger’s desire, Rogers lit up the screen. Her physical beauty and smoky delivery reminded several critics of classic Hollywood femme fatales like Barbara Stanwyck and Gloria Grahame. Also notable was the chemistry between the two leads from different worlds. While not a smash hit, the movie earned a sort of cult following in the years since its release.
Unfortunately, before Rogers was able to capitalize fully on her newfound leading lady status, she found herself gracing the gossip pages instead. In 1987, the Scientologist married newly-minted “Top Gun” star Tom Cruise a union which ended in 1990 somewhat acrimoniously, if one was to infer from her oblique references in interviews at that time. Rogers piqued the curiosity of many, when years after the split, she told Playboy, “Tom was seriously thinking of becoming a monk. And he thought he had to be celibate to maintain the purity of his instrument. It became obvious we had to split." As the person who first introduced Cruise to the Scientology, Rogers reportedly also led others to the church, including Sonny Bono and football player John Brodie, for whom she served as auditor.
Following the divorce from Cruise, Rogers’ budding film career also faltered during this period, as her next three starring roles were all in middling to failed projects like “Hider in the House” (1989), “The Mighty Quinn,” and the unfortunate remake of “Desperate Hours” (1990). But Rogers wisely took these developments in stride and shifted her focus to more character-driven parts and independent films, where she found her richest roles thus far. A small, dramatic part as a seductive photographer in Oliver Stone’s “The Doors” (1991) first signaled her intentions. Rogers quickly followed this with “The Rapture” (1991), Michael Tolkin’s ambitious drama about a woman swept up in born-again Christianity. Rogers received excellent reviews for her performance, and the second phase of her career as a savvy, mature, and sexual woman, which was driven home in no uncertain terms by a 1993 Playboy pictorial was essentially established. From this point on, she divided her appearances between television features (the 1992 thriller “Ladykiller;” the 1993 true-crime miniseries “Bloodlines: Murder in the Family”), indie movies (Nicolas Roeg’s very sexy “Full Body Massage” (1995), which featured one of Rogers’ first nude scenes; Steve Buscemi’s “Trees Lounge” (1996)), and big-budget Hollywood features. Rogers scored the most positive ink from the latter medium, appearing in the film version of “Lost in Space” (1998) and Barbara Streisand’s “The Mirror Has Two Faces” (1996), in which once again, Rogers provided the film’s high point this time of the comical sort. Though most of her films were dramas, Rogers began showing a knack for comedy, as illustrated in “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery” (1997), where she played Austin’s ‘60s-era partner, Mrs. Kensington.
That same year, Rogers began exploring moviemaking from the production side, and after shepherding a 1997 TV movie, “Tricks,” she partnered with Chris Ciaffa to produce several excellent films for cable, including the Holocaust drama “The Devil’s Arithmetic” (1999) with Kirsten Dunst and Brittany Murphy; “Harlan County War” (2000) with Holly Hunter; and “Charms for the Easy Life” (2002) starring Gena Rowlands. In addition to their films, Rogers and Ciaffa produced a daughter, Lucy Julia, and a son, Charlie.
Shortly after that, she made her screen debut on a pair of “Hill Street Blues” (NBC, 1981-87) episodes. More TV guest work soon followed, including gigs on “Quincy” (NBC, 1976-83) and “Magnum, P.I.” (CBS, 1980-88). Her first acting notices came with a regular role on the short-lived fashion series “Paper Dolls” (ABC, 1984), which was followed by more substantial parts in TV-movies and features, including “Gung Ho” (1986) and “Street Smart,” for which she received positive press as Christopher Reeve’s love interest.
But it was Ridley Scott’s neo-noir “Someone To Watch Over Me” (1987) that brought Rogers fully into the spotlight. Playing a Park Avenue socialite who witnesses a murder and, in the process of being protected by him, becomes the object of working class cop Tom Berenger’s desire, Rogers lit up the screen. Her physical beauty and smoky delivery reminded several critics of classic Hollywood femme fatales like Barbara Stanwyck and Gloria Grahame. Also notable was the chemistry between the two leads from different worlds. While not a smash hit, the movie earned a sort of cult following in the years since its release.
Unfortunately, before Rogers was able to capitalize fully on her newfound leading lady status, she found herself gracing the gossip pages instead. In 1987, the Scientologist married newly-minted “Top Gun” star Tom Cruise a union which ended in 1990 somewhat acrimoniously, if one was to infer from her oblique references in interviews at that time. Rogers piqued the curiosity of many, when years after the split, she told Playboy, “Tom was seriously thinking of becoming a monk. And he thought he had to be celibate to maintain the purity of his instrument. It became obvious we had to split." As the person who first introduced Cruise to the Scientology, Rogers reportedly also led others to the church, including Sonny Bono and football player John Brodie, for whom she served as auditor.
Following the divorce from Cruise, Rogers’ budding film career also faltered during this period, as her next three starring roles were all in middling to failed projects like “Hider in the House” (1989), “The Mighty Quinn,” and the unfortunate remake of “Desperate Hours” (1990). But Rogers wisely took these developments in stride and shifted her focus to more character-driven parts and independent films, where she found her richest roles thus far. A small, dramatic part as a seductive photographer in Oliver Stone’s “The Doors” (1991) first signaled her intentions. Rogers quickly followed this with “The Rapture” (1991), Michael Tolkin’s ambitious drama about a woman swept up in born-again Christianity. Rogers received excellent reviews for her performance, and the second phase of her career as a savvy, mature, and sexual woman, which was driven home in no uncertain terms by a 1993 Playboy pictorial was essentially established. From this point on, she divided her appearances between television features (the 1992 thriller “Ladykiller;” the 1993 true-crime miniseries “Bloodlines: Murder in the Family”), indie movies (Nicolas Roeg’s very sexy “Full Body Massage” (1995), which featured one of Rogers’ first nude scenes; Steve Buscemi’s “Trees Lounge” (1996)), and big-budget Hollywood features. Rogers scored the most positive ink from the latter medium, appearing in the film version of “Lost in Space” (1998) and Barbara Streisand’s “The Mirror Has Two Faces” (1996), in which once again, Rogers provided the film’s high point this time of the comical sort. Though most of her films were dramas, Rogers began showing a knack for comedy, as illustrated in “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery” (1997), where she played Austin’s ‘60s-era partner, Mrs. Kensington.
That same year, Rogers began exploring moviemaking from the production side, and after shepherding a 1997 TV movie, “Tricks,” she partnered with Chris Ciaffa to produce several excellent films for cable, including the Holocaust drama “The Devil’s Arithmetic” (1999) with Kirsten Dunst and Brittany Murphy; “Harlan County War” (2000) with Holly Hunter; and “Charms for the Easy Life” (2002) starring Gena Rowlands. In addition to their films, Rogers and Ciaffa produced a daughter, Lucy Julia, and a son, Charlie.
CAREER
Her early roles included a 1981 appearance in Hill Street Blues as a love interest for officer Andy Renko (Charles Haid), Blue Skies Again with Harry Hamlin in 1983, and playing the daughter of Hoyt Axton in the TV series The Rousters (1983–1984) starring Chad Everett and Jim Varney. Rogers' breakthrough role was opposite Tom Berenger in Someone to Watch Over Me (1987). Since then, her career has largely been focused on independent films, including Hider In The House (1989), Wedlock (1991), Dark Horse (1992), and Full Body Massage (1995). Although she continues to do independent films, Rogers is certainly not averse to Hollywood. She appeared in sci-fi films such as Lost in Space (1998) as well as the television series The X-Files (1998–1999) as Diana Fowley. She appeared as the mother of Vanessa Kensington (Elizabeth Hurley) in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997), and in the final season of Dawson's Creek (1998) she played the mother of Jen Lindley (Michelle Williams). In 2006 she starred in a Fox sitcom, The Loop, and in 2010 guest starred in long-running animated sitcom King of the Hill.
Milestones
1979 Early acting credit, a guest spot on an episode of Hart to Hart
1981 Had recurring role on the NBC series Hill Street Blues
1982 TV-movie debut, Divorce Wars (ABC)
1983 First regular TV appearances on The Rousters (NBC)
1983 Film acting debut in Blue Skies Again
1984 Played Blair on the short-lived series Paper Dolls (ABC)
1987 Appeared in the film Street Smart
1987 Starred opposite Tom Berenger in the romantic thriller Someone to Watch Over Me
1990 Portrayed one of the hostages in the feature remake of Desperate Hours
1991 Played a religious seer in The Rapture ; also featured was David Duchovny
1992 Made cameo appearance as herself in Robert Altman s The Player
1993 Posed nude in Playboy and gave a now infamous interview about her ex-husband Tom Cruise in which she claimed he was contemplating becoming a monk; Rogers was quoted as saying that At least for that period of time, it looked as though marriage wouldn t fit into his overall spiritual need. And he thought he had to be celibate to maintain the purity of his instrument. ... My instrument needed tuning.
1994 Cast as the intended victim of a hit man (Anthony LaPaglia) in Bulletproof Heart
1996 Appeared as Barbra Streisand s sister in The Mirror Has Two Faces
1997 Executive produced and co-starred in the Showtime movie Tricks
1998 Cast as matriarch Maureen Robinson in the feature version of the 1960s TV series Lost in Space
1999 Executive produced and co-starred in the Daytime Emmy-nominated Showtime movie The Devil s Arithmetic
2000 Served as executive producer of the Showtime original Harlan County War , starring Holly Hunter
2001 Executive produced and co-starred in the Showtime family movie My Horrible Year!
2002 Co-starred with Gena Rowlands and Susan May Pratt in the Showtime movie Charms for the Easy Life
2003 Cast in the comedy Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd based on the charaters from the Farrelly brothers hit movie Dumb and Dumber
2004 Featured in The Door in the Floor based on the novel by John Irving
2006 Co-starred with Rachel Minor, as a psychologist in the indie horror Penny Dreadful
Had featured role in the ABC sitcom The Geena Davis Show
Had recurring role of FBI Agent Diana Fowley in The X-Files ; reteamed on screen with David Duchovny
Parents divorced when she was seven; mother moved to California and Rogers and her brother moved annually with father to Tucson, Arizona; Washington, DC; Detroit, Michigan; Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area.
FILMOGRAPHY
Balls to the Wall (post-production) (2011)
Lucky (2010)
Abandoned (video) (2010)
Neighbors from Hell (TV series) (2010)
– Country Club Hell (2010)
King of the Hill (TV series) (2010)
– Bill Gathers Moss (2010)
Sins of the Mother (TV movie) (2010)
Order of Chaos (2010)
Falling Up (2009)
Frozen Kiss (2009)
My Boys (TV series) (2008)
– John, Cougar, Newman Camp (2008)
– Jack and Bobby (2008)
Storm Cell (TV movie) (2008)
The Loop (TV series) (2006-2007)
– Crazy Goat (2007)
– Fatty (2007)
– The Stranger (2007)
– Lady Business (2007)
– Stride (2007)
Big Nothing Mrs. Smalls (2006)
Penny Dreadful (2006)
The Stranger Game (TV movie) (2006)
Selling Innocence (TV movie) (2005)
Stone Cold (TV movie) (2005)
Dancing in Twilight (2005)
The Door in the Floor (2004)
A Promise Kept (2003)
Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd (2003)
The Upgrade (2000)
Ginger Snaps (2000)
Seven Girlfriends (1999)
Lost In Space (1998)
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)
Trees Lounge (1997)
The Mirror has Two Faces (1996)
Bulletproof Heart (1995)
The Player (1992)
White Sands (1992)
The Doors (1991)
The Rapture (1991)
The Palmero Connection (1990)
Desperate Hours (1990)
The Mighty Quinn (1989)
Hider in the House (1989)
Street Smart (1987)
Someone to Watch Over Me (1987)
Gung Ho (1986)
Blue Skies Again (1983)
AWARDS
Daytime Emmy Awards
Daytime Emmy 2000
Outstanding Children's Special
The Devil`s Arithmetic (1999)
Nominated
Satellite Awards
Golden Satellite Award 1998
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Weapons of Mass Distraction (1997)
Nominated
Independent Spirit Awards
Independent Spirit Award 1992
Best Female Lead
The Rapture (1991)
Nominated
Seattle International Film Festival
Golden Space Needle Award 1994
Best Actress
Reflections on a Crime (1994)
Won
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