- For the character, see Angela Martin
Angela Kinsey (born June 25, 1971) is an American actress. She currently appears as the uptight accountant Angela Martin on the hit NBC television series The Office.
Personal life
Kinsey was born in Lafayette, Louisiana. When she was three, her family moved to Jakarta, Indonesia, where her father worked as a drilling engineer. They lived there for twelve years, and she attended the Jakarta International School. During this time she learned the Indonesian language, which she still knows. Her family then returned to the United States and settled in Archer City, Texas.[1][2][3]
Kinsey studied English at Baylor University, where she was a member of the Chi Omega sorority, "took as many theatre classes as possible", and participated in the "Baylor in London" program. In a 2007 interview with the Baylor student newspaper, she discussed the influence of her years at the university:[4]
| “ | It was the perfect place for me to grow into who I am and take the belief system that I had and incorporate it into my life. It was a great place to go to school. | ” |
Kinsey served as an intern on the NBC late night talk show Late Night with Conan O'Brien, which she described as an "awesome" experience.[citation needed] She worked for the show's drummer Max Weinberg. The experience inspired Kinsey to take a coast-to-coast road trip with a friend from New York City to California.[5]
She married Warren Lieberstein on June 18, 2000. He is the brother of Paul Lieberstein, who plays Toby Flenderson on The Office. She gave birth to their first child, Isabel Ruby Lieberstein, on May 3, 2008.[6] Present at the hospital was co-star Jenna Fischer[citation needed]. On February 18, 2009, Us Weekly reported that Kinsey and her husband had separated. Her representative stated that the two continue to be friends.[7] In June 2010, it was announced that Kinsey had filed for divorce,[8] citing "irreconcilable differences."[9]
Blogging as her The Office character, Angela Martin, she has stated on MySpace that her hero is co-star Kate Flannery.[10]
Kinsey said her grandmother, Lena May, does not watch The Office because she feels the protagonist Michael Scott, played by Steve Carell, is too "vulgar". Kinsey said, "She'll say to me, 'Baby, we're so proud of you, I'm proud of you, but I do not care for the show and I do not watch it.'"[5]
Kinsey is Presbyterian and attends Bel-Air Presbyterian Church.[11]
Kinsey’s character on The Office feeds feral cats in the office parking lot. In real life, Kinsey supports Alley Cat Allies[12], a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to transforming communities to protect and improve the lives of cats.
Career
After graduating from Baylor University in 1993,[4] she got an internship with Late Night with Conan O'Brien, working for Max Weinberg. She then moved to Los Angeles and took improvisation classes with The Groundlings and at iO WEST (formerly known as "Improv Olympic West").[2]
Following a one-woman show at iO, she was an operator at 1-800-Dentist and made small one-episode appearances in various sitcoms. She voiced the character "Angela" on two episodes of King of the Hill.[1] In early 2005, she auditioned for the role of receptionist Pam Beesly for the American version of The Office. After producers told her she was "a little too feisty for Pam", she was called back to audition for the role of Angela Martin, which she won.[2] She also appeared on Monk in Mr. Monk and the Naked Man (2007) and Mr. Monk's 100th Case (2008).
In June 2007, Kinsey shared in the Daytime Emmy Award "Outstanding Broadband Program - Comedy", for her work on The Office: Accountants, which is a series of webisodes.[13]
Kinsey is one of several cast members of The Office to have a role in License to Wed, a film directed by Ken Kwapis, who often directs episodes of The Office.
Kinsey updates her MySpace blog with behind-the-scenes anecdotes of upcoming episodes of the series.[10] She has also taken to organizing The Office cast outings: "I remember watching Friends and thinking, 'They really enjoy each other.' We, in fact, hang out".[14] She is the new spokesperson for Clairol hair products, appearing in television ads recently for Clairol Nice 'n Easy.
Filmography
- Furry Vengeance – 2010
- Tripping Forward – 2009
- License To Wed – 2007
- Career Suicide – 2004
- Yo Gabba Gabba - 2010