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Leisha Hailey

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Leisha Hailey
Hailey circa 2007
Born
Okinawa, Okinawa Islands, USCAR (present-day Japan)
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Actress, musician
Years active1991–present
Partners

Leisha Hailey is an American actress and musician known for playing Alice Pieszecki in the Showtime Networks series The L Word and The L Word: Generation Q. Hailey first came to the public's attention as a musician in the pop duo The Murmurs and has continued her music career as part of the band Uh Huh Her.

Currently, Hailey appears as Alice in The L Word: Generation Q and hosts podcast PANTS with fellow L Word star and close friend, Kate Moennig.[2]

Early life

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Born in Okinawa, USCAR (now Japan) to American parents, Hailey grew up in Bellevue, Nebraska.[3][4][5]

At 17, she came out as lesbian before moving to New York City to attend the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.[6]

Career

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Music

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With her Academy classmate Heather Grody, she formed the pop duo The Murmurs in 1991. In the 1990s, they released several albums and performed with Lilith Fair.[7] In 2001, Hailey and Grody changed their name to Gush. The group disbanded when Hailey was cast in The L Word. In 2005, Hailey founded Marfa Records.[8]

In July 2007, Uh Huh Her, an electropop duo consisting of Hailey and Camila Grey, released an EP entitled I See Red; over a year later they released their first album Common Reaction.

Hailey also co-wrote the Shakira hit song "Don't Bother" for her 2005 hit album Oral Fixation Vol. 2.[9]

Hailey performing at Shepherd's Bush Empire in London, April 2012

Acting

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Hailey's television debut was in 1996 when she played a struggling musician on an episode of Boy Meets World.[10] Her first major film role was in the 1997 movie All Over Me.[11]

From 2004 to 2009, she starred as Alice Pieszecki, a journalist, television, and radio show host, on The L Word. At the beginning of the series, Hailey's character identified as bisexual. By the end of the series, specifically in season 5, her character dated mostly women.[12] In 2007, Hailey was voted #1 in the AfterEllen Hot 100 list compiled by AfterEllen.com.[13][14]

In September 2008, Showtime announced Hailey would star in The Farm,[15] a "pilot presentation spinoff" of The L Word, to be written and produced by Ilene Chaiken, creator and executive producer of The L Word.[16] It was announced in April 2009 that the show would not be picked up by Showtime.[17][18]

Hailey's award-winning indie film La Cucina premiered on Showtime in December 2009, where she plays a straight pregnant newlywed.

Hailey has appeared in several Yoplait yogurt commercials[19] as well as a BMW commercial.[20] In April 2008, Hailey was named spokesperson for Olivia Cruises, a travel company which sells cruises and resort vacations marketed towards lesbian customers.[21]

In 2011, she starred in the psychological thriller Fertile Ground.[22] In 2015, Hailey appeared in an episode[23] of long-running The CW show Supernatural as Amelia Novak, the estranged wife of Jimmy Novak (human vessel of the angel Castiel, played by Misha Collins.)

Personal life

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Hailey dated k.d. lang for nearly five years until breaking up in 2001.[6] She also had a relationship with Nina Garduno from 2004 to 2010. From 2011 to 2016, she dated her bandmate Camila Grey. In 2011, the couple were involved in a dispute with Southwest Airlines, after being ejected from a flight for arguing with a flight attendant who asked them to stop kissing.[24] She is currently in a relationship with actress Kim Dickens.[1]

Filmography

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Film
Year Film Role Notes
1997 All Over Me Lucy
1998 Some Girl The Murmurs
1999 Sleeping Beauties Sno Blo Band
2002 The Snowflake Crusade Marigold
2007 La Cucina Shelly
2009 Make Up Shelley Cabot
2010 Fertile Ground Emily Weaver
2016 Love Is All You Need? Coach Jenkins
2016 Quarries Madison
2017 Dead Ant Stevie
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1996 Boy Meets World Corinna 1 episode
1997 Ellen Woman in gay bar 1 episode
2004–2009 The L Word Alice Pieszecki 70 episodes
2006 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Allison Bradford 1 episode
Grey's Anatomy Claire Solomon 1 episode
2007–2011 American Dad! Lily (Voice) 4 episodes
2009 Maneater Harriet 1 episode
2010 Drop Dead Diva Hope Prentiss 1 episode
2010 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Dana Carlston 1 episode
2012 The New Normal Victoria 1 episode
2014 Constantine Lanni's wife 1 episode
2015 Supernatural Amelia Novak 1 episode
2015 Chasing Life Juliet 1 episode
2016 Bosch Maureen "Mo" O'Grady 7 episodes
2016 Code Black Natalie 1 episode
2017 Silicon Valley Liz Tinsdale 2 episodes
2017 Strangers Kim 1 episode
2019-2023 The L Word: Generation Q Alice Pieszecki 20 episodes

References

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  1. ^ a b Kate Moennig and Leisha Hailey (September 14, 2022). "Honey Pot". PANTS with Kate and Leisha (Podcast). Apple. Event occurs at 11:00. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  2. ^ "The L Word's Hailey, Moennig, Rachel Shelley Team up for PANTS Podcast". June 17, 2020.
  3. ^ Leisha Hailey Archived May 5, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Getting the word from Leisha Hailey, cltampa.com; accessed March 6, 2016.
  5. ^ BYT Interview: UH HUH HER (feat. Leisha Hailey of The "L" Word), BrightestYoungThings.com; accessed March 6, 2016.
  6. ^ a b L is for Leisha Archived December 1, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, a February 2004 interview with Dennis Hensley for The Advocate], dennishensley.com; accessed March 6, 2016.
  7. ^ "Heather Grody and Leisha Hailey of The Murmurs perform during the..." Getty Images. January 17, 2022. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
  8. ^ News from the Marfa Records website
  9. ^ "Leisha Hailey - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes.
  10. ^ Mr. Skin's Skincyclopedia: The A-to-Z Guide to Finding Your Favorite ... - Skin - Google Books
  11. ^ L is for Leisha | Advocate.com
  12. ^ Nicole Kristal (February 26, 2008). ""The L Word" Reinforces Negative Bisexual Stereotypes". AfterEllen. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  13. ^ scribegrrrl (May 18, 2007). "The AfterEllen Aesthetic: Making our own list of hotties". AfterEllen. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  14. ^ Bendix, Trish (September 2, 2016). "And the 2016 AfterEllen Hot 100 Winners Are…". AfterEllen. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
  15. ^ "The Farm" at IMDb
  16. ^ Leisha Hailey Cast in The L Wordpilot spinoff for Showtime Archived September 11, 2012, at archive.today from the Showtime website
  17. ^ Showtime Doesn't Buy 'The Farm' - Roger Catlin | TV Eye Archived May 5, 2014, at archive.today
  18. ^ Showtime passes on all pilot orders, Variety.com; accessed March 6, 2016.
  19. ^ "Leisha Hailey Yoplait Commercial" at YouTube
  20. ^ "Leisha Hailey BMW TV commercial" at YouTube
  21. ^ Leisha Hailey Is the New Face of Olivia from Business Wire
  22. ^ Two More After Dark Originals International Posters: Seconds Apart & Fertile Ground
  23. ^ "Angel Heart". IMDb.
  24. ^ D'Zurilla, Christie (September 26, 2011). "Gay Actress & Girlfriend Escorted Off Plane". The Daily Beast.
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