Famke Janssen
Famke Janssen ( born November 5, 1965) is a Dutch actress and former fashion model. She is best known for her roles in GoldenEye, Nip/Tuck and as Dr. Jean Grey/Phoenix in the X-Men movies. Janssen is also a UNODC Goodwill Ambassador for Integrity
Famke Beumer Janssen was born in Amstelveen, the Netherlands. The first name means little girl in West Frisian, the native language of the Dutch province Friesland. Besides her native Dutch, Janssen learned to speak English and French. She has two sisters, director Antoinette Beumer and actress Marjolein Beumer.
Before coming to America, Janssen studied economics for a year at the University of Amsterdam calling it “the stupidest idea I ever had.”Janssen moved to the United States in 1984 and began her professional career as a fashion model. She was signed with Elite Model Management and worked for Yves Saint Laurent, Chanel and Victoria’s Secret. After retiring from modeling in the early 1990s, she enrolled at Columbia University to study creative writing and literature and also took up acting. Several years later she moved to Los Angeles to establish her acting career.
On January 28, 2008, Janssen was appointed a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for Integrity at the Second Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption, held in Nusa Dua, Bali.
In 2003, Janssen was awarded the International Star of the Year. In 2004, she won the Hollywood Life Breakthrough Artist of the Year for her work on Nip/Tuck. In 2006, the Hamptons International Film Festival awarded her with the Golden Starfish Award for career achievement in acting.
Blue Dog And Sponge Cake, a comedic band from Aurora, Colorado, created a song about Janssen.
Janssen lives in West Village in New York City. She was married to writer/director Tod Culpan Williams, son of architect Tod Williams, from 1995 to 2000.
Janssen has a brindle Boston Terrier named Licorice, with whom she frequently travels. Alongside her companion, she starred as a PETA spokesperson to raise awareness for animal rights with the slogan “Be an Angel for Animals”.
