Mary Steenburgen's Real Name: Mary Nell Steenburgen

Quick answer: Mary Steenburgen was born Mary Nell Steenburgen on February 8, 1953, in Newport, Arkansas. She won the Academy Award for best supporting actress for Melvin and Howard (1980). Her other films include Back to the Future Part III, Philadelphia, and Elf, and she has been married to Ted Danson since 1995 (Library of Congress; Britannica).

Real name and early life

The Library of Congress name authority files her as "Steenburgen, Mary." One citation reads "Mary Nell Steenburgen (born February 8, 1953); American actress; born Newport, Arkansas," and another gives the short date "b. 2-8-53." Britannica also lists "Mary Nell Steenburgen" as an alternate name and gives the same date and birthplace.

According to Britannica, she grew up in Arkansas and acted in high school plays. She briefly attended Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas, then moved to New York City in 1972 to study at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre. After finishing there, she and other graduates started an improvisational comedy troupe.

Career highlights

Jack Nicholson gave Steenburgen her screen debut in the western comedy Goin' South (1978). She played a spinster who saves his character from the gallows. Next she starred opposite Malcolm McDowell, as H.G. Wells, in the time-travel film Time After Time (1979).

In her third film, Melvin and Howard (1980), she played the go-go dancer wife of Melvin Dummar, the hapless dreamer played by Paul Le Mat. The role won her both a Golden Globe and the Oscar for best supporting actress. She followed with Miloš Forman's Ragtime (1981) and played author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings in Cross Creek (1983). A BAFTA nomination came for the 1985 miniseries Tender Is the Night.

Her later films include Parenthood (1989), Back to the Future Part III (1990), What's Eating Gilbert Grape and Philadelphia (both 1993), Nixon (1995), Elf (2003), The Proposal (2009), The Help (2011), and Book Club (2018). She starred with Danson in the miniseries Gulliver's Travels (1996).

On television, Britannica lists Joan of Arcadia (2003–05) and guest or recurring roles on Curb Your Enthusiasm, 30 Rock, Justified, Orange Is the New Black, and Grace and Frankie. She was a regular on Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (2020–21). Recent films include Happiest Season (2020) and Guillermo del Toro's Nightmare Alley (2021).

Name notes for searchers

She has always worked as Mary Steenburgen, her birth name; Nell is her middle name. The surname is spelled with "-burgen," not "-burgh" or "-bergen," which helps when searching. Her marriage to Ted Danson did not change her professional name.