• Diane Venora is an American actor best known for her role in the film "Bird".
• She was born in East Hartford, Connecticut in 1952 and attended Juilliard School in New York.
• She began her career in 1981 in off-Broadway plays and rose to stardom after her role in "Bird" in 1988.
• She has also appeared in films such as "Terminal Choice" (1985), "Ironweed" (1987), and "Heat" (1995).
• Her estimated net worth is $1.1 million.

 

Who is Diane Venora?

Diane Venora is a renowned American actor, who began her career in acting with Shakespearean plays. She is best known for her role of Chan Parker in the film “Bird”.

Diane Venora Age, Early Life, Family, and Education Background

Diane was actually born as Diana, under the Leo Zodiac sign on 10 August 1952, in East Hartford, Connecticut USA, making her 67 years old in 2019. She is an American by nationality and belongs to white ethnicity. Venora is the daughter of Robert P. Venora and Marie (née Brooks), and has five siblings; her father was the owner of a dry-cleaning establishment.

Regarding her education, Diane attended East Hartford High School and matriculated in 1970. At the time, she was active in plays and musicals. Later, Diane joined the Boston Conservatory of Music and after two years, she won a scholarship to study at the prestigious Juilliard School in New York, from where she graduated in 1977. While at Juilliard, Diane was a part of the Drama Department Group 6, alongside Harriet Sansom Haris, Kelsey Grammer, and Robin Williams.

Diane Venora Professional Career and Rise to Stardom

Diane began her career in 1981 in the theater, when she had a role in the off-Broadway play “Penguin Touquet”. Also, she took part in many Shakespeare plays, and was one of the first women to land the lead role in “Hamlet”, in the 1983 New York Shakespeare Festival. She subsequently played the “Hamlet” title role on many occasions at several venues. Venora made a name for herself for bridging the gender gap in Shakespearean theater, proving that she was a versatile actress.

She made her film debut in 1981, when she appeared in “Wolfen”, a crime horror movie playing alongside Albert Finney and Gregory Hines. Later, she appeared in “Terminal Choice” and “Ironweed” in 1985 and 1987 respectively. Diane rose to stardom in 1988 after appearing in the film “Bird” starring as Chan Parker. The film was produced and directed by Clint Eastwood, and earned Diane a Golden Globe nomination as well as a New York Film Critics Circle Award. In 1995 Diane played the role of Justine Hanna alongside Al Pacino and Robert De Niro in the movie “Heat”, a crime thriller; her performance earned her positive reviews from both her fans and critics.

Since then Diane has appeared in numerous films, such as “Self Medicated” in which she got the role of Louise Eriksen, and which later won the Best Ensemble Cast award at the Phoenix Film Festival. Besides her big-screen and theater appearances, Diane’s television career blossomed in the early ‘80s. Some of the shows she is best known for include “Getting There”, “Law & Order”, “Great Performances”, and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”.

Diane Venora

She is also known for appearing in various primetime serials, including “Criminal Minds”, “Grey’s Anatomy”, “The Wish List”, and “The Victorians”. During her long and successful acting career, Diane has won many accolades including the Best Supporting Actress from the New York Film Critics Circle, and the Sant Jordi Award for Best Actress in a Foreign Film, for her role in “Bird” as Chan Parker.

Diane Venora Personal Life, Married, Husband, and Children

Diane met Andrzej Bartkowiak in 1979 while working on the Head & Shoulders shampoo commercial.

After dating for several months, they tie the knot in 1980, and a year later were blessed with a daughter, Madzia Bartkowiak Horgan. However, their union hit rock bottom, and ended up filing for divorce in 1989. Their daughter was only eight years old, so Diane decided to quit show business for some time and concentrate on raising her, particularly as she suffered from a degenerative nerve condition and was also partially deaf, which made her more dependent on her mother.

At the time, she was living in New York, and worked as a teacher teaching underprivileged children while giving more attention to her daughter. She would make occasional appearances in theater in New York until her daughter’s condition improved. They then moved to Los Angeles so that she could continue with her career. She resumed acting in 1994 as her daughter had gained enough courage to face the world without depending on her mother.

Later, Bartkowiak remarried but agreed to still help with raising their daughter. However, Diane chose to raise her daughter alone, with the addition of their two dogs.

Diane Verona Salary and Net Worth

As an actress who has had such a successful career, Diane has managed to accumulate significant  wealth. She doesn’t disclose her annual income, which varies anyway according to her acting commitments, but authoritative sources estimate Venora’s net worth to be not less than $1.1 million as of late-2019.

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