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Mädchen Amick
Amick at the 2016 Samhsa Voice Awards
Born	(1970-12-12) December 12, 1970 (age 54) Sparks, Nevada, U.S.
Occupations	Actress director writer
Years active	1988–present
Spouse	David Alexis ​(m. 1995)​
Children	2

Mädchen Amick (/ˈmeɪtʃən ˈeɪmɪk/ MAY-chən AY-mik; born December 12, 1970) is an American actress and television director. She is known for her starring role as Shelly Johnson on the television series Twin Peaks (1990–1991), its prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992) and its revival television series Twin Peaks: The Return (2017). She appeared in the pilot episode of Baywatch (1989). She was a series regular on Central Park West (1995–1996), Freddie (2005–2006), and Witches of East End (2013–2014) and as Wendall Meade in ER (2004). In film, she had starring roles in Sleepwalkers (1992) and Dream Lover (1993). She also portrayed Alice Cooper on The CW's drama television series Riverdale (2017–2023).

Early life

Mädchen Elaina Amick was born in Sparks, Nevada, a city that borders Reno, the daughter of Judy (née Ross), a medical office manager, and Bill Amick, a musician. Amick's parents are of partial German descent; the name Mädchen (German for girl) was chosen by her parents because they wanted an unusual name. She is also of Norwegian, Swedish, English and Irish descent. As a young girl, Amick was encouraged by her parents to follow her creative instincts. She learned to play the piano, bass, violin and guitar and took lessons in tap, ballet, jazz and modern dance. In 1987, at the age of 16, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting.

Career

After moving to Los Angeles, Amick began her career with guest roles on Star Trek: The Next Generation (1989) and Baywatch (1989). Amick got her first break when director David Lynch chose her to play waitress Shelly Johnson on the television series Twin Peaks (1990–1991). Amick's character endured physical abuse at the hands of her criminal husband, Leo, and was one of the most popular characters. Amick went on to work twice more with Lynch—reprising her role as Shelly in the prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992) and in seven episodes of the 2017 Twin Peaks revival series.

In 1990, Amick was cast as Mandy in Don't Tell Her It's Me and portrayed Amy in Tobe Hooper's horror film I'm Dangerous Tonight. In 1991, Amick was cast in The Borrower. In 1992, Amick portrayed the heroine Tanya Robertson in the Stephen King horror film Sleepwalkers. The following year, she starred in the thriller film Love, Cheat & Steal (1993).

In 1993, Amick was cast as Lena Mathers in the feature film Dream Lover, a thriller in which she co-starred with James Spader. In 1995, she and Spader were reunited in the TV movie The Courtyard. That same year, Amick appeared in the romantic comedy French Exit. In 1996, Amick was cast in the science fiction thriller Bombshell. Amick's return to network television came in the fall of 1995 with the much-publicized CBS primetime soap opera Central Park West. In 1997, she appeared in the film Wounded. In 1998, Amick costarred for one season in the reboot of Fantasy Island on ABC alongside Malcolm McDowell.

After a decade of roles that failed to ignite the publicity Twin Peaks had, Amick gradually became a noticeable face in television with recurring roles on Gilmore Girls, ER, Jake in Progress, and Joey. In 2006, Amick was a regular in the sitcom Freddie, which was subsequently canceled.

Amick guest-starred in a number of episodes of the serial thriller Kidnapped on NBC, playing a strange and deadly assassin. She also had a recurring role in the second season of Dawson's Creek as the lead character's substitute film studies teacher. In 2007, she had a lead role in the short-lived CBS musical series Viva Laughlin.

Amick had a recurring role in season 2 of Gossip Girl as Nate Archibald's "cougar" love interest, and she also appears in the second season of the Showtime series Californication. In 2008, Amick starred as Christian Slater's wife on the NBC series My Own Worst Enemy. In 2010, Amick played Danielle Marchetti on the FX series Damages.

In 2011 she appeared in the post-apocalyptic film Priest. In 2013, Amick began starring in the Lifetime supernatural drama Witches of East End opposite Julia Ormond, Rachel Boston and Jenna Dewan. Amick's character Wendy Beauchamp was originally a guest star, but she became a permanent character after shooting the pilot episode. On August 6, 2015, Amick joined the cast of American Horror Story: Hotel as a mother whose son is ailing. Since 2017, Amick has starred as Alice Cooper, Betty Cooper's mother, on the CW television series Riverdale.

Personal life

Amick married her boyfriend of 8 years David Alexis on December 16, 1995. Together they have two children: son Sylvester Time Amick-Alexis and daughter Mina Tobias Amick-Alexis (known professionally as Mina Tobias). Tobias, a musician, released her single "Freedom" in 2018, the music video for which pays homage to Twin Peaks.

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

References

1. "Madchen Amick Biography". Buddytv.com. Archived from the original on November 8, 2010. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
2. "Mädchen Amick Biography (1970-)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
3. Into the Night with Rick Dees on YouTube
4. Mädchen Amick is Allison on Freddie Archived November 10, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
5. "#CelebsUnfiltered, Social Celebrities, Entertainment News, Photos, Videos, and Exclusives". WhoSay. Archived from the original on July 5, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
6. Ivie, Devon (October 31, 2017). "Mädchen Amick on 'Riverdale' and 'Twin Peaks: The Return'". Vulture. Retrieved October 31, 2017.
7. Voorhees, John (August 8, 1990). "'I'm Dangerous Tonight' Is Fine Lightheaded Entertainment". The Seattle Times. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
8. Holden, Stephen (April 11, 1992). "Review/Film; Fiends With Nasty Feeding Habits". The New York Times. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
9. Maslin, Janet (May 6, 1994). "Review/Film; Love Is Blind, The Least Of Its Problems". The New York Times. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
10. "Wounded". www.tcm.com. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
11. "Mädchen Amick | Movies and Biography". Yahoo Movies. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
12. "Madchen Amick joins 'Freddie' cast". United Press International. August 8, 2005. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
13. Stanley, Alessandra (October 18, 2007). "Singing in the Casino? That's a Gamble". The New York Times. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
14. Busis, Hillary (June 18, 2008). "Madchen Amick joins 'Gossip Girl'". Inside TV: EW.com. Archived from the original on October 17, 2013. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
15. Andreeva, Nellie (August 14, 2008). "Madchen Amick cast in 'Enemy'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
16. Warner, Rick (March 8, 2010). "Lawyer hunts for Madoff money in 'Damages'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
17. Courtney O. (September 18, 2009). "Madchen Amick Set for Priest". Movieweb.com. Archived from the original on October 19, 2013. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
18. Goldberg, Lesley (October 9, 2012). "Madchen Amick, Glenne Headly Join Lifetime's 'Witches of East End'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
19. Andreeva, Nellie (January 31, 2013). "Lifetime's 'Witches Of East End' Picked Up To Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
20. "Mädchen Amick Talks Witches of East End, How Much Fun it is to Play the Troublemaker, and More". Collider. October 13, 2013. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
21. Roots, Kimberly (August 6, 2015). "'American Horror Story' — Madchen Amick Cast in 'Hotel'". TVLine. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
22. Thompson, Eliza (March 30, 2017). "Riverdale Star Mädchen Amick on Playing Alice Cooper - Betty's Mom on Riverdale Q&A". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
23. "Mädchen Amick on Instagram: "33 years ago those eyes stopped me dead in my tracks, made my knees buckle, then stole my heart. 25 years ago (with our 2 babies by our…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on December 23, 2021. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
24. "Mina Tobias on Instagram: "Happy 25th anniversary to these two beautiful humans! I've never known anything but bottomless, selfless, unconditional love from my…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on December 23, 2021. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
25. "Meet Mina Tobias". VoyageLA. December 11, 2018. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
26. Dom, Pieter (May 18, 2015). "Twin Peaks Revisited By Mädchen Amick's Daughter Mina Tobias in "Freedom" Music Video". Welcome to Twin Peaks. Retrieved April 28, 2020.

External links

• Mädchen Amick at IMDb
• Mädchen Amick at AllMovie
• Official website

• Living people
• 1970 births
• 20th-century American actresses
• 21st-century American actresses
• Actresses from Nevada
• American film actresses
• American people of English descent
• American people of German descent
• American people of Irish descent
• American people of Norwegian descent
• American people of Swedish descent
• American television actresses
• People from Sparks, Nevada