Alex Borstein

{{Redirect|Borstein|the American artist born 1946|Elena Borstein}} {{Short description|American actress (born 1971)}} {{Infobox person | name = Alex Borstein | image = Alex Borstein by Gage Skidmore 4 (retouched).jpg | alt =  | caption = Borstein at the 2016 WonderCon | birth_name = Alexandrea Borstein | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1971|02|15}} | birth_place = Highland Park, Illinois, U.S. | alma_mater = San Francisco State University (BA) | occupation = {{hlist|Actress|comedian|writer|producer}} | years_active = 1993–present | spouse = {{marriage|Jackson Douglas|1999|2017|reason=divorced}} | children = 2 }} '''Alexandrea Borstein''' (born February 15, 1971)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alexborstein.com/main.htm|title=FAQ (first question)|work=Alexborstein.com|access-date=July 25, 2012|archive-date=March 17, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190317161752/http://www.alexborstein.com/main.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer best known as Lois Griffin in ''Family Guy'', for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award, and Susie Myerson in ''The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel'' (2017–2023), which won her two Primetime Emmy Awards.

Borstein also had lead roles as various characters on the sketch comedy series ''MADtv'' (1997–2009) and as Dawn Forchette in the medical comedy series ''Getting On'' (2013–2015). She had supporting roles in numerous films, including ''Showtime'' (2002), ''Bad Santa'' (2003), ''Kicking & Screaming'' (2005), ''Little Man'' (2006), ''Killers'' (2010), ''Ted'' (2012), ''A Million Ways to Die in the West'' (2014), ''Love the Coopers'' (2015), and ''The Bad Guys'' (2022) as well as its sequel (2025).

==Early life== Borstein was born on February 15, 1971, (although her official website says 1973) <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alexborstein.com/main.htm|title=FAQ (first question)|work=Alexborstein.com|access-date=July 25, 2012|archive-date=March 17, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190317161752/http://www.alexborstein.com/main.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> in Highland Park, Illinois, a city north of Chicago. She was raised in Deerfield, Illinois, before her family moved to Northridge, California, a city of Los Angeles.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://forward.com/the-assimilator/189943/alex-borstein-on-family-guy-and-getting-on/|title=Alex Borstein on 'Family Guy' and 'Getting On'|publisher=The Forward|first=Curt |last=Schleier|date=December 26, 2013}}</ref> She graduated from Chatsworth High School in 1989. She has two older brothers. Her parents, Irv and Judy Borstein, are both mental health professionals.<ref name="alex1">{{cite web| last =Phipps| first =Keith| title=Random Rules: Alex Borstein| publisher =The A.V. Club| date =November 20, 2006 | url =http://www.avclub.com/content/node/55488| access-date =November 21, 2006 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011140525/http://www.avclub.com/content/node/55488 |archive-date=October 11, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://sonic.net/~goblin/borstein.htm |title=It's a MAD World |website=Sonic.net |date=October 19, 2002 |access-date=July 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120512100237/http://sonic.net/~goblin/borstein.htm |archive-date=May 12, 2012}}</ref> She has stated that she is of Hungarian and Mongolian descent.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Stern |first1=Marlow |title='Family Guy' Star Alex Borstein Is Ready for Her HBO Close-Up |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/family-guy-star-alex-borstein-is-ready-for-her-hbo-close-up |newspaper=The Daily Beast |date=12 November 2013 |access-date=28 June 2022}}</ref> She is Jewish.<ref name="alex1" /><ref>[https://www.kveller.com/how-jewish-celebrities-celebrated-passover/ ''Kveller.com'' "How Celebrities Celebrated Passover"]</ref>

Her father is from Atlanta. Her maternal grandmother, a Holocaust survivor, was born and raised in Budapest, Hungary, and immigrated to the United States after the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hemaware.org/story/hemophilia-humor|title=Hemophilia Humor: NHF spokesperson Alex Borstein found success, levity in comedy|publisher=Hemaware|first=Kadesha | last=Thomas Smith|date=September 19, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://jewishjournal.com/culture/just-asking/228674/alex-borstein-and-her-maisel-character-were-both-like-little-bulldogs/|title=Alex Borstein and Her 'Maisel' Character: 'We're Both Like Little Bulldogs'|first=Naomi| last=Pfefferman |publisher=Jewish Journal|date=December 13, 2017|access-date=September 18, 2018}}</ref> Borstein is a graduate of San Francisco State University, where she studied rhetoric.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-alex-borstein-getting-on-hbo-20141112-story.html|title=Alex Borstein, a woman of many voices with just the right tone|publisher=Chicago Tribune|first=Courtney |last=Crowder|date=November 12, 2014|access-date=May 19, 2017}}</ref>

==Career== ===1993–1998: Career beginnings and ''MADtv''=== Borstein trained in improvisational comedy at the ACME Comedy Theater, near Hollywood, where she met her writing partner and future husband Jackson Douglas. Shortly after they began working together on the animated series ''The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper'' and ''Pinky and the Brain'', Borstein left her position at an ad agency – where she had written print ads for Barbie – to become a full-time writer. In 1996, while still writing for ''Casper'', Borstein worked on the show ''Power Rangers Zeo'' as the voice of Queen Machina, the queen of the Machine Empire.

In 1997, Borstein became a cast member on the third season of the sketch comedy show MADtv after being discovered by a casting agent while performing with the ACME Comedy Theater troupe at the Big Stinkin' International Improv & Sketch Comedy Festival in Austin, Texas.<ref>{{cite web |title=Alex Borstein |url=https://www.tvinsider.com/people/alex-borstein/ |access-date=April 29, 2026 |website=TV Insider}}</ref>

Borstein was best known on ''MADtv'' for her character Ms. Swan (owner of the ''Gorgeous Pretty Beauty Nail Salon''); her other recurring characters included Eracist Anne, "Stick Chick" Echo, singer Jasmine Wayne-Wayne, child prodigy Karen Goddard, lounge singer Shaunda, ''News at Six'' outside-the-studio reporter Sue Napersville, and Cordo the GAP troll. When Seth Green made recurring appearances on the show as mean boss Mr. Brightling, Borstein would play his mother, Mama Brightling.

===1999–present: Further success and ''Family Guy''===

While working on ''MADtv'', Borstein met Seth MacFarlane, who was then preparing to launch the animated sitcom ''Family Guy'' on Fox. MacFarlane was originally supposed to create animated shorts for ''MADtv'', but declined in favor of creating an independent series. MacFarlane cast Borstein as the voice of character Lois Griffin, where incidentally, she yet again played the mother of Seth Green, who voiced Chris Griffin. After the show's debut in January 1999, ''Family Guy'' was cancelled by the network twice in 2000 and 2002, but eventually returned in 2005. As well as her role as the voice performer for Lois and several other characters (including a brief appearance as Ms. Swan in a 2005 episode), she is also a producer and staff writer. She was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance for the episode "Lois Comes Out of Her Shell" in 2013.

In 2000, Borstein was cast as Sookie St. James in the WB drama ''Gilmore Girls''. She portrayed Sookie in the pilot but her ''MADtv'' contract prevented her from continuing in the role. Borstein made recurring appearances on ''Gilmore Girls'' throughout the show's run, first as the harpist Drella and later as the stylist Miss Celine.

As a film actor, she played Ms. Ungermeyer the school principal in ''The Lizzie McGuire Movie'' (2003), the best friend of Halle Berry's character in ''Catwoman'' (2004), and an employee at CBS News in ''Good Night, and Good Luck'' (2005). She also had a small role in the movie ''Bad Santa'' (2003) and an uncredited cameo as an obnoxious coffee shop patron in the Will Ferrell movie ''Kicking & Screaming'' (2005). On some commercials, she sometimes voices Olive Oyl from Popeye and Betty Boop.

Borstein was a co-host of GSN's ''Celebrity Blackjack'' in 2004. She made at least three guest appearances, once as Lois Griffin, on the Comedy Central animated program ''Drawn Together''.

Borstein was cast as a press secretary in the 2007 sitcom pilot ''The Thick of It'', but the series was not picked up for broadcast. She was seen in the 2009 comedy ''For Christ's Sake'', which was directed by her then husband Jackson Douglas.{{Citation needed |date=June 2023}}

Borstein's production company is called Crackerpants, Inc. In 2007, it released the DVD ''Drop Dead Gorgeous (in a Down-to-Earth Bombshell Sort of Way)'', a recording of a live performance at the Alex Theatre with Teddy Towne as the opening act. The title comes from one of many female character breakdowns Borstein reads from to illustrate sexism in the industry.<ref>''Drop Dead Gorgeous (In a Down to Earth Bombshell Sort of Way)'', Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, 2007</ref>

===2010–present: ''Getting On'' and ''The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel''=== [[File:Alex Borstein by Gage Skidmore 3.jpg|thumb|Borstein at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con]] Borstein has made several supporting appearances in such comedic films as ''Killers'' (2010), ''Dinner for Schmucks'' (2010), ''Ted'' (2012), ''ParaNorman'' (2012), ''A Million Ways to Die in the West'' (2014), ''The Angry Birds Movie'' (2016), and ''The Bad Guys'' (2022).

In 2010, Borstein joined the first season staff of the Showtime comedy-drama series ''Shameless'', as a writer and supervising producer. In its second season, she held the position of writer and consulting producer. She also guest-starred as Lou Deckner in numerous episodes of the series, beginning in the first-season episode "But at Last Came a Knock."

She also appeared as a comedian contestant on IFC's short-lived comedy-driven game show ''Bunk'' in 2012.

Borstein starred as Dawn Forchette on the HBO comedy series ''Getting On'', which is a remake of a British series with the same name. The series has gained positive reviews and earned multiple Primetime Emmy Award nominations. It aired from 2013 to 2015.

From 2017 to 2023, Borstein starred as Susie Myerson in the Amazon Prime Video historical comedy-drama series ''The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel'', for which she received significant critical acclaim and won two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

==Personal life== Borstein met actor and writer Jackson Douglas while she was studying improv at the ACME Comedy Theatre. Douglas proposed to her during the taping of a ''MADtv'' sketch and they were married in 1999. Douglas filed for divorce in October 2014 and it was finalized in 2017.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tmz.com/2014/10/30/alex-borstein-divorce-family-guy-lois-griffin-husband-split/|title='Family Guy' Star Alex Borstein -- Husband Files For Divorce ... I Want Pewterschmidt Money|date=30 October 2014 |publisher=TMZ|access-date=January 18, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://people.com/tv/family-guy-star-alex-borstein-finalizes-divorce-jackson-douglas/|first=Aurelie |last=Corinthios|title=Alex Borstein's Divorce Is Final: Her Ex-Husband Gets Half Her Family Guy Royalties|publisher=People |date=November 9, 2017|access-date=September 18, 2018}}</ref> Borstein and Douglas have a son and a daughter.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://people.com/parents/alex-borstein-a/|title=Alex Borstein and Jackson Douglas Welcome Son Barnaby|website=People|access-date=September 18, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.celebritybabyscoop.com/2012/10/08/alex-borstein-welcomes-baby-no-2-henrietta|work=Celebrity Baby Scoop|access-date=April 23, 2014|title=Alex Borstein Welcomes Baby No. 2: Henrietta|date=October 8, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119155313/https://celebritybabyscoop.com/2012/10/08/alex-borstein-welcomes-baby-no-2-henrietta/|archive-date=November 19, 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Borstein, who is a carrier of hemophilia herself,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Grant |first1=Drew |title=Family Gal |url=https://observer.com/2013/11/family-gal/ |website=The New York Observer |access-date=20 April 2023 |date=5 November 2013}}</ref> is a longtime advocate for the National Hemophilia Foundation.<ref>{{Cite web|title=National Hemophilia Foundation and Takeda Partner with Alex Borstein to Raise Awareness of von Willebrand Disease|url=https://www.takeda.com/en-us/newsroom/news-releases/2020/national-hemophilia-foundation-and-takeda-partner-with-alex-borstein/|access-date=2021-10-22|website=www.takeda.com|language=en}}</ref>

===Religious beliefs=== According to Borstein, "We do Shabbat every Friday night. I'm not [someone] that goes to temple all the time—I'm a High Holidays temple goer, and that's about it. But there are traditions", she said in an interview. "Having a mother and a grandmother who are Holocaust survivors, I feel a large responsibility to continue that culture and those traditions—not necessarily the dogma, but what it feels like to be Jewish. I want to instill that in my kids."<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.heyalma.com/18-things-to-know-about-alex-borstein/ |title=18 Things to Know About Alex Borstein |last=Frick |first= Evelyn |date= December 10, 2021 |access-date= April 3, 2023|website=heyalma |language=en}}</ref>

==Filmography== ===Film=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |+ |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |- | 2000 | ''Coyote Ugly'' | Bidding Auction Woman | Uncredited |- | rowspan=2|2002 | ''Dawg'' | Darcy Smits | |- | ''Showtime'' | Casting Director | |- | rowspan=2|2003 |data-sort-value="Lizzie McGuire Movie, The"| ''The Lizzie McGuire Movie'' | Miss Ungermeyer | |- | ''Bad Santa'' | Milwaukee Mom | |- | rowspan=3|2004 | ''Seeing Other People'' | Tracy | |- | ''Catwoman'' | Sally | |- | ''Billy's Dad Is a Fudge-Packer!'' | Betty Henderson | Short film |- | rowspan=3|2005 | ''Kicking & Screaming'' | Obnoxious Hummer Lady | Uncredited |- | ''Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story'' | Lois Griffin / Various voices | Direct-to-video; Also writer and co-producer |- | ''Good Night, and Good Luck'' | Natalie | |- | 2006 | ''Little Man'' | Janet | |- | 2007 |data-sort-value="Lookout, The"| ''The Lookout'' | Mrs. Lange | |- | rowspan=3|2010 | ''Killers'' | Lily Bailey | |- | ''Dinner for Schmucks'' | Martha | |- | ''For Christ's Sake'' | Mrs. Marcus | |- | rowspan=2|2012 | ''Ted'' | Helen Bennett | |- | ''ParaNorman'' | Mrs. Henscher (voice) | |- | 2014 | ''A Million Ways to Die in the West'' | Millie | |- | 2015 | ''Love the Coopers'' | Angie | |- | 2016 |data-sort-value="Angry Birds Movie, The"| ''The Angry Birds Movie'' | Sophie Bird / Peggy Bird (voice) | |- | 2021 | ''Extinct'' | Mali (voice) | |- | 2022 | ''The Bad Guys'' | Chief Misty Luggins (voice) | |- | 2025 | ''The Bad Guys 2'' | Commissioner Misty Luggins (voice)<ref>{{Cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=2024-03-26 |title=DreamWorks Animation Sets 'The Bad Guys 2' For Late Summer 2025 |url=https://deadline.com/2024/03/the-bad-guys-2-release-date-1235868833/ |access-date=2024-03-27 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref> | |}

===Television=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |+ |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |- | 1993–1994 | ''Mighty Morphin Power Rangers'' | Various voices<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rangercentral.com/cast/pfl-alex-borstein.htm#axzz3Bc1sauCl|title=Alex Borstein - Power Rangers Central|access-date=January 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118140549/http://www.rangercentral.com/cast/pfl-alex-borstein.htm#axzz3Bc1sauCl|archive-date=January 18, 2017|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> | 4 episodes |- | rowspan=2|1996 | ''Power Rangers Zeo'' | Queen Machina / Robocupid (voice) | 42 episodes |- | ''Big Bad Beetleborgs'' | Cataclaws (voice) | Episode: "Yo Ho Borgs" |- | 1997–2009, 2016 | ''MADtv'' | Herself / Various characters | Main role; 134 episodes Also writer |- | 1999–present | ''Family Guy'' | Lois Griffin / Barbara Pewterschmidt / Tricia Takanawa (1999-2021) / Various voices | Main role; 424 episodes Also writer and producer |- | 2000–2005 | ''Gilmore Girls'' | Drella / Miss Celine / Doris | 9 episodes |- | 2002 | ''Titus'' | Nicky | Episode: "Bachelor Party" |- | 2002–2003 | ''3-South'' | Becky (voice) | 3 episodes |- | rowspan=2|2003 | ''Friends'' | Bitter Woman on Stage | Episode: "The One with the Soap Opera Party" |- | ''Frasier'' | Evelyn | Episode: "Farewell, Nervosa" |- | 2005–2022 | ''Robot Chicken'' | Various voices | 16 episodes |- | 2006–2016 | ''American Dad!'' | Doctor Gupta / Museum Curator (voice) | Episodes: "Roger 'n' Me" and "Garfield and Friends" |- | 2006 | ''Drawn Together'' | Lois Griffin / Various voices | Episodes: "A Tale of Two Cows" and "The Lemon AIDS Walk" |- | 2007–2009 | ''Slacker Cats'' | Latoyah (voice) | 10 episodes |- | 2009–2013 | ''The Cleveland Show'' | Hadassah Lowenstein / Lois Griffin / Various voices | 17 episodes |- | 2009 | ''Glenn Martin, DDS'' | Clerk (voice) | Episode: "Deck the Malls" |- | 2011–2015 | ''Shameless'' | Lou Deckner | 5 episodes; also writer and consulting producer |- | 2011 | ''Night of the Hurricane'' | Lois Griffin (voice) | Television special |- | rowspan=2|2012 | ''Hot in Cleveland'' | Preshi | Episode: "Rubber Ball" |- | ''Robot Chicken DC Comics Special'' | Wonder Woman / Giganta / Woman at Bar (voice) | Television special |- | 2012–2016 | ''Workaholics'' | Colleen Walker | 3 episodes |- | 2012–2013 |''Bunheads'' | Sweetie Cramer / Hooker | Episodes: "Pilot" and "Channing Tatum Is a Fine Actor" |- | 2013–2015 | ''Getting On'' | Dawn Forchette | Main role; 18 episodes |- | 2014 | ''Robot Chicken DC Comics Special 2: Villains in Paradise'' | Wonder Woman (voice) | Television special |- | rowspan=3|2015 | ''Life in Pieces'' | Lynette | Episode: "Ponzi Sex Paris Bounce" |- | ''Masters of Sex'' | Loretta | Episode: "Monkey Business" |- | ''Robot Chicken DC Comics Special III: Magical Friendship'' | Wonder Woman (voice) | Television special |- | rowspan=3|2016 | ''Bordertown'' | Janice Buckwald / Becky (voice) | Main role; 12 episodes |- | ''Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life'' | Drella / Miss Celine | Episodes: "Winter" and "Fall" |- | ''Son of Zorn'' | Elizabeth | Episode: "Return of the Drinking Buddy" |- | 2017 | ''Animals.'' | Lois Griffin (voice) | Episode: "Pigeons." |- | 2017–2023 | ''The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel'' | Susie Myerson | Main role; 43 episodes |- | 2021 | ''Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens'' | Wilma (voice) | Episode: "Tales from the Blackout" |- | 2022 | ''Resident Alien'' | Carlyn | Episode: "Girls' Night" |- | 2023 | ''Alex Borstein: Corsets & Clown Suits'' | Herself | Television special |}

===Video games=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |+ |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable"|Notes |- | 2006 | ''Family Guy Video Game!'' | rowspan=3|Lois Griffin / Various voices | |- | 2012 | ''Family Guy: Back to the Multiverse'' | |- | 2014 | ''Family Guy: The Quest for Stuff'' | |- |2022 | ''Warped Kart Racers'' | Lois Griffin | Archived recordings |}

===Web=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |+ |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |- | 2008–2010 | ''Seth MacFarlane's Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy'' | Various voices | 6 episodes |- |2011 |The Jeff Lewis 5-Minute Comedy Hour |Wife |Episode: ”ATM” |- |2024 | ''Hot Ones'' |Lois Griffin |Episode: "Peter Griffin Bares It All While Eating Spicy Wings"<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQetIIHYEnM&t=18s|title=Peter Griffin Bares It All While Eating Spicy Wings |website=YouTube |date=Oct 21, 2024}}</ref> |}

===Radio=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |+ |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |- | 2015 | ''Special Relativity''<ref>{{cite web| title=Special Relativity - A Radio Comedy starring Alex Borstein | url =http://www.specialrelativityradio.com| access-date =May 18, 2015}}</ref> | Nox / Lucinda | |}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== {{Commons category}} * {{IMDb name|id=https://m.imdb.com/name/nm0097504/|97504}} * [http://suicidegirls.com/interviews/Alex+Borstein/ SuicideGirls interview with Alex Borstein]

{{Navboxes | title = Awards for Alex Borstein | list = {{Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series}} {{EmmyAward ComedySupportingActress}} {{EmmyAward Character Voice-Over Performance}} }}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Borstein, Alex}} Category:1971 births Category:Living people Category:Actresses from Chicago Category:American comedy writers Category:American film actresses Category:American sketch comedians Category:American people of Hungarian descent Category:American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent Category:American people of Mongolian descent Category:American television actresses Category:American voice actresses Category:American women comedians Category:American women television writers Category:American television writers Category:Comedians from Los Angeles Category:Comedians from Illinois Category:Jewish American actresses Category:Jewish American comedians Category:Jewish women comedians Category:Jewish American screenwriters Category:Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Primetime Emmy Award winners Category:Actresses from Highland Park, Illinois Category:San Francisco State University alumni Category:Screenwriters from Illinois Category:Writers from Chicago Category:21st-century American actresses Category:21st-century American comedians Category:21st-century American screenwriters Category:People from Deerfield, Illinois Category:People with haemophilia Category:21st-century American Jews Category:American actors with disabilities Category:People from Northridge, Los Angeles