Name: Debra Messing

Birth Name: Debra Lynn Moessing

Birthdate: Aug. 15, 1968

Birthplace: Brooklyn, N.Y.

Although she starred on the sitcom Ned and Stacey from 1995-1997, Debra Messing is best known for playing interior designer Grace on Will & Grace since 1998. She grew up watching Lucille Ball (whom she's often compared to) and Carol Burnett, which fueled her love of comedy. She was inspired to seriously pursue acting after seeing a stage production of Annie when she was 16 years old. While her parents encouraged her creative pursuits, they also urged her to put school first. She graduated summa cum laude from Brandeis University and was accepted into the elite Graduate Acting Program at New York University, which only accepts about 15 new students each year. She went on to appear on Broadway and in films like Along Came Polly and The Wedding Date.


1. Knowing that an openly gay character on Will & Grace could pose a risk for all involved, the show's producers visited Messing at her apartment with a bottle of vodka and limes in hopes of persuading her to join the cast.
2. She loves McDonald's.
3. She comes from a Zionistic-Jewish family.
4. She likes knitting, but is so allergic to wool that she breaks out in hives by just touching it.
5. She met her husband in grad school at NYU. They dated for seven years before tying the knot.


"I love to do glamorous things, like wear Valentino. That's a part of me that will never go away, playing dress-up in my mom's closet and looking at pictures of old Hollywood stars."
— Cosmopolitan, Feb. 2001


Husband: Daniel Zelman, actor/writer; born 1967; married Sept. 3, 2000
Son: Roman Walker Zelman, born Apr. 7, 2004

2005: Golden Globe nomination: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series (Comedy), Will & Grace

2004: Golden Globe nomination: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series (Comedy), Will & Grace

2003: Golden Globe nomination: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series (Comedy), Will & Grace

2002: Golden Globe nomination: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series (Comedy), Will & Grace

2001: Golden Globe nomination: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series (Comedy), Will & Grace

2000: Golden Globe nomination: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series (Comedy), Will & Grace

 

FILMS

The Women - (2008) - Actor
Lucky You - (2007) - Actor
Open Season - (2006) - Voice
The Wedding Date - (2005) - Actor
Garfield - (2004) - Voice
Along Came Polly - (2004) - Actor
Hollywood Ending - (2002) - Actor
The Mothman Prophecies - (2002) - Actor
Jesus - (2000) - Actor
Will & Grace - Season 3 - (200-2001) - Actor
Mchale's Navy - (1997) - Actor