This petite, alluring actress earned widespread attention and two Daytime Emmy nominations for her powerhouse performance as Brenda Barrett on the ABC daytime drama "General Hospital". A native Californian and youngest of four, Vanessa Marcil frequently traveled with her family living in such far-flung locations as Anchorage, Alaska and Reno, Nevada before they settled in Palm Desert, California. At age eight, she began her acting career, appearing in local theatrical productions. Originally intending to become a lawyer, Marcil dropped out of college to pursue a full-time career in show business. Spotted in a stage production of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", she was cast in her star-making soap role. Over the course of her six-year (1992-98) tenure on "General Hospital", the character of Brenda developed from spoiled rich girl to complex, assured businesswoman. Paired onscreen with actors Maurice Bernard (as gangster Sonny Corinthos) and Ingo Rademacher (as wealthy businessman Jasper Jax), Marcil was involved in two very popular romantic storylines. When her character underwent a nervous breakdown, the actress demonstrated her range and capabilities and netted an Emmy nomination.It was only a matter of time before Marcil began fielding other offers. In 1994, she starred alongside Dwight Yoakam and Sally Kirkland in the Peter Fonda-directed stage play "Southern Rapture" and received rave reviews. ABC tapped the rising star to host the popular weekly late-night music series "In Concert" (1995) and to star in the 1996 TV-movie "To Love, Honor, and Deceive". In the latter, she portrayed a young wife and mother who discovers her husband had a secret life. Marcil made the jump to the big screen in the brief role of Nicolas Cage's fiancee in "The Rock" (1996). She went on to appear in the short "976-WISH" (1997) and co-star in two independent features, "This Space Between Us", opposite Jeremy Sisto, and "Nice Guys Sleep Alone", with Sean O'Bryan. In the fall of 1998, Marcil traded her daytime stint for a regular role as sultry Gina Kincaid on the Fox primetime series "Beverly Hills, 90210" from 1998 to the series' conclusion in 2000. After a pair of brief guest-starring stints as a detective on "NYPD Blue" in 2001 and 2003, and a leading role in the low-budget sci fi actioner "Storm Watch" (2002), Marcil returned to primetime network television in NBC's populat lighthearted drama "Las Vegas" (2003- ), playing Samantha “Sam” Jane, handler to Sin City's highest rollers at the Montecito hotel and casino.
Profession(s):
Actor
Sometimes Credited As:
Vanessa Ortiz
Family
brother:Sam Ortiz (older)
father:Peter Ortiz (mexican; separated from Marcil's mother)
husband:Corey Feldman (married in 1989; divorced in 1991)
mother:Patricia Ortiz (French, Italian and Portuguese; separated from Marcil's father)
sister:Sherry Ortiz (older)
sister:Tina Ortiz (older)
son:Kassius Lijah Marcil-Green (born March 30, 2002; father is Brian Austin Green)
Companion(s)
Ben Younger
, Companion
, ```..began dating September 2005
Brian Austin Greene
, Companion
, ```..appeared together on "Beverly Hills, 90210"; began dating in 1999; announced engagement in July 2001; no longer together
Carmine Giovinazzo
, Companion
, ```..born c. 1973; dated c. 1998-99
Nathan Fillion
, Companion
, ```..together until 1996
Tyler Christopher
, Companion
, ```..met while both were appearing on "General Hospital"; had been engaged; reportedly separated, although they acted together on stage in L.A. production of "Starfire" (1999)
Soap Opera Digest Award Outstanding Lead Actress "General Hospital" 1998
Soap Opera Digest Award Hottest Female Star "General Hospital" 1997
2003 Cast as Samantha Jane "Sam" Marquez in the NBC drama "Las Vegas"
2001 Joined cast of ABC's "NYPD Blue" in recurring role of detective Carmen Olivera
1999 Co-starred with Jeremy Sisto in "This Space Between Us"; premiered at the Seattle Film Festival
1999 Acted onstage opposite Tyler Christopher in the L.A. production "Starfire"
1998 - 2000 Joined the cast of the Fox primetime soap "Beverly Hills, 90210"
1997 Had featured role in unsold ABC pilot "L.A. Med"
1996 Had lead in the ABC TV-movie "To Love, Honor, and Deceive"
1996 Portrayed Nicolas Cage's fiancee in "The Rock"
1995 Served as a recurring host for ABC's late-night series "In Concert"
1993 Co-starred with Dwight Yoakam and Sally Kirkland in the Peter Fonda-directed play "Southern Rapture" in L.A.
1992 - 1998 Portrayed Brenda Barrett on the ABC daytime soap "General Hospital"; received Best Supporting Actress Emmy nominations in 1997 and 1998
1978 Began acting in local theater productions in Palm Desert, CA (date approximate)
Moved with family to Anchorage, AK when she was a toddler
Later lived in Reno, NV before family settled in Southern California
Appeared in the Prince music video "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World"
Was commercial spokesperson for Head and Shoulders shampoo
Cast in the independent feature "Nice Guys Sleep Alone" (filmed in 1998)