Leah Remini's father George Remini, owner of an asbestos
company, originates from Sicily. Her mother Vicki Marshall, a
high school principal, is Jewish and originates from Austria.
Her parents were divorced in 1977. Remini has one sister, Nicole
Remini (born 1969), and four half-sisters: Shannon (born 1984),
Stephanie (born 1978), Elizabeth (born 1976), and Christine
(born 1970). When Leah was 14, she left the school against the
advice of her mother as she wanted to pursue a different
occupation. At the beginning of her working life, Leah had a
variety of jobs, such as waitressing, selling car insurance, and
as a telemarketer for a solar heating company. Leah got her
first speaking line as an actress on an episode of Head of the
Class. On July 19, 2003 she married actor Angelo Pagan. A
documentary of the wedding was aired on the VH1 series Inside
Out. On June 16, 2004, she gave birth to a daughter, Sofia
Bella. Remini stands 5' 3" (1,60 m) tall, and her weight has
naturally varied widely since becoming pregnant, a fact she was
heard to lament on an episode of Fat Actress.
Leah Remini's entrance into television came in the mid-'80s,
when she appeared as Carla Tortelli's daughter Serafina on two
episodes of Cheers. In 1989, she played the lead on Living
Dolls, a short-lived spin-off from Who's the Boss? In 1991, she
had a recurring role on Saved by the Bell and starred in the
short-lived sitcom The Man in the Family. She gained some
popularity with her role as Terri Reynolds on the 1997 NBC
comedy series Fired Up. She had several guest appearances on
shows such as Evening Shade, Diagnosis: Murder, NYPD Blue and
Friends She was also a character in Nickelodeon's Salute Your
Shorts as Ug's love interest. She also was in the Friends
episode "The One with the Birth" (season 1).
Leah Remini practices Scientology. In December 2004, she
distributed Scientology materials to her fans. In December 2005,
she helped promote the gala opening of Scientology's
controversial "Psychiatry: An Industry of Death" Museum, which
puts forth a conspiracy theory connecting Adolf Hitler to the
psychiatric profession. Previously, on CNN, responding to
criticism of Scientology, she said:
"If somebody is going to get turned off about something because of what they read or heard, then that person's not smart enough to even enter a church. If you're really against something, then know what you're against."
Leah Remini voiced the character of Grace Nakimura in the
1993 computer game Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers for
Sierra On-Line.
Film List
This Leah Remini Biography Page is Copyright The Planets © 2004 - 2006 Chuck Ayoub