Leelee Sobieski

Liliane Gloria Sobieski (born June 10, 1983 some sources say 1982), known professionally as Leelee Sobieski, is an American film and television actress. Sobieski achieved recognition in her mid-teens for her performance in the 1998 film Deep Impact. She received an Emmy nomination for the 1999 TV movie Joan of Arc, and two Golden Globe nominations for Joan of Arc and the 2001 TV movie Uprising. --- Sobieski was born in New York City. Her mother, Elizabeth Sobieski (née Salomon), is an American film producer and screenwriter who also works as Sobieski's manager, and her father, Jean Sobieski, is a French painter and former actor. Sobieski has a younger brother, Robert. Sobieski's first name, "Liliane", was the name of her paternal grandmother. One of her middle names, "Elsveta", is derived from "Elżbieta", which is the Polish equivalent of "Elizabeth". Her father is of Polish and Swiss ancestry. Her maternal grandfather, United States Navy captain Robert Salomon, was Jewish, and Sobieski grew up in a "pan-religious" family; she has said that she is "proud of [her] Jewish roots". She graduated from Trevor Day School in 2001 and studied literature and fine art at Brown University. Sobieski was spotted by a talent scout who noticed her while he was scouting the cafeteria of a New York City private school. After that encounter, she became a candidate for the role of Claudia in Interview with the Vampire (1994), which she eventually lost out to Kirsten Dunst. She portrayed the character of Anna Yates in the 1994 TV movie Reunion, which starred Marlo Thomas. Next, she played a lead role in A Horse for Danny, a made-for-television film which was released in 1995. Later, she had a major role in the comedy feature film Jungle 2 Jungle, with Tim Allen. In the film, she played the daughter of Martin Short's character. She rose to fame in her mid-teens with her appearance in the movie Deep Impact(1998). The film was a major financial success, grossing over $349 million worldwide on a $75 million production budget. Deep Impact brought her to the attention of many casting directors. That same year Sobieski appeared in the Merchant Ivory film A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries. Sobieski's performance received praise from the critics; Emanuel Levy of Variety wrote that "the graceful Sobieski registers strongly as a potential star, combining physical charm with technical skill." The film also garnered her a Young Artist Award nomination, as well as a nomination by the Chicago Film Critics Association. --- In January 2009, Sobieski began dating fashion designer Adam Kimmel. Kimmel is the son of American real estate developer Martin Kimmel and grandson of American boat racer and designer Donald Aronow. They were engaged on May 28, 2009 but chose to keep the news private. It was made public June 23, 2009, when fans at the premiere of Public Enemies spotted that Sobieski was wearing an engagement ring. The couple officially announced their engagement on July 17, 2009. Their daughter, Louisanna Ray Kimmel, was born in December 2009. During an interview, Sobieski spoke about her views on having happiness and a positive attitude: "I think that happiness is a very strange thing. And we really feel that we have a right to this happiness. But I feel like it's constantly fluctuating, and that you can make yourself happy. I think it's an outlook. Having a positive attitude probably sounds like a corny thing to say, but a positive attitude really helps, and respecting your job really helps, and having the support of your family and friends really helps."