Lainie Kazan Net Worth

What Is Lainie Kazan's Net Worth?

Lainie Kazan is an American actress and singer who has a net worth of $500 thousand. Lainie Kazan is known for playing roles such as Rose Samuels on the CBS drama "The Paper Chase" (1985–1986) and Maria Portokalos in the films "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" (2002), "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2" (2016), and "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3" (2023) and the CBS sitcom "My Big Fat Greek Life" (2003). Kazan has more than 120 acting credits to her name, including the films "Harry and the Hendersons" (1987), "Beaches" (1988), "The Big Hit" (1998), "You Don't Mess with the Zohan" (2008), "Oy Vey! My Son Is Gay!!" (2009), "Pixels" (2015), and "Tango Shalom" (2021) and the television series "The Dean Martin Show" (1969), "The Bobby Vinton Show" (1977), "Tough Cookies" (1986), "Karen's Song" (1987), "The Nanny" (1995–1998), and "Desperate Housewives" (2010). She has also performed on Broadway, appearing in productions of "The Happiest Girl in the World" (1961), "Bravo Giovanni" (1962), "Funny Girl" (1964–1967), "My Favorite Year" (1992–1993), and "The Government Inspector" (1994), earning a Tony nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for "My Favorite Year." As a singer, Lainie has released the albums "Lainie Kazan" (1966), "Right Now" (1966), "Love Is Lainie" (1967), "The Love Album" (1967), "The Chanteuse is Loose" (1977), "Body & Soul" (1995), and "In the Groove" (1998).

Early Life

Lainie Kazan was born Lainie Levine on May 15, 1940, in Brooklyn, New York. She is the daughter of Ben and Carole Levine, and her heritage is Sephardic Jewish and Ashkenazic Jewish with Turkish and Russian roots. Lainie has said that her mother was "neurotic, fragile and artistic." Barbra Streisand was one of Kazan's classmates at Erasmus Hall High School, and Lainie would later serve as Barbra's understudy in a Broadway production of "Funny Girl." After graduating from high school in 1956, Kazan studied at HB Studio and attended Hofstra University, earning her degree in 1960. At Hofstra University, Lainie performed in musicals that co-starred James Caan and were directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

Career

Kazan first appeared on Broadway in a 1961 production of "The Happiest Girl in the World." She made her TV debut in a 1962 episode of "Car 54, Where Are You?," and her first feature film was "Dayton's Devils," which was released in 1968. Lainie played Ella on "The Dean Martin Show" (1969) and Edna on "The Bobby Vinton Show" (1977), then she guest-starred on "Columbo" (1978). In the '80s, Lainie appeared in the films "One from the Heart" (1982), "My Favorite Year" (1982), "The Journey of Natty Gann" (1985), "The Delta Force" (1986), "Harry and the Hendersons" (1987), and "Beaches" (1988) and the TV movies "A Cry for Love" (1980), "Sunset Limousine" (1983), "The Jerk, Too" (1984), and "Obsessive Love" (1984). From 1985 to 1986, she played Rose Samuels on the Showtime drama "The Paper Chase," then she starred as Rita on the CBS sitcom "Tough Cookies" and Claire Steiner on the Fox series "Karen's Song" (1987) and had a recurring role as Frieda Fiscus on the NBC medical drama "St. Elsewhere" (1987–1988). Next, Kazan appeared in the films "29th Street" (1991), "The Cemetery Club" (1993), "Love Is All There Is" (1996), "The Associate" (1996), "The Big Hit" (1998), and "Kimberly" (1999). She guest-starred on "Beverly Hills 90210" (1992), "Tales from the Crypt" (1993), "Murder, She Wrote" (1995), and "Touched by an Angel" (1998), and she had a recurring role as Aunt Freida on the CBS sitcom "The Nanny" from 1995 to 1998.

Next, Lainie appeared in films such as "What's Cooking?" (2000), "The Crew" (2000), "A Good Night to Die" (2003), "Red Riding Hood" (2004), "You Don't Mess with the Zohan" (2008), "Oy Vey! My Son Is Gay!!" (2009), "Finding Joy" (2013), "Pixels" (2015), "The Amityville Murders" (2018), and "Tango Shalom" (2021). She played Maria Portokalos in the films "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" (2002), "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2" (2016), and "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3" (2023) and on the 2003 CBS sitcom "My Big Fat Greek Life." In the 2000s, Kazan has also guest-starred on "Will & Grace" (2001), "Living with Fran" (2006), "The King of Queens" (2007), "Boston Legal" (2008), "'Til Death" (2010), "Modern Family" (2012), "Jessie" (2013), "Grey's Anatomy" (2013), and "Fuller House" (2018). In 2010, she had a recurring role as Maxine Rosen on the ABC series "Desperate Housewives."

Lainie Kazan / Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images

Personal Life

Lainie married musical director-arranger Peter H.B. Daniels on February 28, 1971, and they welcomed a daughter named Jennifer together. The couple met on the Broadway musical "Funny Girl," on which Daniels served as the associate orchestra conductor. Peter died of lung cancer in 1989. Kazan was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in the '70s after breaking her foot, and she subsequently began spreading awareness about the life-threatening condition. In 2012, she began teaching acting classes at UCLA as an adjunct professor; she also directed students in school productions. Lainie has been a board member for AIDS Project LA, the California Jazz Foundation, the Young Musicians Foundation, B'nai Brith, and Hofstra University, her alma mater. In April 2016, Kazan was hospitalized after getting into a head-on traffic collision in Sherman Oaks, California. In late 2017, she was arrested outside a California grocery store for shoplifting. According to TMZ, "her cart had about $180 worth of groceries," and her lawyer stated that "the store didn't give Lainie a chance to pay for her items before it made moves to get her arrested." Kazan later entered into a plea deal.

Awards and Nominations

Kazan earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role – Motion Picture for "My Favorite Year" in 1983 and a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series for "St. Elsewhere" in 1988. Around this time, she also received a CableACE Award nomination for Actress in a Dramatic Series for "The Paper Chase" (1987). Lainie received the Susan B. Anthony 'Failure is Impossible' Award at the 2002 High Falls Film Festival, and in 2003, she earned a Satellite Award nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Comedy or Musical for "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and shared a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by the Cast of a Theatrical Motion Picture with her co-stars. She was named Best Actress for "Oy Vey! My Son Is Gay!!" at the 2010 FilmOut San Diego festival, and she received the Thespian Award at the 2011 LA Femme International Film Festival. Kazan earned a Best Supporting Actress award for "Unorganized Crime" at the 2018 Queen Palm International Film Festival and a Best Supporting Actress in a Feature Film nomination for "Tango Shalom" at the 2021 Golden Door International Film Festival of Jersey City. She was honored with the Pomegranate Lifetime Achievement on Stage & Screen Award at the 2022 New York Sephardi Jewish Film Festival, and in 2023, she was named Best Actress for "The Italians" at the Nevada Women's Film Festival.

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