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Moira Kelly

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9.0 Superb
156 votes

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Biography

Recent Role:
Karen Roe on One Tree Hill
Gender:
Female
Born:
3-6-1968
Birthplace:
Queens, New York, USA
New York native Moira Kelly, well-known as the voice of Nala in Disney's Lion King and as Kate Moseley in the 1992 romantic comedy The Cutting Edge, has captivated film and television audiences worldwide with her voice, beauty, and talent since the early '90s. On television, she is recognized as Mandy Hampton, media consultant of President Josiah Bartlett (played by Martin Sheen), in the first season of The West Wing and as Karen… More Roe, the loving single parent of Lucas Scott (played by Chad Michael Murray) on One Tree Hill.

Born to Irish immigrants in Queens, New York, Moira spent three of her childhood years in Ireland before her family moved back to the US and settled in Ronkonkoma, New York, where she was raised in a strict, middle-Catholic household. Influenced by her father who is a professional musician, she became an accomplished violinist, drummer, and flutist at a young age. She competed in opera and performed in the school production of Annie while at Connetquot Senior High School from where she graduated in 1986. Moira then attended Marymount Manhattan College in New York City but had to work part-time to support her education since her parents couldn't afford to.

After graduating from college, Kelly and her friends packed their bags and went on a New York-to-L.A. road trip. Within a month of graduation, she filmed her first movie, The Boy Who Cried B!tch (1991). In 1992, Moira got her first leading role in The Cutting Edge as the rich, spoiled champion figure skater Kate Moseley, who was partnered with skillful and arrogant hockey player Doug Dorsey (played by D.B. Sweeney). That same year, she landed her first major role alongside Robert Downey, Jr. in Richard Attenborough's Charlie Chaplin biography, Chaplin. In the movie, she portrayed two characters -- the legendary comedian's first love, 15-year-old Heady, and his last wife Lady Oona Chaplin. In 1994, she was tasked to voice Adult Nala in Disney's blockbuster animation The Lion King and in its sequels and video game counterparts in the following years.

On television, Moira's first stint as a series regular came in 1998 as she played the newly-wed Annie Cornell on the short-lived CBS romantic family drama To Have & To Hold. The following year, she starred as White House media consultant Dr. Madeline Hampton on The West Wing. However, her character was taken out of the show after only one season. In 2003, Moira moved to the small town of Tree Hill as cafe owner and single mother Karen Roe on CW's (then WB) popular teen drama One Tree Hill. Overall, this angel-faced devout Irish Catholic who once dreamed of becoming a nun has established a solid acting career that will be remembered by film and television fans for years to come.

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  •  
    8.9 Great
    She is very talented and very interesting. Her roles are really good and she portrays them really well. She might not have been known by the audience but she is known as Karen Roe in One Tree Hill. hide show

    Her first film was Love, Lies and Murder. After that she starred in films like The Boy Who Cried **** Billy Bathgate, and Thirty Below Zero. Her breakthrough, though, didn't come until 1992 in the film The Cutting Edge. After that she was in other films like Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, Chaplin, Daybreak, With Honors, Little Odessa, The Tide That Binds, Unhook the Stars, Entertaining Angels: The Dorothy Day Story, Love Walked In, Changing Habits, Drive, She Said; Dangerous Beauty, Monday After the Miracle, Hi-Life, Henry Hill, The Safety of Objects, A Women Reported, Two Tickets to Paradise, and The Beautiful Ordinary. Her most known voice is as the voice of Adult Nala in The Lion King and The Lion King 2. She guest starred in shows like "To Have and To Hold", "Hack", "The Twilight Zone", and "Law and Order". Her most famous roles are as Mandy Hampton in "The West Wing" and as Karen Roe in "One Tree Hill". She needs to go further than that.

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    nsalaices Added May 2, 2008 All my reviews
  •  
    1.7 Abysmal
    Just get her out of this show plz hide show

    she is one of the reasons that one tree hill is not popular with college boys.always saying my boy u should be friend with other do good momy girls will come to you don't be gay my son and blablablablaaaa in my point of veiw karen should be remove from the show only that way luke show stand in his feet and finally can be man at last. however i know that so many mom and girls are not agree with me but i am just telling it because i care for this wonderfull show and i hope karen will find another show to mess it up

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    rredcapp Added Oct 9, 2007 All my reviews
  •  
    10 Perfect
    woah hide show

    I could watch her a day or all nigh shes the most Perffension actor on one tree hill
    she Brings it all to karen and when she cryies her and Paul have such great actor darector

    I want to watch all of her movies the cutting eage lookes amazzing since shes in it
    truley a wonedarful women

    she does it all Mother wife dauther sister Musican best fake cheerLeader ever
    shes done suchgreat work

    give her her own show
    she plays a n outstanding sigle mother

    to Lucas chad micheal murray they really look like mother son
    keep her alive in telavison if she ever left
    i would die

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    AGIRLWITHP16 Added Aug 28, 2007 All my reviews
  •  
    10 Perfect
    Wow... hide show

    Could she get any better? Moira is absolutely amazing! She gives me chills when I watch her do emotional scenes on One Tree Hill. She makes you think she is really hurting and feeling the pain herself. With her shaky voice and teary eyes, she'll win you over in a heartbeat. I know that every scene I watch her in is going to be great. I would love to see more of her on the show. She done a fantastic job as adult Nala on The Lion King. You could hear the hurt in her voice. She goes above and beyond.

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    PixieMel Added Jun 18, 2007 All my reviews
  •  
    10 Perfect
    "...toepick..." hide show

    Whenever I see her in any role, a poor mom, career woman, single mom, etc. I always see her as a rich and intellectual person like the one she portrayed in Cutting-Edge. She act splendidly. A loving single mom in OTH TV drama program her best really came out. She played so well as mom and a wounded but trying to fight real hard woman for her lost life and love to a man so greedy. I like her when she goes paranoid when her son’s future and life is at stake and fights back to Dan.

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    bleach7 Added May 17, 2007 All my reviews
 

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