Melissa DiMarco
Melissa DiMarco | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | |
| Alma mater | York University |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, Television Host, Producer, Writer, Documentary Film Maker |
| Years active | 1995 – present |
| Website | http://www.outtherewithmelissa.com |
Melissa DiMarco is a Canadian actress, producer, and television personality. She has made acting appearances in feature films and television. She is best known for her role as Daphne Hatzilakos in the teen drama series Degrassi: The Next Generation (2002-2010) and as the host and showrunner of her own syndicated television program Out There with Melissa DiMarco.
Career[edit]
On television, one of DiMarco's best-known acting parts was in the teen drama series Degrassi: The Next Generation as Daphne Hatzilakos, teacher and later Principal of Degrassi Community School. She played Hatzilakos for eight seasons (2002 - 2010). DiMarco's TV credits include the CBC soap opera Riverdale and guest-starring spots on series such as Due South, Blue Murder, The Hardy Boys, Psi Factor, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, Relic Hunter, and Kojak.[1]
Her film credits include roles in Peter Bogdanovich's Hustle: The Pete Rose Story, Duct Tape Forever (the film adaptation of The Red Green Show), The Rest of My Life: Degrassi Takes Manhattan, and Degrassi Spring Break Movie. She also appeared in Danny DeVito's dark comedy, Death to Smoochy.[2]
She also directed, produced, and wrote Dreamseeker: Nia Vardalos, an award-winning documentary on the rise of Nia Vardalos[3] of My Big Fat Greek Wedding fame and was the host and producer of Nite Life, an entertainment show that focused on celebrity interviews and the nightclub, bar, and concert scene, which aired on OMNI.[4]
Since 2004, DiMarco has hosted the Out There with Melissa DiMarco television comedy which airs on Citytv's national network and The Biography Channel.[5] Excerpts from DiMarco's celebrity interviews also air on OUTtv.[6] The show mixes celebrity interviews with scripted comedy that takes a behind-the-scenes look at the life of an entertainment journalist (played by DiMarco). Among the celebrities she has interviewed on the show are Pierce Brosnan, George Clooney, Cameron Diaz, Colin Farrell, Salma Hayek, Queen Latifah, Ludacris, Matthew McConaughey, Brad Pitt, and Gene Simmons.[7] Updates and excerpts from these interviews are syndicated internationally. Out There has been recognized for Outstanding Achievement in Creative Excellence at the 39th U.S. International Film and Video Festival.[8]
DiMarco is a Dean's Honour Roll graduate of the Fine Arts Program at York University[9] and is a member of the Canadian Association of Journalists, the Academy of Canadian Cinema, and WIFT-T (Women in Film & Television Toronto).[10]
Filmography[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | The Hardy Boys | Reporter | Episode: "Love Birds" |
| Side Effects | Belinda | Episode: "On the QT" Episode: "Time Enough to Say Good-Bye" | |
| 1996 | Due South | Stella | Episode: "Starman" |
| Kung Fu: The Legend Continues | Jennie | Episode: "Shaolin Shot" | |
| 1997 | Riverdale | Irene | TV series |
| While My Pretty One Sleeps | Heidi | TV movies | |
| The Absolute Truth | Nurse | ||
| Time to Say Goodbye? | Courthouse Reporter | ||
| Psi Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal | Katie Sheffield | Episode: "The Damned" | |
| 1999 | Relic Hunter | Kate Yawley | Episode: "Diamond in the Rough" |
| 2000 | No Alibi | Stella | |
| The Thin Blue Lie | Sandra Durano | TV movie | |
| 2001 | Relic Hunter | Maxine Schneider | Episode: "Out of the Past" |
| Blue Murder | Selena del Rio | Episode: "Partners" | |
| The Associates | Cameron | Episode: "E Pluribus Unum" | |
| Leap Years | Rosaline | Episode 1.9 | |
| 2002 | Degrassi: The Next Generation | Principal Daphne Hatzilakos | 2002 - 2010 (91 episodes) |
| Marker | Dianna | ||
| Death to Smoochy | Tara | ||
| Duct Tape Forever | Deputy Dawn | ||
| Adventure Inc. | Elizabeth Dillon | Episode: "Message from the Deep" | |
| 2003 | Wild Card | Spa Manager | Episode: "Sand Trap" |
| 2004 | Out There with Melissa DiMarco | Actor / Host / Interviewer | 2004–Present (144 episodes) |
| Hustle | Carol Rose | TV movie | |
| Life After | Angeline | ||
| 2005 | Bailey's Billion$ | Tessa (voice) | |
| Kojak | Nancy Pastori | Episode: "Hitman" Episode: "Kind of Blue" | |
| 2008 | Degrassi Spring Break Movie | Principal Daphne Hatzilakos | TV movie |
| 2010 | The Rest of My Life: Degrassi Takes Manhattan | Principal Daphne Hatzilakos | TV movie |
| 2013 | The Goree Girls | Erica Gilligan | Pre Production |
Television Producer[edit]
- 2004: Dreamseeker: Nia Vardalos (documentary)[11]
Further reading[edit]
- "Melissa DiMarco: A woman for all seasons". Top Choice Magazine. Spring 2011. p. 40.
- "Out There, Right Here with Melissa DiMarco". Beaches Life. December 2012 – January 2013. pp. 5–6.
- Bawden, Jim (27 February 2001). "This blonde bombshell is no bimbo; Tight tops and leather pants all part of the act for Melissa DiMarco". Toronto Star. p. F5.
- Di Mauro, Diana (August–September 2012). "Melissa DiMarco: In entertainment, nothing is off limits". Panoram Italia Toronto. p. 45.
- Douglas, Ellen (November–December 2004). "Melissa DiMarco". Toronto Waterfront Magazine. pp. 20–21.
- Hooper, Barrett (12 April 2002). "They're stuck on her: Up-and-coming Canadian actress Melissa DiMarco adds a little sex appeal to the duct-tape universe". National Post. p. M2., regarding her movie appearance in Duct Tape Forever
- Skinner, Justin (March 24, 2011). "A-list celebs join in spoof". City Centre Mirror. p. 3.
References[edit]
- ^ "Ibid". IMDb.
- ^ "Melissa DiMarco - IMDb". IMDb. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
- ^ "Dreamseeker: Nia Vardalos - Press Release". Archived from the original on February 13, 2009. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
- ^ "Dreamseeker: Nia Vardalos - Producer/Director/Writer/Host: Melissa DiMarco". Archived from the original on July 16, 2006. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
- ^ "Watch Us". Retrieved December 17, 2012.
- ^ "Ibid".
- ^ "About Out There".
- ^ "Ibid".
- ^ "YFile: York University's News Source - Grad shares Big Fat Wedding star's story in TV doc". Retrieved May 3, 2012.
- ^ "About Melissa DiMarco". Retrieved December 17, 2012.
- ^ "Dreamseeker: Nia Vardalos - Press Release". Archived from the original on February 13, 2009.
External links[edit]
- Official Website of her show Out There with Melissa DiMarco
- Official Facebook Fan Page of Out There with Melissa DiMarco
- Melissa DiMarco's Personal Twitter Feed
- Melissa DiMarco at IMDb
- TV.com: Degrassi: The Next Generation
- "Out There, Right Here with Melissa DiMarco", Beaches | Life (December 2012 – January 2013)
- "Melissa DiMarco: In entertainment, nothing is off limits" by Diana Di Mauro, Panoram Italia (August 3, 2012)
- "A-list celebrities help comedian spoof herself" by Justin Skinner, InsideToronto.com (March 27, 2011)
- "Melissa DiMarco" by Ellen Douglas, Toronto Waterfront Magazine (November - December 2004)
- "Getting Out There With Melissa Dimarco!", Living the Canadian Dream Podcast With Bradley Thompson
- Actresses from Toronto
- Canadian film actresses
- Canadian people of Italian descent
- Canadian soap opera actresses
- Canadian television actresses
- Canadian television hosts
- Members of the Canadian Association of Journalists
- Living people
- York University alumni
- Canadian infotainers
- 1969 births
- Canadian women television hosts
- Comedians from Toronto
- Canadian women comedians