Heche Anne

American screen and stage actress, a waifish blonde who began her career at 17 in New York, cast in the soap Another World, where she played twins for four years, staying through 1991 and earning an Emmy Award for her work in the process. After leaving the soap, Heche (pronounced "Haytch") did an occasional TV show but stayed mostly in the shadows. In 1996, she had a breakthrough film role in Walking and Talking, a well-received independent. The same year, she had a supporting role as Demi Moores best friend in The Juror. Her exposure increased exponentially when she appeared in Wag the Dog and as Johnny Depps wife in the highly acclaimed Donnie Brasco (1997). Her later TV career included lead roles in the series Men in Trees (2006-2008), Hung (2009-2011), Save Me (2013), Aftermath (2016) and The Brave (2017-2018). She received acclaim for her role in the television film Gracies Choice, which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award nomination, and for her work on Broadway, particularly Twentieth Century, for which she received a Tony Award nomination. Heche was born in a small town and raised as a fundamentalist Christian, though stability was lacking due to 11 moves by the time she was 12. The youngest of five kids, she was the daughter of a Baptist minister who died of complications from AIDS in 1983 at age 45. He disclosed his homosexuality to his family prior to his death. Anne was 13 at the time and later said, "I put a very high premium on honesty. What I learned from my fathers death is that if you dont accept your sexuality, it will kill you." She was estranged from her mother since disclosing her relationship with Ellen DeGeneres. Her brother died in a car accident at age 18, three months after the death of their father. One sister, Susan Bergman, was an editor and author of a memoir about their dad and his "secret" life, Anonymity (1998). In the late ‘80s Anne was involved with Richard Burgi, her co-star in Another World. She and actor-comedian Steve Martin were a couple from 1993-1995, but the relationship that earned the most play from the media was her affair with comedian Ellen DeGeneres. They met on Oscar night, 23 March 1997. Hecht said, "I became oblivious to everything the second I saw Ellen. Id never been attracted to a woman before. I mean, I loved women, but not at all physically. Within seconds of meeting Ellen, I had my hands on her." They left the function together and began their relationship that night. When Ellen came out of the closet as a lesbian on her show at the episode on 30 April 1997, Heche was a loyal backup. Their affection and openness made the two women veritable poster-girls for gay pride in Hollywood and elsewhere. They began appearing together in public, a move which was perhaps riskier for Heche, as she said she had not crossed that sexual gender-line before falling in love with DeGeneres. The decision to go public made her agents aghast and they said it would be the death of her career. She fired them and took the media attention with a great show of serenity. Harrison Ford supported her as his co-star in the romantic comedy Six Days, Seven Nights. Heche went on to give another strong performance as a lawyer in Return to Paradise and then landed the much-sought-after role in the 1998 re-make of Psycho. The film did not do well, nor did the drama, The Third Miracle. She made her directorial debut with Reaching Normal in 1999, and the following year wrote and directed a segment of the HB Read less