Marisa Tomei

Marisa Tomei, nominated for best actress in a supporting role for her work in "The Wrestler" arrives at the Academy Award luncheon in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Monday, Feb. 2, 2009. Tomei was born on Dec. 4, 1964, in Brooklyn, N.Y. to mother Patricia "Addie" Tomei, an English teacher and father Gary Tomei, a lawyer.

Marisa Tomei arrives at the Directors Guild of America Awards on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2009, in Los Angeles. She was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her role in "The Wrestler." Tomei was one year into her college education at Boston University when she dropped out for a co-starring role on the CBS daytime drama "As the World Turns."

Actress Marisa Tomei arrives at the 15th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday, Jan. 25, 2009, in Los Angeles. She made her film debut with a bit part in The Flamingo Kid in 1984. Three years later, Tomei became known for her role as Maggie Lawton, Lisa Bonet's college roommate, on the Cosby Show spinoff "A Different World" (1987).

Marisa Tomei arrives at the 15th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday, Jan. 25, 2009, in Los Angeles. Her real breakthrough came in 1992, when she co-starred as Joe Pesci's foul-mouthed, scene-stealing girlfriend in "My Cousin Vinny," a performance that won her a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. She was soon given her first starring role in Untamed Heart (1993).

Marisa Tomei in a scene from, "The Wrestler." Tomei was nominated for an Academy Award for best supporting actress, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2009, for her role in the film. Tomei worked steadily throughout the 1990s and proved her first Best Supporting Actress Oscar win was no fluke when she received her second nomination in the same category for the critically acclaimed dark drama, In the Bedroom (2001).

Oscar-winning actress Marisa Tomei, who stars in "The Wrestler," arrives at the ninth annual AFI Awards for motion picture and television programs of 2008, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles, Friday, Jan. 9, 2009. Tomei has done substantial work in the theater, including taking lead roles on Broadway in "Wait Until Dark" (1998) and "Salom

Oscar-winning actress Marisa Tomei, who stars in "The Wrestler," arrives at the ninth annual AFI Awards for motion picture and television programs of 2008, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles, Friday, Jan. 9, 2009.

Marisa Tomei in a black and white period dress by Oscar de La Renta. In 2006, Tomei had a recurring role on the TV series "Rescue Me." In 2007, she returned to the big screen in the Sidney Lumet-directed "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead," opposite co-stars Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke. This role received extra attention because the usually modest Tomei had nude love scenes with both Hoffman and Hawke.

Actress Marisa Tomei arrives at the 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009, in Santa Monica, Calif.

Actress Marisa Tomei attends a screening of "The Wrestler" hosted by The Cinema Society and Entertainment Weekly at the Tribeca Grand Hotel on Monday, Dec. 8, 2008, in New York.

Actresses Marisa Tomei, left and Michelle Williams present at the 18th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards at Cipriani Wall Street on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2008 in New York.

Oscar-winning actress Marisa Tomei attends a New York Film Festival screening of "The Wrestler" at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008, in New York.

Director Darren Aronofsky and actress Marisa Tomei speak during a press conference for the movie "The Wrestler" during the New York Fim Festival in New York on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2008.

Actress Marisa Tomei presents an award at the Tony Awards on June 15, 2008, at New York's Radio City Music Hall.

Actress Marisa Tomei arrives to the screening of the film titled "War, Inc.," as part of the Tribeca Film Festival in New York, Monday, April 28, 2008.

Academy Award-winning actress Marisa Tomei arrives at the opening night performance of the play "The Year of Magical Thinking" in New York, Thursday, March 29, 2007.