On this date in 1960, actress and comedian Jane Marie Lynch was born in Dolton, Illinois, a Chicago suburb. She is known for playing Sue Sylvester in the hit TV show “Glee” and for recurring roles in “Two and a Half Men” and “The L Word.” Lynch earned her undergraduate degree in theater from Illinois State University and her MFA from Cornell University. She then performed for several theaters, including the Steppenwolf Company for 15 years and doing stand-up for Second City in Chicago.
Lynch began appearing in movies in 1988 and has since appeared in over 100 films, TV shows and shorts. She has hosted “Saturday Night Live” and the Emmys and won many awards for her work, including Emmys, a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Lynch is known for her social activism. She is vegan, an avid supporter of PETA and helps facilitate the adoption of animals from animal shelters. She advocated for state-church separation in a humorous song performed with Jordan Peele and produced by Americans United for the Separation of Church and State. Lynch, an out lesbian, is a strong advocate for LGBT rights.
She made a video for the It Gets Better campaign and performed in a play titled “8,” which focused on marriage equality and California’s Proposition 8. She is active in several organizations that promote equality for people of all sexual orientations. She was married to Lara Embry, a Ph.D. clinical psychologist, from 2010-14.
