Anne Heche - Film & Theater Personalities, Family and Childhood

Anne Heche was born Anne Celeste Heche on May 25, 1969, in Aurora, Ohio, US, to Donald and Nancy Heche. She was the youngest of five siblings. Her father was a Baptist choir director and did odd jobs, but did not make enough money to support the family. She is of mixed European decent.

They moved about and even lived in an Amish community for some time. The family settled in Ocean City, New Jersey, when she was 12 years old and she started working in a dinner theatre to add to the family’s earnings. Her father, who died of AIDS when she was 13 years old, was sexually deviant and sexually abused her.

He elder brother was killed in a car crash three months after the death of her father following which the family moved to Chicago, where she joined Francis W. Parker School. She was noticed by an agent while participating in a school play and the agent offered her an audition.

Her mother did not want her to join the entertainment industry, yet she decided to leave home and follow her dream of becoming an actress in New York City. Her mother remarried in 2008 and drifted away from her life.

She started her career with a role in the soap opera ‘Another World’ for which she received a Daytime Emmy Award for ‘Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series’ in 1991. She appeared in the Hallmark Hall of Fame television movie ‘O Pioneers’ in 1992, and made her feature film debut the following year with her role as Mary Jane in Disney’s ‘The Adventures of Huck Finn.’

She got her first major role as a college student in the film ‘If These Walls Could Talk,’ where she appeared along with Cher and Demi Moore. Her performance in ‘Walking and Talking’ gained positive reviews and the film was listed among the Top 50 Cult Films of All Time by the ‘Entertainment Weekly.’ She developed a brief off-camera relationship with her co-star, Steve Martin, from ‘A Simple Twist of Fate’ during this period.

She went on to perform opposite stars like Robert DeNiro, Dustin Hoffman, and Tommy Lee Jones in the political satire ‘Wag the Dog’ and disaster film ‘Volcano.’ Though she had supportive roles in these films, critics felt she had the potential to do much more.

She appeared in her first lead role opposite Harrison Ford in the romantic adventure movie ‘Six Days, Seven Nights’ in 1998. The movie received mixed reviews, which were influenced by her same sex relationship with Ellen DeGeneres that went public at the same time.

She appeared in a number of television serials and television films before making her Broadway debut in the Pulitzer Prize winning play ‘Proof’ in 2002, for which she got positive reviews. Her performance in the 2004 movie ‘Gracie’s Choice’ received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for ‘Best Supporting Actress’ and her acting in the Broadway show ‘Twentieth Century’ earned her a Tony Award nomination for ‘Best Actress in a Play.’

She began her own series titled “Men in Trees’ in 2006, which had to be closed down due to a writers’ strike in 2008. She continued appearing in television horror and sex comedies like ‘Suffering Men’s Charity’ and ‘Spread.’

Her latest ventures include films like ‘My Friend Dahmer’ and ‘Armed Response,’ and the television war series ‘The Brave’ (2017 – 2018). She has also lent her voice for the video game ‘9: The Last Resort’ and directed segments of a few television serials.

She has hosted the weekly radio show called ‘Love and Hache’ with Jason Ellis on SiriusXM and appeared as a regular guest on the television show ‘Everwood’.

Her television serials and films include ‘Another World’ (1987 – 1991), ‘Against the Wall’ (1994), ‘Subway Stories’ (1997), ‘The Dead Will Tell’ (2004), ‘Higglytown Heroes’ (2005 – 2006), ‘Fatal Desire’ (2006), ‘Adventure Time’ (2013 – 2015), and ‘The Brave’ (2017 – 2018).

Her prominent movies include ‘Wild Side’ (1995), ‘Walking and Talking’ (1996), ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ (1997), ‘Psycho’ (1998), ‘Toxic Skies’ (2008), ‘The Other Guys’ (2010), and ‘Nothing Left to Fear’ (2013).

She has published a book titled ‘Call Me Crazy: A Memoire,’ which is an account of her life.

Her performance in the serial ‘Another World’ earned her a ‘Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Female Newcomer – Daytime’ in 1989, ‘Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Serial’ in 1991, and ‘Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Daytime Drama’ in 1992.

The alleged sexual abuse by her father during her childhood left a deep impact on her life. This allegation was refuted by her mother due to which they grew apart and the relationship became irreversible as time went by. She was also estranged from her only surviving sister who also refuted Anne’s allegations. Anne believed that her brother’s car accident was suicide, which was dismissed by her mother and sister.

Her same sex relationship with comedian Ellen DeGeneres drew widespread controversy in the media during the period they dated (1997-2000). As per her statement this was her only same sex relationship, for which she had even contemplated getting civil union to make it legal if the law permitted.

Despite the controversies that surrounded her, her professional career was not dented. She went through emotional turbulence during the period that followed her break-up with DeGeneres for which she had to seek medical treatment. She was once found up wandering in Central California in a strange state of mind.

She married cameraman Coley Laffoon in September 2001, and later got divorced in 2009, after having a son named Homer in March 2002. Her battle for custody of her son went public when she appeared on television and claimed that she was being victimised. Thereafter, she dated her ‘Men in Trees’ co-star James Tupper and had a son named Atlas Heche Tupper in March 2009. The couple separated in 2018, without getting married.

Heche has appeared on several magazine covers and was listed as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world in 1998.

Her name has been romantically linked to producer Neal H. Mortiz and actors Richard Burgi and Bill Cusack.