Cynthia Nixon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Cynthia Nixon
Cynthia Nixon in 2014
Born	Cynthia Ellen Nixon (1966-04-09) April 9, 1966 (age 59) Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
Education	Barnard College (BA)
Occupation	Actress activist theatre director
Years active	1979–present
Spouse(s)	Christine Marinoni ​ (m. 2012)​
Partner(s)	Danny Mozes (1988–2003)
Children	3
Awards	Full list

Cynthia Ellen Nixon (born April 9, 1966) is an American actress, activist, and theater director. She is best known for playing Miranda Hobbes in the popular HBO TV show Sex and the City (1998–2004). For this role, she won an Emmy Award. She also played Miranda in the movies Sex and the City (2008) and Sex and the City 2 (2010), and in the recent TV show And Just Like That... (2021–present).

Cynthia Nixon started acting on Broadway in 1980. She has won two Tony Awards, which are big awards for theater actors. She won for her roles in the plays Rabbit Hole (2006) and The Little Foxes (2017). She has also appeared in many other plays like The Real Thing (1983) and Wit (2012).

Besides her famous roles, she won another Emmy Award in 2008 for her guest role in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. In 2009, she won a Grammy Award for narrating the audiobook An Inconvenient Truth. She has also acted in films like Amadeus (1984) and A Quiet Passion (2016). On TV, she played important historical figures like Eleanor Roosevelt in Warm Springs (2005) and Nancy Reagan in Killing Reagan (2016). She also stars in the TV show The Gilded Age (2022–present).

In 2018, Nixon ran for Governor of New York. She is also known for being an activist, especially for LGBT rights in the United States. She supports the right of same-sex marriage. She met her wife, Christine Marinoni, at a rally for gay rights.

Early life and education

Cynthia Nixon was born in Manhattan, New York City, on April 9, 1966. She was the only child of Walter Elmer Nixon Jr., a radio journalist, and Anne Elizabeth Knoll, an actress. Her mother helped her get interested in theater from a young age.

When she was nine, Nixon made her first TV appearance on a game show called To Tell the Truth. Her mother worked on the show. Cynthia pretended to be a junior horse riding champion. She continued acting throughout her school years at Hunter College Elementary School and Hunter College High School. She often took time off from school to act in movies and plays.

Nixon used her acting earnings to pay for her education at Barnard College. There, she earned a degree in English Literature. She also studied abroad for a semester in 1986.

Career

1979–1997: Early roles and theatre work

Cynthia Nixon started acting at age 12. Her first movie role was in Little Darlings (1980). She made her Broadway debut in 1980 in the play The Philadelphia Story. She worked in films, TV, and theater.

In 1984, while she was a freshman at Barnard College, Nixon did something special. She appeared in two hit Broadway plays at the same time, both directed by Mike Nichols. These were The Real Thing and Hurlyburly. The theaters were only two blocks apart, and her roles were short, so she could run between them. She also played a small role in the famous movie Amadeus (1984).

She got a bigger role in the movie The Manhattan Project (1986). She also appeared in TV miniseries like The Murder of Mary Phagan (1988). On stage, she played Juliet in Romeo and Juliet in 1988. She also appeared in an early episode of the TV show Law & Order.

Nixon continued to act in many plays on Broadway. She was nominated for a Tony Award for her role in Indiscretions (1996). She was also a founding member of a theater group called Drama Dept. She had supporting roles in movies like Addams Family Values (1993), Baby's Day Out (1994), and Marvin's Room (1996).

1998–2011: Sex and the City and other roles

Cynthia Nixon became very famous for her role as Miranda Hobbes, a lawyer, in the HBO comedy series Sex and the City (1998–2004). She was one of the four main characters. She was nominated for an Emmy Award three times for this role and won in 2004.

After Sex and the City, Nixon had her first main role in a movie called Advice from a Caterpillar (2000). She also starred in the TV movie Papa's Angels (2000). In 2002, she appeared in the movie Igby Goes Down.

Nixon, John Hurt and Swoosie Kurtz at the premiere of An Englishman in New York, 2009

In 2005, Nixon made a guest appearance on the TV show ER. She also played Eleanor Roosevelt in the HBO movie Warm Springs (2005), which earned her another Emmy nomination. She appeared in an episode of the TV series House in 2005.

In 2006, she starred in the play Rabbit Hole and won a Tony Award for Best Actress. In 2008, she returned as Miranda Hobbes in the Sex and the City movie. Also in 2008, she won an Emmy for her guest role in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. In 2009, she won a Grammy Award for narrating the audiobook An Inconvenient Truth.

In 2010, Nixon received the Vito Russo Award at the GLAAD Media Awards. This award honors an openly LGBT person in media who has helped promote equality for the LGBT community. She also appeared in the TV series The Big C and an episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

2012–2019: Return to Broadway

In 2012, Nixon starred in the Broadway play Wit. She played Professor Vivian Bearing and received a Tony Award nomination for her performance. She also appeared in the TV miniseries World Without End.

Nixon in 2013

In 2015, Nixon was in two films that premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival: Stockholm, Pennsylvania and James White. She received praise for her acting in both movies.

Nixon played the famous American poet Emily Dickinson in the movie A Quiet Passion (2016). She also played Nancy Reagan in the TV movie Killing Reagan (2016).

In 2017, Nixon returned to Broadway in a play called The Little Foxes. She played two different roles in the play, sharing the parts with another actress, Laura Linney. She won her second Tony Award for her role as Birdie.

2020–present: Streaming shows

In 2019, it was announced that Nixon would star in the Netflix drama series Ratched. Since 2021, she has been back as Miranda Hobbes in the Sex and the City revival, And Just Like That..., on HBO Max. She is also an executive producer and director for this show. Since 2022, she has a main role as Ada Brook in another HBO Max show, The Gilded Age.

Political activism

Cynthia Nixon is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. She has been a strong supporter of public education for a long time. She works as a spokesperson for New York's Alliance for Quality Education, which advocates for fair public education. Nixon also supports women's health.

She supported Bill de Blasio in the 2013 New York City mayoral election. She had worked with him since the early 2000s, campaigning against different education policies. After he was elected, de Blasio appointed Nixon to represent him at The Public Theater.

In 2020, Nixon supported Bernie Sanders for president. She said he had a strong vision for good changes in the country. In 2023, Nixon signed a letter that raised concerns about how the New York Times reported on transgender people.

2018 New York gubernatorial election

In 2018, Cynthia Nixon decided to run for Governor of New York. She announced her campaign on Twitter on March 19, 2018. She was challenging the current governor, Andrew Cuomo.

Nixon aimed to get the nomination from the Working Families Party of New York. She won 91.5 percent of the vote at the Party's meeting. She also gathered over 65,000 signatures to get on the ballot for the Democratic primary election. The primary election was held on September 13. Cuomo won with 65% of the votes, and Nixon received 35%. Later, the Working Families Party removed Nixon's name from their ticket.

After Governor Cuomo left office in 2021 due to a scandal, Nixon tweeted a funny comment about still having her Emmy Awards, while he had lost an honorary one. She has won two Emmys.

Personal life

From 1988 to 2003, Cynthia Nixon was in a relationship with an educator named Danny Mozes. They have two children together. In 2018, Nixon shared that her older child is transgender.

Nixon and her wife, Christine Marinoni (2014)

In 2004, Nixon started dating Christine Marinoni, who is an education activist. They got engaged in 2009 and married in New York City on May 27, 2012. Marinoni gave birth to their son in 2011.

Nixon has spoken about her personal journey. She said that she had been with men all her life, but when she fell in love with a woman, it felt natural. She has been a strong supporter of same-sex marriage.

In October 2006, Nixon was diagnosed with breast cancer. She decided to share her story in 2008 in an interview. Since then, Nixon has become an activist for breast cancer awareness. She has worked with organizations like Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Cynthia Nixon and her family live in Manhattan, New York City. They attend Congregation Beit Simchat Torah, which is an LGBT synagogue.

Filmography

Film

Nixon at a charity event, March 2008

Nixon, 2008 Garden State Equality gala

Television

Stage

Awards and honors

Cynthia Nixon has won many awards. These include two Primetime Emmy Awards, a Grammy Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Tony Awards. She has also received special honors like the Muse Award in 2008 and the Vito Russo Award in 2010 for her work supporting the LGBT community. She also received the Yale University Artist for Equality award in 2013.

See also

In Spanish: Cynthia Nixon para niños

• LGBTQ culture in New York City
• List of LGBTQ people from New York City