Lauren Tom facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lauren Tom
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Tom at Animate! Raleigh in 2025
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| Born | August 4, 1961 Highland Park, Illinois, U.S.
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| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1978–present |
| Spouse(s) | Glenn Lau-Kee (divorced) Curt Kaplan
(m. 1999) |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Tom Y. Chan (grandfather) Ping Tom (uncle) |
Lauren Tom (born August 4, 1961) is an American actress. She is famous for her many roles in movies, TV shows, and especially for her voice work in cartoons. You might know her voice from characters like Amy Wong in Futurama or Numbuh 3 in Codename: Kids Next Door. She also played Julie in the popular TV show Friends.
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Early Life
Lauren Tom was born in a town called Highland Park, Illinois, near Chicago. Her parents, Nancy and Chan Tom Jr., were born in Chicago. Her grandparents came from a place called Kaiping in Guangdong, China. Lauren grew up in Highland Park and was raised as a Catholic in a neighborhood where many people were Jewish.
Her Acting Journey
Lauren Tom has had a long and exciting career in acting, from the stage to the big screen and many animated shows.
Starting on Stage
When Lauren was just 17 years old, she joined a traveling show of A Chorus Line. Less than a year later, she was performing in the Broadway version of the show! Broadway is the highest level of theater in New York City. She also won a special award called an Obie Award for her acting in Off-Broadway plays. She performed in other Broadway shows like Hurlyburly and Doonesbury.
Big Screen Roles
Lauren Tom has appeared in several movies. Some of her early film roles include Wall Street and Blue Steel. A bigger role for her was playing a waitress in the movie Cadillac Man with Robin Williams. This role even led her to be a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, a very famous talk show.
In 1993, she had a main role in the movie The Joy Luck Club. After that, she appeared in other films like When a Man Loves a Woman and North. Later, she also appeared in comedies like Bad Santa (2003) and In Good Company (2004).
TV Show Appearances
Lauren Tom has been in many television shows. Her first TV role was Miko Wakamatsu on The Facts of Life. She also had roles in popular shows like Grace Under Fire and Friends, where she played Julie. She was also in The Nanny, Monk, and Grey's Anatomy. From 2012 to 2014, she played Linda Tran, the mother of a prophet, in the series Supernatural. More recently, she was in Andi Mack (2017–2019) on the Disney Channel, playing Celia Mack.
Amazing Voice Work
Lauren Tom is especially known for her voice acting in animated shows and movies. She started by voicing Angela Chen in Superman: The Animated Series. She then voiced Dana Tan in Batman Beyond.
She has voiced many characters that kids love, including:
- Amy Wong and Inez Wong in Futurama
- Minh and Connie Souphanousinphone in King of the Hill
- Trish and Sherry in Rocket Power
- Numbuh 3 (Kuki Sanban) in Codename: Kids Next Door
- The villains Jinx and Gizmo in Teen Titans and Teen Titans Go!
- Yan Lin in W.I.T.C.H.
- Susan Long and Counselor Chang in American Dragon: Jake Long
- Joo Dee in Avatar: The Last Airbender
She has also lent her voice to animated films like Mulan II, Kung Fu Panda 2, and the Futurama movies. In video games, she voiced Li Li Stormstout in World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria and Lady Masako Adachi in Ghost of Tsushima.
Her Family Life
Lauren Tom was married to Glenn Lau-Kee. Later, in October 1999, she married actor Curt Kaplan. They have two sons together.
Images for kids
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Tom in 2009
See also
In Spanish: Lauren Tom para niños
