Patricia Heaton facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Patricia Heaton
Heaton in 2021
Born	Patricia Helen Heaton (1958-03-04) March 4, 1958 (age 67) Bay Village, Ohio, U.S.
Education	Ohio State University (BA)
Occupation	Actress producer
Years active	1987–present
Television	Everybody Loves Raymond The Middle
Political party	Republican (before 2021) Independent (2021–present)
Spouse(s)	Constantine Yankoglu ​ ​ (m. 1984; div. 1987)​ David Hunt ​ (m. 1990)​
Children	4
Parent(s)	Chuck Heaton (father)

Patricia Helen Heaton (born March 4, 1958) is a famous American actress. She is best known for her roles in popular TV shows. These include Debra Barone in the CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond (1996–2005). She also played Frankie Heck in the ABC comedy series The Middle (2009–2018).

For her role in Everybody Loves Raymond, Patricia Heaton won two Emmy Awards. These awards are a big deal in television! She also won a Screen Actors Guild Award with her castmates. She has also starred in several TV movies and produced films.

Early life and education

Patricia Heaton was born in Bay Village, Ohio, on March 4, 1958. Her mother was Patricia Hurd, and her father was Chuck Heaton. Her dad was a sportswriter for a newspaper called The Plain Dealer.

When Patricia was 12 years old, her mother sadly passed away. Patricia was the fourth of five children. She grew up in a Catholic family. She has three sisters: Sharon, Alice, and Frances. Her brother, Michael, passed away in 2022. He was also a writer for The Plain Dealer.

Patricia went to Ohio State University. While there, she joined the Delta Gamma sorority. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in drama. After college, in 1980, she moved to New York City. She wanted to study acting with a teacher named William Esper.

Acting career highlights

Starting out in the 1980s and 1990s

Patricia Heaton began her acting journey on Broadway in 1987. She was part of the chorus in a show called Don't Get God Started. After this, she and some friends created their own acting group. It was called Stage Three.

In 1989, a casting director saw her perform. This led to her first TV role. She played an oncologist (a doctor who treats cancer) in the ABC drama Thirtysomething. She appeared in six episodes from 1989 to 1991. She also had guest roles in shows like Alien Nation and Matlock.

Heaton at her Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony on May 22, 2012

In 1992, Patricia Heaton made her first movie appearances. She was in the comedy-drama Memoirs of an Invisible Man. She also appeared in the popular family comedy Beethoven.

She then starred in a few TV sitcoms that didn't last long. These included Room for Two (1992–1993) and Someone Like Me (1994). In 1995, she was in Women of the House.

Becoming a TV star: Everybody Loves Raymond and The Middle

In 1996, Patricia Heaton got a huge role. She was cast as Debra Barone in the CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond. She starred alongside Ray Romano. The show was a big hit and won many awards. It was often one of the top ten TV shows.

Patricia Heaton was nominated for the Emmy Award seven times for this role. She won the award in 2000 and 2001. She was the first cast member from the show to win an Emmy. She also won a Screen Actors Guild Award with the rest of the cast in 2003. Everybody Loves Raymond ended in 2005 after nine successful seasons.

While working on Everybody Loves Raymond, Patricia Heaton also starred in TV movies. She was in the Christmas drama A Town Without Christmas (2001). In 2004, she starred in The Goodbye Girl. For this role, she was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award. She also produced a romantic comedy-drama called The Engagement Ring in 2005.

From 2003 to 2007, Patricia Heaton was a spokesperson for the grocery chain Albertsons. She also appeared in ads for Pantene hair products. She helped produce the documentary The Bituminous Coal Queens of Pennsylvania (2005). Her husband, David Hunt, directed it. She also produced the film Amazing Grace (2006).

In 2009, Patricia Heaton took on another main role. She played Frankie Heck in the ABC comedy series The Middle. This show was also very popular and ran for nine seasons. It had 215 episodes! She was nominated for a Critics' Choice Television Award in 2011 for her work on The Middle.

In 2011, she was named one of the "Funniest Women on TV" by TV Guide Network. On May 22, 2012, she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. This is a special honor for entertainers! Her production company is called FourBoys Entertainment. In 2014, she starred in and produced the comedy film Moms' Night Out.

From 2015 to 2016, Patricia Heaton hosted her own cooking show. It was called Patricia Heaton Parties on Food Network. The show featured party foods and tips for entertaining at home. It won a Daytime Emmy Award in 2016. She also did voice acting in animated films like The Star (2017) and Smallfoot (2018).

Recent projects

In 2019, Patricia Heaton returned to TV in the CBS comedy series Carol's Second Act. She starred in and produced the show. Her performance was praised, but the show was canceled after one season in 2020.

In 2020, she wrote a book called Your Second Act: Inspiring Stories of Transformation. She has continued to work on new TV and film projects. In 2022, she starred with Brian Cox in the drama film Mending the Line. She also appeared in The Unbreakable Boy. In 2023, she was cast in the horror-thriller film The Beldham. In 2024, she was cast in a recurring role for the Paramount+ series Frasier.

Personal life and views

Patricia Heaton and family in the Indianapolis 500 Parade, May 2008

Patricia Heaton has been married to English actor and director David Hunt since 1990. They have four sons together. They divide their time between Los Angeles and Cambridge, England. In 2002, she published a memoir called Motherhood and Hollywood: How to Get a Job Like Mine.

Patricia Heaton is a practicing Catholic.

Political and social views

Patricia Heaton's political views are generally conservative. She was a registered Republican until 2021. In 2016, she expressed disapproval of Donald Trump as a presidential candidate. After the January 6 United States Capitol attack, she condemned the event. She then announced that she would leave the Republican Party and become an independent voter.

In 2006, Patricia Heaton signed an advertisement in the Los Angeles Times. It condemned Hamas and Hezbollah and supported Israel during a conflict. In October 2023, she was a strong supporter of Israel during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war. She released a video comparing the conflict to the Holocaust.

In 2006, Patricia Heaton appeared in a commercial against a Missouri state constitutional amendment. This amendment concerned embryonic stem cell research. The amendment later passed. She later said she regretted doing the ad and apologized to actor Michael J. Fox. He had appeared in an ad supporting the amendment. Fox accepted her apology.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1992	Memoirs of an Invisible Man	Ellen
	Beethoven	Brie Wilson
1994	The New Age	Anna
1996	Space Jam	Woman Fan
2006	Amazing Grace	n/a	Producer
2014	Moms' Night Out	Sondra	Also executive producer
2017	The Star	Edith (voice)
2018	Smallfoot	Mama Bear (voice)
2022	Mending the Line	Dr. Burke
2023	Unexpected	n/a	Producer
2024	The Beldham	Sadie
2025	The Unbreakable Boy	0TBA	Post-production
	The Ritual	0TBA	Post-production
TBA	Merv	0TBA	Post-production

Key

Denotes films that have not yet been released

Television

Awards and nominations

See also

In Spanish: Patricia Heaton para niños