Thora Birch

Born on March 11th, 1982 to Jack and Carol Birch, Thora was encouraged early on to pursue an acting career. Going only by her first name, Thora managed to get jobs doing television advertisements and then moved on to television sitcoms. She appeared as Molly on the short-lived Day by Day. However, it was while portraying another Molly, however, that she really caught people’s attention, in the 1988 movie The Purple People Eater. She won a Youth in Film Award for the role. Thora went on to appear in another television series, Parenthood. It was at this point that the actress formerly known as Thora added the Birch to her name. The addition seemed to bring her luck as good things started to happen. She soon landed a role opposite Elijah Wood in Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith’s Paradise. Next came roles in the adaptations of Tom Clancy’s bestselling novels, Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger. At the same time, she was also appearing in some nice family fare too - Hocus Pocus and Monkey Trouble most notably. Then came Now and Then and Thora’s first teenaged role in which she starred opposite several other up-and-comers, Gaby Hoffman, Christina Ricci and Devon Sawa. She also appeared in the adventure epic Alaska opposite heartthrob Vincent Kartheiser. However, those years seemed to be the hay-day of her career as the roles soon stopped coming, or else Thora chose to take a break. Either way, her career was on hold. Capable of playing cute little tots, the mature Thora may not have been so easily acceptable. Recently, Thora has reappeared on the Hollywood map. After completing a television movie entitled, Night Ride Home, she then appeared in a feature film, American Beauty. The latter, produced by Dreamworks, also starred Annette Bening and Kevin Spacey. The film was both a critical and audience favorite - generating early Oscar buzz for its cast. Thora and her fellow young actress co-star, Mena Suvari, both saw their careers boost as a result. The duo were hailed by critics as two of the most promising stars of their generation. It was just what Thora needed to jumpstart her stalled career - and I think that we can consider the comeback complete.

Thora Birch

The one and only Thora Birch. Named after the Norse God of Lighting.

American Beauty

Her latest film was the movie American Beauty. ( I LOVED this movie. )

Greatest Picture of Thora Birch

Isn't she so cute???