FILMOGRAPHY
2005] Murder In The Hamptons (TV)
2005] Between
2004] Raising Waylon (TV)
2004]
50 Ways to Leave Your Lover
2002-] "Without a Trace"
2002] "Glory Days"
2001] "Blonde" (mini)
2000] This Space Between Us
2000] "The Beat"
2000] Men Named Milo, Women Named Greta
1999] The Wonder Cabinet (TV)
1999] Life
1999] The Other Sister
1998] Dead Man on Campus
1997] Desert's Edge (TV)
1996] Peacock Blues (TV)
1996] "Relativity"
1996] The Cold Equations (TV)
1995] Devil in a Blue Dress
1995] Jake Lassiter: Justice on the Bayou (TV)
1994] Tammy and the T-Rex
CONTACT
Poppy
Montgomery
c/o Creative Artist Agency
9830 Wilshire Blvd.
Beverly Hills, CA 90212
USA
Poppy Montgomery
c/o WITHOUT A TRACE
Jerry Bruckheimer TV
4000 Warner Blvd.,
Bldg. 36, Rm. 123
Burbank, CA 91522
USA
LINKS
Born 19 June 1972 Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Poppy was born Poppy Petal O'Donahue but uses her mother's maiden name Montgomery as her stage name.
Her mother, Nicola, is a market researcher and father, Phil, a restaurateur.
Poppy has nine siblings (including some half-brothers and sisters & step children) - along with herself, 5 of them are named after flowers.
Poppy on her family:
"My mother is a combination of the two characters on "Absolutely Fabulous." She says things like, "Sweetie, baby, not a good look. It's very non you." She also says, "Stop talking about the names I've given my bloody children, will you? It's getting boring." She's insane. My dad is kind of an old hippie. He's got a ponytail. He thinks he's Sean Connery. But yes, they influenced me a great deal. My family was about getting everything out on the table, and then it was over, much-to the chagrin of all of my ex-boyfriends. Also, they did influence me in the sense that I just got on a plane when I was 18, and came here, and they were very supportive of that. I had no family here. I didn't know anybody. I never acted before. And that comes from them, I think."
Poppy on making the move to America:
"It just happened. I was working for my dad at one of his restaurants and he fired me because I was rude to a customer. My boyfriend and I broke up, and I was like, That's it, I'm going to the States. I went to Florida first and then I took a Greyhound to L.A. Originally I wanted to go to acting school in New York. Then I read about Bob McGowan, who had been Julia Roberts's manager, in this book called How to Make It in Hollywood. I called him up and in this thick Australian accent said, "Hi, I'm Poppy." He said he didn't represent unknowns. So I sent him a head shot every day. Eventually he signed me by fax from New York. Peg Donegan is now my manager. She's like family, which is really important to me."
Poppy on her move to Hollywood:
"I grew up in Sydney. Originally my plan was to come to the States and go to Juilliard, but at the last minute I changed my mind and landed in Hollywood. It was the best decision I ever made because I got a part on the [TV] show 'Relativity'. I wouldn't say I'm a big star back home, but after 'Blonde', people grew interested in me because I've made a name for myself here. Sometimes the newspapers will call my mom at home and ask her questions about me, which is kind of funny."
Poppy on Without A Trace:
"I put in about 75 hours a week on the series. I have no time for anything else, I'm working all the time. But I don't mind. Acting is my passion."
Poppy on what she thinks of being named Poppy Petal:
"Sounds like a porno star. It was sheer torture growing up. It was horrible. I was called "Sloppy Poppy," "Poopy Poppy," and I (thought), "I hate my name." But now it's good, except that everyone thinks I made it up. "Is that your real name, is that your stage name?" I'm like, "No, it's my real name. I suffered as a teenager, let me have it now. It's mine."
Poppy on wanting to act:
"I knew all my life. I wanted to be one of the singers in The Sound of Music, which I watched about a million times."
Poppy on Marilyn Monroe:
"I was a huge fan of hers ever since I remember. I don't even remember where it started, it was that far back. As a child I had posters and saw all her movies, (and) I read all the books about her, including the inspiration for this film, the Joyce Carol Oates novel "Blonde," which I read five times. I think that she's a role model to me in many ways. A lot of people say, "Oh, but she's such a tragic figure." I don't view her as a tragic figure. I view her as a woman who achieved greatness in her life and left behind an incredible legacy, this amazing body of work. You know, outside of this Andy Warhol image that she has become, she left her work behind. To me she's a role model as an actor and as a person. I think she was a gentle soul and the world was a little bit harsh for her."
Poppy on being recognised:
"I was standing on the line at the market the other day surrounded by TV Guides with my face on the cover, and no one gave me a second glance. They were all looking at the TV Guide. I felt like saying, "But that's me," and I realized that no one would believe it. There I am in my sweats with my hair in a bun and circles under my eyes and I'm on the TV Guide cover."
Poppy on who influenced her:
"Molly Ringwald. I thought she was just fabulous because she was so different. She made girls like me with freckles and red hair think, Wow, I'm beautiful too. And Gillian Armstrong's films impacted me beyond belief."
Poppy on her American accent:
"It is much to the mortification of my family that I sound this way. I was on a show called "Relativity" when I first got here, and I kept thinking I was going to get fired if my Australian accent came through. So, I basically started talking in an American accent all the time. Initially, I ould just talk very slowly -- enunciate everything -- and it sort of became second nature. I can't do the Australian accent anymore. I went for an audition to play an Australian girl. I thought I was a shoe-in. The feedback to my manager was it was the worst Australian accent they ever heard. So I think I've kind of beaten it out of my system."
Poppy on her changing world:
"In Australia, Hollywood was the fantasy world. Did I ever think I would be playing Diane Keaton's daughter? Did I ever think I'd be doing a film with Eddie Murphy? No, he was like a mythical creature. I do think L.A. has changed me. I used to run around in Australia barefoot - bugs, snakes, I didn't give a shit. And all my little brothers and sisters are like that. They're so tough. I went to visit my mum recently and she said, "Come down and see the rain forest. It's gorgeous." I looked in and there was this tangle of bush and dark and my Mum was just strolling through. I said, "There's spiders, Mum." And she was like, "What happened to you in America? You used to be so ballsy." "Mum, I've got flip-flops on. I just had a pedicure." My mum was strolling around looking like someone out of some fabulous film, walking over bush with open-toed shoes, not caring."
Actress Jane Adams on Poppy:
"Poppy cheers me up. I first met Poppy Petal Montgomery at the audition for the TV series Relativity (1996-97). I was instantly attracted to her exuberant, elfin quality. Immediately after the audition, we were told we had the roles. I was feeling both pleased and a little lest when Poppy led me to the bar in the ABC complex, where we stayed laughing and talking for hours. I had no sisters growing up; Poppy played my sister on TV - and in real-life she has become like a sister to me."