Search - List of Books by Ricki Lake
"What's the difference between tough love and acting like a jerk?" -- Ricki Lake
Ricki Pamela Lake (born September 21, 1968) is an American actress and television host, best known for her starring role as Tracy Turnblad in the original Hairspray and for her talk show.
Lake was born to a Jewish family in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, the daughter of Jill, a homemaker, and Barry Lake, a pharmacist. She attended Ithaca College and the Professional Children's School.
Acting
Lake made her film debut as Tracy in John Waters' 1988 adaptation of Hairspray, before going on appear in several other Waters films including Cecil B. Demented, Cry-Baby and Serial Mom. In 1989, Lake joined the cast of the Vietnam War drama series China Beach as Red Cross volunteer Holly. She later went on to have recurring role as Doug's sister Stephanie on the 1998-2007 TV series King of Queens.
She also appeared in such films as Mrs. Winterbourne, Cabin Boy, Last Exit to Brooklyn, Cookie, and Inside Monkey Zetterland and in the television movie Baby Cakes.
Lake made a cameo appearance in the 2007 movie musical Hairspray as a William Morris talent agent and teamed up with star Nikki Blonsky (who plays Tracy in the 2007 remake) and Marissa Jaret Winokur (who played Tracy in the Broadway musical was based on the original 1988 film) to record "Mama I'm a Big Girl Now" for the soundtrack, which is played at the film's end credits. She will reunite with original Hairspray co-star Deborah Harry for the upcoming film Grammercy Park Hotel, set for a 2008 release. In October 2007, Lake appeared in the Lifetime original movie with Holly Robinson Peete titled Matters with Life and Dating.
Ricki Lake was originally cast in the TV show The Middle, but was replaced by Patricia Heaton after ABC announced it had greenlighted the series as a midseason 2009 replacement.. She has also guest-starred on television series including Drop Dead Diva and a voice role on King of the Hill.
Talk show
Ricki Lake was a daytime talk show. The show specialized in topics involving invited guests and incorporated questions and comments from a studio audience.
The show debuted in syndication on September 13, 1993 and ended first-run episodes on May 25, 2004.
In 2000, Lake told Rosie O'Donnell in an interview she had signed on for four additional years. Although Sony Pictures Television had many stations contracted through the 2004—2005 season, Lake decided to end the show in August 2004, citing (among other things) a desire to spend time with her family. She moved from Los Angeles to New York to tape the 11th season of the show, then returned to California when taping was complete.
Other projects
After her talk show, Lake went on to host the 2006 CBS series Gameshow Marathon, which re-created classic game shows with celebrity contestants. She also inked a development deal with Gameshow Marathon production company FremantleMedia for other ventures, including creating and producing future programs and projects.
The Business of Being Born, Lake's documentary about home birth and midwifery, was released in limited markets on January 18, 2008. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and Red Envelope released the film in New York, L.A. and San Francisco in October and it also screened in Australia. The Business of Being Born includes footage and details of her own "life changing" home birthing experience and follows a midwife going about her work. Tribeca called it "The Inconvenient Truth of Childbirth". Lake describes it as her life's work for the last three years, hopes the film educates and empowers people to really know their choices in childbirth.
In 2009, Lake returned to television. Her first project was in a CBS special that aired in January called Loving Leah. On May 11, 2009 she replaced Sharon Osbourne as host for the third installment of VH1’s Charm School.
She wrote a book on the world of natural childbirth and birthing options, along with Abby Epstein and Jacques Moritz, called Your Best Birth, published by Wellness Central on May 1, 2009. Lake and Abby Epstein also launched MyBestBirth.com, an online social network, powered by Ning, that allows parents and medical professionals to dialogue about varying birthing options and resources.
Lake met artist/illustrator Rob Sussman at a Halloween party in 1993. The couple married shortly after in Las Vegas. Their two sons are Milo Sebastian Sussman (March 22, 1997) and Owen Tyler Sussman (June 18, 2001). The two divorced in 2003 after ten years of marriage.
In early 2007, Lake pursued a "new routine" resulting in over 125 pounds of weight loss, taking her down to 120 pounds from a high of 260. In November 2007, Lake cited sexual abuse as a child as a reason for her problems with obesity.
On Sept 18, 2010 Lake's rented Malibu home was destroyed by fire. Lake and her sons escaped without injury.
