She is known for her role in films such as The Happiest Millionaire, Victor Victoria, Clue, Burglar, Cop, Color of Night and Secretary. She has also had roles in popular TV shows such as Mission: Impossible, Desperate Housewives, Crossing Jordan, Will & Grace, and In Plain Sight.
Personal life
Warren was born in New York City, New York, the daughter of Carol (née Verblow), a singer, and William Warren, a real estate agent. Her family, by both sides, was of Russian Jewish descent, and her father's originally surname was "Warrenoff".Her 1967 marriage to producer Jon Peters ended in divorce in 1977. They have one son, Christopher Peters (born 1968, now an actor). She married Ronald Taft in 2000.Career
The 5-foot-8 inch Warren began her career as a ballet dancer, training at the School of American Ballet. She entered the Actors Studio at the age of 17 — reputedly the youngest applicant ever to be accepted. Her Broadway debut came in 1963 in the musical, 110 in the Shade. She won the Theatre World Award for her performance in the 1965 flop musical Drat! The Cat!. In 1973, she portrayed Scarlett O'Hara in the Los Angeles production of the musical Scarlett; however the play was poorly reviewed and did not continue to Broadway as planned.Having failed to obtain the role of Liesl in the film version of The Sound of Music, Warren's first major television success was in the title role of Rodgers and Hammerstein's television special, Cinderella, in 1965. She later played the part of Dana Lambert, the leading female on the Mission: Impossible team during the 1970-1971 television season. According to The Complete Mission: Impossible Dossier by Patrick White, she was considered too inexperienced for the part and left after only one year. Despite her departure, throughout the 1970s, Warren became a leading lady of TV movies, TV series and TV miniseries. She even hosted her own episode of The Muppet Show and made an occasional feature film. Warren also played Lois Lane in the 1975 TV special It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman, adapted from the Broadway musical of the same name. Warren went on to screen-test for the role of Lois Lane in the 1978 Superman film, a role that was ultimately won by Margot Kidder (footage of Warren's screen-test has been included as a supplemental feature on VHS and DVD releases of the film).
For her portrayal of a dim-witted gangster's moll in the 1982 musical-comedy Victor Victoria, Warren was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Warren is also a five-time Golden Globes nominee and won for the 1977 miniseries Harold Robbins' 79 Park Avenue. She was Emmy-nominated for the TV movie Family of Spies (1991).
In 1975, Warren played a disturbed mental patient opposite Peter Falk and George Hamilton in the Columbo episode A Deadly State of Mind. Warren played Princess Jeanetta in Shelly Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre's The Dancing Princesses. In the comedy film version of the popular board game Clue (1985), she starred as one of the prime murder suspects, Miss Scarlet. In 1986, Lesley was prominently featured in Bob Seger's popular music video for his hit song "American Storm". In 1989, she appeared in Aerosmith video "Janie's Got a Gun" where she played Janie's mother.She was also featured in a video for the Eagles' "Life in the Fast Lane." In 1994 Warren had a major supporting role in the 1994 erotic thriller, Color of Night in which she played a nymphomaniac however the film was poorly received and she was nominated for a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress. However the film was a success on the home video market.
Warren had recurring roles on Will & Grace as Will Truman's father's mistress, and on Desperate Housewives as Susan Mayer's mother. Other television roles have included Lily Lebowski's mother on Crossing Jordan and Kip Stedman's mother in Less than Perfect.
Warren plays the role of Mary Shannon's mother in the USA Network original television series, In Plain Sight.
Filmography
Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella (1965)
Gunsmoke, (TV), Harvest, 3/26/1966, Season 11, Episode 27
The Happiest Millionaire (1967)
The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band (1968)
Seven in Darkness (1969) (First ABC-TV "Movie of the Week" to be broadcast)
Mission: Impossible (TV) (1970–1971)
It's A Bird!... It's a Plane!... It's Superman! (TV) (1975)
Columbo: A Deadly State of Mind (TV) (1975)
79 Park Avenue (1977)
Race for the Yankee Zephyr (1981)
Victor Victoria (1982) (Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress)
A Night in Heaven (1983)
Choose Me (1984)
Songwriter (1984)
The Dancing Princesses, Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre (1984)
Evergreen (1985)
Clue (1985)
A Fight for Jenny (1986)
Apology (1986)
Burglar (1987)
Cop (1987)
Worth Winning (1989)
Family of Spies (1990)
Life Stinks (1991)
Pure Country (1992)
Desperate Justice (AKA A Mother's Revenge) (1993)
Color of Night (1994)
Joseph (1995)
Going All the Way (1997)
All of It (1998)
The Limey (1999)
Teaching Mrs. Tingle (1999) (uncredited cameo)
Will & Grace (2000-2006, 5 episodes)
Secretary (2002)
Deepwater (2006)
10th and Wolf (2006)
When Do We Eat? (2006)
Constellation (2007)
In Plain Sight (2008–present) as Jinx Shannon.
Bound by a Secret (2009)
Desperate Housewives as Sophie Bremmer-Flickman (2005; role reprised in 2011 episode)
Working Class (2011 in "Medieval Woman") as Barbra Garrett.