Alex Borstein

Alexandrea Borstein was born on February 15, 1971, in Highland Park, Illinois. She spent her early years in Deerfield, Illinois, before her family relocated to Northridge, California. Borstein graduated from Chatsworth High School in 1989 and later pursued higher education at San Francisco State University, where she studied rhetoric. Her career in entertainment began in improvisational comedy at the ACME Comedy Theater, where she met her future husband and writing partner, Jackson Douglas. Early writing credits included animated series such as “The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper” and “Pinky and the Brain.” In 1996, she lent her voice to the character Queen Machina in “Power Rangers Zeo.” A significant turning point occurred in 1997 when Borstein joined the cast of the sketch comedy show “MADtv,” initially as a featured player and later becoming a repertory cast member. During her time on “MADtv,” she developed several notable characters, including Ms. Swan.

Building on her work at “MADtv,” Borstein was cast by Seth MacFarlane in 1998 for the voice role of Lois Griffin in the animated sitcom “Family Guy,” which premiered on Fox in 1999. Beyond her primary voice acting role, she also contributes as a producer and staff writer for the series. In 2000, she was initially cast as Sookie St. James in “Gilmore Girls” but her “MADtv” contract prevented her from continuing, though she made recurring guest appearances as Drella and Miss Celine throughout the show’s run. Her film roles include Ms. Ungermeyer in “The Lizzie McGuire Movie” (2003), Sally in “Catwoman” (2004), and a small role in “Bad Santa” (2003). In 2013, she received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance for her work on “Family Guy.”

Borstein’s career continued to evolve with roles in critically acclaimed productions. From 2013 to 2015, she starred as Dawn Forchette in the HBO comedy series “Getting On.” Her portrayal of Susie Myerson in the Amazon Prime Video series “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (2017–2023) earned her widespread recognition, including two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. In 2018, she also won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance for “Family Guy.” Her production company, Crackerpants, Inc., released “Drop Dead Gorgeous (in a Down-to-Earth Bombshell Sort of Way)” in 2007, a recording of a live performance. She has also served as a writer and consulting producer for the Showtime series “Shameless” (2011–2013).