Biography
From the early '90s onward, African-American actress Paula Newsome built a fairly substantial career for herself via many small supporting roles in films and television series. She debuted on the big screen in 1992, as Ellen in Barnet Kellman's
Dolly Parton comedy
Straight Talk, then spent years making single-episode appearances in such programs as
ER,
Ally McBeal, and Law & Order, as well as multiple-episode runs on
Chicago Hope,
NYPD Blue, and
The Lyon's Den. Newsome's career escalated most dramatically, however, between 2006 and 2007, with her contributions to the comedy
Little Miss Sunshine (2006), the
Adam Sandler drama
Reign Over Me, and the ABC detective series
Women's Murder Club (as Claire Washburn, a member of an all-female team of investigators). ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide