Actress, producer and activist Francine Drescher was born in Flushing on Sept. 30, 1957.
After debuting in the 1977 blockbuster “Saturday Night Fever,” Drescher slowly built her career with small film roles in the 1970s and ’80s. She burst onto the Hollywood scene with her own TV sitcom “The Nanny” in 1993 and has appeared in some 30 movies and more than 20 television shows.
Her latest production was the television comedy “Happily Divorced,” based upon her own separation after 21 years from former husband and actor Peter Marc Jacobson. The actress from Queens is a cancer survivor and well-known on screen for her pronounced New York accent.
The younger of two children, Drescher grew up in Kew Gardens Hills and attended Hillcrest High School with actor Ray Romano. She developed an interest in acting in junior high, and in 1973 she was the first runner-up for Miss New York Teenager.
Following high school, Drescher and future husband Jacobson supported themselves as discount hairdressers while pursuing acting gigs in Manhattan.
The first break for the girl from Kew Gardens Hills came with a small speaking role opposite John Travolta in “Saturday Night Fever,” and in the 1980s she appeared as a comic actress in movies such as “Gorp” and “This is Spinal Tap.”
At the same time, Drescher began to make a name for herself on prime time television with guest appearances on shows including “Silver Spoons,” “Who’s the Boss?” and “Night Court.”
It was “The Nanny,” which ran from 1993-99, which made her a star. Produced by Drescher and Jacobson, the show cast Fran as the charming and outgoing New York nanny Fran Fine.
The actress with the trademark New York voice was nominated for two Emmys and two Golden Globes for her performance during the six-year run. She built on her fame and success with film appearances alongside Robin Williams in Francis Ford Coppola’s comedy-drama “Jack,” and with Woody Allen in the 2000 black comedy “Picking up the Pieces.”
Before producing and starring in “Happily Divorced” from 2011-13, the Queens native appeared in television shows including “Entourage” and “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” and lent her voice to a character on “The Simpsons.”
Off screen, Drescher gives her time to a variety of causes. She has been supportive of LGBT issues since her ex-husband came out as homosexual after their divorce, and as a cancer survivor she is an advocate of early screening and awareness of the symptoms of the dreadful disease.
Drescher has penned two New York Times-bestselling books, including “Cancer Schmancer,” an account of her successful battle with uterine cancer, and started an awareness group called the Cancer Schmancer Movement.
In recognition of her efforts, President George W. Bush appointed the diehard Democrat as public diplomacy envoy for women’s health issues in 2008, and Drescher has traveled the globe advocating women’s health and patient rights.
In recognition of her multitude of talents and unique, straight-out-of-Queens character, some fans joke that Drescher is a “Russell”: she has the comic timing of Rosalind Russell, the curves of Jane Russell and the tenacity of a Jack Russell!
