Catherine Zeta-Jones (born September 25, 1969) is an Academy Award-winning Welsh actress based predominantly in the United States.
Biography
Zeta-Jones was born Catherine Zeta Jones in Swansea, a maritime city located on the southern coast of Wales. Her mother, Patricia, was an Irish seamstress, and her father, David "Dai" Jones, was a Welsh sweet factory owner. Zeta-Jones had one older brother, David A Jones, and one younger, Lyndon.
Her father's cousin is married to singer Bonnie Tyler, who is also from Swansea, Wales. Her uncle owns Swansea's Škoda car dealership as well as Llanelli A.F.C. football club. Her name stems from those of her grandmothers — her maternal grandmother, Katherine Fair, and her paternal grandmother, Zeta Jones (the surname Zeta is of Greek origin).
Zeta-Jones was raised Catholic.
After her parents won £100,000 at bingo in the 1980s, they moved to St. Andrews Drive in Mayals, an upper class area of Swansea. Zeta-Jones attended Dumbarton House School in Swansea. Welsh comedian and actor Rob Brydon also went there. She left school early to further her acting ambitions without obtaining O levels and went on to attend The Arts Educational Schools in Chiswick for a full-time three year course in musical theatre.
Zeta-Jones' stage career began in childhood. She often performed at friends and family functions when she was younger. She was a part of a Catholic congregation's performing troupe before she was 10. During this time Zeta-Jones made her professional acting debut when she played the lead in Annie, a production at Swansea's Grand Theater.
Zeta-Jones is married to actor Michael Douglas. She claims that when they met, he used the line "I'd like to father your children". They were married at the Plaza Hotel in New York City on 18 November 2000. A traditional Welsh choir (Côr Cymraeg Rehoboth) sang at her wedding. Her Welsh gold wedding ring includes a Celtic motif and was purchased in the Welsh town of Aberystwyth.Their son, Dylan Michael Douglas, was born 8 August 2000. Their daughter, Carys Zeta Douglas, was born April 20, 2003.
Her elder brother, David A. Jones (also known as Cameron Jones), is Vice President of the film company, Initial Entertainment. He was an executive producer of Gangs of New York. Her younger brother, Lyndon Jones, is her personal manager and producer for Milkwood Films. Zeta-Jones's parents recently moved from their Mayals property to a £2 million home two miles further west along the Swansea coast, paid for by their daughter.
Apart from her acting career, Zeta-Jones is also an advertising spokeswoman, currently the global spokeswoman for cosmetics giant Elizabeth Arden. She has appeared in numerous TV commercials, as well, for the cell phone company T-Mobile.
Zeta-Jones lives predominantly with Douglas and the children in Bermuda but they are regular visitors to the new family home in Swansea, Wales.
Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders parodied Zeta-Jones as a vacuous uber-celebrity named Catherine Spartacus-Zeta-Douglas-Jones on their show French & Saunders in the series Back With a Vengeance. Catherine Spartacus-Zeta-Douglas-Jones alternates between a strong Welsh accent and a strong American accent and uses Welsh-language phrases when she speaks.
