If there has ever been such a category in the awards for best actors and actresses that you may never have heard of, Debra Winger will have a cabinet full of awards. The 5-foot 4-inch tall actress had a brilliant acting career in the 1980s and was nominated for several awards at various ceremonies, including the Golden Globes, BAFTA, and Academy Awards, but never won any of them.
Debra Winger Biography
Debra Winger was born Debra Lynn Winger, daughter of Robert and Ruth Winger, on May 16, 1955, in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. Not much is known about Winger’s childhood except that she was born into an Orthodox Jewish family and spent a significant portion of her early years in Israel.
Around the age of 18, after returning to the United States, Winger was involved in a terrible car accident that left her partially paralyzed and blind for a period of 10 months due to a cerebral hemorrhage that she suffered. During the time of her recovery, Winger is said to have had deep thoughts that led her to become an actress.
After moving to Los Angeles, California, she began taking acting classes and registered with an agent. Only two years after the accident she was able to have her first performance in Slumber Party ’57 (1976). She then played the role of Drusilla in the ABC television series Wonder Woman before going ashore to star in the disco comedy Thank God It’s Friday (1978) and Urban Cowboy (1980).
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Debra Winger’s performance in the latter film and in the following years, Cannery Row (1982), An Officer and a Gentleman (1982), and Terms of Endearment (1983), earned her much praise in the film industry, but most importantly, she received nominations at various awards ceremonies. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Winger appeared in films such as Legal Eagles (1986), Black Widow (1987), Shadowlands (1993), A Dangerous Woman (1993), and Forget Paris (1995) before taking a short break from the acting scene.
The winger spent her time away from the limelight and focused on her private life, while at the same time pursuing other activities, including theater performances and teaching at Harvard University. Upon her return in the 2000s, she picked up where she left off, starring in films such as Big Bad Love (2001) and Rachel Getting Married (2008).
Debra Winger’s Net Worth
According to the website Celebrity Net Worth, Debra Winger has net assets of $16 million. The critically acclaimed actress has been able to accumulate her wealth through her various roles in the film industry, both as an actress and as a producer.
Husband and Family Facts
Debra Winger has been involved in a number of high-profile relationships in the past. Before the actress entered her first marriage, she was with actor Andrew Rubin from about 1977 to 1980 and with the then Governor of Nebraska, Bob Kerrey, from 1983 to 1985. However, actor Timothy Hutton, born in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, later married actor Timothy Hutton, who is best known for his leading roles in films such as Ordinary People (1980) and The Falcon and the Snowman (1985). The two exchanged their vows in 1986, and a year later they welcomed a son named Noah Hutton. A few years later, in 1990, the couple, who seemed very happy in their relationship, divorced.
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It took a while before Winger found love again, but she finally did when she married the actor and director Arliss Howard in 1996. The two are said to have met on the set of the romantic comedy Wild Napalm (1993) before entering into a relationship. In 1997 Winger and Howard welcomed their second, but first and only child together, a son named Gideon Babe Ruth Howard. She later became the stepmother of Sam Howard, her husband’s son from a previous marriage.
Winger and Howard have remained inseparable throughout their marriage and have managed to stay away from any controversy. They have also found pleasure in working together as they both starred in the films Big Bad Love (2001) and Dawn Anna (2005), directed by Arliss Howard and co-written by him and his brother James Howard.
