Christine Lahti

The following year, she made her first film, ...And Justice for All. A scene stealer par excellence, Lahti often found her film roles reduced in the cutting room, usually at the behest of nervous stars. Her performance as Hazel Zenutti in Swing Shift (1984) was severely pared down after previews, but that didn't prevent Lahti from being nominated for an Oscar. The endearingly off-balance nature of many of Lahti's screen characters is best summed up by her scene in Housekeeping (1987), in which she calmly carries on a conversation while her living room fills up with water. In 1995, Lahti joined the cast of the Emmy-Award-winning TV medical drama Chicago Hope, playing the part of heart-surgeon Dr. Kathryn Austin. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide