A ravishing, raven-haired looker, Sofer made her first big impression in a succession of daytime dramas. She was particularly beloved for her turn as the savvy, "Noo Yawk" record promoter Lois Cerullo on
General Hospital, a role that won her a Best Supporting Actress Daytime Emmy, as well as a husband — Wallace Kurth, who played her on-screen spouse. In the mid-'90s, Sofer made the leap to prime time, guest-starring in a number of series before appropriately landing a regular part on the campy evening soap
Melrose Place. A string of flop series followed (
Oh, Grow Up, The Chronicle, and the notorious sitcom
Coupling, which was infamously touted as the next
Friends), but although the shows were short-lived, Sofer proved that she wasn't just another vapid pretty face. Recurring roles on the sitcom
Just Shoot Me! and the dramedy
Ed widened her exposure. After taking a brief hiatus to give birth to a daughter with her second husband, TV director Sanford Bookstaver, she returned to the small screen in 2006 with recurring roles in two hits,
24 and
Heroes, as long-suffering wife to two shady characters, a power broker and an aspiring politician, respectively.
Rena Sofer Fast Facts:
- Father is an Orthodox Jewish rabbi; mother is a psychologist.
- Was discovered at age 15 by an Elite Petite modeling agency scout.
- Worked as a model and appeared in music videos, industrial films and commercials before breaking into soap operas.
- Won a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series and a Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Younger Actress, both in 1995 for General Hospital.
- Rena Sofer Relationships:
- Avalon Leone Bookstaver - Daughter
- David Sofer - Brother
- Martin Sofer - Father
- Rosabel Rosalind Kurth - Daughter
- Sanford Bookstaver - Husband
- Susan Sofer - Mother
- Wally Kurth - Ex-husband
- College:
- Attended Montclair State College, Montclair, NJ
