Melina Eleni Kanakaredes Constantinides ( el, Μελίνα Ελένη Κανακαρίδη Κωνσταντινίδη; born April 23, 1967) is an American actress. She is widely known for her roles in U.S. primetime television dramas as Dr. Sydney Hansen in ''

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

'' (1999–2002), as Detective Stella Bonasera in ''

CSI: NY ''CSI: NY'' (''Crime Scene Investigation: New York'', stylized as ''CSI: NY/Crime Scene Investigation'') is an American police procedural television series that ran on CBS from September 22, 2004, to February 22, 2013, for a total of nine season ...

'' (2004–2010), and on the American daytime television drama series ''

Guiding Light ''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the third longest-running drama in television in American history. ''Guiding Light'' a ...

'' as Eleni Andros Cooper (1991–1995).

Early life

Kanakaredes was born in

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city ...

, the daughter of Connie (née Temo), a candy company owner, and Harry Kanakaredes, an insurance salesman. She is a second-generation Greek-American and speaks Greek fluently. Her two maternal uncles own and run a candy store in Akron called "Temo's Candy Company", a chocolate store established in its current location by Kanakaredes's grandfather, Christ Temo.Temo's candy is an Easter tradition in Akron
a March 2007 ''

Akron Beacon Journal The ''Akron Beacon Journal'' is a morning newspaper in Akron, Ohio, United States. Owned by Gannett, it is the sole daily newspaper in Akron and is distributed throughout Northeast Ohio. The paper's coverage focuses on local news. The Beacon ...

'' article via Topix.net At age eight, Kanakaredes made her stage debut in a production of ''Tom Sawyer'' at Weathervane Playhouse in Akron, Ohio. She graduated from the

Firestone High School Firestone Community Learning Center (Firestone CLC), previously known as Harvey S. Firestone High School, is a public high school located on the northwest side of Akron, Ohio. It is one of seven high schools in the Akron Public Schools. The high s ...

in Akron.Profile
from "Women in Akron History" from a

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classifie ...

website She attended

The Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publi ...

for a short time, and then transferred to

Point Park College Point Park University is a private university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Formerly known as Point Park College, the school name was revised in 2004 to reflect the number of graduate programs being offered. History Beginnings The university bega ...

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, where she performed roles in the professional theatre scene there, including the role of Mary Magdalene in ''

Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Gospels' accounts of the Passion, the work interprets the psychology of Jesus and other characters, with ...

'' at

Pittsburgh Musical Theater Pittsburgh Musical Theater (PMT) is a professional theatre company located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1990, the company has since expanded with the educational programs offered by the Richard E. Rauh Conservatory of Musical Theater. ...

. She graduated from Point Park in 1989 with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree in

theater arts Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

Career

Television

Kanakaredes's first television role was on the daytime drama ''

'', originating the role of Eleni Andros Cooper from 1991 to 1995. She was nominated twice for a Daytime Emmy Award for her portrayal of Eleni. Her most high-profile roles on television were as the series protagonist Dr. Sydney Hansen on ''

'', which ran for five seasons between 1999 and 2002, and as Det. Stella Bonasera on the CBS drama series ''

''. Kanakaredes left ''CSI: NY'' in 2010, after six seasons on the program. Other television credits include ''

NYPD Blue ''NYPD Blue'' is an American police procedural television series set in New York City, exploring the struggles of the fictional 15th Precinct detective squad in Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensembl ...

'' (in a recurring role as reporter Benita Alden during that show's second season), ''

Due South ''Due South'' is a Canadian crime comedy-drama television series created by Paul Haggis, and produced by Alliance Communications from its premiere on April 26, 1994, to its conclusion after four seasons on March 14, 1999. The series starred P ...

'', '' Oz'', ''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy ...

'', MTV's ''

The Ben Stiller Show ''The Ben Stiller Show'' is an American sketch comedy series that aired on MTV from 1990 to 1991, and then on Fox from September 27, 1992, to January 17, 1993. The Fox program starred Ben Stiller, Andy Dick, Janeane Garofalo and Bob Odenkirk. ...

'', a

Hallmark Hall of Fame ''Hallmark Hall of Fame'', originally called ''Hallmark Television Playhouse'', is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City-based greeting card company. The longest-running prime-time series in ...

adaptation of the

Anne Tyler Anne Tyler (born October 25, 1941) is an American novelist, short story writer, and literary critic. She has published twenty-four novels, including '' Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant'' (1982), ''The Accidental Tourist'' (1985), and ''Breathi ...

novel ''

Saint Maybe ''Saint Maybe'' is a 1991 novel by American author Anne Tyler. Plot Tyler's plot explores the ways ordinary people react to disastrous events with quietly heroic behavior. When seventeen-year-old Ian Bedloe confronts his older brother Danny wit ...

'', and Dr Lane Hunter on the

Amy Holden Jones Amy Holden Jones is an American screenwriter and film director best known for creating the FOX medical drama '' The Resident''. She has edited various films and later began directing and writing. She currently works in television. Early life an ...

TV series '' The Resident''.

Film

Kanakaredes's film appearances include ''

The Long Kiss Goodnight ''The Long Kiss Goodnight'' is a 1996 American action thriller film co-produced and directed by Renny Harlin, and produced by Shane Black and Stephanie Austin with screenplay written by Black. It stars Geena Davis, Samuel L. Jackson, Tom Amand ...

'' as Trin and ''

15 Minutes ''15 Minutes'' is a 2001 American satirical buddy cop action thriller film directed and written by John Herzfeld and starring Robert De Niro and Edward Burns. Its story revolves around a homicide detective (De Niro) and a fire marshal (Burns) w ...

'' as Nicolette Karas, the girlfriend of

Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...

's character. She was considered for the lead role in ''

My Big Fat Greek Wedding ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' is a 2002 romantic comedy film directed by Joel Zwick and written by Nia Vardalos, who also stars in the film as Fotoula "Toula" Portokalos, a middle class Greek American woman who falls in love with White Anglo-Saxo ...

'' but had to turn it down due to her pregnancy. She played the role of the

Greek Goddess A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities of de ...

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of v ...

in '' Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief'' and starred in the 2013 drama ''

Snitch Snitch may refer to: * Informant An informant (also called an informer or, as a slang term, a “snitch”) is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the la ...

'' alongside Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson.

Personal life

Kanakaredes married Peter ConstantinidesKanakaredes savors her married life
from ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' on September 6, 1992. Together, they have two daughters: Zoe (b. 2000) and Karina Eleni (b. 2003). She and her husband, a former restaurant consultant, owned the "Tria Greek Kuzina" in

Powell, Ohio Powell is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio, located 14 miles (21.5 km) north of the state capital of Columbus. The city is located in Delaware County; a frequent placeholder on the List of highest-income counties in the United States, and 35t ...

, but it has since closed.Official website
for Tria Greek Kuzina

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
''CSI: NY'' cast member biography
at

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kanakaredes, Melina 1967 births 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American people of Greek descent American soap opera actresses American television actresses American video game actresses Living people Actresses from Akron, Ohio Point Park University alumni

Early life

Career

Television

Film

Personal life

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Awards and nominations

See also

References

External links