Alexandra Paul

Alexandra Elizabeth Paul (born July 29, 1963) is an American actress. She began her career modeling in New York before landing her first major role in John Carpenter's horror film '' Christine'' (1983). This was followed with prominent roles in '' Just the Way You Are'' (1984), '' American Flyers'' (1985), '' 8 Million Ways to Die'' (1986), and '' Dragnet'' (1987).

She is best known for her role as Lt. Stephanie Holden in the television series ''Baywatch'' from 1992 to 1997. She has performed in over 100 movies and television shows.

Early life

Paul was born in New York City to Sarah, a social worker from the United Kingdom, and Mark Paul, an American investment banker. Paul was raised alongside her identical twin sister, Caroline, and younger brother, Jonathan, in the rural town of Cornwall, Connecticut. According to Paul, her mother was "a very liberal Democrat and erfather was a very conservative Republican." Her twin sister Caroline has been a San Francisco firefighter (where she is often mistaken as Alexandra) and best-selling author. Her brother, Jonathan, was an animal rights activist and is currently a wild land firefighter in Oregon.

Paul attended the Cornwall Consolidated School, and the Groton School in Massachusetts. At ages 17 and 18, Paul underwent two major abdominal operations to remove choledochal cysts, which left her with a scar spanning from her sternum to her navel. Paul was accepted into Stanford University, but chose not to attend so that she could focus on an acting career.

Career

Paul worked prominently in television from the late 1980s onward, perhaps most recognizable in her starring role on ''Baywatch'', from 1992 to 1997. Paul began her career working as a model in New York City, and later moved to Los Angeles when she decided to pursue a career in acting. Her first role was in the independent Canadian horror film '' American Nightmare'' (filmed in 1980 but released in 1983), followed by the television film ''Paper Dolls'' (1982). Paul then landed a leading role in John Carpenter's horror film '' Christine'' (1983), opposite Keith Gordon, followed by a supporting role in the comedy '' Just the Way You Are'' (1984).

She later appeared in the sport drama '' American Flyers'' (1985) with Kevin Costner, '' 8 Million Ways to Die'' (1986), and the comedy '' Dragnet'' (1987), opposite Tom Hanks and Dan Aykroyd."''CHRISTINE'' Revisited, Part Two: A Q&A with Alexandra Paul
, fangoria.com; accessed July 29, 2015. She also starred in the films '' Death Train'' (1993) and '' Nightwatch'' (1995) opposite Christopher Lee and Pierce Brosnan, as well as the horror films '' The Paperboy'' (1994) and '' Spectre'' (1996).

Since 1999, she has starred in 15 films for Lifetime Network. She has also starred in the Fox TV series ''Fire Company 132'' and appeared in the last eight episodes of ''Melrose Place''. She guest-starred on ''Mad Men'' in 2008. She hosted non-fiction TV shows, including WE's ''Winning Women'' and a southern California local environmentalism show, ''Earth Talk Today''. She made a cameo appearance with Sacha Baron Cohen in '' Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan'' in a deleted scene parodying her ''Baywatch'' role. She did a cameo in the comedy spoofs ''Spy Hard'' and '' Sharknado: The 4th Awakens''.

In 2015, Paul won Indie Series' Best Supporting Actress in a comedy webseries.

Paul co-wrote and co-produced two documentaries: ''Jampacked'', a documentary on the world population crisis, and ''The Cost of Cool: Finding Happiness in a Materialistic World''. ''Jampacked'' received a Bronze Apple Award and first place recognition at the EarthVision Environmental Film and Video Festival. ''The Cost of Cool'' won a CINE Golden Eagle Award. She also produced eight PSAs on the benefits of driving electric vehicles for the non-profit Plug In America.

In 2019, Paul acted in three movies, among them, ''Escaping My Stalker''. In 2020, she appeared in four projects, and in 2022 she starred in the independent films ''Tethered'' and ''Baby Steps''.

Since 2019, Paul has co-hosted the plant based lifestyle podcast Switch4Good with Olympian Dotsie Bausch. In 2024, their show was named Best Vegan Podcast by Mercy for Animals.
In 2024
Alexandra was featured
in the Hulu docuserie
After Baywatch: A Moment in the Sun
an in depth look at the series Baywatch and the actors involved in the show.

Personal life

Alexandra and triathlon coach Ian Murray have been together since 1995, and they married in 2000. She became a vegetarian at age fourteen after reading the book '' Diet for a Small Planet'' by Frances Moore Lappé, and became a vegan in 2010.

As an athlete, Paul raced the Hawaii Ironman in 1997. She ran the 2000 Boston Marathon. She has also swam the 11 mile Fiji Swim, the 12.5 mile Swim Around Key West and the 2014 Reto Acapulco 14 mile swim, among others.

In 2015, Paul became a certified health coach and had her own wellness coaching business for 7 years.

Activism

At the age of 22, Alexandra co-founde
Young Artists United
with 21 year old producer and manager Daniel Sladek. YAU was made up of young actors, producers, writers and other Hollywood creatives working together to have a positive effect by speaking in schools, raising money for youth organizations and producing PSAs. It was honoured by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). Paul is also an animal rights, environmental, peace and gay rights activist. She walked weeks on the Great Peace March for Global Nuclear Disarmament in 1986. Paul has been arrested for civil disobedience over a dozen times at the Nevada Test Site between 1987 and 2000. In 1989, she was arrested for peacefully advocating on behalf of people with HIV. She was arrested twice in 2003 for civil disobedience protesting the Iraq War and spent five days in the Los Angeles Metropolitan Detention Center after refusing to pay the $50 fine. In 2005, she was arrested for protesting the crushing of the EV1, and performed 80–100 hours of community service for electric car organizations. Paul's younger brother, Jonathan, is also an animal rights activist, who served 51 months in prison for his role in the arson of a slaughterhouse.

She has traveled to Nicaragua with Operation USA and to South Africa to register voters. Paul volunteered in Sierra Leone with the non profit Population Media Center. She ha
spoken to dozens of classrooms
about the issue of human overpopulation, including several times at San Diego State University and to graduate students at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. In 2006, Paul donated $250 to the Ned Lamont campaign against Joe Lieberman, because Lieberman supported the war in Iraq.

Paul was an active member for 9 years of the Santa Monica, CA chapter of Food Not Bombs, where she picked up donations, cooked, and served hot vegan meals to the homeless community every Thursday evening. She also registered voters sitting at a card table on LA street corners for 2 hours a week from 1989 to 2010 with The First Vote.

She received the 2014 Vegan of the Year by Last Chance for Animals, and in 2007 received a United Nations Environment Programme honor for her contribution to overpopulation issues.

In 2016, Paul joined Direct Action Everywhere in an open rescue of several pigs from a factory farm. In 2017, she joined a sit-in at an Oakland, California slaughterhouse and was arrested. In 2018, she was arrested for a civil disobedience action at Sunrise Chicken Farm. In 2019, she was arrested for peacefully protesting at Reichardt Duck Farm and spent two days in Sonoma County jail. In September 2020, Paul and 6 other DxE activists were arrested for trying to rescue a pig from a Farmer John slaughterhouse in Vernon, CA.
In 2023, Alexandra went to court for rescuing a chicken from a Foster Farms slaughterhouse truck. After a 9 day trial
she was acquitted

In discussing her political activism, Paul said:

I am sure there are some who do not like me for my outspokenness and my views, and I totally respect their right to boycott my projects. I actually respect folks who stand up for their beliefs — even if I disagree with them — more than the folks who do not care, are afraid to 'get involved', or who cannot be bothered. I admire passion and commitment. A woman once told me she could not watch those slaughterhouse videos because she 'loves animals so much' and it would upset her. I would prefer to hang out with a hunter who believes he is doing the right thing, than a wuss like her.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

Bibliography

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External links

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Coaching site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paul, Alexandra
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
American environmentalists
American women environmentalists
American film actresses
American television actresses
American people of English descent
Actresses from New York City
Groton School alumni
Identical twins
Living people
American twins
Activists from New York (state)
1963 births